Tap Handle - Wood Shotgun, Flame-Treated Round
Tap Handle - Wood Shotgun, Flame-Treated Round, 100% Made in the USA
This is the short wood tap handle breweries reach for when a full size handle is too much. The flame-treated round shotgun stands 6 inches tall, has a rounded head that fills the hand, and carries your logo printed in full color on all four sides. Every handle is torched by hand, so the charred grain pattern is different on every single one, and your brand sits on top of it under a water resistant satin clear coat.
It is a stock shape, which means you skip the tooling, the prototype round, and the 100 unit minimum that comes with a fully custom tap handle. You send the art, we print it, and you get a real wood tap handle with your name on it starting at 12 units.
Free art template: Download the Flame-Treated Round Shotgun Tap Handle Template (PDF). Drop your logo inside the pink printable area, save it, and upload it with your order.
Specs at a glance
- Shape: round shotgun (short handle, rounded head, tapered body)
- Overall size: 1" W x 2.2" L x 6" H
- Printable area: 2.2" wide x 5" tall on the front and back, 0.98" wide on each side (see the template)
- Material: solid wood, flame-treated (torched) by hand
- Finish: water resistant satin clear coat
- Print: full color on all four sides
- Fitting: 3/8-16 ferrule, fits any standard US beer faucet
- Minimum order: 12 units with your custom print
- Made: 100% in the USA, in our shop in Birmingham, Alabama
- Care: wipe down with soap and water
How to order your custom printed shotgun tap handles
- Download the template. Grab the round shotgun art template (PDF). It opens in Adobe Illustrator, Acrobat, or any PDF viewer and shows the exact printable area on the front and the side.
- Place your art. Put your logo, beer name, or label art inside the pink printable line. Keep text and anything important off the edges. If you want something different on the sides (your brewery name, a style, an ABV), lay it out on the side view.
- Order 12 or more. Set your quantity on this page, upload your file (or email it to brad@steelcitytap.com), and check out.
- Approve the mockup. We check your file, build a mockup on the handle, and send it to you. Nothing prints until you sign off.
- We print and ship. Your handles get printed, clear coated, fitted with a 3/8-16 ferrule, and shipped ready to thread onto the faucet.
Artwork tips for a flame-treated wood handle
Torched wood is dark and busy, and that is the whole point. It also means your art has to work a little harder. Here is what we have learned printing them:
- Vector art prints sharpest. AI, EPS, SVG, or a vector PDF is best. A high resolution PNG at 300 dpi at print size works too.
- Bold beats delicate. Thick lines, solid shapes, and heavy type read from across the bar. Hairlines and pale colors can sink into the charred grain.
- Think in contrast. Bright colors and clean shapes pop against the dark burn. If your logo is mostly dark, we will tell you on the mockup and suggest a fix before anything prints.
- Use all four sides. The front and back carry the logo. The sides are good real estate for the beer name or brewery name so the handle reads from any angle on a crowded tap tower.
- No clean file? Start anyway. A phone snapshot of your label or can is enough to get a mockup moving. We will ask for a clean file before production.
We do not charge new customers a design fee to lay out their handle. Send what you have and we will get it on the template.
Why breweries pick the round shotgun
Wood reads premium on the rail. It is the material distributors and bar managers associate with craft, and flame treatment adds texture you cannot fake with a print. Because every handle is torched individually, no two look exactly alike, which is the kind of detail a bartender notices and a drinker remembers.
The short height is the other reason. A 6 inch handle fits where a 10 or 12 inch handle will not: under a low back bar shelf, on a crowded tower where tall handles knock into each other, on a jockey box, or in a kegerator. It also sets a beer apart visually when it sits next to a row of tall handles.
Who this handle is built for
- Craft breweries putting a seasonal, a small batch, or a taproom exclusive on draft and needing handles fast without a custom tooling run.
- Brewpubs and taprooms that want every line on the wall to match in one consistent wood style.
- Cideries, wineries, and meaderies with wine or cider on tap.
- Draft cocktail, kombucha, nitro cold brew, and seltzer programs where a shorter, more refined handle fits the drink better than a tall beer handle.
- Distributors and brand reps who need a handful of branded handles for new accounts in a territory.
- Bars and restaurants branding their house beer or house cocktail on draft.
- Homebrewers and kegerator builders who want a real commercial tap handle with their own logo (12 unit minimum applies to printed handles).
Stock print vs. fully custom tap handles
This handle sits in our stock tier. The shape already exists, so the only custom part is your print, and that keeps the minimum at 12 units. A fully custom tap handle is a shape we design and build from scratch for your brand. That is a bigger project with a 100 unit minimum and a concept sketch up front. If you want your logo on a wood handle quickly, start here. If you want a handle nobody else has, request a custom tap handle quote.
Round shotgun or curved shotgun?
We make two short flame-treated shotgun handles. The round shotgun on this page has a wider rounded head (2.2" across) and gives you more room for a logo on the front. The curved shotgun tap handle is a slimmer 6.25" profile. Pick the round if your logo is wide or round, and the curved if your art is tall and narrow. Both carry the same 12 unit minimum and four sided print. You can browse every shape in our wood tap handles collection.
Built in Birmingham, Alabama
Every stock handle is made 100% in the USA in our own shop at 913 7th Ave N, Birmingham, AL 35203. Steel City Tap Co. has been building tap handles for over a decade for craft breweries and national brands including Duvel, Dos Equis, Tecate, and Good People Brewing, and we build this one the same way. When you call the shop at 205-224-0829, you talk to the people who print your handle, not a call center.
Frequently asked questions
What is a shotgun tap handle?
A shotgun tap handle is a short tap handle, usually around 6 inches tall, with a rounded head and a tapered body. The name comes from its short, stocky profile. It is a popular choice when a taller handle does not fit the tower or when a brand wants a compact, premium look.
How tall is this tap handle?
6 inches tall overall, 2.2 inches wide across the head, and about 1 inch deep.
What is the minimum order?
12 units with your custom print. Fully custom tap handles (a new shape built for your brand) carry a 100 unit minimum.
Where do I get the art template?
Download it right here: Flame-Treated Round Shotgun Tap Handle Template (PDF). Place your art inside the pink printable area and upload it with your order.
What file types do you accept?
Vector files (AI, EPS, SVG, PDF) print sharpest. High resolution PNG or JPG at 300 dpi works. If all you have is a phone photo of your label, send it and we will start the mockup from there.
Will this fit my beer faucet?
Yes. It ships with a 3/8-16 ferrule, the standard thread on US beer faucets. It threads straight on, no adapter needed.
Do I see a proof before you print?
Yes. We send a mockup of your art on the handle, and nothing goes to print until you approve it.
Can I print different art on each side?
Yes. Lay out the front and side views on the template however you want. Many breweries put the logo on the front and back and the beer or brewery name on the sides.
Can I mix designs in one order?
Call or email the shop before you order and tell us what you have in mind. We will tell you how to set it up.
Will every handle look the same?
Your print will match across the order. The wood will not, and that is a feature. Each handle is flame-treated by hand, so the grain and char pattern varies from piece to piece.
Are these tap handles made in the USA?
Yes. This stock handle is 100% made in the USA in our shop in Birmingham, Alabama.
How do I clean a wood tap handle?
Wipe it down with soap and water and dry it. The clear coat protects the print and the wood from spills.
Can I use this on a kegerator or jockey box?
Yes. Any faucet that takes a standard 3/8-16 tap handle will take this one, and the short height is a good fit for kegerators and jockey boxes.
Do you make matching tin tackers, coasters, or shirts?
Our sister shops do. Tin tackers, coasters, and signs come from Classic Printing & Signs, and hats and apparel come from Presto Embroidery, both right here in Birmingham.