I believe they discontinued the shipment of the CK as part of their pre-order. Due to many complaints from customers regarding roller alignment. I called and as was offered an upgrade to the Barley Crusher for $20.
"Cereal Killer" grain mill
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I screwed around with the CK grain mill for an hour tonight. Like I said earlier, I haven't used it yet, but I think I have it tuned up to put a decent crush on the grains.
There are some issues with the rollers being coplanar for sure. There's no way I could get a consistent gap across the width of the rollers, no matter how much I adjusted. The biggest issue occurs when you get the eccentric thumb screws holding the passive roller in the location you need; when you tighten in place, the screws push on the eccentric thumb screws and close the gap on the rollers.
My solution was to adjust eccentric thumb screws with a .065m feeler gauge stuck between the rollers, one side at a time, and once I tightened the screws to hold the roller in place, the gap closed to about .035. Repeat on the other side and your as good as you will get.
I also added another 0-ring to the passive roller (it shipped with one), to provide drive friction to the passive roller.
After a LOT of tinkering with the rollers and the chute (retaining screws) I think I finally I got the mill solid and in working order. I think it will do a decent job with a drill attached, but like others said I don't think the handle will work at all.
I would not consider mine "adjustable" any longer, after mucking with feeler gauges, and pliers I finally was able to torque the adjustment screws and lock the roller in place (I hope) and I do not want to have to repeat this any time soon!
There are some issues with the rollers being coplanar for sure. There's no way I could get a consistent gap across the width of the rollers, no matter how much I adjusted. The biggest issue occurs when you get the eccentric thumb screws holding the passive roller in the location you need; when you tighten in place, the screws push on the eccentric thumb screws and close the gap on the rollers.
My solution was to adjust eccentric thumb screws with a .065m feeler gauge stuck between the rollers, one side at a time, and once I tightened the screws to hold the roller in place, the gap closed to about .035. Repeat on the other side and your as good as you will get.
I also added another 0-ring to the passive roller (it shipped with one), to provide drive friction to the passive roller.
After a LOT of tinkering with the rollers and the chute (retaining screws) I think I finally I got the mill solid and in working order. I think it will do a decent job with a drill attached, but like others said I don't think the handle will work at all.
I would not consider mine "adjustable" any longer, after mucking with feeler gauges, and pliers I finally was able to torque the adjustment screws and lock the roller in place (I hope) and I do not want to have to repeat this any time soon!
I have used it for 5 batches now and it's a decent performer. I can't compare to anything else because this is my first and only grain mill. First thing is the rubber O-rings they installed on the drive roller (to provide friction and drive the second roller) disintegrated after 2 uses. I found the rubber o-rings mutilated in my mash tun. It still works fine but you have to make sure your drill is going in the proper direction to pull the grain through and drive the second roller. I'm not sure how other mills work in this regard. Second my efficiency has increased almost 20% from crushing my own grain. This thing can turn grain into flour and I get dough-balls in the mash tun now. I never had a problem with dough balls using the home brew-store crushed grain - but I consider this a good problem.
bottlebomber
Well-Known Member
t3e871 said:
Supposedly they've fixed some of these problems... I've been holding out for a monster mill but just haven't been able to justify the $250 for the one I want yet. I'm really considering getting this and getting a year or two out of it before passing it down to someone.
LibertyHillBrewery
Well-Known Member
Well I ordered one of the "new improved" Cereal Killer grain mills a couple weeks ago, Guess they started Shipping yesterday,7/9/12 not sure where I'm at on the order list, Looking forward to trying it out, 
Well I ordered one of the "new improved" Cereal Killer grain mills a couple weeks ago, Guess they started Shipping yesterday,7/9/12 not sure where I'm at on the order list, Looking forward to trying it out,
I went for one also, will be moving from my corona mill in a bucket. Mine will be here friday. forgot to pull the trigger, had it in my cart for 89, ended up paying 99.
LibertyHillBrewery
Well-Known Member
I did the same thing, but was only $10 more, so not too bad.. mine will be here on the 16th!!
LibertyHillBrewery, bucfanmike... How's the latest version of the CK performing? Can you also let the forum know if the following chief criticisms have been corrected:
- Crank handle is too short.
- Play or slop in the bushings.
- Hopper attachment is weak.
- Out of round and/or non-centered rollers.
Thanks!
H.O.
- Crank handle is too short.
- Play or slop in the bushings.
- Hopper attachment is weak.
- Out of round and/or non-centered rollers.
Thanks!
H.O.
LibertyHillBrewery
Well-Known Member
- Crank handle is too short. -I didn't order one because i knew i'd be using a drill
- Play or slop in the bushings. - they changed from bushings to stainless steel bearings and roll real easily and feel tight
- Hopper attachment is weak. - the hopper is rivited aluminum and held on by a two bolts. its not indestructible by any means,but i have no problems picking the whole unit up by it without worry..
- Out of round and/or non-centered rollers. - I was checking for that with feeler gauges while setting the gap and it was barely measurable..Barely! i couldn't see it by eye. i"m sure a bigger diameter roller would be an advantage too, but it gave me a good crush and up to 83% eff. on my last brew..
definitely a lot more of a mill than i thought i'd get for $99! (now $89 again) ..now to see what the life span will be..but for brewing once or twice a week, it should be fine for me. Cheers!
a link to a couple pics....https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/just-got-new-cereal-killer-grain-mill-341900/
- Play or slop in the bushings. - they changed from bushings to stainless steel bearings and roll real easily and feel tight
- Hopper attachment is weak. - the hopper is rivited aluminum and held on by a two bolts. its not indestructible by any means,but i have no problems picking the whole unit up by it without worry..
- Out of round and/or non-centered rollers. - I was checking for that with feeler gauges while setting the gap and it was barely measurable..Barely! i couldn't see it by eye. i"m sure a bigger diameter roller would be an advantage too, but it gave me a good crush and up to 83% eff. on my last brew..
definitely a lot more of a mill than i thought i'd get for $99! (now $89 again) ..now to see what the life span will be..but for brewing once or twice a week, it should be fine for me. Cheers!
a link to a couple pics....https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/just-got-new-cereal-killer-grain-mill-341900/
jamboparty
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the update, LHB. Sounds like they took care of the issues that I had with mine. Hope it continues to work well for you!
I just posted a tear down in the thread as well.
LibertyHillBrewery
Well-Known Member
I just bought one of these and then scoured this thread. Made me nervous with all the bad feedback. I milled 14 pounds of grain yesterday with it and it performed flawlessly. Very impressed with the value, in case someone is considering buying one.
ajbosco
Member
This is probably a stupid question, but how do you run this with a drill?
Here is a assesment of the CK mill on youtube and he shows you the grind.
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BCProducts
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I own B C Products which makes and sells the Barley Crusher Malt Mills. I am a little disappointed to see that Jason is carrying that Chinese piece of ****. It is just the Chinese rip off of my mill. I have received many emails from them asking to make parts for me. That wont happen. i believe in the craftsmanship and quality of our mill and keeping work in house rather then out sourcing and cutting jobs. We have received many emails saying that you get what you pay for with the Chinese mills. That is probably why there is only a 6 month warranty on that mill. Our site does have the message that it may be up to two weeks for shipping but we have been getting them out quicker this year. If you have any questions feel free to email me at *********** or visit our website at **********
Just wanted to provide my experience with the cereal killer. I ordered one this fall. I can't remember if its version 2 or 3. Whichever it is, it seems that they have solved the problems discussed here an elsewhere. I can set the gap accurately, the rollers are coplanar, handle is now optional (I run it with a 1/2" chuck drill and works like a champ), and all of the parts seem well-made and assembled. I'm on batch 4 with it and anticipate no problems.
I just got my cereal crusher in the mail, looks pretty good. Just wondering what kind of drill attachment I need to run this with my 18v Craftsman. Could someone please throw up a link or a picture of the bit I need?
you shouldn't need a bit. just close the drill head directly on the mill's shaft.
Thanks for the help!
Just milled a handful of grain and trying to get the right spacing in the rollers. What do you guys use to measure the gap between the rollers? I'm thinking one of those little discs from autozone that are meant to measure spark plug gaps might work? Or do you folks just go by eye and see how the grain looks after the crush?
I use a credit card. I think if you read through the whole thread, or maybe its a different thread on the same issue, a couple people mention that as an easy way to set your gap. The disc you mention would probably work, too.
I got this 1 month ago and got to use it this past Friday. Took me more to 20 times more time to weight the grains than to crush them. I didn't measure the gap went with an aproximation since it has the marking on the side I'd say is 0.030ish.
How is the best way to measure that gap ? Where can I find gage pins? Any nails that could be that size ?
I got the expected gravity (1.070+) and I think this crusher did the trick. Almost got a stuck sparge so I need to play with the gap.
How is the best way to measure that gap ? Where can I find gage pins? Any nails that could be that size ?
I got the expected gravity (1.070+) and I think this crusher did the trick. Almost got a stuck sparge so I need to play with the gap.
Feeler gauges. They are a collection of sheet metal rectangles usually riveted together so they look like a pocket knife. They fan out and you select the plate that you want, they are all marked. You can find them in any auto parts store and will work easier that a spark plug gapping disk, if those are the ones with all the loops. They measure in the wrong direction, inside the loops.
zilwaukee_pete
New Member
I have had one for about a year now .I have run over 200 lbs of grain through it without any problems, that is unless you use the handle that they charge an extra $5.00 for. As there add says almost useless. Just use a power drill motor but try to keep speed around 200--400 RPM
BCProducts
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I've done it both ways and haven't noticed a difference.
that what I use for a setting and always hit the numbers
I have ran about 1000 pounds of grain with mine and have never had to adjust it
S_M
Used mine for the first time last Monday. It seems solid, but not as precise as it could be. The bearings are not as smooth as a new bearing should be. I also noticed that the rollers are not drilled perfectly centered for the bearings. Upon setting the gap to.037 I found that while spinning the rollers the gap changed from .037 to .035. At 66% the cost of other crushers I can accept these quality issues. It is unfortunate though... it wouldn't take much for a machinist to get a hole centered or put a blank on a lathe after the holes were drilled.
It all seems solid though, and overall I am happy with my purchase. I am sure I will get plenty of use out of it.
Sent from my SCH-R970 using Home Brew mobile app
It all seems solid though, and overall I am happy with my purchase. I am sure I will get plenty of use out of it.
Sent from my SCH-R970 using Home Brew mobile app
I would call them maybe it's a manufacture issue. I'm hoping to get mine running next week.
Sent from my SGH-T769 using Home Brew mobile app
30Bones
Well-Known Member
I have done single and multiple passes, set to 0.040" and the last two batches I got a stuck sparge (toilet screen in a cooler) and I ran it through twice. I think from now on I am going to stick with one pass on my new brewtus style setup and may try to recirculate my mash to ramp up efficiency.
Same sentiment here. I set it with feeler gauges and spin it and check it again and it's off. I can live with it for the price, but if it becomes problem I may upgrade to a mon$ter mill $$
