# Disassembling a floor corker



## Boatboy24 (Jul 31, 2020)

A few months back, I picked up an Italian floor corker from @mainshipfred. Mechanically, it appears to be in great shape, but it has some age on it and a few cosmetic dings. My plan was to disassemble it, clean it up, give the painted parts a fresh coat of paint and put it back together. I'm sort of stuck. There's a rod attached to the handle that goes down through the upright tube and is attached with a couple nuts and a washer. There's some sort of spring action on this and I can't get the nuts to turn. Is there a trick I'm missing here?


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## mikewatkins727 (Jul 31, 2020)

The bottom nut is acting as a jam nut. Need two wrenchs each sized to fit the nuts. Hold the upper nut (per your photo) stationary and attempt to unscrew the lower nut. May take some PB Blaster or WD-40 to help loosed. Otherwise, find someone with a size 2 hat and size 18 shoe to help.


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## mikewatkins727 (Jul 31, 2020)

On 2nd look, nuts appear to be ½ inch, use 2 wrenches, offset about 20⁰ - 30⁰ and squeeze together. This technique might work without the help of size 2 hat/size 18 boot guy.


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 31, 2020)

That did it. Thanks Mike! 

Next question: what's the preferred grease/lubricant to use on the jaws?


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## cmason1957 (Jul 31, 2020)

I use a food safe silicone based spray to lubricate mine. I don't remeber where I picked it up, maybe Amazon or something like that.


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 31, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> I use a food safe silicone based spray to lubricate mine. I don't remeber where I picked it up, maybe Amazon or something like that.



Cool, I've got some of that for my C/D. Wasn't sure if it'd be too 'thin'.


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 31, 2020)

Got everything taken apart and started cleaning. Hit the brass pieces with Brasso and the other, non painted metal with brake cleaner. Went to Lowes and got some stainless steel nuts and bolts to replace the hardware. Also grabbed some sandpaper and Krylon Colormaxx paint. The gloss navy blue is pretty much an exact match. Moving right along. Hope to have it all done and put back together by Monday or Tuesday.


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## KCCam (Jul 31, 2020)

Very nice. I just picked up 4 carboys, 2 fermenters, and a floor corker for $40 at a garage sale. Maybe I'll shine up the corker and make a tidy profit in addition to 4 free carboys! I mean who needs 2 floor corkers, right? Of course, if I do that, mine will break as soon as I sell the second one.


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## KCCam (Jul 31, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> I use a food safe silicone based spray to lubricate mine. I don't remeber where I picked it up, maybe Amazon or something like that.


Nothing touches the wine. Does it have to be food-grade?


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## cmason1957 (Jul 31, 2020)

KCCam said:


> Nothing touches the wine. Does it have to be food-grade?


I have no clue for sure.


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## Rocky (Jul 31, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Got everything taken apart and started cleaning. Hit the brass pieces with Brasso and the other, non painted metal with brake cleaner. Went to Lowes and got some stainless steel nuts and bolts to replace the hardware. Also grabbed some sandpaper and Krylon Colormaxx paint. The gloss navy blue is pretty much an exact match. Moving right along. Hope to have it all done and put back together by Monday or Tuesday.



Jim, two things:

1. be very careful to thoroughly clean any of the metal that was touched by Brasso. You would not want that to get into the wine on a cork.

2. Check out this alteration to Italian floor corkers that NorCal developed and which I did to mine. It never worked better:






Fixing my Ferrari


Ferrari corker that is. I bought it used 4-5 years ago and while the jaws were in good shape, other pieces were worn. I got through the last two seasons with a temporary fix, but It has seen 2,000 - 3,000 bottles and I notice even more play the last time I used it. Now that bottling is over...




www.winemakingtalk.com









Italian floor corker


I have an Italian floor corker and have used it for about 10 years. I notice now that the 'push pin' is getting out of alignment with the center of the iris and the operating arm is a little 'wonky.' I don't see any adjustment that would help and everything seem to be tight enough. I am...




www.winemakingtalk.com





Good luck!


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 31, 2020)

Rocky said:


> Jim, two things:
> 
> 1. be very careful to thoroughly clean any of the metal that was touched by Brasso. You would not want that to get into the wine on a cork.
> 
> ...



Thanks Rocky. Appreciate the tip on the Brasso - hadn't thought about that. Just a little water, or something more involved? I've thought about yours and NorCal's mod. Does that involve drilling? To be honest, I'm only mildly handy; so taking apart, cleaning and putting back together was my limited agenda here.


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## Rocky (Jul 31, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Thanks Rocky. Appreciate the tip on the Brasso - hadn't thought about that. Just a little water, or something more involved? I've thought about yours and NorCal's mod. Does that involve drilling? To be honest, I'm only mildly handy; so taking apart, cleaning and putting back together was my limited agenda here.



I would use a strong detergent and rinse well with hot water.

As far as drilling is concerned, NorCal and I did slightly different mods. Mine only required drilling 2 thru holes in the frame to mount the bearing. I believe NorCal also drilled and tapped a hole for a screw to secure the shaft.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 1, 2020)

What a difference a day makes. 

These two wing nuts were holding bolts that attached the back legs to the rest of the frame. They looked identical 24 hours ago. The one on the right was soaked in white vinegar overnight, then washed with soap and water. Almost as good as new. I bought new stainless hardware to replace these and the bolts, but it's nice to know they could be cleaned up. I finished the painting a bit ago. I'll let everything dry until at least tomorrow before reassembling.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 3, 2020)

Question: Is there an order to follow when putting the jaws back in?


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## cmason1957 (Aug 3, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Question: Is there an order to follow when putting the jaws back in?



I don't believe there is. When I had taken my old one apart I think I decided it didn't matter, as long as you got the jaws in the right place.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 3, 2020)

cmason1957 said:


> ...as long as you got the jaws in the right place.



Which is proving to be a pain in the arse.


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## mainshipfred (Aug 3, 2020)

Would this help?


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## cmason1957 (Aug 3, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Which is proving to be a pain in the arse.



Yeah, that's why I included that part. it is a general PITAAAA!!!!!


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 3, 2020)

mainshipfred said:


> Would this help?View attachment 64381



Thanks Rocky. Fortunately, I took a 'before picture'. I did manage to get everything back together, but now the pin is just slightly coming into contact with the jaw on the southeast corner in your pic. I'm going to take it back apart and swap the NW and SE pieces. I thought they were identical, but maybe there's a slight difference.


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## Chuck E (Aug 3, 2020)

So the blue ones have the brass jaws and the red ones have the plastic jaws? I never knew the difference between the Italian and the Portuguese models.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 3, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> So the blue ones have the brass jaws and the red ones have the plastic jaws? I never knew the difference between the Italian and the Portuguese models.



The Italian corkers are also taller and have a longer handle.


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## Rocky (Aug 3, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Thanks Rocky. Fortunately, I took a 'before picture'. I did manage to get everything back together, but now the pin is just slightly coming into contact with the jaw on the southeast corner in your pic. I'm going to take it back apart and swap the NW and SE pieces. I thought they were identical, but maybe there's a slight difference.



That photo was from Fred, but you are welcome anyway!

The iris is made up of 4 pieces, 2 we will call A and 2 we will call B. The A's have a flat surface against which the springs apply pressure and they are shown at 10 and 4 o'clock in the picture. The other two parts of the iris, parts B are at 8 and 2 o'clock.

When you say the pin is hitting off-center of the iris opening, that is symptomatic of the slop in the arm that is corrected by the fix that NorCal developed and he and I applied to our corkers. Your unit has a soft metal shaft that wears the opening in the side of the corker that supports the arm. Adding the bearings corrects this.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 3, 2020)

@Rocky: Is this similar to what you bought? Looks like you got a new bolt to go through it as well.









KFL001 Premium Pillow Block Bearing, 12mm Bore, FL001 Flange Bearing (2 PCS) | eBay


Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for KFL001 Premium Pillow Block Bearing, 12mm Bore, FL001 Flange Bearing (2 PCS) at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!



www.ebay.com


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## Rocky (Aug 3, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> @Rocky: Is this similar to what you bought? Looks like you got a new bolt to go through it as well.
> 
> Yes, Jim, that looks like what I bought on line for the two bearings. If you PM me an address, I will sent you the bolt, lock washer and nut that are what I used in my installation. For some reason, known only to my failing brain, I bought two sets of the hardware and I have an extra set.


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## KCCam (Aug 4, 2020)

Chuck E said:


> So the blue ones have the brass jaws and the red ones have the plastic jaws? I never knew the difference between the Italian and the Portuguese models.


My Portuguese is yellow, with plastic jaws. I haven’t taken it apart, but do they suffer the same fate after years of use?


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## Jal5 (Aug 4, 2020)

I have been wanting to take my Portugese corker apart for maintenance but chickened out so far. One if the best pieces of equipment I have!


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## mikewatkins727 (Aug 4, 2020)

Jal5 said:


> I have been wanting to take my Portugese corker apart for maintenance but chickened out so far. One if the best pieces of equipment I have!



If aint broke don't fix it.


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## Rocky (Aug 4, 2020)

mikewatkins727 said:


> If aint broke don't fix it.


I completely agree with this sentiment. 

However, in my case, although my corker was not actually "broke," it was getting a little slop in the arm and the push pin was not hitting the center of the hole. The problem was that the hardened metal shaft holding the arm was wearing the hole in the frame through which it was mounted. Adding bearings made all the difference. I have no exact number of how many bottles I have corked with this corker but I have had it for about 10 years and I bottle about 1000 bottles a year.


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## mainshipfred (Aug 4, 2020)

Rocky said:


> I completely agree with this sentiment.
> 
> However, in my case, although my corker was not actually "broke," it was getting a little slop in the arm and the push pin was not hitting the center of the hole. The problem was that the hardened metal shaft holding the arm was wearing the hole in the frame through which it was mounted. Adding bearings made all the difference. I have no exact number of how many bottles I have corked with this corker but I have had it for about 10 years and I bottle about 1000 bottles a year.



If it wasn't working properly I might have called that broke. LOL!


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## Rocky (Aug 4, 2020)

mainshipfred said:


> If it wasn't working properly I might have called that broke. LOL!


I know what you are saying. In my case, I could make it work satisfactorily by manually centering the pin in the iris but that was a PITA. I guess when I think "broke," I think it cannot be made to work. With the bearing, there is no other positioning required. 

It occurs to me that the Portuguese corkers will probably wear the same way in the same area of the frame. This fix could surely be made to work with them. It would also be nice if the manufacturer included bearings in the design (and bump the price accordingly).


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 23, 2020)

I finally got the bearings and attempted to get everything put back together today. After fiddling with it for over an hour, taking out the jaws and reinstalling a few times, I'm still having the same issue with the pin striking off center. There's still some left-right play in the arm that I can correct the issue with, but that's not the way this thing is supposed to work. Part of the problem (pictured below) is the jaw in the 4 o'clock position isn't sitting quite right, causing a smaller than designed opening. But the bulk of the issue is stemming from the play in the arm. Any further thoughts?


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## winemaker81 (Aug 23, 2020)

I'm comparing the original picture and the new one -- the part in the lower right corner is not lined up squarely. It is moved inward and should be flush against the outer wall. That may be causing the alignment problem. Compare the press to your original picture.

Comparing back and forth between the two pictures, it appears all 4 parts are at least slightly out of alignment.

In the first picture, it appears the upper right piece is bolted to the part that presses the pieces, but in the second picture I cannot see the bolt. If that is missing, it might skew the alignment.


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## KCCam (Aug 23, 2020)

The first picture is from @mainshipfred, but agreed, if that bolt is missing, would cause problems. My Portuguese corker also has a bolt through the frame to the lower left jaw. Anchoring those two jaws would help keep things square, I would imagine.


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## Rocky (Aug 23, 2020)

Jim, a suggestion that I would have would be to loosen (do not remove) all the mounting screws for the bearings and the center bolt, position the push pin in the center of the iris hole and then retighten the center shaft nut first and then the bearing screws and nuts and then give it a try. If that does not work, you may have to ream out the mounting holes for the bearings to give you a LITTLE more play and then repeat the above. When I mounted my bearings and center shaft, I did it this way and it works fine.

EDIT: Jim, I just went down to my wine area and took the cover off my iris assembly and there is indeed a screw holding the part of the iris at 2 o'clock. You may have missed this in reassembly. It would seem that screw secures one portion of the iris and it works in concert with the other three parts through the surfaces and springs. Before trying what I suggested above, find that screw and secure that part of the iris to the Y-shaped part that pushes on the top two parts of the iris and the upper spring.


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## Hokapsig (Aug 23, 2020)

we found that by adding lock washers to the bottom wing nuts will keep the unit tight and in plumb.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 24, 2020)

Thanks all! 

Both the 2 o'clock and 8 o'clock pieces are bolted in. I've tried a couple different ways of getting the 4 o'clock piece to sit properly and can't. I'll keep playing with it.


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## KCCam (Aug 24, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> Thanks all!
> 
> Both the 2 o'clock and 8 o'clock pieces are bolted in. I've tried a couple different ways of getting the 4 o'clock piece to sit properly and can't. I'll keep playing with it.


I’m going to number the jaws 2, 4, 8, and 10 so I don’t have to keep typing “o’clock.” 

Is there any adjustment available for where the bolts hold jaws 2 & 8? Note that the position of #2 determines the width of the space that #10 has to slide in and the position of #8 determines the width of the space that #4 has to slide in. Those widths should be as small as possible while still allowing the jaws to slide. It appears that the space for #4 is larger than it should be. If #8 could be moved to the right a bit it would narrow the space. Also, the bottom spring should be as close as possible to jaw #8 so it is pushing more toward the 2 o’clock than the 1 o’clock position. Can you loosen the 2 bolts, remove the springs and put all the jaws in as straight and square as possible? Then tighten the bolts. Check for side to side play for jaws 4 & 10. Then swap jaws 4 & 10 and repeat. Then, if possible, swap jaws 2 & 8 (as the tapped holes might be in slightly different positions) and repeat. Then swap 4 & 10 again. Take note of how much play there is for each combination and pick the best one. Then reassemble with the springs. It might make a difference which spring goes where too.


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## stickman (Aug 24, 2020)

I'm just posting another example of the corker internals. I don't recall exactly, but this unit is about 6 or 7 years old. In general these units work well, there's a good history of that, but there is a fair amount of slop in the construction. Mine has spots where you can see steel on steel rubbing creating groves in the right side of the housing and the top plate. @KCCam has a good point about trying all of the possibilities of assembly.


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## mainshipfred (Aug 26, 2020)

Jim, if you don't have it yet and have time to bring it over maybe the two of us with mine opened can figure out the problem.


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## Chuck E (Aug 26, 2020)

Based on the geometry, the 8 o'clock piece does not move. All the others move with the arm.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 27, 2020)

mainshipfred said:


> Jim, if you don't have it yet and have time to bring it over maybe the two of us with mine opened can figure out the problem.



May take you up on that, Fred. Thanks. Haven't had a chance to fiddle with it again but hopefully tomorrow or Saturday. With new job and baseball starting this week, life just got busy again.


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## mainshipfred (Aug 27, 2020)

Boatboy24 said:


> May take you up on that, Fred. Thanks. Haven't had a chance to fiddle with it again but hopefully tomorrow or Saturday. With new job and baseball starting this week, life just got busy again.



Just let me know.


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## winemaker81 (Aug 31, 2020)

I'm following this thread intently -- my Italian corker is 30 years old, I can see rust on the steel under the jaws. I've been afraid to tear it apart, in case I can't get it back together.

Once last year's wine is all bottled, I may chance it. That will give me 9 to 12 months to get it working again.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 31, 2020)

I failed to get to it over the weekend. Still anxious to try again though. It just looks so nice after the cleaning and paint job...


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## VinesnBines (Jan 4, 2022)

winemaker81 said:


> I'm following this thread intently -- my Italian corker is 30 years old, I can see rust on the steel under the jaws.


My Italian corker has rusted under the jaws. I have it apart and trying to decide how to proceed. I think clean it up, sand as best I can and paint with food grade paint. I'm sure the paint will wear off again. Any better ideas? I think I made it worse with spraying with Star San when bottling. I bought this used in 2019 so I think the rust was starting before my usage.

I know it will be a PIA to reassemble but the rust was coming off on my finger and I was afraid to continue using on wine.


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## mainshipfred (Jan 4, 2022)

Good luck, @Boatboy24 Jim brought his to my shop, we compared them side by side they looked identical but his if I remember correctly didn't center the cork. Hopefully he figures it out and can give you some advice.


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## VinesnBines (Jan 4, 2022)

Thanks Fred. I was actually able to adjust mine when it was off center. As I sand, I think I may be able to paint the worst area (the little well where the cork sits and keep it fairly rust free. (My phone is dying so I can't load pictures. The new phone is delayed in Richmond due to the Mid Atlantic snow drop.) 

I hope the trick will be to keep it dry in the future. No wet corks.


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## winemaker81 (Jan 4, 2022)

VinesnBines said:


> I know it will be a PIA to reassemble but the rust was coming off on my finger and I was afraid to continue using on wine.


I wad up a paper towel wet with K-meta and run it through the corker, then a dry one. First one comes out a bit stained, the second one doesn't. Never having done it before, you might have to do it several times to eliminate the rust that is transferred.


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## VinesnBines (Jan 4, 2022)

I'll do that after I get the rust off and I paint. I was wadding up a paper towel and running through but I was getting too much rust to suit me.


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## She’sgonnakillme (Jan 31, 2022)

I have the same issue, I am thinking that I will start to rinse the corks in K-Meta solution then dump them on a stack of paper towels and gently roll them dry, this way I am putting less moisture through the corker


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## VinesnBines (Jan 31, 2022)

I sanded and painted my corker. It was a struggle to get it back together. It needs a tad more adjustment. After all that, I’m not going to put any wet corks through it nor spray with sanitizer.


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## cmason1957 (Jan 31, 2022)

She’sgonnakillme said:


> I have the same issue, I am thinking that I will start to rinse the corks in K-Meta solution then dump them on a stack of paper towels and gently roll them dry, this way I am putting less moisture through the corker



Rather than soaking those corks for any amount of time search for corkidor, which I may have misspelled. Basically, put some kmeta solution in the bottom of the bucket, suspend the corks in some manner above the liquid, no need to get them wet, let the sulfur fumes do their job.


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## She’sgonnakillme (Jan 31, 2022)

I am going to give that a try, I just ordered a “Better Breader” off Amazon


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## TCPT18 (Feb 1, 2022)

cmason1957 said:


> Rather than soaking those corks for any amount of time search for corkidor, which I may have misspelled. Basically, put some kmeta solution in the bottom of the bucket, suspend the corks in some manner above the liquid, no need to get them wet, let the sulfur fumes do their job.


You can make one with a few old buckets. Put holes in bottom of one. Put your meta in the solid one. If needed put something in the bottom to give a little elevation off the meta. Put corks in the top one with the holes and place in the solid one. Put on the top and let the fumes do their job.


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