Honey gate valve

[FreeFall]

You want to get Freefall's opinion on gate valves he knows all about them....

Haha... yes! Just remember if you strip the plastic ones down to clean them - the side of the gate 'flap' that has the raised edge goes on the outside, not the inside!

 

[alanf]

...The valve is $180 (not what I am looking to spend!)

The US suppliers have a whole range of valves, Mann Lake and Dadant are among the ones with catalogs (sic) online. Quality engineering is going to cost though, and it's heavy to post.

 

[itma]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

The problem really is when using the valve to fill jars no matter how well tightened the screws are the action of sliding it up to let honey out eventually moves honey around the opening. After enough jars it gets messy and although backward pressure helps as Enrico pointed out it is fiddly and slow when you have an eye on the valve, one on the jar and another on the scales!

Only opening the valve a quarter would be really slow?
...

Just a thought, but have you ever watched anyone else using one of these valves? (Successfully, and in person rather than on video?)
It might give you a better idea of the sort of tightness (like I said, not much) that is needed to get a good seal and cut-off.
And show you that you really don't need to fully open the valve - for runny honeys at least.

Also, have you checked the condition of the O-rings in your valve(s)?
They won't last long if overtightened and then repeatedly fully opened/closed.