The Z326-100H-B15 is a direct-fit bucket dimensioned for 3 × 15 mL conical tubes, sized for the Hermle Z326-100H-AC swing-out rotor body on the Z327 / Z327-K chassis, sold as a 2-pack. Distinct from the standard sealed-bucket-plus-insert approach (Z326-100H-BUK + Z326-100H-A15 insert combination), the B15 bucket is purpose-built for 15 mL conical workflows. The bucket geometry directly accepts 3 × 15 mL conical tubes without an additional insert. The 4-bucket rotor configuration takes 2 packs (4 B15 buckets) for 12 × 15 mL conical tubes per cycle.
Key Specifications
| SKU | Z326-100H-B15 |
| Type | Direct-fit bucket (3 × 15 mL conical) |
| Pack quantity | 2 buckets per SKU (full 4-bucket configuration takes 2 units = 4 buckets) |
| Per-bucket capacity | 3 × 15 mL conical tubes |
| Per-cycle throughput (full configuration) | 12 × 15 mL conical per cycle |
| Tube format | 15 mL conical Falcon-style (17 mm OD, 120 mm length) |
| Compatible rotor body | Z326-100H-AC (4-place swing-out rotor body without buckets) |
| Compatible chassis (assembled) | Z327, Z327-K (refrigerated), and -E voltage variants |
| Max. operating speed (with buckets + tubes) | Per Z326-100H-AC spec (5,000 rpm at 4,080 × g maximum) |
| Max. radius | 14.6 cm |
| Temperature at max speed (Z327-K refrigerated) | 2 °C |
| Geometry | Swing-out (0–90°): flat sediment surface |
| Bucket lid | Per brochure footnote: direct-fit B-variants noted "* only without bucket lid": non-sealable mode |
| List price | $465 (2-pack) |
Direct-Fit Bucket vs Bucket-Plus-Insert: Configuration Choice
The Z326-100H rotor system supports two procurement paths for 15 mL conical workflows on the Z327 / Z327-K chassis:
| Configuration | Per cycle | Mode | Cost path |
| Z326-100H-B15 (this SKU): direct-fit bucket | 12 × 15 mL conical | Non-sealable | One SKU per bucket pair |
| Z326-100H-BUK + Z326-100H-A15 insert | 8 × 15 mL conical | Non-sealable (A15 is non-sealable insert) | Two SKUs per bucket pair (bucket + insert) |
| Z326-100H-BUK + Z326-100H-LID + Z326-100H-A15S insert | 4 × 15 mL conical | Sealable for BSL-2 + biosafety | Three SKUs (bucket + lid + sealable insert) |
Pick the B15 when higher per-cycle throughput matters (12 vs 8 vs 4 tubes) and biosafety containment is not a workflow driver. Pick the BUK + A15S + LID when biosafety containment matters and per-cycle throughput is secondary.
Compatibility & When to Order This SKU
Bucket pairing: Z326-100H-AC swing-out rotor body only. Order this SKU when:
- Commissioning a Z326-100H-AC for high-throughput 15 mL conical workflow. Order 2 units for full 4-bucket configuration (12 tubes/cycle).
- Adding higher-throughput 15 mL conical capability to an existing Z327 / Z327-K install that currently uses other bucket / insert configurations.
- Replacement buckets if a current set is damaged or worn.
Application Profile
Cold-chain higher-throughput 15 mL conical clinical-research prep: patient sample fractionation, aliquot prep, freeze-storage workflows at 12 tubes per cycle on the refrigerated chassis (vs the 8-tube throughput of the bucket+insert approach).
Cell-culture pellet recovery in 15 mL: pelleting non-adherent cells from suspension batches at higher per-cycle throughput.
Density-gradient prep in 15 mL: Ficoll, Percoll, sucrose-gradient prep at 12 parallel preps per cycle on a refrigerated swing-out chassis.
Bench-scale protein prep at cold-chain. TCA, ammonium-sulfate, organic-precipitation in 15 mL conical at higher parallel throughput.
Mid-throughput institutional clinical-research workflows. When the 8-tube bucket+insert configuration becomes a throughput bottleneck and biosafety containment is not the workflow driver, the B15 direct-fit bucket adds 50% per-cycle throughput on the same chassis.
Educational and graduate-level teaching workflows. Molecular biology and clinical-tech curricula at 12-tube section sizes on a refrigerated chassis.
Ordering & Configuration
4-bucket symmetric loading. All 4 buckets must be installed for symmetric balance at 5,000 rpm.
Per-bucket symmetric loading. Within each bucket, the 3 conical tubes should be balanced. Pair tubes by mass with the third position symmetric to the bucket's central axis.
Tube cap confirmation. All conical tubes must be securely capped before spinning at 5,000 rpm.
Z326-100H-B15 ships as 2 buckets. 15 mL conical tubes are operator-supplied (commodity Falcon / Corning / equivalent formats).
Required for operation:
- Z326-100H-AC rotor body (sold separately) or already in inventory
- For full 4-bucket configuration: order 2 units of this SKU
Confirm at quote: rotor-body pairing (Z326-100H-AC in inventory), chassis pairing (Z327 or Z327-K), workflow biosafety driver (B15 is non-sealable; biosafety workflows should use BUK + A15S + LID instead), tube format (15 mL conical Falcon-style), pack count (2 packs for full 4-bucket configuration), and lead time.
Warranty: 5-Year Hermle warranty (3 years full + 2 years drivetrain) on the buckets.
Z326-100H direct-fit bucket pair:
- Z326-100H-B15 (this product): 3 × 15 mL conical direct-fit, 12 tubes/cycle
- Z326-100H-B50: 2 × 50 mL conical direct-fit, 8 tubes/cycle
Pick the direct-fit bucket variants for higher non-sealable throughput; pick the BUK + insert + LID combination when biosafety containment is the workflow driver.
