barley crusher mill gap

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killian

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I just adjusted my mill gap and I don't have a feeler gauge to measure the gap.
I think I have read some where to adjust the mill to "a round 1 o'clock" so that is what I'm going with, unless any one has any ideas.

ondeck:wee heeavvy
 
My BC was fine with the factory crush...I got 83% efficiency last time, even with a measly sparge. Why are you adjusting it?
 
I didn't like the crush I got with my BC with the factory setting of .039". I set it to .037" and the crush looked a lot better (86% eff. w/batch sparge). You can go to any autoparts store and get a set of feeler gauges for under $5.
 
johnsma22 said:
I set it to .037" and the crush looked a lot better (86% eff. w/batch sparge). You can go to any autoparts store and get a set of feeler gauges for under $5.
Blender said:
I adjusted mine as well to about .036. A feeler gauge is a good idea.
Dang, the very first time I used my crusher the mash got stuck with the mine set at .039,:confused: Lautering was a Beotch. I had to turn it up to .41 for subsequent brews. Makes think I should fool around a bit more with the settings.
I have been fooling around with milling the wheat at .038 and then tossing in some rice hulls as an insurance policy.
Purchase the feeler gauge, you be glad you did!
 
killian said:
I just adjusted my mill gap and I don't have a feeler gauge to measure the gap.
I think I have read some where to adjust the mill to "a round 1 o'clock" so that is what I'm going with, unless any one has any ideas.

Neither do I, and I though the crush was too fine, so mine is at 1 o'clock and I'm getting in the 80's on efficiency. You should be good to go.
 
I've been thinking about adjusting my Barley Crusher lately, but I get around 80% at factory settings. I suppose better efficiency means saving money, so I could always play around with different gap settings.
 
I decided that if I set mine up just a tick to .037, it should help with efficiency just enough and still help me avoid stuck sparges.

Then I remembered I don't own a Barley Crusher.

You guys suck...
 
All of you at 35-37 what "time" is your mill set at looking at the crank arm side? I am adjusting the gap because of my efficiency,
I guess admiting you have a problem is the first step.
Hi my name is killian and I have a efficiency problem.
 
BierMuncher said:
I decided that if I set mine up just a tick to .037, it should help with efficiency just enough and still help me avoid stuck sparges.

Then I remembered I don't own a Barley Crusher.

You guys suck...

Yeah, I can just picture you in that nice cool basement brew room sobbing into your pre-crushed grain and feeling sorry for yourself. ;)
 
Fingers said:
Yeah, I can just picture you in that nice cool basement brew room sobbing into your pre-crushed grain and feeling sorry for yourself. ;)
:D

I actually have a 50# bag of precrushed being delivered today. Should get me through the next three weekends of brewing. Two lights (14#'s apiece) and a Stone Clone (22#) plus assorted crystal, cara and some munich...

My online supplier only charges $3.95 to crush a 50#'r so until I get my BC, I'll have to live with somebody elses idea of a good crush.:eek:
 
BierMuncher said:
:D

I actually have a 50# bag of precrushed being delivered today. Should get me through the next three weekends of brewing. Two lights (14#'s apiece) and a Stone Clone (22#) plus assorted crystal, cara and some munich...

Ya think he'll put it all in one big bag for ya? :D 50# eh. Yeah, that'll do a couple 10 gallon batches.
 
I's so glad I got a fixed gap JSP mill. :p
I don't have to worry about such trivia as setting the gap. :p
I never get stuck sparges. :p
And I consistently get 85% efficiency. :D

FYI. The gap on mine is advertised as a "nominal .045". I just measured it, and it is an actual .043" measured with a feeler gauge which I then checked with a micrometer.

-a.
 
EdWort said:
Ya think he'll put it all in one big bag for ya? :D 50# eh. Yeah, that'll do a couple 10 gallon batches.
He did.

One big bag in one big "tall" box. 58# total shipping with my other stuff.

I think the FedEx guy is startin to hate me.

My challenge will be keeping the grains mixed to prevent all the "flour" from settling to the bottom. That and shelf life are my main drawbacks. (Though grain shelf life doesn't seem to be an issue :))
 
I just put a mic to a couple of credit cards. They come out to around .030", and the portions with raised letters are about .045". So, a credit card would probably make a pretty good feeler gauge for a grain mill.
 
Yuri_Rage said:
I just put a mic to a couple of credit cards. They come out to around .030", and the portions with raised letters are about .045". So, a credit card would probably make a pretty good feeler gauge for a grain mill.

I've had credit cards lose their raised lettering from being in the wallet, so I wouldn't use the raised portion as a measurement guide unless you have one of Orphy's murses.
 
Fingers said:
I've had credit cards lose their raised lettering from being in the wallet, so I wouldn't use the raised portion as a measurement guide unless you have one of Orphy's murses.
I thought the raised portion would measure out to a much wider tolerance than it did. One of my cards was rather old, one rather new, and both mic'd to within a few thousandths of .045". I'd probably adjust my grain mill to a point where the card would pass loosely between the rollers, with the raised portion binding a bit.
 
killian said:
I just adjusted my mill gap and I don't have a feeler gauge to measure the gap.
I think I have read some where to adjust the mill to "a round 1 o'clock" so that is what I'm going with, unless any one has any ideas.

ondeck:wee heeavvy

Use 2 cheap drill bits: The poor man's gauge.

1/32" = 0.03125
3/64" = 0.04688
1/16" = 0.0625 .....etc.

Cheers.
 
Is it possible to use a digital caliper, , like the one used for woodworking, instead of the feeler gauge to measure the gap? if so, how do I take the measurement?

regards

Yel
 
I realize its the homebrewer thing to do to save money and DIY, but man, a feeler gauge only costs $5! =)

-D
 
I still havent gotten the feeler gauge (I guess I am cheap) but I adjusted my mill gap on my last batch and my effeciency jumped about 7 points.
 
Heh. Just so you know, I wasn't trying to insult you. Just found it an amusing observation about homebrewers in general and the places they try to save money sometimes. =)

(I do it too)

-D
 
I'm confused about a feeler guage.
I picked on up, but it says it's good up to.025 inches or .65 mm. seems to me, that won't be big enough.

Are their bigger feeler gauges?
 
stack them, you put .020 with .018 and you will get .038 and so on, you have to put more than one together to get the higher gaps

on another note, another old thread picked up... hahaha 4 years old
 
stack them, you put .020 with .018 and you will get .038 and so on, you have to put more than one together to get the higher gaps

on another note, another old thread picked up... hahaha 4 years old

Got to love old threads, came in handy for me, just got a Barley Crusher and wasn't sure if I should modify the gap or just go with the factory setting for the first time and see how it goes.
 
I have been messing with the settings on mine for the last several brews. Here are a couple of things I have learned...

Buy the feeler gauges. I got a mini set from Auto Zone that go up to .035 for about $3...stack for different settings.

Look into malt conditioning. I walked the stuck sparge ledge, occasionally falling over, and was considering buying rice hulls. Then on my last brew I remembered reading about conditioning, tried it, and holy batsh!t Robin, I couldn't believe the difference. I set the BC around .034-5, got a very fine crush, got 85%+ efficiency, and never even thought about sticking. It is awesome how the hulls come out almost whole while the grain is finely crushed.

Finally, different grain requires a different crush. My 2-row pale gets a larger crush (.038-9) than my Pilsner malt (.034-6).

Brew on my friends :mug:
 
I would stick with the factory settings. I have yet to change mine
Got a Barley Crusher recently. Checked the gap today with a spark plug gapper since I am getting ready to use it for the first time. Factory settings were off, and so are the factory markings.

Gap on one side was .041+ and the other side was .035. After adjusting the .041 side to match the .035 side the setting bar is about 1/16 of an inch different. Setting them both straight on their markings at 12 O'clock would result in definite stratified crushing, but really it seems like it wouldn't matter since they were pretty close. Just thought I would report back that the gauges are helpful.
 
I just picked up a feeler gauge set from VatoZone was $6. 99 got one with a spark plug gap settings since it had feeler gauges that went up to. 026 I didn't think about stacking them.

My eff has been crap with my BC and I've conditioned my malt each time. I can't wait to see what my gap is set to.
 
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