anything that has to curve in any way, or has any kind of radius at all including even silicone tubing will take up more space than a sharp 90deg bend here. a cross drilled block with a sharp 90deg transition will be the most compact solution. the shortest radius is no radius. this is especially necessary for the first bend right below the 510, the second return bend may be able to accommodate a radius if it is a tight radius
the 2 sharp 90deg bends do not affect flow in any way other than velocity, which is not a factor at all when it comes to squonking
and yeah, the connection does have to be solid and electrically conductive since that center pin still does need to be provided with power. this is one benefit of brass, in that brass to stainless
threading is a slightly better electrical connection than stainless to stainless. brass to stainless threading is also a better seal at the threading too, which is why I say there are benefits and drawbacks to each choice between brass and stainless here. personally I'm leaning more towards brass as being ideal for this transitional piece in most cases. the actual brass to
juice contact in this path is extremely minimal, it's only ~1/8th of an inch internally, but I know that a few may possibly be opposed to even that, which is why I'm also considering alternatives.
building the block from silver is one good possible alternative. gold plating a brass block after it is machined may be another, although I think that brass alone should be fine for most. brass has been used in plumbing for many years for water that will actually be consumed directly into your body. its use here as just a 1/8" section of the
juice path, especially after it is pickled to remove all surface lead, I think it should really be a non issue for most, but I also do want an alternative for anyone it actually may concern.
speaking of which, who would be opposed to this fitting being brass? I'm guessing tom/catfish, but anyone else? I of course could build a stainless fitting for anyone that's overly concerned but would hate to have to do this for each and every one unless there was a real reason to which I am not seeing tbh...