Mill with steel rolls

[kaziel]

I was using pretty much the same thing, finally I've manage to knurl rollers and I've made handle to turn one of them. Next week I will buy some wood to make whole mill. Maybe I will do some test runs soon .
Anyone knows some rules of thumb on space between rollers for different grains, malts or corn?

[bitter]

Nice Job!

For the gap Here is a link to a one

" 0 to .070" gap"

http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/b ... oller-mill" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

For corn I think you might want a bit more though.. set coarser and run through a second time finer if you want.

B

[firewater69]

looking good!

[sungazer]

Nice machine shop working. The rest of the job however I don't envy you, at least you wont need to do any workouts. You will have arms like Popeye.

[firewater69]

Nice machine shop working. The rest of the job however I don't envy you, at least you wont need to do any workouts. You will have arms like Popeye.

it's not that bad, plus you can hook a drill up to it.

[still_stirrin]

..." 0 to .070" gap"...For corn I think you might want a bit more though.. set coarser and run through a second time finer if you want.

+1.

Around 1/16" (0.0625") is about right for malted barley cracking. It doesn't mill the husks, but does crush the endosperm enough, making it into small pieces but not powder. That improves mash efficiency.

But for corn, especially unmalted corn, you'll need a wider gap for the first pass due to the size of the grain and because it is so hard unmalted. Then, for a second pass, the 1/16" gap is appropriate. Finer works too, but will tend to make the slurry more "pastey". A 1/16" crush should still make the grindings available to the enzymes for good conversion. Remember, with unmalted corn you still need to gelatinize it for the conversion process.

Also, I would make the "slave" roller driven too, if you can. That will cut the torque needed to grind hard grains (roughly in half). Another hint is to build your hopper so the grains pour into the center 2" to 2-1/2" of the rollers. It'll reduce the crush rate, but you'll get a more uniform crack of the grains. And, it will reduce the torque needed to spin the rollers.

It is a couple of good looking rollers. They should work long and hard for you.
ss

[kaziel]

Nice machine shop working. The rest of the job however I don't envy you, at least you wont need to do any workouts. You will have arms like Popeye.

Nice one. I hope to get sprocket for bigger roller to fit my PMAC 3-phase motor, plus I've got inverter for that so I think i can get pretty reasonable torque from that setup. I'm buying barley in 5kg bags to make one wash - so I think I will be find grinding that even by hand.

[Moonlighter]

I see some nice setups coming along!!!

[firewater69]

Nice machine shop working. The rest of the job however I don't envy you, at least you wont need to do any workouts. You will have arms like Popeye.

Nice one. I hope to get sprocket for bigger roller to fit my PMAC 3-phase motor, plus I've got inverter for that so I think i can get pretty reasonable torque from that setup. I'm buying barley in 5kg bags to make one wash - so I think I will be find grinding that even by hand.

kaziel, McMaster Carr has a pretty good selection of sprockets and gears, and I've milled around 200 lbs through my little mill so far but i'm looking forward to building the new and improved model. I'd like to use the gear motor from my mash paddle to drive the mill as well. it turns at 60 rpm with 90lbs of torque.

IMG_20151027_080004.jpg

[yakattack]

How much was that little motor? Specs and make and model? It's perfect for what I need.

Yak

[firewater69]

How much was that little motor? Specs and make and model? It's perfect for what I need.

Yak

Hey Yak, I'll look up the info for ya at lunchtime today, it was given to me but I think it was north of 400.00. I have cooked a full batch of corn with it and it didn't even know it was there. I also use it when I make beer, it's great to not have to stir a boil down. next to my stills it is my favorite piece of equipment.

[yakattack]

How much was that little motor? Specs and make and model? It's perfect for what I need.

Yak

Hey Yak, I'll look up the info for ya at lunchtime today, it was given to me but I think it was north of 400.00. I have cooked a full batch of corn with it and it didn't even know it was there. I also use it when I make beer, it's great to not have to stir a boil down. next to my stills it is my favorite piece of equipment.

Thanks firewater

I expected it to be expensive. Just gives me what to keep an eye on for used equipment.

Yak

[Kegg_jam]

Damn I love that little motor. I been ponder'n how to duplicate the slickness of that rig without blowing a ton of money.

[firewater69]

https://www.grainger.com/product/DAYTON ... ery=2H598B" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
 , here ya go, there's probably cheaper options available if you shop around. sorry for the hijack kaziel.

[Euphoria]

And if money is no object, go for the Cadillac!

[kaziel]

https://www.grainger.com/product/DAYTON ... ery=2H598B
 , here ya go, there's probably cheaper options available if you shop around. sorry for the hijack kaziel.

Hey guys this is getting more and more off topic . Anyway I will use gears (sprockets) and belts from my work - I've got lot of them which aren't use in current production so they will be trowed away anyhow. Second of all I think McMaster Carr shipping feeds can be expensive I like stuff that's for free:D. With things I can get for scrap I will have about 60Nm torque if any of you guys can estimate if that's enough?

[firewater69]

60Nm looks like the equivalent of 44.25 foot lbs of force, I'm no guru, but it looks like you'll be fine. looking forward to seeing your mill completed, maybe I can steal some of your ideas.

[kaziel]

Mainly I want to use it for barley and rye malts. My friend who parents work in bakery tells me that this should be fine I mean torque If I will need more torque I will use different belt transmission that should give me 90Nm - but I don't want to use a sprocket of huge diameter it will look strange.

[firewater69]

I've been milling barley with no gearing or sprockets, it will work fine.

[Moonlighter]

FOr $400 you can get a baldor 1100 rpm motor that is explosion proof, then just vary the speed

[bship]

Kaziel, did you end up using the three phase motor with your mill ? I just acquired one and im interested in how you set it up.
electricity is not my strong suit, more reading .......

[nuntius01]

love this site. now i have another idea for my mill. thanks

[kiwi Bruce]

love this site. now i have another idea for my mill. thanks

What do you use now?... anything exotic? Pic's please !

[nuntius01]

still a work in progress. have to build a stand and just built the hopper. also, i have to add the motor. i'll update a photo when i have it all assembled and sealed.

[yakattack]

Are those cement? Give us some more details :p

[UrToopid]

Prior to 1970 something.. most mills were either carbon steel or stone.. Stainless has on become widely used for the past 50 years or so and as someone mentioned earlier, stainless is brittle and a pain to work with without special tools. Carbon Steel ("regular steel") has much better flexibility and is easy enough to keep clean. You could purchase crushed pecan hulls by the 50 lb sack. Sandblasters use them for cleaning rust off things such as mill rollers and other precision milled equipment. You could just as easily run those thru the mill like someone mentioned with the grain husks.. pecan hulls are more abrasive but still softer than the carbon steel.


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[nuntius01]

yep cement. made the hopper today and cut up the steel for the stand. have to make my angles for adjusters on the bearings. so far total cost zero. all recycled parts. once i have it all together i'll post a separate thread with it and all the details and materials. want to have a vid of it running too. think the paint on the steel will take me the longest. should have it welded tomorrow then i have to paint it and attach the motor. lot of little things left

[acfixer69]

yep cement. made the hopper today and cut up the steel for the stand. have to make my angles for adjusters on the bearings. so far total cost zero. all recycled parts. once i have it all together i'll post a separate thread with it and all the details and materials. want to have a vid of it running too. think the paint on the steel will take me the longest. should have it welded tomorrow then i have to paint it and attach the motor. lot of little things left

Don't think cement is hard enough to break up corn with out wearing it self down and adding to the meal.

AC

[nuntius01]

lol, i'll find out

[The Baker]

acfixer69 said, "Don't think cement is hard enough to break up corn with out wearing it self down and adding to the meal. "

Actually that is exactly what happens with the mills that use millstones!

Geoff