Being on a 1000 acre farm, I essentially have an endless supply of corn on hand. I started this hobby on this recipe and have found an easier way to get corn to the proper crack.
First off, 7lbs. is a LOT to crack by hand. Don't even try.
I've got a friend with his own crimping machine. However, this one is a model with a fixed setting. This setting leaves a lot of whole corn kernels to be dealt with. I simply run my corn twice through, and then run it through a seed cleaner set for soybeans. Whole corn, being larger than a soybean, will not fall through the first screen. Just use whatever comes through any of the screens.
On my first batch, the seed cleaner didn't occur to me at that time. So, after the sweet mash, I just ran my unspent grains through a food processor. Made it into a nutrient slurry more than anything else.
"If you can't dazzle them with brilliance... baffle them with bullshit."
"Don't steal. The government hates competition."
"Believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see"
BW ive used ameat grinder atached to the back of a meat band saw. it worked for both corn and barley. very quick to! but the meat grinder on my wifes kitchen aid mixer didnt work so well. the grinder was alright but the mixer's gears didnt fare so well. she's got a new mixer; and I KNOW not to do that stupid SHIT ever again! (her words)
I bought a corona grain mill off ebay for 35 bucks with shipping. It works great. Its a hand cranked but you can grind 7-10 pounds of corn or any grain for that matter in no time
There are at least a handful of companies that make the corona design. The actual corona is probably the best, its a nice mill. There are a few made in mexico that sells for $18 to $24. La Michoacano meat markets around texas always have 'em. Those markets are good for big cheap enameled steel pots too. Then theres the tacos...
Right now I been doin' UJSM in a simple pot still made from a 22 qt stock pot and a 10' length of 1/4 inch copper. It's a pretty crude device. The lid was glass, so I had to drill a hole in the side to fit a cork which my copper sits in.
Eventually, I plan to do some cooked mashes as soon as I come across some wheat I can malt. (Barley and rye aren't as common around here)
As soon as find a SS turkey fryer, (most are Al, frowned upon in this forum) I'll build myself a proper Vapor Management reflux model. I figured I'd learn how to do simple pot stilled washes before moving on to bigger and better things.
I would post photos, but I lack a digital camera at the moment.
"If you can't dazzle them with brilliance... baffle them with bullshit."
"Don't steal. The government hates competition."
"Believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see"
Iv'e been using flaked maize up until now but it is expensive running around $ 60.00 per 50 lbs. Since cracked corn is much less expensive and I can probably find it at a local feed store what do I need to look out for?
I assume that I am looking for whole kernal hard shucked white corn and run it through a grain mill? Thanks for the help guys. This maybe a way to reduce the cost of the finished spirit.
PDA1 on a 19 gallon Whirlpool water heater. We bring good things to life.
You can buy it as bird feed from some major outlets like Pet Smart in the U.S., I used to buy their 20 lb bags of cracked corn. I much prefer getting a 50lb bag from a feed store which are quite common in my area as we have a lot of agriculture and livestock nearby.
Make sure the corn you get is perishable - in other words that it does not have preservatives. Basically you just want the ultra-common, good old fashioned yellow dent corn. I can get 50 lb bags for $9.00 here. A decent deal but it's much cheaper than that if you buy bulk.
If only the best birds sang, the woods would be silent.
