Vessel gripping member comprising a removable nose equipped with a mandrel and an ejection plate

A member (22) for gripping vessels (16), comprising:

• a support (32) that is movable along a transport trajectory of the vessel (16);
• and
• a nose (38) comprising a body (39) which is comprised of a bottom end mandrel (40) capable of holding in a neck (26) of the vessel (16), the nose (38) being fixed removably to a bottom axial end of the support (32),
• wherein the nose (38) further comprises an ejection plate (46) which is slidably fixed on the body (39), such that the ejection plate (46) is capable of an axial sliding around the mandrel (40) between a cladding position in which the mandrel (40) protrudes axially downwards and an uncladding position in which the mandrel (40) is axially retracted above a bottom face of the plate (46), and
• wherein the axial sliding of the ejection plate (46) with respect to the body (39) is limited, by abutment, to positions between said cladding position and said uncladding position, regardless of whether the nose is fixed to the bottom axial end of the support or if the nose is removed from the support.