Another Grain Mill Question

So I'm looking at dropping the money and purchasing a nice grain mill so I can buy in bulk and have more freedom regarding when I brew. Monster Mill, Cereal Killer, or Grain Crusher come up frequently as good choices. My question is not about the merits of each, but rather are those of you who bought your own grain mill satisfied with your purchase? Was it worth the money?

I just figured I'd check to see if it's worth the investment, given that this single piece of equipment is worth more than my entire brewing set-up combined.

Many thanks!

All i can tell ya is it worth it.. You'll be happy with any of the ones you mentioned. All depends on $$
I have a crankandstein 2A mill + hopper , love it.. Ive set it tight get 73% average eff...

Yes, well worth the investment. The ability to have grains in storage and just brew on a whim is a beautiful thing.

$120 for barley crusher.
$38 for a bag if 2 row unmilled.
$75 for 50# crushed 2 row.
Savings $37 in about 4-5 batches.

4 bags of grain and it pays for itself.

hammy71 said:

yes, well worth the investment. The ability to have grains in storage and just brew on a whim is a beautiful thing.

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+1

Barley crusher for me from Midwest

Got it while working on partial mash bc LBHS doesn't crush. Some sort of issue with carpeting...

I'm very happy with it. Ran my first all grain yesterday and hi t 80% efficiency batch sparking in a rectangular cooler with a bazooka screen.

Best features of having own mill are
Fresh crushed grains on brew day even if brew day gets last min reschedule
OK to condition grains (used kaiser's 2% water formula)
Buy in bulk

One problem...
Need a better drill. My 18V cordless drill driver is not up to the task. Will be heading to harbor freight soon, developing Popeye right arm in meantime. Conditioning grain helped a bit but still wiped my battery out before I got 3 pounds crushed.

Eric

Yes you need a low speed high torque drill for $50. Or do it by hand which sucks

I have the Barley Crusher and am very pleased with it. The plus side to milling your own grains aside from those already mentioned is the fact you have complete control over your crush and can maintain that consistency throughout your brewing. No more up and down guessing on how your efficiency plays out!

Barley Crusher. I'm very happy with it.

Started with the BC, but with the small diameter, shorter rollers, and small hopper (7# is all I could get at the time) it soon became clear it wasn't the one for me. So, I sold it and got the Monster Mill MM2-2.0 with the base, hopper and hopper extension. I also opted to get the hardened steel rollers (I'm not in a humid area, so stainless wasn't worth it). With the 39# hopper it lets me fill once and mill until I'm done. Most of my batches use at least 14# of grain, with a lot over 15#, so even the large hopper BC would need to be refilled at least once. With the 2" diameter rollers, the crush is great. Plus, they're 6" long, which is far better than the shorter ones in the BC (and some other mills).

I've since removed it from the base and installed it onto a cart (old microwave cart, that I routed out a hole in for the grain to pass through).

IMO, the MM2-2.0 is a great mill for the majority. Sure, it's overkill for a good number of people, but it will last for a long time. Especially if you get the hardened rollers (the stainless ones are softer). Having the high capacity hopper helps out a lot too. Especially if you either make larger batches, or higher OG brews. I put 30# into mine for my big barleywine batch and it went through it without issue.

SavoryChef said:

Yes you need a low speed high torque drill for $50. Or do it by hand which sucks

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Got the harborfreight drill today for $40. Low speed high torque 1/2 inch chuck, corded. Looks like a winner. Sale at the store comes up $48 but found a coupon in another thread here to bring it to $40.

I've been debating on milling my own grains. Right now I get all my grain from one store and they mill it so it's always consistant. Their selection is awesome and their prices are quite good. But they are quite a drive a way.

How long can you store unmilled grains for? I could buy in bulk from them as the prices are even cheaper and then just store grains at my house. If they'll last long enough.

I bought the Monster Mill MM-2, 2-Roller Mill, 6" long, 1.5" Diameter Rollers. Got it because some reviews of the Barley Crusher said the hopper material was too thin and bent easily. I do not know this to be true, it is just what several people said in their reviews. I think any of the grain crushers you mentioned will work well.

I got a grain crusher because my efficiency ranged from 54% to 75% depending on where I bought the crushed grain. The last batch I brewed came in at 54% from a new LHBS 5 miles from my house. The 75% came from a LHBS 30 miles away. Turns out the 5 mile LHBS has their mill is set at 0.055. My process has not changed so the crush is the only variable.

Have not brewed with grain I crushed but expect to much closer to 75% with a gap set at 0.039. Good luck, you can't go wrong with a good grain crusher.

ImperialStout said:

I bought the Monster Mill MM-2, 2-Roller Mill, 6" long, 1.5" Diameter Rollers. Got it because some reviews of the Barley Crusher said the hopper material was too thin and bent easily. I do not know this to be true, it is just what several people said in their reviews. I think any of the grain crushers you mentioned will work well.

I got a grain crusher because my efficiency ranged from 54% to 75% depending on where I bought the crushed grain. The last batch I brewed came in at 54% from a new LHBS 5 miles from my house. The 75% came from a LHBS 30 miles away. Turns out the 5 mile LHBS has their mill is set at 0.055. My process has not changed so the crush is the only variable.

Have not brewed with grain I crushed but expect to much closer to 75% with a gap set at 0.039. Good luck, you can't go wrong with a good grain crusher.

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The comments about the BC hopper, from about a 1-1/2 years ago was thin, are true. Don't know if they've made any changes since then (doubt it) but it's not anywhere near the thickness of the Monster Mill hoppers.

Most of us start crushing at .039" and then adjust for our system depending on the results. I have mine locked in at that gap now, and have been thinking about tightening it down a little. Haven't done it since my mash efficiency is stable and I don't get stuck sparges. :rockin:
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

I really liked the crush I got yesterday using conditioned grains. Have my rollers set at 30 mil cause the only thing I have right now to measure the gap is a credit card. Anyway 30 mil + conditioned grain gave me a great crush.

Eric

Thanks for all the replies everyone. They've all been super helpful. Decided I'm going to go with the Schmidling MaltMill (the lifetime warranty is a huge plus) or the Barley Crusher, as these are what my LHBSs carry.

Happy brewing!

Love my malt mill can't go wrong- they make the ones that breweries use