My bench capper sucks, or am I using it wrong?

So I got a bench capper as an xmas gift and used it a couple weeks ago and stopped after two bottles. I’m wondering if I’m doing something wrong. This is the model I received :

So first thing that I noticed is I have to push down pretty hard on the bottle which kinda freaks me out. I could see this smashing thinner bottles pretty easily. Not sure if this is how its supposed to be or not. The other thing that happened both times I capped the bottles was the bottle cap (and due to being attached, the bottle) got stuck inside the bell. It wasn’t just a little stuck i had to really wrench that bottle out of there! I immediately went back to my handheld red capper and didnt look back.

I really wanted to like this thing but it seems to make capping much more dangerous and more difficult. The handheld capper is quick and easy. Anyone else have these issues or am I doing something wrong?

Now to see if my LHBS will take it back even though it was purchased 3 months ago :roll:

I have the exact same capper, and have used it for 5 years. I’ve never had the problems you’ve described, so I would suspect a defective capper.

I’d check to see if you can exchange it.

I thought that I read long ago on this forum that there are different sized bells for this; perhaps that is the problem. Something to try, and this worked for me with the same problem with the same capper, was to spray a little cooking spray on the inside of the bell. This put an immediate end to the “sticking” problem.

The Super Agata is typically sold in this country with a bell designed for 26 to 27 mm caps. In Europe it may be sold with a bell designed for 29 to 31 mm caps.

Make sure the bell on your capper is screwed tight to the body. Have the column height adjusted so the bottle just slides under the bell with a cap in place. Spin the bottle a bit to make sure it is centered.

I had the sticking problem with some bottles. I would lift the capped bottle as I raised the lever, then give a slight sideways move to release them. I have given these bottles away since they were a non-standard height. I only use three different heights and these few didn’t match.

Experiment with different bottles. Might only be some used by a certain brewery that are the problem.