setting malt mill

[Dutto]

Okay, Santa is going to come early but he's a bit short of funds at the moment so has anyone on the Forum used one of these?

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Basic_Malt_Grain_Mill.html#SID=271

I don't intend to do more that a brew every other week and I need the exercise so:

a) Do they work?

b) Any tips on their use?

Finger hovering over the "Checkout" button. :lol:

 

[MyQul]

Okay, Santa is going to come early but he's a bit short of funds at the moment so has anyone on the Forum used one of these?

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Basic_Malt_Grain_Mill.html#SID=271

I don't intend to do more that a brew every other week and I need the exercise so:

a) Do they work?

b) Any tips on their use?

Finger hovering over the "Checkout" button. :lol:

I bought a basic mill like this from ebay

a) from watching a couple of vids of people who also bought one, yes. They seem particularly suited for small amounts. I'm switching to small (5L-7L) batch brewing. So I think mine will be perfect for the 1kg or so of grain I need to mill

b) I havent actually used mine yet as I first needed to brew the GEB (crushed) custom grain kit I had (which I brewed this weekend). I'm going to use mine next week for the first time but I'm confident it will work well. Everything seems to work without any grain in it

 

[Dutto]

I bought a basic mill like this from ebay

a) from watching a couple of vids of people who also bought one, yes. They seem particularly suited for small amounts. I'm switching to small (5L-7L) batch brewing. So I think mine will be perfect for the 1kg or so of grain I need to mill

b) I havent actually used mine yet as I first needed to brew the GEB (crushed) custom grain kit I had (which I brewed this weekend). I'm going to use mine next week for the first time but I'm confident it will work well. Everything seems to work without any grain in it

Many thanks. It will be ordered in a few minutes ... :thumb:

... along with 25kg of Maris Otter. :thumb:

DONE! :thumb:

 

[cheapbrew]

Okay, Santa is going to come early but he's a bit short of funds at the moment so has anyone on the Forum used one of these?

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Basic_Malt_Grain_Mill.html#SID=271

I don't intend to do more that a brew every other week and I need the exercise so:

a) Do they work?

b) Any tips on their use?

Finger hovering over the "Checkout" button. :lol:

Yep I bought that one from the home brew shop in december, they are a little rough finish but do the job they were made for, I'm pleased with mine, simple to adjust crush and hopper holds a kg and does a kg in about two mins.

Some folks on another forum bought the ebay one linked and have had some problems with not fitting together and metal flakes coming off.

Have you used your ebay one yet Micharel?

 

[MyQul]

Have you used your ebay one yet Micharel?

Not yet. I'm going to try it out this coming weekend for the first time

 

[Dutto]

Once ordered, I did a bit of research ( ?) and discovered this particular video ...

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71TJqeP0o1M[/ame]

The model I have ordered is identical to the one in the video so, as all the mods seem relevant, they are on my "List of things to do." :thumb:

I also looked at this video ...

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SavBDZxBVXc[/ame]

... so:

o I have a "spare" FV to use as a carrier for the mill. (At the moment it is serving as a boiler but I now have a new shiny one.)

o I have seen grain flying everywhere when this type of mill is in use; and this keeps it nicely contained.

o It will fit inside another FV which will act as a collector for the milled grain.

o When not in use, it will stack inside other FV's to minimise the storage space.

It looks as if I am going to have a happy old time in the garage for a few days checking out and modifying this bit of kit; but I will keep reminding myself of a mate who was looking for a hutch for his ferrets ...

"I wish you had been with me.
The man had taken about thirty quids worth of materials
to make a rabbit hutch worth about ten quid."​

... so I will try to ensure that ALL of my modifications are sensible improvements! :thumb:

 

[MyQul]

Once ordered, I did a bit of research ( ?) and discovered this particular video ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71TJqeP0o1M

The model I have ordered is identical to the one in the video so, as all the mods seem relevant, they are on my "List of things to do." :thumb:

I also looked at this video ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SavBDZxBVXc

... so:

o I have a "spare" FV to use as a carrier for the mill. (At the moment it is serving as a boiler but I now have a new shiny one.)

o I have seen grain flying everywhere when this type of mill is in use; and this keeps it nicely contained.

o It will fit inside another FV which will act as a collector for the milled grain.

o When not in use, it will stack inside other FV's to minimise the storage space.

It looks as if I am going to have a happy old time in the garage for a few days checking out and modifying this bit of kit; but I will keep reminding myself of a mate who was looking for a hutch for his ferrets ...

"I wish you had been with me.
The man had taken about thirty quids worth of materials
to make a rabbit hutch worth about ten quid."​

... so I will try to ensure that ALL of my modifications are sensible improvements! :thumb:

All these types of mills are cheap chinese copies of the corona mill (I got mine from ebay). I think with your engineering background you'll be horrified at the casting but if you want a properly cast version of this mill you'll have to pay $�£50-�£70 and I'm not sure it'll do the job any better than the 20 odd quid version we've got.

In the video you'll see a ball bearing in the bit that adjusts the crush (sorry, I dont have an engineering background so dont have the correct language). Another forum advised completely removing this. I have done this on my mill and the two wing nuts on the side and the whole bit that adjust the crush now fit much more flush. Overall, even though I haven't used mine yet I'm really happy with it. The handle turns quite smoothly (perhaps this bit of the casting on mine was good)and I think it will do the job it's intended to. I think I'll do some of the easier mods from the first vid (adding some washers) too. I dont have 'DIY machines' (I dont even know the name of the relevant machine :lol:) so cant smooth things out like in the vid. All in all, so far I'm quite happy with my �£20 purchase

 

[MyQul]

Some folks on another forum bought the ebay one linked and have had some problems with not fitting together and metal flakes coming off.

I saw that thread. I think Tony51's explanation about 'grinding dry' causing metalic dust was good. When I put my mill together and turned the crank I also got some flakes.There not even flakes really more like dust. As Tony51 says it only happens if there's no grain in the mill as the grining surfaces are grinding on each other rather than on grain. Even if some metal dust did get into the ground grain, I'm not sure it would end up in my final beer. Firstly it's likely to get trapped in the mash and then I rack my beer three times before it ends up in the bottle mini keg. 1. After putting the hot wort into my no-chill FV, I rack it into a FV when cold, leaving behind the break material 2. I rack the beer off the yeast cake leaving behind the trub 3. I rack the beer into bottles/minikegs leaving behind any dropped out yeast. During any of these three stages I think any bits of metal would get left behind with the break material/trub/yeast

 

[MyQul]

Wiith all this talk of mills I just decided to have a go a crushing a handful of grain to test it out.

I was wondering what was going on for the first ten seconds of turning the handle and nothing was happening. Then I realized, as I'm left handed I was turning the handle the wrong way

.
The crank turned nice and smoothly and the guard completely stopped grain flying everywhere.I have some crushed buscuit malt that I compared the crush to and my crush was a bit finer, so I think I'll do some adjustments to make it coarser. So far I'm really impressed. The final test will come on friday when I crush all the grain for a planned 7L brew

 

[chub1]

I saw that thread. I think Tony51's explanation about 'grinding dry' causing metalic dust was good. When I put my mill together and turned the crank I also got some flakes.There not even flakes really more like dust. As Tony51 says it only happens if there's no grain in the mill as the grining surfaces are grinding on each other rather than on grain. Even if some metal dust did get into the ground grain, I'm not sure it would end up in my final beer. Firstly it's likely to get trapped in the mash and then I rack my beer three times before it ends up in the bottle mini keg. 1. After putting the hot wort into my no-chill FV, I rack it into a FV when cold, leaving behind the break material 2. I rack the beer off the yeast cake leaving behind the trub 3. I rack the beer into bottles/minikegs leaving behind any dropped out yeast. During any of these three stages I think any bits of metal would get left behind with the break material/trub/yeast

I got one from ebay, not happy about the metal flaking off the grinders. As i see it, the mill is plated tin!!!.
I have approached the seller to return the item for a full refund as i am not prepared to use it. Others have told me it's fine but i am just not happy about it.

 

[MyQul]

I got one from ebay, not happy about the metal flaking off the grinders. As i see it, the mill is plated tin!!!.
I have approached the seller to return the item for a full refund as i am not prepared to use it. Others have told me it's fine but i am just not happy about it.

I can understand that. I've just used my aluminium brewing pot for the last time this weekend and bought a 12L SS one and switched to small batches. There's no direct evidence that aluminum causes alzheimers disease and it would probably be fine to continue using it but I dont want to take the chance.

When you say, "metal flaking off the grinders" do you actually mean flakes? When I tried the mill without anything in there was a little bit of metal dust then came off rather than flakes

 

[chub1]

I can understand that. I've just used my aluminium brewing pot for the last time this weekend and bought a 12L SS one and switched to small batches. There's no direct evidence that aluminum causes alzheimers disease and it would probably be fine to continue using it but I dont want to take the chance.

When you say, "metal flaking off the grinders" do you actually mean flakes? When I tried the mill without anything in there was a little bit of metal dust then came off rather than flakes

metal dust i guess.
Might be a bit paranoid but i aint using it:nono:

 

[MyQul]

metal dust i guess.
Might be a bit paranoid but i aint using it:nono:

fair enuff. Perhaps you should get a roller mill then if you want to get a mill. I think to get a generic bulldog stye one for £80-£90 from ebay

 

[Dutto]

I got one from ebay, not happy about the metal flaking off the grinders. As i see it, the mill is plated tin!!!.
I have approached the seller to return the item for a full refund as i am not prepared to use it. Others have told me it's fine but i am just not happy about it.

The Model No500 that I am currently purchasing is one of these ...

http://www.alibaba.com/product-deta...0_745099344.html?spm=a2700.7724838.0.0.0nFms1

... and described as being made from tin-plated cast iron.

In this case, with no accurately machined or cast parts, a bit of tin flaking off when it's started up can be expected and (for me) it isn't a big deal. :thumb:

Also, the UK and USA Food Standards people will be aware that the machines are being used for the preparation of food for human consumption; so whatever flakes off from the machines is almost guaranteed to not be in any way toxic or injurious to health.

So, "No. I don't think your paranoid." but I do think that you are maybe being a bit overcautious. :thumb:

Here's another video.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXkozXm_c4M[/ame]

The man says it is "galvanised" which isn't supported by the manufacturers description of the Model No500. "Galvanising" normally means the steel or iron has been plated with zinc but I think he means that it has been "tinned" with a plating system using tin and not zinc.

 

[chub1]

Being collected on thursday and given refund:thumb:
still not prepared to use it but that is just my decision.

 

[Dutto]

Okay, The Beast arrived today!

As promised, it is cast to "industrial standards" rather than for "aesthetic beauty"; but at twenty-two quid who cares? The question should be "Does it work?" and for that I can give it a resounding "YES!" :thumb:

I considered doing all the improvements as per the previous video I posted but was overcome by sheer laziness and decided to look into that side of things after I'd actually tested it!

I never intended cranking that handle so I had already sorted out a huge Parkside Hammer Drill from Lidl. (The last time I used it, the "hammer" effect was so good that I knocked two bricks out of a wall.)

I also liked what the guy did in the second video and had already sorted out a scratched (and therefore past its Use By Date) FV.

I tested it by putting everything together and running some malt through it without anything permanent in place. It worked perfectly with ZERO metal flakes appearing anywhere. (I put this down to feeding malt into the mechanism before I started to adjust things.)

I then put the framework together to raise the Malt Mill to the right height inside the FV to accommodate the hammer drill and screwed/glued everything together.

At this stage I ran the same load of malt through the mill at the same setting. It was at this stage that I noticed that the bolts holding the grinder together had come loose and tomorrow I will fit nylon lock-nuts in place of the butterfly nuts.

Enough of a description here are some photographs of todays work.

At the moment I am knackered but managing to sit and enjoy a bottle of lager (whilst SWMBO prepares tea) with a bottle of mild to follow!

Enjoy!! :thumb:

PS

The speed at which The Beast and the Lidl Hammer Drill grinds 900 grams of malt (the contents of the hopper) makes me wonder why anyone would need anything quicker!

 

[MyQul]

Okay, The Beast arrived today!

As promised, it is cast to "industrial standards" rather than for "aesthetic beauty"; but at twenty-two quid who cares? The question should be "Does it work?" and for that I can give it a resounding "YES!" :thumb:

I considered doing all the improvements as per the previous video I posted but was overcome by sheer laziness and decided to look into that side of things after I'd actually tested it!

I never intended cranking that handle so I had already sorted out a huge Parkside Hammer Drill from Lidl. (The last time I used it, the "hammer" effect was so good that I knocked two bricks out of a wall.)

I also liked what the guy did in the second video and had already sorted out a scratched (and therefore past its Use By Date) FV.

I tested it by putting everything together and running some malt through it without anything permanent in place. It worked perfectly with ZERO metal flakes appearing anywhere. (I put this down to feeding malt into the mechanism before I started to adjust things.)

I then put the framework together to raise the Malt Mill to the right height inside the FV to accommodate the hammer drill and screwed/glued everything together.

At this stage I ran the same load of malt through the mill at the same setting. It was at this stage that I noticed that the bolts holding the grinder together had come loose and tomorrow I will fit nylon lock-nuts in place of the butterfly nuts.

Enough of a description here are some photographs of todays work.

At the moment I am knackered but managing to sit and enjoy a bottle of lager (whilst SWMBO prepares tea) with a bottle of mild to follow!

Enjoy!! :thumb:

PS

The speed at which The Beast and the Lidl Hammer Drill grinds 900 grams of malt (the contents of the hopper) makes me wonder why anyone would need anything quicker!

Mine didnt come with nuts that go between the part that adjusts the the crush and the main body of the mill (basically on the bolts with the wing nuts on). The adjust crush part sits flush to the main body of the mill. Do you think it makes a difference?

Nice grain catcher set up btw

EDIT: In the first 'simple mods' vid you posted the chap finds he's missing a nylon spacer from his mill so adds a couple of spacers onto the wing nuts. I've found some spacers so have done the same. I have some spare so can add more if I need more clearance between the grinding faces.

 

[Dutto]

On the bottom photograph you will see that I have inserted an 8mm nut (this has now been increased to a 10mm nut) between the bridle and the main body of the mill.

I think that this was the missing "spacer" mentioned in the video because without the nut there the bridle just clamps the two plates tight up against each other.

What it does is to allow the moveable grinding plate to be adjusted in and out by the adjusting screw on the end.

I hope that's a clear enough description ... :thumb:

... but I wish I had a name for all the bits and pieces!


PS

I've also replaced the wing-nuts with nylock nuts and "jiggled" the bridle about so that the two grinding plates are parallel.

Before the "jiggling" process the moveable plate was at an angle and caught on the fixed plate.

PPS

I wish I could say that I "adjusted" the bridle but that would be really pretentious in view of what I actually did! :lol: :lol:

 

[MyQul]

Ah, right. So yours didnt come with the 'spacer' nuts either. When I tested mine earlier in the week the crush was a little too fine. I'll see how I get on with the spacer washers when I do a proper milling on sat morn

 

[cheapbrew]

I got mine from the home brew shop and it fitted together with no fettling or spacers needed, here is a short video of it, allow 30 secs for it to download.
www.wastevegoildacorum.co.uk/grainmill.AVI