Moonshiners (2011–…): Season 4, Episode 6 - Moonshine Takedown - full transcript

Mark:
Well, I'm a mountain man.

I love the woods.
I'm a moonshiner.

I'll show you
how to make moonshine.

I'll show you
how to drink moonshine.

There ain't nobody
ever moonshined

More than I moonshined.

I'm a moonshiner.

Narrator:
Tonight, on "moonshiners"...

Ready?
Yep.

Fire in the hole.

Bill: There's a whole bunch
that can go wrong.



We've already had
a still blow up on us.

Narrator:
...The passion of an old timer.

Roy, you know
I love to do this.

I'd rather do this
than eat shrimp.

And in north carolina,
it's the day of reckoning.

Jeff: Law car coming up
behind us.

Mark: Pull over.
Blue-lighting us, too.

Man: This is how
we make the moonshine!

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Narrator: When the forest canopy
is lush and green,

Moonshine season is
well underway.

Shiners are working
around the clock

Pumping out thousands of gallons
of liquor.

But a family moonshine operation
in north carolina is limping



To the starting line.

Lance:
This place has got to work.

If we get one more flop,
then we're done.

And all we got to do is
get moved in

And we're ready to go.

After their last site
was compromised,

Lance came through in the clutch
with a backup location --

A barn nestled in the woods
with a good vantage,

Multiple getaway routes,
and ample water.

But this late in the season,

They're taking
every precaution necessary

To shore up the hidden location.

Jeff: We need to go ahead
and get them cameras mounted

And watching the place,

So we make sure there ain't
nobody snooping around

Before we set the still up here.

[ chimes ring ]

We're a little bit behind,
but we're trying, you know,

To do everything we can do
to keep from getting caught.

Mark: I've set up stuff
everywhere in these mountains.

Jeff:
You get in too a big hurry,
you will get arrested.

I mean, it's that simple.

If we get caught,
we're going to jail.

I'm gonna run my string
across this path.

And then we got to go
down the side

And get it in the ground.

I'm gonna tie
this end off solid.

If anybody crosses this path,
it'll warn us.

[ chimes ringing ]

I can hear them from here.

[ ringing continues ]
we'll be able to hear it.

Narrator:
Moonshiners have always
relied on lookouts, alarms,

And concealment to keep them
safe from the law,

But nothing has been
as effective

At keeping shiners out of prison
as the payment of granny fees,

Which are nothing more than
bribes to government officials.

The term derived from a fee
a couple would pay to a midwife

For the delivery of a baby.

Except during prohibition,
the couples were shiners,

Midwives were cops,

And the babies were
buckets of moonshine.

But in present-day
graham county,

The law isn't taking
any granny fees.

Put one somewhere,
like, over here.

So, lance is making some
modern upgrades to security.

One over here
in this window.

You know, dad and mark,

They just grew up
in a different generation.

You know, they didn't really
have technology back then.

We've just got
the two cameras right now.

Add a little bit
of peace of mind to us.

Jeff: You ready for me to plug
these cameras up out here?

Yeah, go for it.

Okay,
I'm hooking them up.

It's done.

Let's see
what we look like.

We can see the road
and all, can't we?

Oh, yeah.

But that one's got
our main entrance.

I mean, see both roads,

See if somebody comes
off the bank.

Jeff: We use old methods,
and we use new methods.

It don't matter

If it's something they used
200 years ago

Or if it's something
that, you know,

With the technology
they got today.

If it works,
you know, we're gonna use it.

Narrator:
While mark, jeff, and lance set
down roots in their new site,

Another shiner is
homeward bound.

Tickle: Tyler and chico, we all
made us a lot of good shine,

And that's on the way
back to virginia now.

Narrator: After a strong start
brewing tim smith's recipe

At their still site
in kentucky...

Tickle: Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.

...Tickle, chico,
and tyler found a patsy

To bootleg 60 gallons of liquor
across state lines.

Man:
See you in virginia.

All right. I will see you
in virginia, my man.

Before it arrives,
tickle needs to lock down

A secure stash site,
but it won't be easy.

Last season, tickle hastily hid
his shine in a tobacco barn

That was still in use...

Tickle: [bleep]

Narrator:
...And the stash got looted.

Tickle: All I know is I can't
ever use that house again.

I got an old buddy named levi.

He's got a nice junkyard.

I'm gonna just talk to him,
and see what I can't do.

Hey, levi, you around?

Hey, levi?

Oh! My old buddy, tickle.
What you doing, boy?

You know me.
Good to see you, bud.

Good to see you, too.

I'm needing to kind of store
a few things, you know?

Wondering if you
might could help me out.

Yeah.

Tickle: You know, levi,
he's a pretty hard negotiator.

20%, you know, that's a lot more
than what I wanted to give him,

But I like levi's place here

Because nobody ever is gonna
connect levi with shine.

People know levi
don't even drink.

You killing me, levi.
You know?

[ laughs ]

Narrator: Meanwhile, in
graham county, north carolina,

Jim tom and roy are putting
the finishing touches

On their rig before moving it
into the woods.

Jim tom: I'm gonna clean
the outside.

I like a clean still.

If the law cuts it down,
I want them to say to theirself,

"that's a beautiful
little old machine."

Yeah.

Did you ever use
any ketchup?

Yeah.

On something
besides french fries?

Yeah.
Quite a bit of stuff.

That's soft enough.

Let's see how this works.

Get over here
where you can see.

Oh, you're doing
a fine job.

I don't want to get around there
and slow you down.

An old moonshiner trick --

Use ketchup instead
of expensive specialty cleaners

To make a copper still look
like a brand-new penny.

I don't like to let
the cat out of the bag.

The vinegar and ketchup act
like a mild acid,

Which dissolves
the harmful copper-oxide tarnish

That forms on the still
over time.

Well, it's turning green,
isn't it?

Yeah.

Lookit there.

That's right.

It's like a penny come out of
the u.S. Mint -- philadelphia.

Yeah.

That's fine.

Yeah.

I got to bore a hole
for my worm.

Jim tom:
Come here and look at that

And see if that looks
pretty straight to you.

Oh, yeah.
All right.

I'll make you sing
the honky-tonk.

Give me your money.

Or you'll fry me,
huh?

See, it's still.

Okay.
The still's done.

Jim tom:
Now getting it in the brush
to run the liquor with.

In the foothills to the east,

Requests for josh and bill's
shine are piling up.

About 2, 2 1/2 weeks.
Maybe 3 weeks.

And they've got little
to show for it.

We got a ton of people,
after last season, wanting

To buy our moonshine.

We got to get a move on.

Narrator: But since
their still explosion,

Their season has been in flux

And their partnership
on the rocks.

Bill: He's a different kind
of crazy than I am,

And that's kind of
where the problems lie in,

That we're not
the same kind of crazy.

You want to lay this out
flat on the ground first?

Yeah.

Get it marked and...

If they don't get
their new still built

And running soon,
their season will be a wash.

Josh: In carpentry,
you measure twice,

And you cut once.

This is a sheet of copper.
It's expensive.

You know, once we cut it,
that's it -- it's over with.

It might help if I watch
where the fire's going.

Beautiful.

Bill:
I know it ain't perfect,

But I think it's gonna be
a dang good start.

I might tap it back out
a little bit.

Josh: Perfect, man.

I think that'll work.
Hell yeah.

Hold on. Hold on.
Hold on.

I'm not liking
how it's bending that up.

We have sort of a problem
right there.

That's a problem.

Think we can beat that
back out?

[ sighs ]
we could try.

Do you see how it kind of
rolled back right there

And it looks like

A couple monkeys
hammered this thing together?

Josh:
We got ahead of ourselves.

We should've took some pliers
and worked it all the way around

And got it good and snug
so it couldn't push anywhere

And then hammer it down
when we realized

It was gonna line up
all the way around.

[ hammer banging ]

Josh: It's ruined.

It's not ruined.
It's not ruined.

Don't say that.
It ain't never ruined.

Bend her back a little bit.
Get her straightened out.

[bleep]
we ruined this thing.

No, we didn't ruin it.

[ groans ]

This side's gonna leak
like a son of a bitch.

At the end of the day,
it's just got to function.

It don't got to be beautiful,
but this is ridiculous.

It ain't gonna work.
[bleep] damn it!

I still don't think
this is non-recoverable, bud.

That's gonna be
hard to fix.

Bill: Five more minutes
of finesse.

Josh: Done with it.
We're gonna do it right.

Three seconds of violence,

Then we're back to square one
on this damn lid.

When I get fed up,
I'm fed up,

And that's just
all it is to it.

I was done with it.

Narrator: Coming up, jim tom
and roy ain't whistling dixie...

[ whistles ]
[ blows ]

...Patsy paranoia...

If he figures out
what he's hauling,

It may get to the law.

...And jeff's number is up.

Blue-lighting us.

Narrator:
For moonshiners, still building
requires patience and precision.

But today,
one shiner is lacking in both.

Bill:
Three seconds of violence,

Then we're back to square one
on this damn lid.

When I get fed up,
I'm fed up,

And that's just
all there is to it.

I was done with it.

Narrator: Josh and bill are down
to their last piece of copper.

They've got one final shot
before the whole day is wasted.

That's it, ain't it?
Bang, bang.

Bill: We destroyed the lid.
We had to start all over.

Ruined that piece of copper --
that expensive piece of copper.

I didn't want to do that.

We just messed up, and I think
we just damn too hot.

Too hot, yeah.

Bill:
We got too excited,

And this thing's
coming together.

This thing's
coming together.

Bill: We ain't completely
out of the woods yet,

But we got our cap mostly made.

We got the lid on it at least.

Done.

Narrator:
With the cap complete,

Josh and bill can get started
on the arm --

A pipe that connects the pot
to the thumper.

Are you cool with making it
like sort of a cone shape

And then, like, smashing
the cone together

So it's just like this
on the end,

And making it about this big,

About this long?

Why, though?

You saying you want to, like,
build the arm coming off of it,

Then, like, squish it together
like an egg?

Yeah,
sort of like an egg

Because I don't want it
to be perfectly round.

I think that'll look stupid.

I don't care how it looks.

I mean, is it squishing together
like an egg

Gonna make it make liquor
any better?

It's just gonna make it
look better.

Don't make it look better.
You're killing me.

You're killing me.
It doesn't have to look better.

Do we have to sit here
and argue about it?

No, I mean, I'll build it
egg-shaped if you want.

I just don't understand.
I just don't understand.

You're making
a big deal out of it.

Why not round?

I just told you.

Because it's gonna
look stupid.

Whatever.

Let's just get
through this thing.

Okay.
All right?

Okay.

Look at that.
Hot dog.

You liking it?

Yeah, and as far as height-wise,
it's right.

The fitting's on the right side
and everything.

You ever noticed
every still we've built,

We built it this way?

We never built one
this way.

What,
going from left to right

Instead of right to left?
Yeah.

I want to build a japanese one
going from top to bottom.

[ both chuckle ]

I'll find me
a new partner.

[ laughs ]

Narrator: Josh and bill are the
newest generation of shiners,

But they could be the last.

Nowadays, with legal moonshine
on liquor store shelves,

The old ways are dying out.

But two shiners in tennessee
intend to change that.

Ramsey:
Moonshine that's made legally
in the factories is kind of like

Eating a bologna sandwich
at home in the kitchen

Instead of eating
a bologna sandwich by the river

At a picnic.

Nobody knows why, but it
tastes better by the river.

Narrator:
Mark and digger learned to
make moonshine from the best.

Ramsey: Popcorn sutton was
one of the last folk heroes.

Narrator: Now they'll carry
the knowledge forward.

What you doing, buddy?

I know
what you ain't doing.

You ain't cleaning
this place up.

Move that [bleep] around there
wherever you can.

I got me a seat.
There's a chair here.

You got something
to sit on?

Yeah, a bucket.

I'm trying to figure out
how to build

What is called
a dephlegmator.

I read about these things
in a 1937 publication.

They supposedly can eliminate
the thump keg

And act as a doubler.

So, my theory is
if you use one of these

And use a thump keg, also,
why isn't it a double double?

Why isn't it a quad run,
maybe, so to speak?

[ chuckles ]

Originally invented
in 1925 by samuel dickey,

A dephlegmator is
a sealed copper coil

That enters and exits

Through holes
in the top of the cap.

Cold water is circulated
through the dephlegmator coil.

This provides better
initial distillation.

The purified alcohol vapor
then travels to the thumper

For even further distillation
before reaching the condenser.

Shine coming
from a normal copper-pot still

Will be around 130-proof

While shine coming
from a dephlegmator still

Will be around 170.

You told allison yet
that you're gonna make liquor?

[ chuckles ]
I ain't got to act lumpy

All over my head
right now, am I?

What about you?

You told "big sal"
what you're up to?

Not really,
but I've not told her

I wasn't going to, either.

You know, wives are like
your mama.

They can look at you
and tell if your lying or not.

All right, digger, man.

Fetch me that cap
over there

That's got that thump arm
already on it.

You got room for it?

You move enough of that [bleep]
there out of your way.

That looks pretty good.
Pretty good.

All right, let me get down here
at eye level.

I'll push it to you.
All right, we're good.

Ready to rock and roll.

When this still is complete,

Traditional tennessee moonshine
will be back on the market.

But that won't be
the only heritage shine

Made this season.

Jim tom and roy's still
is built,

And they're wasting no time
loading it into their new site.

Roy: It's a good spot.
78 feet in the woods,

But there's 30 acres
of open cow pasture,

So we can see
everything that moves.

Before they can ever get to us,
we can be somewhere else.

Is that it?
I think so.

Get your flashlight.

I'll be back soon as I get
this truck out of sight.

Narrator: This location has
all the markings

Of a perfect still site --
far from people with good cover

And a clean, cold water source.

Hunh-unh.

Just a few miles away,

Moonshine season is
well underway,

And mark, jeff,
and lance have yet to produce

A single drop of liquor.

Lance came through
with the new site,

But they're not
out of the weeds yet...

Jeff: What I'm gonna do is just
drag it off and stand it up.

Because their still is
a monster,

Standing 10 feet tall and
weighing more than half a ton.

[ engine turns over ]

Are we ready?

Mark: Yeah.

Lance: Whoa!
Hey.

About lost my finger
when that shifted.

We got to get them feet
on the ground where the hole --

There we go.

Whoa!

Mark: We just have to be careful
right here.

If it slips off --

Lance: Once he gets
that in there,

I can't hold this part.
That's okay.

Hold it. We got it.
Whoa!

[ sighs ]

Jeff: Get ahold of it
there, lance.

Mark: There you go.

Mark:
It's wanting to shift.

Come this way.

You don't need it
no higher than that.

Watch them light fixtures.

Mark: I can't see them.
Let it down.

Jeff:
It's been a long time coming,
but it's in here, isn't it?

Bit of a workout holding
that thing up.

I didn't strain a bit.
Me and mark did.

[ laughs ]

Jeff:
That's good, mark.

Narrator: This 760-gallon setup
has jeff $20,000 in the hole,

But it'll pay back dividends
once the shine starts flowing.

Just a single run could yield
up to $8,000 tax-free.

Jeff:
Man, I'll tell you --

It's like climbing
a three-story building

To get to the top
of this thing.

Lance:
All of our money is right here.

The money
that we will be making,

We have to have this to make it.

Jeff: Somebody may have to get
another ladder and help me here.

End of our season definitely
if we lost this site.

Jeff: You can get that side
started down in there.

Mark:
I can't reach around it.

Narrator: Coming up,
josh and bill play with fire...

Bill: There's a whole bunch
that can go wrong.

We've already had
a still blow up.

Narrator:
...And a kink in jim tom's plan.

Oh!

Jeff: If you can get that side
started down in there.

Narrator: Mark, jeff,
and lance thought they found

The perfect site
for their massive new still.

[bleep]

But they should've
measured twice.

Mark: Yeah, we was gonna
take the blocks out

And try to lower it
and put it on wood.

But if the wood won't hold,
it's just more problems.

And dangerous, too.

If something would've broke

Or something and landed
on top of you,

Something like that
could kill you.

Jeff: If you can get
on this side of us, mark,

Me and lance will
pick it up here,

And you can slide
that block out.

You ready, lance?
Let's go.

[ grunts ]

Ready?

Mark: Yeah.
Ease it down.

Lance:
Well, if it's gonna break,

This is gonna be the time
it's gonna break.

Jeff: Ready?
[ grunts ]

I'll have to set it down
on the ground this time.

[ grunts ]

Here we go.
[ grunting ]

Lance, you keep it
from turning and falling over.

Ready, lance?
Yep.

Ready?
Mark: Yeah.

Ease it down.

Pretty level.

See if that cap will fit it
this time.

That set it down
3 1/2 inches.

That ought to give me
plenty of room.

Mark:
Let it go right there.

Okay.
Ease it back.

We got the cap in.

Lance: This is our biggest still
we've ever run.

I mean,these legal distilleries
ain't got a still this big.

Just because of the size
and the sheer weight of it,

You know, if it shifts
any direction,

It could fall and hurt somebody.

It's way heavier than anything
I've ever moved before.

Jeff:
This thing's massive.

About 100 --
over 100 gallons to the run.

We can run 10 runs on this.

We won't have to worry
about money next year.

Narrator:
150 miles to the east,

Storm clouds are rolling in,
shutting most shiners down.

[ thunder rumbles ]

Bill:
There's that thunder again.

The clouds are preparing
for battle.

Narrator:
But josh and bill have
no time to lose,

So they'll work
on a vital component

To their submarine pot --
the burner.

Bill: All right.

I'm pretty sure I got mostly
the right lengths.

Josh: We're just trying
to put off getting wet.

It's pouring down rain
outside,

And I'm not really looking
forward to getting out in it.

Bill: Never built a burner
like this before,

And we never had
a submarine pot before,

So we're gonna give it a shot.

Looks like she's gonna turn out
pretty good for us.

You ready to screw
this thing in or no?

The burner
on the large copper still

Only needs to heat roughly
five square feet of surface

On the bottom of the pot

While the burner for josh
and bill's new submarine still

Will need to evenly heat
about 25 square feet.

Once we get set up,

It's gonna be a hell
of a lot more payout.

To cover that area, they'll
build a trident-style burner

Used exclusively
on submarine pot stills.

Bill:
With the submarine pot --

I mean, it's a lot flatter
than it is tall,

So it'll get us good, even heat,

And it's gonna keep us
from scorching anything.

Bill: You want to light
this thing up?

See what our flame's
gonna look like.

Bill: If we don't seal
these fittings up right,

You know, we could have
a gas leak up under everything.

There's a whole bunch
that could go wrong.

We've already had a still
blow up on us this season.

Ready?
Yep.

[ gas hissing ]

I don't know, bill.

Man, I think
that looks really good.

And first try, too.

When was the last time
we got something right
on the first try?

We get better
and better.

Shouldn't
have said that.

Narrator:
Back up in the mountains,

Jim tom and roy are
halfway through

Setting up their still site.

But roy is feeling his age.

[ whistles ]

[ blows ]

[ snorts ]

Yeah.

No.

Good, clean water is crucial
to making moonshine.

It's necessary for making mash
and cooling down the condenser,

But to get enough water
out of the small stream,

Jim tom will have to
create a dam.

Jim tom plans to use
a system of pipes and hoses

To siphon water from the dam
over a small hill

And down to the still.

Leave that in there,
and that ought to hold it.

I'm looking to see
where it's at.

Busted.

Jim tom: Oh!

Narrator: Coming up, josh
and bill are all washed up.

Bill: Just the top board.
Josh: No.

Just the top board.
Unh-unh.

And lance prepares
for the final showdown.

I got to do whatever it takes.
I've got to protect this site.

Narrator:
In the smoky mountains...

...Jim tom and roy are
engineering the water source

For their still site.

But the water won't flow.

Jim tom: Oh!

Narrator:
Shiners rely on gravity to run
water to their stills,

But sometimes the terrain throws
a kink in the works.

Whoo!

Well, that's -- hey,
that's like work, roy.

[ chuckles ]

Plenty of water.

Narrator: Back in virginia,
tickle's on the clock.

Shine's supposed to be
showing up today.

It should be here anytime now.

Narrator: Customers in place
and junkyard stash site ready,

Tickle has made all
the necessary preparations.

Now the hard part --

Waiting for the 60 gallons
of shine to arrive.

This is something
totally different

Getting, well,
pretty much a patsy

To carry this shine
and haul it for us

That don't know
what they're doing.

Kind of afraid if he figures out
what he's hauling,

He'll make it to the law.

Been sitting here picking
my nose waiting on this guy.

Come on.

Yeah, that's my delivery.

All right.

[ sighs ]

It's about time.

How's it going?
Good.

Made it in one piece,
which is always good.

That's always good.

See my stuff got here.

All right.

Let's get these things
unloaded here.

We can just set them right off
to the side here.

That's good.

Oh, well, you know.

That thing's my daughter's
rock collection.

She loves rocks.

Tickle: I was really relieved
when this van pulled up.

I was beginning to worry.
He was running late.

I didn't know if he done got
in touch with the law

And figured out
what was going on.

All right.
Have a good day.

All right, you too, sir.
Thank you.

So, now I got this stuff
loaded up in my truck,

And I'm gonna try to head over
to levi's junkyard.

I'm gonna see if I can't find
a place to stash it.

Look at this.

Open these things on up here.

There's so many different places
to hide the shine out here.

It's just unbelievable.

Even find somebody
still got a darn vcr.

Five-gallon bucket.

[ grunts ]

Yeah.

I wonder if it'll fit
on that shelf.

It just does.

All right.

I don't want to put too much
in one spot.

I reckon I better find
another spot.

Nothing too obvious.

I'm making a few calls to some
of my old contacts,

Trying to get some big sales
lined up.

Tim smith's moonshine
is back in town.

Got a dented lid.

[ sighs ]

Ahh.
I deserve that, anyways.

Narrator: The storms have
cleared in south carolina...

Bill:
We got a bunch more to do.

I mean, we got a bunch done,

But we got a [bleep] ton
more to do.

...Allowing josh and bill to
finally finish their still site.

Looking good.

Start loading in.

They've already wrestled the
750-gallon pot into position.

Watch your step.

[ straining ] oh, god.
Can't go no further.

Narrator: But there's
plenty left to carry in

And set up before any shine
starts to flow.

Josh: Only 4,000 more pounds
to tote through the woods.

That baby's heavy.

Yeah, she is.

Josh: Starting to see
all this rig come together.

This thing is a beast.

We're gonna be getting 150, 160
gallons of liquor in one run.

We got to move a couple inches
at a time.

[ grunts ]

Oh! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

You all right?
Yep. Yep.

Almost wasn't.

Narrator: With all the pieces
finally in place,

The last major task is to nail
sheets of stainless steel

Onto the pot's wooden frame.

Damn.

I'm worried about all
that moisture in it, man.

Bill:
It been raining pretty hard

Since the last time
we been down here.

The wood's a little bit --
it's saturated. It's swoll up.

It's soaking wet.
You can feel it.

You can see it, even.

It's dry here.
But our top pieces.

It's still got a bunch
of moisture in it, though.

Our top pieces
aren't gonna swell up

Like we had hoped
they were going to

To get that seal

In between our stainless
and the top rail.

I definitely don't want
a leaky pot,

But we definitely can't afford
to take this thing back apart

And haul it out to a kiln.

Can't we just pop the ones

That have been getting
the rainwater?

Can't we just drag them
up to your buddy's house

And get him to thrown them in
the kiln, at least overnight?

Take this apart from this?

Just the top board.
No.

Just the top board.
Unh-unh.

Just the top board.
Unh-unh. No.

Look, man.
What's our other option?

I say let's wrap it
with the stainless then,

And if it leaks, it leaks.

Narrator: Coming up,
a shiner goes down.

There's a law car coming up
behind us.

What the hell is that
in the creek?

What?
Them critters?

What critters?

Damn snails.

There's a damn ton of them
down here, man.

In a survival situation,
they got protein.

Ain't no way I'd eat that.

They got protein in them.
[ crunches ]

You are sick, man!
God!

A little crunchy.

You are nasty!

No, but in
a survival situation,

If there ain't nothing else
to eat, live off these.

You're eating it now,

And we ain't in
a survival situation.

[bleep] dang.

Ain't never had escargot?

I don't want to.

Good [bleep] tastes like a steak
this big around.

That's gross.

Get it on
some garlic butter.

You're a sicko.

But it's good to know,
I mean,

Just in case the bottom
falls out,

Damn grocery stores
ain't open anymore.

I've seen you eat worse.

Narrator:
In south carolina,

Seasonal rains have wreaked
havoc on josh and bill's plans.

Definitely can't afford to take
this thing back apart

And haul it out to a kiln.

The wood frame
of their submarine pot

Is swollen with moisture,

Threatening the air-tight seal
needed for the pot to hold mash.

What's our other option?

I say we wrap it
with the stainless, then,

And if it leaks, it leaks.

We're wasting all this time,

And I'm ready to smell
that whiskey burning, man.

It looks pretty good
to me, brother.

Let's nail this thing.

This ain't exactly
the quietest operation

In the woods these days,
is it?

Hell no.

[ grunts ]

This thing's huge, dude.

You were totally right about
building it and bringing it in.

There'd have been no way we'd
have gotten this thing in here.

Josh: We definitely did not have
time to take it all apart,

Get it kilned, get it dried,
get it brought back,

Put it all back together.

We just decided to roll with it.

Oh, my gosh,
this is awesome.

Anybody thinks this is
an easy way to make money,

They better think again.

They're better off going
to work at mcdonald's.

Ow! God! [ lips smack ]

Bill: As many nails as we got
in this thing,

I don't think any way possible
this thing is gonna leak.

Man, this thing's got another
20 pounds of nails

On top of everything else in it.

I mean, time's burning up.
Time's wasting, man.

We got to get
this thing together,

And I hope it's gonna
swell up enough

To close up all the leaks.

No. We got to get this thing
rolling, though.

We're running out of time.

Narrator: Josh and bill

Aren't the only shiners
behind the eight ball.

Across the state line,
mark, jeff, and lance

Have yet to make a dime
this season.

With their new still site
nearly complete,

They can't afford
another misstep.

With all the pressure that's
on me and dad and mark,

You know, I picked this site.

So if this site gets burnt,
you know, it's all on me.

Even if we just have to move
the still to another location,

Our season's done.

So I'm gonna make sure that
this thing's safe tonight.

It's just, you know, kind of
sit here, watch the cameras.

With the money we got
sunk into that pot,

We was to lose it now,

We'd be a lot of money
in the hole.

We've already lost one site
that would've worked perfect.

I've got to do
whatever it takes.

I've got to protect this site.

Narrator: While lance holds down
the home front,

Mark and jeff
are back on the road

Getting the final supplies
for their still.

Mark, we'll go get
these other few fittings

For this flake stand,

And we'll have that much
of it done, anyway.

Yeah, we need to get to running
quick as we can, don't we?

More work we do,
the further behind we get.

Yeah.

We good.
Stay on it.

Mark, there's a law car
coming up behind us.

Still coming?

Yeah, he's still coming.

I hope he goes on
around us.

Oh, lord.

Blue-lighting us, too.

He just want around us,
or reckon he's pulling us over?

Might as well see
what he's wanting.

Yeah.

I'll sure do it.

Okeydoke.

No.

No.
Okay.

No, I don't care a bit.
Don't care a bit?

Okay.

Anything you want to look for
in there.

No.

Narrator:
Next time on "moonshiners"...

I'm right here where I'm
supposed to be meeting the guy,

And there's a cop.

Narrator: ...Tickle's first sale
of the season...

We got to roll right here, man.
This place is hot.

...Tim's legacy in jeopardy...

No, but it ain't
my moonshine.

...And the heat is on
in south carolina.

Stopped behind our truck.

How's it going, officer?

All this metal and stuff
you got in here

Looks like
some of the makings

Of what goes
for a moonshine still.