Now that the good cheap motors are gone, what do we use to motorize a Barley Crusher?
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cyclogenesis
Well-Known Member
A Drill! I do it by hand at the moment but I am building a ghetto setup to hold it in place and a vice like device to adjust the trigger and speed...
I don't' have an answer. I'm only here to ogle your avatar...
An Extra Pulley and:
Washer Motor, Tablesaw Motor..there are a whole lot of cheap motors out there. I bet you can find a washer motor for free driving down the road in the right place. Then you just need to calculate the RPM and figure out the pulley to reduce it to 185-200
Washer Motor, Tablesaw Motor..there are a whole lot of cheap motors out there. I bet you can find a washer motor for free driving down the road in the right place. Then you just need to calculate the RPM and figure out the pulley to reduce it to 185-200
rico567
Well-Known Member
Well, I don't know as the good cheap motors are gone. I've seen lots of motors come and go on eBay and elsewhere. There are people on here who have recommended what seems to be a very reasonably priced Harbor Freight AC drill that works. If I were looking to put a fixed motor on my mill (right now, I use an old Craftsman 1/2" AC drill), I think I'd look first at a junked wiper motor off a semi. Their rpms may spec out a bit slow, but they have plenty of torque, and with a permanent mount, who cares if it takes a bit longer? The biggest problem with those units is coming up with a 12VDC power supply.
With a few hand tools and a couple of common hardware items a hand drill could be mounted permanently like a gearmotor. I'd probably consider cutting the handle portion off and wiring the motor to a light switch.
I would think a bit slow with torque wouldn't be as bad as way too fast. drills tend to operate way too fast, so it's good to tame them down a bit with a pulley.
jetmac
Well-Known Member
Guess what. I have one of these that is new in the box. It was my father-in-law's. He left it with my wife when he passed away. He would be happy for me to use it. He was an engineer.
I also have a speed control for a router that I could use to control the speed.
It will work either way likely! However, it would work better if you added one pulley to adjust the speed, that way you get added torque for the slower RPM
jetmac
Well-Known Member
BC suggests to avoid using a pulley.
Go ahead
I didn't look at suggestions, I just like building things. I'm one of those people who see something, and just think I want it, I can build it. I have a roommate that stops me occasionally which is probably a good thing. Plus I have pulley's sitting around. I would use gear reductions, but sadly, not as plentiful. I need to pick up more crap off the side of the road. Pulley's can be less accurate in the aspect that belts slip though. Some belts less than others. My belt slips out easily and for free, depending on whom is asking.
I routinely make about 50% of everything I do make with someone else's trash.
When I made a mill though, regardless of the pulley it did seem to be more consistent at a lower around 190 rpm.
That would be a good motor, only 550 RPM, good catch.
TheTooth
Active Member
Just did a quick search, although I forget the torque settings on the one I bought... anyway, how about:
http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?item=5-1744&catname=
or
http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?item=5-1728&catname=
http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?item=5-1744&catname=
or
http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?item=5-1728&catname=
I would stick with something at a bare minimum of 40 in/lb of torque at least...Then you would probably want it to spin up first, before dumping in grain, I think 80-90 in/lb of torque and anything above would work with full big hoppers easily. If you get too torquey, just keep in mind if it binds..well.
jetmac
Well-Known Member
This is good. Amazon is selling these for $139.
I have an old Craftsman 1/2" drill new in the box. Model # 315.10280 that runs up to 600rpm. Not sure of the torque.
Just like this but brand new
Just like this but brand new
That will do fine IMO...Craigslist can also be a source for an old corded drill for not much $$ as well.
Again, JMO, the HF 1/2 drills can be had in the $30 - $40 dollar range on sale and with a %20 coupon, lots of drill for not much money. Unless you have parts or access to cheap parts, and the desire and time to build, a drill is hard to beat.
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My understanding is that the concern is about a pulley putting a side load on the sleeve bearing and wearing them out faster. I put a pulley on my Monster MM3 a few years ago. If I ever actually wear out the bearing, I think I will be proud! IIRC I have a 10 inch pulley on it, and a 1.5 inch pulley on a 1/4 horse 1725 rpm motor I scrounged some years ago. I have to feed wheat malt carefully at the outset or the mill's passive rollers will stall. With barley, I just fill the hopper and turn it on and watch it go.
BBL_Brewer
Well-Known Member
Just go to the local scrap yard/junk yard. They have used motors you can buy cheap. I think I gave like 3 bucks for mine. Just look for one that's not too beat up, has a mounting bracket and has the RPM/Horsepower you're looking for. If you somehow manage to eventually wear it out, sell it back for scrap and buy another one.
My local homebrew store has a huge mill on a 1/2 hp motor with pulleys. They grind WAY more grain than any of us and it doesn't even come close to stalling so forget what anybody says about avoiding pulleys IMHO. I have 4 motors for sale in the classifieds Btw. 1/3 and 1/2 hp with start caps they would work great for a home mill. Pm me if interested.
I saved an old treadmill motor and the speed control and plan to use them to direct drive a monster mill. The motor is 2.5 hp, 6700 rpm...but with the speed control can slow the motor down to a crawl. People get rid of treadmills all the time. It might be worth looking into.
jetmac
Well-Known Member
What to look for? Something along the lines of the drill motor?
JuanMoore
Getting the banned back together
Agreed. If you live in a dry climate you should be able to scavenge an epavorative cooler motor for free (or close to free). They're usually from 1/3-3/4 hp and come in 1140 rpm, 1725 rpm, and two speed varieties. You can likely scavenge a useful pulley or two at the same time. Junkyards, alleyways, or HVAC shops are good sources for them around here.
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