A Mill That Anybody Could Make

[bum]

With the conduit rollers, do you think would they form indents on the surface after a short time.

Not necessarily after a "short time" but even when stored out of UV this stuff does go soft and brittle (if that makes any sense at all) with time.

why do you need to keep the piping after you have set the concrete? Why not remove the conduit and have a nifty set of concrete "stone" grinders?

How do you get it off without damaging the surface of the concrete? How do you ensure the concrete forms perfectly against the conduit without any gaps?

 

[barto1308]

Not necessarily after a "short time" but even when stored out of UV this stuff does go soft and brittle (if that makes any sense at all) with time.



How do you get it off without damaging the surface of the concrete? How do you ensure the concrete forms perfectly against the conduit without any gaps?

Im sure i could talk to an old concreter and get some tips. As for ensuring no air gaps, constant agitation should remove any bubbles (dont ask me how to do this - thats above my pay grade!)
Removing the conduit would only require a hacksaw and a steady hand - or you could pre-cut the conduit to make a two-piece mold that is clamped in place... just thoughts...

 

[BjornJ]

Good work, love the ingenuity.
As a note, there is a conveyor supplies shop in PMQ that can supply metal rollers 4" for about 20 bucks.
A suggestion for you.

Beerforal,
would you have any contact details/web site for the supplier?

I have also toyed a little with a mill design but couldn't find a way to get the rollers made (or knurled to be exact).
Even talked with an engineering company in Sydney and sent them drawings but never did end up getting a price for making some knurled rollers.

thanks
Bjorn

 

[Pumpy]

How to think outside the square by Matho great work

 

[mika]

Good work, love the ingenuity.
As a note, there is a conveyor supplies shop in PMQ that can supply metal rollers 4" for about 20 bucks.
A suggestion for you.

Conveyor tubing is pretty thin walled, comparitively speaking. I don't know how the tube would last trying to squish grains.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

I've definitely seen something similar to this before... But with the previous suggestion of removing the conduit and using the bare concrete. With the larger diameter and the rougher surface of the concrete, knurling/scoring was unneeded.

As a matter of fact, with rollers at that diameter you might be able to get away without knurling even on the smoother plastic, especially with both rollers being driven.

The large diameter and fairly smooth surface of that mill should give a great crush... And by the looks of that picture, does. Nice work math.

TB

 

[Acasta]

Cool.

I was thinking about making a massive coffee grinder (me likes it fine for the bag) that accepts my router.

Your design is probably less dangerous than mine. That's a good thing - although blitzing 5kg of grain into dust in 10 seconds at 30,000rpm still sounds attractive in a masochistic way.

use a blender or kitchen whiz? then just upscale it.
Or, just turn a lawn mower upside down and attach a bucket haha.

 

[tavas]

Good work, love the ingenuity.
As a note, there is a conveyor supplies shop in PMQ that can supply metal rollers 4" for about 20 bucks.
A suggestion for you.

Conveyor rollers would work, however you would need to think about how you drive them. Rollers are meant to sit in a fixed frame and are spun by the conveyor belt running over top. In this application you'd have to weld the shaft to the bearing, which would wreck the bearing.

Durability wise for the roller steel; I would think they would last a reasonable time in this duty (longer than PVC conduit anyway).

 

[tavas]

Cool.

I was thinking about making a massive coffee grinder (me likes it fine for the bag) that accepts my router.

Your design is probably less dangerous than mine. That's a good thing - although blitzing 5kg of grain into dust in 10 seconds at 30,000rpm still sounds attractive in a masochistic way.

You and Bandito should start a business together :icon_cheers: . Though I think you would at least get around to making your idea work, though not the safest I'll admit

Love the idea tho. A turbo charged grain mill :beerbang:

 

[matho]

Awsome grind there.

it was a good grind alot less damage to the husk than my 2in ss rollers do

 

[therocko]

Iknow two blokes who own one of those old coffee grinders that used to be in the supermarkets. They have the adjustable grind function from coarse to fine. They swear by it and it crushes perfectly. The trouble is trying to track one down?

 

[Acasta]

Iknow two blokes who own one of those old coffee grinders that used to be in the supermarkets. They have the adjustable grind function from coarse to fine. They swear by it and it crushes perfectly. The trouble is trying to track one down?

I got one from Aldi for $13. No adjustable, but as NickJD says, makes flour, good for BIAB.

 

[Brewman_]

I like the idea.

But what about food grade processing materials? Generally PVC pipe is not food grade, it is made for non food purposes, as far as I know, and while grinding you will probably end up with bits of PVC in your grind. Does that bother you, or do you have controls in your process to cater for this? Particularly if the polymer gets into the mash..

I think there may be some polythene pipe options? Again the polymer may be food grade here, particularly if it is not coloured. But the process that forms the pipe all of the raw material and finished goods handling may not be to the food standards, so the finished pipe may not be food grade as a result?

fear_n_loath

 

[Screwtop]

I like the idea.

But what about food grade processing materials? Generally PVC pipe is not food grade, it is made for non food purposes, as far as I know, and while grinding you will probably end up with bits of PVC in your grind. Does that bother you, or do you have controls in your process to cater for this? Particularly if the polymer gets into the mash..

I think there may be some polythene pipe options? Again the polymer may be food grade here, particularly if it is not coloured. But the process that forms the pipe all of the raw material and finished goods handling may not be to the food standards, so the finished pipe may not be food grade as a result?

fear_n_loath

Ohhh no ................the old "is it food grade" post.

 

[jayandcath]

Quick get me a beer before it starts!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[roddersf]

On a similar note - has anyone used a food processor with the spinning chopping blade attachment to mill grain (for BIAB)? Cant really see why this wouldnt work, apart from potentially giving an inconsistent crush....thoughts?

That's an interesting topic, unfortunately the wife's food processor smells of garlic and herbs all of the time so I cant try it - can anyone give this suggestion a run and post the results?

On other thoughts - Matho - I'd like to see a grinder invented using origami and chewing gum alone - MacGyver style! (for us terminally useless DIY'ers )

 

[manticle]

Ohhh no ................the old "is it food grade" post.

Where the hell did you find that emoticon?

 

[Mayor of Mildura]

go on give it a go. mmm garlic beer.

I haven't tried the food processor. Worth a try i guess. I have tried a rocket blender. It turned the grain into flour in no time flat. Problem though was when adding the resulting flour to mash water ended up with big lumps. major PITA. Then i let the smoke out of the rocket and I threw it in the bin. Then i tried the blender. again it makes flour, but a coarser grind and no lumps. But it takes ages cause the blender is small.

I never thought of a couple of concrete rollers. Homebrew ingenuity at its best! great stuff matho.

That's an interesting topic, unfortunately the wife's food processor smells of garlic and herbs all of the time so I cant try it - can anyone give this suggestion a run and post the results?

On other thoughts - Matho - I'd like to see a grinder invented using origami and chewing gum alone - MacGyver style! (for us terminally useless DIY'ers )

 

[Jimmeh]

very nice. how did you get the shafts perfectly centered in the concrete?

Cheers, James

 

[Bizier]

very nice. how did you get the shafts perfectly centered in the concrete?

Cheers, James

+1 - I very much want to know this, and how you did the concrete part, i.e. type of concrete and whether any kind of aggregate or reinforcing.