# Show us your grain mill



## koolkuna (30/12/16)

SHOW ME YOUR GRAIN MILL
Looking at some great ideas of mounting a grain mill. I got one for Xmas with a board. I was thinking of keeping it simple. Mill / Board /Bucket / Handle or motor / Drill drive
So guys show me what's the best setup. Remember I want to keep it simple Maybe I could just rest the mill on top of the bucket and crank away
any pictures would be appreciated


----------



## kjparker (30/12/16)

Here's mine...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Rl-la1_6bo


----------



## TheWiggman (30/12/16)

Here's mine made from the common Malt Muncher found on eBay and from various suppliers -













Uses a used grain bag to catch the grain, I've been really happy with it and it takes up little space.
Thread on the build here: http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/83647-malt-muncher-brew-stand/


----------



## moonhead (30/12/16)

TheWiggman said:


> Here's mine made from the common Malt Muncher found on eBay and from various suppliers -
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice! But hand cranked? Damn, you're keen! I use a cordless drill, makes very quick work of it.


----------



## SBOB (30/12/16)

moonhead said:


> Nice! But hand cranked? Damn, you're keen! I use a cordless drill, makes very quick work of it.


Hi...Just been hand-cracking my grain mill...


----------



## Bridges (30/12/16)

Mines here. Mash master with a big w stockpot catcher. Super happy with the whole set up. I just run it with my cordless drill.


----------



## nosco (30/12/16)

I used Bridges idea for the hopper. It hold about 4kg of grain. Works great. Comes appart easily if needed. I havnt had a stone in the mill yet but i reckon having to empty a huge hopper could get messy.


----------



## Gregos (30/12/16)

Heres Mine, simple to make, holds 6kg of Grain


----------



## husky (30/12/16)

Massive overkill but sits nicely over the mash basket and takes about 20 mins to mill 9kg grain. Gives me time to do other stuff instead of manning a drill.

<iframe width="480" height="270" src="" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


----------



## scooterism (30/12/16)

moonhead said:


> Nice! But hand cranked? Damn, you're keen! I use a cordless drill, makes very quick work of it.


I'm more impressed by your bench tops and tool organisation.


----------



## moonhead (30/12/16)

scooterism said:


> I'm more impressed by your bench tops and tool organisation.


Obvious serial killer is obvious.


----------



## koolkuna (31/12/16)

Very interesting setups It has given me plenty of options to think about. Could I just rest the mill board onto a bucket and mill away with the handle or do I need to clamp it down onto something solid??


----------



## koolkuna (31/12/16)

Love the wigman setup pity I can't weld. Looks great simple and effective. Pity you can't buy something similar


----------



## 5150 (31/12/16)

This pic is from a while ago and i have upgraded to a MD motor. The frame etc is on scales. I pour base malts straight in the hopper which can hold pretty much a full bag.


----------



## Nullnvoid (31/12/16)

koolkuna said:


> Very interesting setups It has given me plenty of options to think about. Could I just rest the mill board onto a bucket and mill away with the handle or do I need to clamp it down onto something solid??


I use a drill but I just sit mine on top of a 20litre bucket. Sits there alright I find.


----------



## koolkuna (31/12/16)

Is hard to crank the mill by hand ?? Can't wait to buy some grain to try it out


----------



## Nullnvoid (31/12/16)

Only ever used a drill but a lot of people use the handle so can't be that bad.


----------



## timmi9191 (31/12/16)

Interesting how many using cordless drills.. what speed you running at? Id be be worried they would need too higher a speed which would be shredding the husk and creating too much flour. Im running a high torque drill and keep it as slow as possible. Not worried about grind time as i leave it running while doing other prep, pref grind quality over grind speed


----------



## koolkuna (31/12/16)

Yeah I was also thinking about the bearings on your mill over heating or wearing out. Is there a reason why it comes with a handle??


----------



## Matplat (1/1/17)

My 'custom' set up, although I've replaced the motor to one that runs half the speed now. Munches through 5kg in a few minutes...


----------



## evoo4u (1/1/17)

This is my current mill set up, now powered by variable speed DC motor, which I run at approx 55rpm.

The pail sits snugly in the enclosed section. Enclosed to keep grain dust to a minimum.

The electronic speed control board and a decent sized 240vac/12vdc power supply are enclosed in the end, with an air inlet at the bottom and exhaust fan at the top to keep it cool, although in practice probably unnecessary as it's normally running only 5 or 6 minutes per brew.

I used to use a cordless drill, but was not happy that I could get it running slowly enough, and the handle of the drill (where it's electronics are housed) got VERY hot, so that was the motivation to get the MD motor.


----------



## Zorco (1/1/17)

This is schmick. A class act mate.

Sub woofer. For NWA albums?


----------



## Mardoo (1/1/17)

Matplat said:


> My 'custom' set up, although I've replaced the motor to one that runs half the speed now. Munches through 5kg in a few minutes...


:wub:


----------



## evoo4u (1/1/17)

SBOB said:


> Hi...Just been hand-cracking my grain mill...


Could Rafa be a closet hand-crank home brewer too... (hugely asymetric biceps!)


----------



## timmi9191 (3/1/17)

Cheap and simple 12v grain mill motor

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/cheap-diy-option-for-a-motorized-grain-mill.html


----------



## fw00r (3/1/17)

Here's my motorised mill, Which can be sat on top of the BIAB setup if need be.

Usually mill while doing other set up, in to the 20L pail which takes up to about 9.5kg grain.


----------



## Meddo (3/1/17)

This is my millmaster mini with knurled rollers and their new hopper. Sat the baseboard on top of a bucket and used screws to (roughly) attach four little timber offcuts on the underside to keep the whole thing located on the top of the bucket. Cordless variable speed drill gets through 5-6 kg of grain in about that many minutes, gets a little bit warm but doubt it's an issue given I only run it like that once a week at most.

A proper motor attachment would be kinda nice but it's really not that bad sitting there for five minutes with one hand on the drill and the other clutching a brew of some sort...


----------



## Samuel Adams (3/1/17)

koolkuna said:


> Very interesting setups It has given me plenty of options to think about. Could I just rest the mill board onto a bucket and mill away with the handle or do I need to clamp it down onto something solid??


Mine just sits on top of a 20L bucket and is no problem. I use my other hand to steady it while cranking just in case.



koolkuna said:


> Is hard to crank the mill by hand ?? Can't wait to buy some grain to try it out


I also hand crank which is pretty easy just make sure you use your non wanking arm or you'll end up like Quagmire !


----------



## moonhead (3/1/17)

timmi9191 said:


> Interesting how many using cordless drills.. what speed you running at? Id be be worried they would need too higher a speed which would be shredding the husk and creating too much flour. Im running a high torque drill and keep it as slow as possible. Not worried about grind time as i leave it running while doing other prep, pref grind quality over grind speed





koolkuna said:


> Yeah I was also thinking about the bearings on your mill over heating or wearing out. Is there a reason why it comes with a handle??


I've got a Kegking mill, they recommend 200RPM speed. My cordless drill in low gear goes max 400RPM, so I just run that at half trigger. Nothing really gets hot, certainly not the mill, and the drill get put through much worse on regular basis.

I'm doing BIAB though, so difficult to comment on how well the grind is for sparging, I'm find with just grinding everything up into dust, essentially (though I don't really go that far normally).


----------



## Rocker1986 (3/1/17)

If I can find the photo... this is my Mashmaster mini mill 'hybrid' (one knurled, one fluted roller) with the new hopper. It is run with a Bosch 18V drill driver set on lowest speed and highest torque. I don't the exact RPM it runs at but the grain is always nicely crushed when I'm finished. Probably takes about a minute or so per kg of grain.

The mill is mounted on a piece of plywood that has some rubber feet attached on its underside to keep it on the bucket. I've done a couple of batches with this set up now and it is excellent for my needs.


----------



## Grok (16/9/21)

Bump to an old thread!
Hadn't seen any grain mill setup brags lately, so thought its time for another!
I have been using a drill on my standard (old model) KK Malt Muncher, but thought it's time for an upgrade!
I was going to cobble parts of this and that together to get a working gadget, but then I thought "stuff it", just get some good gear!
I think the mill motor kit is KK stuff bought from my local brew shop, comes with spider coupling, bracket and control box for $250, good value I reckon!
Soooo...... here it is.

Nothing special I suppose, but things of note would be:

Reconfigured and rewired the control box with a kettle cord AC input with proper Earth line to motor body (it didn't have one!), plus removed the control box to motor plug lead set up as it was to long, now direct wired through the side with rubber grommet.
Replaced the "Big Red Button" for a smaller rocker switch.
Nice big wooden handles for easy moving. These are surprisingly really good. They were made from my stuffed up first spacer mounting flange under the grain mill, cut in half and shaped a bit, counter sink screw mounted from underneath.
Portable (with a power cord attached).
Steady 180 RPM.
Can't see any reason not to grind straight into the mash tun!


----------



## Cloud Surfer (18/9/21)

I use a Mill Master with fluted rollers. Started off using a hand drill, but the fixed motor is much better, more powerful with a constant slow speed and consistent crush.


----------



## Grok (18/9/21)

Nice! Got the earth wire on? 
Try the big wooden handle idea, you'll love it!


----------



## Cloud Surfer (18/9/21)

Yes you can see the earth in the photo.


----------



## MashBasher (19/9/21)

Utterly and entirely ghetto. But hey, it works!

3 Roller geared mill from Keg-King. Drill and bucket from Bunnings. Boutique hole by Stanley knife. Cable tie via laziness.

Rips through 10 kg of grain in short order. 

Gives me another element of control and has made an appreciable improvement to the quality of my beer.


----------



## Hush (20/9/21)

Our setup. Monster mill 3 rollers driven ... No more stuck roller. The idea was found in this forum. Thanks.







Motor is a paint mixer, low speed and high torque.
Feel free to ask question, I will try to answer.
The mill doing his job : 
Hush


----------



## Half-baked (20/9/21)

While milling is topical…
I’ve decided to invest in a mill drill, but the staple Ozito spade handle drill seems to be unavailable these days.
Any standout alternatives? I’m wondering about this from Aldi and am interested in people’s thoughts: 20V Drill with Brushless Motor - ALDI Australia


----------



## Grok (20/9/21)

I used a drill similar to the Aldi drill for a few years no problem, Black & Decker Firestorm 18v 2 speed, did the job ok on low ratio. Another good trick is to use a one speed 18v drill with a 12v battery will also bring down the RPM as well, but it gobbles more amps out of your battery for full loading, ok for a short time use though.


----------



## razz (21/9/21)

That is a great set up Hush. When you say low speed, do you know how fast?


----------



## Grmblz (21/9/21)

Half-baked said:


> While milling is topical…
> I’ve decided to invest in a mill drill, but the staple Ozito spade handle drill seems to be unavailable these days.
> Any standout alternatives? I’m wondering about this from Aldi and am interested in people’s thoughts: 20V Drill with Brushless Motor - ALDI Australia


https://www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-1050w-multi-purpose-mixing-drill_p6290204 showing In stock at my local.
The Ozito is easy to mount (3 tapped holes for bolts) has a planetary gearbox, will be a lot more powerful and run indefinitely, the Aldi has the convenience of cordless, although the battery looks quite small, and the drill certainly isn't as "industrial" as the Ozito, but if you are using a 2 roller mill it will probably be ok.
I use an Ozito on a 3 roller mill, the only downside is it's quite heavy.


----------



## Half-baked (21/9/21)

Grmblz said:


> https://www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-1050w-multi-purpose-mixing-drill_p6290204 showing In stock at my local


Thanks Grmblz, it does look better, but the problem is it has a collet instead of a chuck. I’m not sure how to couple it to the mill shaft?


----------



## CaptainMachSnot (21/9/21)

Cut the head off an M14 bolt, and use a spider coupling. I have seen the same drills around with a chuck on them, but don't seem to be in stock atm


----------



## CaptainMachSnot (21/9/21)

Could just cut the mixing paddle down to size and use the coupler.

Or this one (comes with a chuck):
DETROIT 1050W 13mm D-Handle Mixer Drill DMX13


----------



## Hush (21/9/21)

razz said:


> That is a great set up Hush. When you say low speed, do you know how fast?


Thank you. The mill rotates at 250 rpm and can crush 200kg/h. The paint mixer is a 1200W and there is a gear box in the nose so the electric engine is running fast and do not overheat. Those paint or concrete mixers are rather cheap.
Presently the 3 pinions have 26 theeth each and the 3 rollers turn at the same speed. I would like to have a set of pinions with different number of teeth + or- one tooth. Doing this the rollers would not only press on the grain but shear it as the tangential velocity of the rollers would be different.
I hope you can understand what I mean.
Hush


----------



## Grmblz (21/9/21)

Half-baked said:


> Thanks Grmblz, it does look better, but the problem is it has a collet instead of a chuck. I’m not sure how to couple it to the mill shaft?


As CMS ^ says just saw the end off the paddle and use one of these. Before sawing the paddle in half make sure it's running true, I've seen a couple that wobbled a bit, not a problem stirring paint but not good for this use. Or use the Detroit ^ it's a fair bit more expensive but you do get the option of using it as a heavy duty drill as well as a mill motor.








18 Sizes Flexible Shaft Coupling CNC 3D Printer Stepper Motor Connector Coupler | eBay


1 X Shaft Coupler. Glad to deal with you in the future. Or you can ask your friend for help. We appreciate highly your cooperation. Quantity: 1 pcs (other accessories demo in the picture is not included).



www.ebay.com.au


----------



## Half-baked (23/9/21)

Thanks CMS and Grmblz, will go down the Ozito path (much better warranty!)


----------



## Ballaratguy (23/9/21)

Half-baked said:


> Thanks CMS and Grmblz, will go down the Ozito path (much better warranty!)


Why not get an old powered golf cart and use the drive motor from that?


----------



## Ballaratguy (23/9/21)

Ballaratguy said:


> Why not get an old powered golf cart and use the drive motor from that?


Or get an old kids electric car apparently the drive motors from them work brilliantly on a grain mill


----------



## Grmblz (23/9/21)

Ballaratguy said:


> Why not get an old powered golf cart and use the drive motor from that?





Ballaratguy said:


> Or get an old kids electric car apparently the drive motors from them work brilliantly on a grain mill


Cost and convenience, ease of mounting plus a speed controlled planetary gearbox for 80 bucks?


----------



## fw00r (24/9/21)

Just realised I'd posted already here!


----------



## MHB (24/9/21)

Hush said:


> Thank you. The mill rotates at 250 rpm and can crush 200kg/h. The paint mixer is a 1200W and there is a gear box in the nose so the electric engine is running fast and do not overheat. Those paint or concrete mixers are rather cheap.
> Presently the 3 pinions have 26 theeth each and the 3 rollers turn at the same speed. I would like to have a set of pinions with different number of teeth + or- one tooth. Doing this the rollers would not only press on the grain but shear it as the tangential velocity of the rollers would be different.
> I hope you can understand what I mean.
> Hush


I would be a little careful with changing the rotational speed. On large mills say >200 mm rollers they sometimes have a tooth or two difference. It really has more to do with wear on the rollers or a damaged point on the rollers not lining up every revolution. Really big mills have other concerns too, like the roller flexing so you get a bigger gap in the middle than at the ends. Hardly a matter of concern on home scale mills either.


The problem with to much difference between roller speeds is that it tends to shear the husks. This results in smaller husk fragments. Means slower and less efficient filtration of the wort in a recirculating or lautering system, not so much a matter of concern for BIAB.
Finer husk fragments do mean measurably more Polyphenols (tannins) get extracted from the husks and that's never a good thing.

Personally if you are getting a good crack and reasonably large husk fragments I wouldn’t change a thing. What you have is way better than one driven roller and a couple of lazy rollers. You should get a better crush than most people. Probably the best thing you could do is to make sure the rollers are 1/ parallel and 2/ at the right gaps.
Mark


----------



## RRising (25/9/21)

Half-baked said:


> While milling is topical…
> I’ve decided to invest in a mill drill, but the staple Ozito spade handle drill seems to be unavailable these days.
> Any standout alternatives? I’m wondering about this from Aldi and am interested in people’s thoughts: 20V Drill with Brushless Motor - ALDI Australia



I have just bought the drill, not just for milling (which i will be using for my next brew) but it's also a good deal for a brushless drill kit with battery, the equivalent Ryobi tool is $169 just for the tool.


----------



## yankinoz (25/9/21)

moonhead said:


> Nice! But hand cranked? Damn, you're keen! I use a cordless drill, makes very quick work of it.



And then, with your leftover time and energy, you can do a few reps and sets on the barbells.


----------



## Hush (25/9/21)

MHB said:


> On large mills say >200 mm rollers they sometimes have a tooth or two difference. It really has more to do with wear on the rollers or a damaged point on the rollers not lining up every revolution. Really big mills have other concerns too, like the roller flexing so you get a bigger gap in the middle than at the ends. Hardly a matter of concern on home scale mills either.
> Personally if you are getting a good crack and reasonably large husk fragments I wouldn’t change a thing. What you have is way better than one driven roller and a couple of lazy rollers. You should get a better crush than most people. Probably the best thing you could do is to make sure the rollers are 1/ parallel and 2/ at the right gaps.
> Mark


Thank you for those explanations and clarifications.
We check regularly the gap/parallelisme between the rollers with a feeler gauge valve-tappet .
Hush


----------



## Half-baked (5/10/21)

If anyone else is interested in mill drills, turns out my local Bunnings (Kingsgrove Sydney) not only had the Ozito spade handle drill, but it was on sale... $69


----------



## MontPel (22/10/21)

Half-baked said:


> If anyone else is interested in mill drills, turns out my local Bunnings (Kingsgrove Sydney) not only had the Ozito spade handle drill, but it was on sale... $69


Has Bunnings stopped selling this drill? I can’t find it anymore!!


----------



## Half-baked (23/10/21)

MontPel said:


> Has Bunnings stopped selling this drill? I can’t find it anymore!!


Are you looking in store or online? I couldn’t find it online but my local store had about six in stock. 
Maybe they’re on sale because they are not going to carry them in future?


----------



## MontPel (23/10/21)

Half-baked said:


> Are you looking in store or online? I couldn’t find it online but my local store had about six in stock.
> Maybe they’re on sale because they are not going to carry them in future?


Was just looking online. Might have to check my local if they still have stock


----------



## Clintonb (23/10/21)

Yer they are being discontinued, that's why they are on sale ATM and not able to be purchased online. I tried to get one last week but they had just sold out at my local. I'm just converting a mud mixer ATM to connect to a gain mill because I couldn't get one.


----------



## MontPel (23/10/21)

I was very lucky and picked up the last one near me


----------



## CaptainMachSnot (13/12/21)

Found this today, lucky the young fella wanted a look in cashies for some ps4 stuff


----------



## TheAussieBrewer (14/12/21)

CaptainMachSnot said:


> Found this today, lucky the young fella wanted a look in cashies for some ps4 stuff
> View attachment 121599


I use to use one of them, loud as buggery they are  but work well if it has a speed controlled trigger.


----------



## Yuz (15/12/21)

A compact DIY setup - works so well, will need new bearings soon! The 13L esky fits exactly 5kg - good enough for a 30L batch.
WEAL - recognise this?


----------



## Paleman (18/12/21)




----------



## An Ankoù (18/12/21)

Paleman said:


> View attachment 121612


A mill's a mill, but that looks like a cracking pint of lager!


----------



## mic (18/12/21)

mine. slow but will take 50kg


----------



## razz (18/12/21)

mic said:


> mine. slow but will take 50kg


Takes two bags of grain or one mother-in-law!


----------



## Paleman (18/12/21)

An Ankoù said:


> A mill's a mill, but that looks like a cracking pint of lager!


Wheat Beer


----------

