Are all Mills created equal?

[DJ_L3ThAL]

I've done a little bit of research, but can't seem to easily deliberate what specs to assess when looking at the various options of mills around. To my knowledge you don't "need" stainless steel, but it is ideal. The gap adjustment bands all seem similar and the gaps I hear of people setting for the typical grains we use are well within all the options capabilities. So I guess it comes down to build quality, which without feedback from actual owners is difficult to weigh up prior to purchase.

It's obviously something you buy once and use forever, so buy right, by once applies as far as I am concerned. But just seeing where the value lies in say the Chinese circa $100-130 cold rolled steel and stainless versions that include a hopper and the mini/monster $200-250 versions (of which are likely to be closer to $300 by the time you build a hopper.

So in summary I guess what I'm trying to find out is:

- Are the mini/monster mills worth the extra $ and effort in building a hopper in terms of longevity and consistency in crush? If so why, what are the differences.

- Are all options the same amount of effort to add an electric motor on to them, if so is a good quality adjustable speed, high torque hand drill the most versatile method (as you get a nice drill to use for other things)?

Thanks in advance!

 

[mckenry]

You NEED a Mashmaster Mini Mill. No affiliation. Well, you dont need one, but its awesome. I had a Barley Crusher, which well and truly paid for itself, but eventually the slave roller slipped and needed repair.
That cant happen with the mashmaster as its toothed to drive the second roller.
The supplied hopper is small, but just wait a bit....

Edit - my 12V cordless handles the mini mill perfectly.

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Thanks Mckenry! I missed that the mini mill was geared!! So the barley crusher just relies on the friction from grain to turn the second roller which free spins on the bearings?

What brand cordless do you use? A high quality Makita or similar? (I've got an Ozito, which has been great, just not sure it can handle the torque load)

I got no issues building a hopper if I go mini mill, as would allow me to build a big F-off one for future large batches

 

[Mardoo]

I have a barley-crusher type and find it works very well. However the gearing for the second roller on the Mashmaster would swing my vote next time I purchase.

 

[indica86]

I have the cheaper Chinese one and while I cannot vouch for longevity it works perfectly well.
Drill attaches to it without problem and rips through the grain.

I am sure you get what you pay for, but mine was $135 delivered so I can't complain.

 

[idzy]

Mashmaster mini mill is my mill and many people's mill of choice due to geared drive of both rollers. However, I haven't used others, so can't comment. I have had no issues with mine. When doing my research, I couldn't find anyone with a bad thing to say about it, however every other mill on the market had criticism (even the monster mills).

I will add some negative feedback. Don't buy the perspex hopper, it is too small and you have to stand there feeding it, which in a small batch isn't a problem, but with double/triples or 250 litre batches it is a pain in the ass.


Cheers,
Idzy

 

[Blind Dog]

+1 for the mash master mini mill. Excellent piece of kit. I use a ryobi cordless and it's fine. Mind you I brew 20L ish batches so not sure if it would stand up to bigger batches

Also researched before buying and found nothing negative. Hopper is too small though, and easy to break (or I'm just a clumsy oaf)

 

[Florian]

You need geared rollers if you want to be able to pass on your mill to your grand children in good working condition.

There are (were) several on this forum who had a monster or similar with a slave roller that eventually failed after two years or so.


As for a hopper. that's pretty straight forward, materials of your choice and about an hour or so of measuring and fiddly work:



Note that this is the original MashMaster Mill, not the mini, but they function pretty much the same (though the original was of course way better...)

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Thank everyone, good stuff. Just another thing I'm unsure of, once I get the crush right for my setup, do I only pass the grain once through the mill, or tip it back in the top to run through multiple times? What's the regular procedure?

 

[jeremy]

I have a monster mill 2 roller standard (not stainless) with hopper. 2.5 years old and going strong with countless brews under its belt. I use a corded ozito drill from Bunnings because I am a cheapskate and that rips through my 6kgish grists in a couple of minutes. Hopper holds about 5.5kgs which is annoying!

I set the width once when I bought the thing and havent played with it since, grain goes through once, no need to pass it through a second time.

 

[Florian]

Not sure about the regular procedure, but I always run mine through twice and it works perfectly with the way my system is setup. If I'd set the gap smaller I'd only have to run through once but I like the malt to be as intact as possible with only a small crack through the top middle section. Depending on your system you might want a different outcome and hence mill differently.

 

[Eagleburger]

Big thumbs up for the MM mini. I used a plastic water bottle for hopper which was free.

 

[blekk]

Currently looking at a Millars Mill for my new one..... just got to grow the balls and order it!

EDIT: spelling

 

[QldKev]

I'd stay away from the cheap ones that use bearings.

I've been using a Monster mill mm2 for the past few years and have had no dramas with it. Stuffed the motor and a couple of spider couplers crushing corn, but the mill lived on to tell the tale. You do need to mount them pretty square otherwise you have the issue of the second roller not turning. I'm guessing for home use it will have many more good years of service. I live pretty close to the beach (can hear the waves) and dont have any issue with rust on the rollers, I just leave the flour on it to protect it after a crush.

If you want a geared roller mill, or are in favor of stainless rollers then the mashmaster mini is the choice. If you want to wet/dampen the grain before crushing then the stainless rollers would be more important.

I like my crush slightly finer than some, but here is a pic of my crush. I dont ever get stuck mashes with it, and hit 85% pre-boil eff.

I originally used a 18v cordless drill which worked great for over a year. Milling 20kg of grain at a time did drain the crap out of the batteries.
Then I used an Oatly motor. The crush improved from what I though was a great crush, also getting away from hanging of a drill is great. For barley/wheat it worked great and I had no issues for a few years. I started crushing corn and the motor/power supply was not up to it.
Now I'm running the motion dynamics mill motor package with the speed controller and the recommended power supply from ebay. Even at full speed it is slower than the old oatly motor was, so the speed controller is set to almost full and forgotten about. With the motor and upgraded power supply it has a lot more torque than the old motor/psu did. It pushed through corn no problems, enough so it snapped my spider coupler and even the replacement one. I've given up putting corn through it, and it just hums along with the grain.

 

[Yob]

thanks Kev, penny dropped..

I need to check that my end plates are square, I got the MM3 and had a bit of trouble initially getting the slave to grab, that could be it, once I got it spinning though it churned through 15kg in minutes, was an awesome sight compared to the poor old Marga it replaced

 

[QldKev]

thanks Kvv, penny dropped..

I need to check that my end plates are square, I got the MM3 and had a bit of trouble initially getting the slave to grab, that could be it, once I got it spinning though it churned through 15kg in minutes, was an awesome sight compared to the poor old Marga it replaced

The quick test is just spin the second roller by hand, it should spin freely.

Here's a youtube vid of how easily my second roller spins. Basically 2 grains is enough to get it moving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5My_rWs3kE

 

[Spiesy]

Another vote for the MiniMill here. Have had mine for 2-3 years and it's milled a shitload of grain, never skipped a beat.

I'd steer clear of their Perspex hopper though. I built my own and I'm far from handy.

 

[Yob]

That's not what cocko said...

 

[lael]

Another happy minimill owner. With a water fountain bottle as hopper. Works really nicely.

 

[mckenry]

Thanks Mckenry! I missed that the mini mill was geared!! So the barley crusher just relies on the friction from grain to turn the second roller which free spins on the bearings?

What brand cordless do you use? A high quality Makita or similar? (I've got an Ozito, which has been great, just not sure it can handle the torque load)

I got no issues building a hopper if I go mini mill, as would allow me to build a big F-off one for future large batches

Yep BC and many others rely on the grain to pull the other roller. My cordless is BOSCH. NOTE: you need a 13mm chuck for the mashmaster. I have a 10mm chuck in my drill, so eventually found an adaptor.