Just finished hooking up parts. Some questions

[BigBadJohn]

Okay. So I got the new co2 and beer lines etc on friday so I pretty much finished my conversion this weekend. Put all new pipe tape on the new gauge and the old gauge as well as the new hose barb w/shutoff.
Hooked it up to the tank and had some leakage so i had to wrench down the gauges all the way. Not an easy task with using pipe tape.
Hooked up lines and secured them w/ screw adjustable bands

Also added a replacement fuel shut off switch for a lawn mower in line between the tapper and the shank just before the shank. The shutoff is made for fuel lines with an ID of 1/4"

heres he part:
1/4" INLINE FUEL SHUTOFF ( NEW ): - (eBay item 280179827903 end time Dec-08-07 15:22:34 PST)

My lines are standard 3/16" ID beer line
and 5/16 co2 line

If I shut off the hose barb and turn gas on and adjust the gauge til it reads just short of 15 psi, is that a good starting point to fine tune the pressure after I get a keg? Will it be pretty spot on or will it vary greatly after I have a keg attached and am actually using the lines?

Also, will I have any problem with the shutoff in the beer line? Its not a clear shot through the valve as I cant see light when I look through the valve in the on position.
My reason for installing it is a quick way to disable the kegerator and lock the fridge up

[bard]

The CO2 pressure is dependent upon many things. While there are formulas out there for calculating the pressure (which I'm sure you've found by now) there is quite a bit of trial and error involved. Is 15 a good starting point? Sure, why not. Just like 12 would be a good starting point. Give it a go and see what happens. Now for the fuel cutoff in the beer line. I think that's going to be a bad idea all the way around. First it was made for fuel, not a consumable food item. There's no telling what kind of greases, solvents or lubricants were used in the construction of that thing. Why would you drink anything that came through it? Second, you're introducing a restriction in the line even in the fully open position. Even if all the surfaces were smooth and clean I would expect it to be a great foam generator just because of the restriction. I'm curious as to why you would need a shut off valve?

[BigBadJohn]

Little brother

[bard]

Gotcha. I assume you were planning on locking the chest up. You could unpop the coupler and get the same results as the extra shut off without worrying about contaminating or foaming the beer. By unpop I mean release the plunger that pushes the ball down on the keg opening. You don't have to untwist the coupler like you're completely removing it. Just make sure you release it all the way so that the gas line gets cut off too. Otherwise go for a faucet lock. Perlick makes a nice all metal one.

[oagermann]

Also another option. No restriction and not unsightly like the faucet lock IMO.

Beer Line Shut Off Valve for Keg - (eBay item 300129554886 end time Dec-08-07 14:32:40 PST)