My Ugly Junk- Corona Mill Station...

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just got my victoria grain mill two weeks ago. i havent gotten around to removing the cotter pin to put the bolt in but i have added a few washers to each side. the mill is still alittle wobbly. i plan on some type of bucket setup. it seems when i was adjusting the mill today i got to a decent point but im not sure about my crush im hoping someone would be able to help evaluate so heres the pic
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it seems if i loosen more slightly i get some uncrushed grains not sure if i should if i should tighten anymore. this pic the grain was crushed by hand im hoping to hookup the drill to it tomorrow to give it another go around

Here is a new crush with alittle tighter and using a drill instead of hand cranking. Please evaluate as I'm planning a bew day very soon. Once I get my crush set I will post a pic of my ugly junk. Thanks in advance

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Hard to tell....second pic definitely looks better than the first, but it's hard to say whether or not you've got any whole grains in there. Take a few tablespoons of that grist and spread it out. If you find any whole grains, crank down another quarter-turn, then repeat. That's what I did, and I hit all my numbers now. After you dial it in, the Corona / Victoria / Grizzly / ?? is a great mill.
 
Updated mine with a drill and while grinding for my 10G batch I cranked it down 'til I was beyond scared, I was frightened :eek:.
Finished the batch and checked my numbers, >80% efficiency. With these results, I won't be so scared with the next batch.

Thanks to all here for the tips and tricks. I'll see if I can't get some good pics of the thing to post.
 

Is this how close the plates are going to be when I crush my grain? I thought I'd need them to be a bit further apart (caveat being, I just got my knock off mill and put it together last night. I'll be getting some cheap base grain and messing around with it this weekend).
 
Alright. I read through most of the thread and saw someone said have the plates about a credit card width apart? Is that more in line with where I should start?
 
Awesome. Thanks for the help. I'm sure I'll have some photos of grain at some point to get some feedback on my crush.
 
Hard to tell from a picture, when the plates are that close, but it looks a lot like the spacing I'm using. I'm very happy with it- I get all my numbers when I brew, and nary a stuck sparge.
 
I mash in a bag, a large bag crafted from voile material.

Can / should I go with a finer crush since having larger pieces and hull material isn't important for filtering?
 
Hi all I see that most people run a 1/2" drill to power the mill. I set the plates using visual cues from the crush, think I ended up at about 0.020" or so. At that tight setting it takes some serious torque to spin the auger. I tried my 24v drill and if killed the battery in a few minutes. I purchased a 3/8" dewalt plug in drill and in order to spin slow I barely could touch the trigger. That must have stressed the motor or brushes cuz smoke was coming out of the drill body. Good thing for return policies! So now I'm going to try a 1/2" impact wrench. Anyone else use this? Should the auger be that hard to spin?
 
Looking for opinions...should I go for the original Corona, or the Weston knock-off? Does either work better than the other?

Their such low tech dealies that it just doesn't really matter. They really have one moving part, which is a pigtail/corkscrew holding a grinding plate, that there's really no difference.
 
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Their such low tech dealies that it just doesn't really matter. They really have one moving part, which is a pigtail/corkscrew holding a grinding plate, that there's really no difference.

Yeah - I have ther victoria knock off version of the corona - it works great. I would just grab whatever is cheapest.


For the drill, any corded variable speed should be enough. I am sure lots of battery powered will work too, but for my 24-28lbs of grain I am shredding, 1/2 inch corded milwaukee all the way.
 
Is this how close the plates are going to be when I crush my grain? I thought I'd need them to be a bit further apart (caveat being, I just got my knock off mill and put it together last night. I'll be getting some cheap base grain and messing around with it this weekend).

it does look like it, but they aren't touching, took the pic with my phone... which is fine for normal pics, but of course wont show the detail that it needs :) lol its about a credit cards width apart though,
:ban:
 
the layout so you can see that weird bolt thing (and the washer i got for it, i can't find a measuring tape for it, so i can't get the ID)
5487894618_85533bc12f_b.jpg


and here is the weird bolt without the washer on it so you can see how it connects and how it looks
5487895960_da988134ba.jpg

Just got mine and it is also this design. Glad to know I'm not the only one!
 
have fun with it! :D it's a great little thing.. and your right arm will grow immensely very quickly haha
 
so everyone thats ground up grain and forgot to put the catch bucket underneath, raise your hand


<raises hand>

:D
 
Just wanted to show my almost finished corona mill. I haven't cut a hole yet for the grain to fall threw. Does anyone have a idea on how to direct the grain. Some kind of funnel.... I'm stumped on what to do. I have a cut up chinese take out container on it right now. But looking for a better idea. Cheers

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Well, I employ the "totally enclosed in a bucket mount" (as illustrated in numerous examples, including mine, in this thread. I don't think that sort of mount would be workable with the drive system you're using on the mill.

While I'm sure your drive system is efficient, I'm not sure how durable it's going to be. If your "Corona" type mill is like mine, there's not much in the way of a bearing between the shaft of that mill and the housing, and the sideways pull is going to wear that hole out pretty quickly.
 
rico567 said:
Well, I employ the "totally enclosed in a bucket mount" (as illustrated in numerous examples, including mine, in this thread. I don't think that sort of mount would be workable with the drive system you're using on the mill.

While I'm sure your drive system is efficient, I'm not sure how durable it's going to be. If your "Corona" type mill is like mine, there's not much in the way of a bearing between the shaft of that mill and the housing, and the sideways pull is going to wear that hole out pretty quickly.

Ya know never really thought about no brearings. I'm not gonna worry to much. The steel should last a while. And if and when it goes out, guess I'll have to buy a roller mill. Thanks for the input tho.
 
Can you post more deets on how you connected the drive wheel to your corona mill?

I want to set one up to be pedal powered and wonder how to connect the gear.
 
Does anyone have a idea on how to direct the grain.

Cut a 4" hole in the table below the mill. Shroud the mill w/ a plastic bag, or a heavier roll of sheet plastic that goes through the hole in the table to nearly the bottom a catch bucket below. Sort of a grain chute.

You could do the same w/ sheet metal or a length of PVC pipe, but a kitchen garbage bag and some tape would work if you like "ugly"
 
Thanks to everyone. This was a little bit of a few different threads. I went with another motor from my first pics( way lower rpm, better crush) used a 4in to 3in heating duct reducer for grain shoot. Has forward and reverse (no real need for reverse, but y not) ran thru 11 lbs of grain lastnight with no problem.

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Thought I should post my beastly unit, hereby dubbed "the grain silo"

Plastic bag around the mill so the dust and grain pretty much all fall down into the bucket. Silo holds about 12+lbs of grain. 5/16'' stainless 2'' hex bolt for the drill to crank on.

IMG_4377.jpg
 
Cut a 4" hole in the table below the mill. Shroud the mill w/ a plastic bag, or a heavier roll of sheet plastic that goes through the hole in the table to nearly the bottom a catch bucket below. Sort of a grain chute.

You could do the same w/ sheet metal or a length of PVC pipe, but a kitchen garbage bag and some tape would work if you like "ugly"

When I used my corona style mill, I took an old salt bag from the water softener and used it to direct the grain into a pail, it was much stronger than a garbage bag.
 
Thought I should post my beastly unit, hereby dubbed "the grain silo"

Plastic bag around the mill so the dust and grain pretty much all fall down into the bucket. Silo holds about 12+lbs of grain. 5/16'' stainless 2'' hex bolt for the drill to crank on.

Magnificently Ugly Junk :mug:
 
Sweet!!! I'm so glad I saw a link to this page. The house I purchased a little over a year ago was an estate sale, long story short they left a ton of stuff in the house/garage, one item being a decent electric motor. I now know what I'll be using that for. :D

Now to pick up the corona mill. :D
 
....one item being a decent electric motor. I now know what I'll be using that for. :D

Now to pick up the corona mill. :D

Just a friendly prewarning, free motor is not the same as free power. By the time you purchase two pulleys, a belt and misc. hardware, a simple cheap 1/2 drill might be a better option. I have the drill linked below, and feel that for $33, it's a great value. The photos don't do justice, the thing is a beast w/ a 10 amp motor, variable speed reversible!

http://www.harborfreight.com/power-...le-speed-reversible-d-handle-drill-47991.html
 
Just a friendly prewarning, free motor is not the same as free power. By the time you purchase two pulleys, a belt and misc. hardware, a simple cheap 1/2 drill might be a better option. I have the drill linked below, and feel that for $33, it's a great value. The photos don't do justice, the thing is a beast w/ a 10 amp motor, variable speed reversible!

http://www.harborfreight.com/power-...le-speed-reversible-d-handle-drill-47991.html

I have to agree with the above post. Not necessarily that particular drill- I was fortunate enough to have an ancient Craftsman 1/2" drill around that's pretty much ideal for driving the Corona mill. I also concur with the "cheap drill" philosophy being consistent with the whole "Ugly Junk" concept. Fancy motor / drive systems aren't what we're about in this thread. Besides, unless you've got most of that stuff lying around, you can easily have far more money tied up in it than in the whole UJ system.

I've got $23 in the mill, $ .50 cents in the bolt, nothing in the two buckets or the hopper, maybe another $ .50 cents in duct tape and screws I already had around to put the thing together. So, let's say $25. I think the easiest alternative drive system would be some kind of a gearmotor, and the cheapest thing I've found on the Internet would be around 3 times what I've got invested so far. Not going there.
 
...I think the easiest alternative drive system would be some kind of a gearmotor, and the cheapest thing I've found on the Internet would be around 3 times what I've got invested so far. Not going there.

I'm still trying to figure out if this wiper motor has enough torque at only $16. I need to find a torque wrench in the right range to test the mill.
 
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