Your Home-Built $50 Tincture Press - Principles & Details

Wanna build a sturdy, powerful, easy-to-construct Tincture Press from stuff from the hardware store and garage sales?

I developed such a Press a couple years ago, and while it is quick and extremely simple to put together, using only a saw, a drill, and a wrench, believe me, I spent MANY hours drawing up designs that were way too complex, or needed exotic wood-working techniques, or tools and equipment that I didn't own.
Finally, disgusted with it all, I just walked into Home Depot and started picking up materials, leaving everything that didn't look like a Tincture Press out of my shopping cart.

Here's what I came up with; and we've squeezed a LOT of tincture with this thing.

This is an intermediate project, because the drawings and instructions assume some experience with simple hand tools and hardware or mechanical concepts. There are other ways to build it -- especially if you wish to use another pressing vessel rig. I just found three nesting stainless steel bowls, and drilled holes in the mid-sized one. A few muslin bags are needed to hold the alcohol-sodden herbs.


TINCTURE PRESS PRINCIPLES





TINCTURE PRESS COMPONENTS & DETAILS





TINCTURE PRESS COLLECTION BOWL, SQUEEZING BOWL, AND MASH BAG.





TINCTURE PRESS CLOSE UP VIEW







TINCTURE PRESS TOP-DOWN VIEW





TINCTURE PRESS FULL VIEW





DIMENSIONS OF STAINLESS STEEL BOWLS USED AND HOLES

Bowl Diameter Height
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Collection Bowl 9" 4"
Squeezing Bowl 5 3/4" 4"
Pressing Bowl 5 1/4" 2"

Holes in Squeezing Bowl are 1/8" towards bottom and 3/6" towards top. Several rings of 8 holes.

Note: On the front side of the base, there's a little wooden shelf from 1x4", fastened at an angle, to hold things like the jack handle pipe and a block of wood or two, etc.

Note: The threaded metal rods have not been cut short. They are allowed to protrude from the top of the press beam because it may be useful to adjust the top beam height for use with larger/taller pressing vessels. You could probably make apple cider vinegar with this, given a stainless steel bucket and a few adjustments and alterations. WARNING: Apple Cider Vinegar is NEVER truly Vegan because of all those pesky worms, living in the apples!

[Edited to add photos and info]

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