Inspecting grains prior to milling?

[HalfWit]

Hi, my Barley Crusher grain mill is not pulling the grains through. I have tried cleaning it with a wire brush but this had no affect. I suspect the roller has been blunted by rocks that come in full sacks of Weyermann's Pil's.
Do people inspect the grains to get foreign objects out before adding them to the mill? If yes is there an effective and quick way to do this?
Any tips on building a hopper for a Mashmaster mini mill?

Thanks

 

[NewtownClown]

Strip it down and clean the bushes, they get gummed up with flour. Then lubricate with a drop or two of veg. oil.

 

[Feldon]

You could try using one of those strong, rare earth magnets -like the ones that brewers put in a flask on a stir plate when making yeast starters.

Most rocks have some iron in them, so if you mix the grain around in a bucket with the magnet the rocks and grit should get attached to the magnet. Might need to do it on a few batches of the grain to be effective, or use extra magnets. Of course, if the rocks have no iron content (eg. limestone) it won't work.

 

[Spiesy]

Hi, my Barley Crusher grain mill is not pulling the grains through. I have tried cleaning it with a wire brush but this had no affect. I suspect the roller has been blunted by rocks that come in full sacks of Weyermann's Pil's.
Do people inspect the grains to get foreign objects out before adding them to the mill? If yes is there an effective and quick way to do this?
Any tips on building a hopper for a Mashmaster mini mill?

Thanks

Weyermann Pils sacks come with rocks in them?

 

[HalfWit]

Weyermann Pils sacks come with rocks in them?

I have pulled a few small stones (about 3mm in size and dark) out and heard some getting ground up. Im not 100% sure that is my problem, all the same.

 

[klangers]

Larger breweries typically have destoners for this reason.

http://www.kunzel.de/cms/en/components/destoner.html

They separate out the stones with airflow typically (with the malt getting carried in the airflow and the heavy stones remaining behind) - you may be able to rig up a similar system if you can be bothered.

 

[simplefisherman]

Try doing a coarse crush first then run it through on a finer setting, or look at conditioning the grain with a small amount of water( search 'conditioning grain' for some info). Both of these methods have worked for me in the past when the grain won't feed through the mill. Its bloody frustrating, especially when your water's at strike temp and the wife is asking how much longer your brewing is going to take...lol