Any feed back for the clear 1 piece CV2's yet???

[red maples]

Just curious if anyone has any feed back or comments on the Clear one piece CV2's yet?

I put in 100 of them to try them out. went in pretty easy. The one thing I do like is I had a piece of wood shaving in one and I took out the spout pulled it out so its nice to be able to see in it. the only thing is that the end piece that hold the ball in isn't glued in and came out in the hole so I had to poke around in the hole with a twig to get it out. I put it back in so beware of that when pulling out taps!!!

[Mark-NH]

I really liked the one piece constuction vs two piece stubby and spout. They were very easy to work with and I had no failure. They seem to be well thought out and constructed.

[sapman]

So far I like them a lot. No troubles loosening up after a freeze. Gonna be tough pulling them I think, though. Hopefully a spout puller will work with them.

[cadocter]

I've got 150 of them out and I like them so far. Like others said, they went in real good when tapping and sealed good. They were real easy to work with as well.

[Greenwich Maple Man]

Just curious if anyone has any feed back or comments on the Clear one piece CV2's yet?

I put in 100 of them to try them out. went in pretty easy. The one thing I do like is I had a piece of wood shaving in one and I took out the spout pulled it out so its nice to be able to see in it. the only thing is that the end piece that hold the ball in isn't glued in and came out in the hole so I had to poke around in the hole with a twig to get it out. I put it back in so beware of that when pulling out taps!!!

Thats sounds like a complete pain !

[heus]

I have about 250+ no real opinion yet. I know its tough to get the tubing all the way on if its really cold out. When temps were above 25 or tap was wet the tubing slid all the way on. I think its fine as long as you get the tubing past the little raised line on the spout.

[danno]

Curious to see if they leak vacuum. Some were allot of work to press on the tubing, while others did not take much effort to push into the drop. Hope those don't leak. Agreed that pulling them may be a pain. I tried to pull one that had a wood chip in it. Tried to twist it out and it snapped off in the tap hole.

[red maples]

I ended up replacing that one that I checked because it cracked. I hope once its warmer out after the season they come out easier!!! they seem brittle to me. especially at the part in the tree where the ball "cap" is...just have to wait and see. I like them so far but honestly don't see a difference in use or speed over the stubby and adapter. I actually think the stubby and adapter are quicker to put in.

[Walling's Maple Syrup]

I ended up replacing that one that I checked because it cracked. I hope once its warmer out after the season they come out easier!!! they seem brittle to me. especially at the part in the tree where the ball "cap" is...just have to wait and see. I like them so far but honestly don't see a difference in use or speed over the stubby and adapter. I actually think the stubby and adapter are quicker to put in. The stubby and adapter are definitely quicker. I am glad I only put in 1500 of the cv2's this year. I think with the harder plastic, you have to be more careful about splitting the trees; especially soft maples. I don't have any other comments right now, have to wait till the end of season and see how they performed against the original cv. Mine are all isolated on 1 mainline, so I will know. Neil

[DrTimPerkins]

The stubby and adapter are definitely quicker

Tapping with a one-piece spout is definitely somewhat slower than with a stubby/adapter combination, but the one-piece spout type is preferred by some producers. It mainly seems to come down to the following factors (although there may be others as well).
1. Personal preference
2. Reduced chance of vacuum leaks (fewer connections with a 1-piece compared to stubby/adapter)
3. Ability to see sap flow/leaks (in clear spouts)
4. Reduced possibility of "contaminated stubby" effect (real, but very small)
5. Eliminates cost of stubby

[DrTimPerkins]

Curious to see if they leak vacuum. Some were allot of work to press on the tubing, while others did not take much effort to push into the drop. Hope those don't leak.

What type of tubing were you using....a mix of things? A semi-rigid tubing (Leader calls theirs "Max Flow Flex") is recommended for drops, and tends to hold fittings better. Different manufacturers have somewhat different tubing specifications, and there is also some variation in the diameter as it is extruded.


Agreed that pulling them may be a pain. I tried to pull one that had a wood chip in it. Tried to twist it out and it snapped off in the tap hole.

Polycarbonate spouts tend to grip the tree a little better, and the very low taper on the new spout designs contributes to their ability to stay in the tree. Pulling any type of polycarbonate spouts is difficult. Use a spout puller and pull them straight out. Don't twist them as it break the spout and also can damage the cambium layer.

If you see wood chips in the spout....leave the spout alone. Most fine sawdust will pass through the spout when the sap flows. You're likely to do more damage to the taphole by pulling it and re-inserting it than by simply letting it be.

Similarly, with ANY clear polycarbonate spout....if you are on vacuum and see tiny bubbles coming out of the taphole when the sap is running, it may not be a leak. Trees produce gas (and sap). If you see small bubbles racing in the tubing....it is a leak. Very small bubbles (that grow larger as they exit the tree) moving slowly are not leaks. If you feel you must, LIGHTLY tap the spout to seat it, but don't overdo it, or you will create a leak by splitting the cambium and create a larger wound.

[pdr]

I chose to stay with the stubby and original cv. If the manufacturer is open to suggestion, I hope they will consider making the original cv in clear plastic and perhaps moving the ball to the front end as it is in the cv2. Just my $.02 worth.

[sapman]

So far I've had two drops come right off the spout. I'm using the Flex, so that's no easy task. My theory is that the very cold temps we've had must have frozen some sap and expanded the tubing and it somehow came off. But this is HUGELY better, to me, than reseating a high % of stubbies/adapters, like before. Even after a week of cold and no run to speak of, after a little time in the bush I'm back to 27". That took hours to achieve before!

[heus]

Dr Tim Thanks for the comment on wood shavings. I was wondering about what some shavings in the spout would do. Good to hear that they can handle some.

[DrTimPerkins]

My theory is that the very cold temps we've had must have frozen some sap and expanded the tubing and it somehow came off.

Your theory is probably correct. We've seen that happen with lots of different types of spouts in the past under those conditions (sap frozen in laterals and mains, a small run fills the drops, the very cold temperatures pushes the drops off the spouts).

[red maples]

I have had no issues what so ever with the adapter coming off or the tap coming out etc. they usually stay in pretty good. This line that I am trying them in is a new line that I added on this year to pick up another 95 trees. But I may go back to the stubby just for ease in pulling and the speed of putting them in. We'll see. I see the stubbies as a one time fee(unless you changing drops) I don't know yet.

[sapman]

Had a 3rd drop come off yesterday, and another starting to come off. I should mention these are all in the swamp bush, so full sap lines going into a freeze is pretty much a given. Still no complaints here. Two days of 27-28" vacuum. I think I'll definitely need to use a tool to insert new spouts next year, as the flex tubing doesn't go on as easy, but holds better. Will have to replace them prior to tapping.

Probably the only improvement I'd suggest to the cv's is having an actual barb on them. But I know they'd be that much harder to insert.

[unc23win]

I think I might prefer a barb on them as well the use a tool to put them on. I would rather put them on before I tap so I don't have to fumble around with them when its game time.