Anyone Running a Fully Loaded Silverplate 2x8?

[McKenney Maples]

I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on a new rig this year and just curious if anyone is running a fully loaded Smoky Lake Silverplate 2x8? I've noticed some guys are getting in the 50-60 gph range running without a preheater/hood but I haven't seen any posts where someone is running the whole package. Thanks in advance.

[motowbrowne]

I sent you a PM.

[n8hutch]

I have A friend that bought a 2x6 silver plate this year I can give you there contact info if you'd like, they are not on the Trader. Pretty sure they were getting over 55 gph with no hood or preheater.

[mudr]

What is different about the silverplate bare bone setup (no preheat, no hood) that allows it to boil more? I know it is a different arch than the corsair (I think), how is it more efficient? Is it his standard 10 7-inch flue pan?

[n8hutch]

What is different about the silverplate bare bone setup (no preheat, no hood) that allows it to boil more? I know it is a different arch than the corsair (I think), how is it more efficient? Is it his standard 10 7-inch flue pan?
Raised flue has 11 flues.

[mudr]

Raised flue has 11 flues.

True, that's his standard raised flue pan. His standard drop is 10, which I was referencing. Is it the same pan for the silverplate? Just trying to figure out what makes the silverplate boil more.

[325abn]

Wonder is SL will do an oil fired arch? Any ideas?

[mapledavefarm]

True, that's his standard raised flue pan. His standard drop is 10, which I was referencing. Is it the same pan for the silverplate? Just trying to figure out what makes the silverplate boil more.

Its magic.

[n8hutch]

The corsair arch is much smaller it's like a hobby rig, the silverplate arch has a large firebox & forced draft. By no means would I call it a efficient arch. It Boils like crazy but it is going to chew up some wood. I would call or email them.

[mudr]

Thanks, Nate.

I've been in contact with Jim. I have a rig on order already with the corsair arch (which is set up to accept AUF). I'm not big enough nor do I have the capital to pay for a silverplate, so I never entered a discussion with him on it. Just curious more than anything else.

[McKenney Maples]

Its magic.

Yeah I'm trying to figure out who is getting 90+ gph with his 2x8. I've got some more quotes to collect but it does seem like he is making top notch equipment just not personally sold on the evaporation rates yet.

[boondocker]

I was personally turned away from him when I called and asked for a quote on a hood and preheater for my 2.5X8 CDL and he said I had to email him, Wich I did and I received a email back almost 2 weeks later telling me he wouldn't build a hood and preheater for my rig because it was built in canada. So I said well there, that was easy, I guess he makes enough money already and doesn't need my 5k I was willing to spend with him. I called Sunrise Metels and got a quote from them and they where more then happy to help me, quoted me on the phone and was almost 2k cheaper then I was quoted from CDL. I'm sure Jim makes nice stuff and I'm sure it works as it should, but my first experience with him was not as I had hoped.

[wishlist]

I was personally turned away from him when I called and asked for a quote on a hood and preheater for my 2.5X8 CDL and he said I had to email him, Wich I did and I received a email back almost 2 weeks later telling me he wouldn't build a hood and preheater for my rig because it was built in canada. So I said well there, that was easy, I guess he makes enough money already and doesn't need my 5k I was willing to spend with him. I called Sunrise Metels and got a quote from them and they where more then happy to help me, quoted me on the phone and was almost 2k cheaper then I was quoted from CDL. I'm sure Jim makes nice stuff and I'm sure it works as it should, but my first experience with him was not as I had hoped.

Hmmm, well I hope our Canadian friends don't take it personally. I'm extremely happy with my Lapierre evaporator , my hood .....not so much.

I did recently see some post about smoky lake 2x6 doing 70 gph plus. Wow !

[mapledavefarm]

I was personally turned away from him when I called and asked for a quote on a hood and preheater for my 2.5X8 CDL and he said I had to email him, Wich I did and I received a email back almost 2 weeks later telling me he wouldn't build a hood and preheater for my rig because it was built in canada. So I said well there, that was easy, I guess he makes enough money already and doesn't need my 5k I was willing to spend with him. I called Sunrise Metels and got a quote from them and they where more then happy to help me, quoted me on the phone and was almost 2k cheaper then I was quoted from CDL. I'm sure Jim makes nice stuff and I'm sure it works as it should, but my first experience with him was not as I had hoped.

Maybe he doesn't have a metric tape measure?

[boondocker]

Well....maybe lol

[randomseeker]

I just finished my first season with a fully loaded 2 1/2 x 8 Smoky Lake Silverplate. I purchased it with hoods, preheater, reverse flow syrup pan, and auto-drawoff (with stack temp monitoring). I love it and am very happy with it. I feed it with 450 taps. I now realize the evaporator is a little oversized, but not unworkable. I mention this because my boiling runs tend to be short. I typically boil after collecting about 1500 litres (375 US Gal), but as little as 1000 (minimum) and I have a total capacity of 3000 litres storage. My boils are between 3 and 5 hours. It takes me about an hour to get a really good fire going steadily at between 900 and 1000 degrees F in the stack which maximizes my evaporation. Even when I stop stoking it generates syrup for a good 30 minutes. The point is my runs are so short that I am probably only getting 2 to 4 hours of optimized boiling. I average about 300 to 350 litres (75 to 87 US Gal) per hour when it is really doing well, averaging over the whole period. Jim says I should be able to get over 100 US Gal per hour, so there is probably more tweaking I can do. I run the sap pan at 1/2 to 1 inch above the flues and the syrup pan at 1 1/2 inches. As an aside, I ordered the auto-drawoff as a nice to have, and can't imagine running that machine without it.

This year I produced 220 litres on just a little bit more wood than I produced 120 litres last year on my old setup. So clearly, the Silverplate is more efficient.

My experience with Smoky Lake is excellent, although Jim gets busy in season and his voicemail fills up and it will take several days to a week to get back to email. He is much more responsive until January. The trick is to cc Angela who will get back quite quickly on many items, deferring to Jim when she needs to. I live in Ontario and they were very cooperative in shipping across the border, which was not an issue - there is no duty on evaporators.

I recorded a video showing my operation. It is 9 minutes long and the evaporator appears at the 1:15 mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lWPAmFjllM

Hope that helps.

[McKenney Maples]

Thanks for the detailed info and video. I can see myself with a similar tap count (450-550) so you gave me a good point of reference. Given that my current boils can last for 8 hours it's hard to beat being able to add taps and cut boiling time. I'm heading to VT this weekend to hit all the open houses and collect quotes. Then it's just the tricky part of weighing the options.