Stainless Steel Mill Rollers?

I'm about to purchase my first grain mill and I need some quick advice. I have $200 to spend on the mill and I'm torn between the Monster MM2 with stainless rollers and regular MM3, both with 1/2" shafts, both are also just under $200. Since I've never owned a mill (I either buy the grain milled or use the one at my LHBS) I don't know why I'd want stainless steel rollers. Is rust a common issue with the rollers? My basement is not overly damp but its very dry either, I'd say its average. I do know that I don't have rust issues with my other tools stored down there. Anyway, if it was damp, I wouldn't store my mill down there. I know some "condition" their grain with a little water to obtain a better crush, but I would think that a good cleaning/drying would alleviate any rust issues from this. No???

I considered a lot of other mills but ultimately decided upon buying one of the Monster Mills because of all the excellent reviews of their mills and their reputation for providing excellent customer service. From what I've read Fred really stands behind his products. Sometimes it is just cheaper to pay more.

I like the idea of the double crush that the MM3 offers, but if rust is an issue with these things, I'd rather go with the stainless MM2. I've read tons of reviews and opinions on the 2 vs 3 rollers and the 1-1/2" vs 2" rollers to know that there is no consensus of opinion about which is best. That said, there does seem to be agreement that 2" rollers are superior, unfortunately those model are just over my budget.

Thoughts?

I am getting ready to make that purchase as well. I found this company via the forum and have decided to purchase from them. The reasons are, small company, USA built and Stainless rollers. I really can't say that the stainless is all that critical from a rust position but believe the material is more durable. Also like the bearings in the system rather than a bushing. Just my opinion but looks like a good product for the price. Best of luck on your decision!


http://millersmills.com/barley-mills

If you are on a budget I'd recommend prioritizing 2" rollers over stainless. The larger the roller diameter the better the crush.

I considered that mill as well as well. Now I'm not saying that it is a bad or good mill, I just don't know. I did read some not so favorable posts on this web site. I also could not find anything concerning their warranty and I also read what I thought were false claims on their web page that frankly turned me off.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/reviews-millars-barley-mill-318540/index3.html

I found it really odd that I could not find anything about the warranty of the B3 mill anywhere, not even on their own web page (http://www.millarsmills.com/barley-mills). That is one heck of an over sight. I also found this statement (which I believe to be untrue) on their web page, "Millar's Mills is the only barely mill manufacturer that can guarantee 100% USA made parts and labor." It is my understanding that the both Monster Mill and Crankandstein are also made in the USA and both also carry lifetime warranties too as well.

I have the JSP Malt Mill. It's made in the USA. I condition my malt, store it in my basement, and have run over 90 lbs thru it so far with no corrosion issues. Malt conditioning uses very little water to get the desired results.

The JSP Malt is another very fine mill. I like the fact that the mill comes with an option to gear both rollers virtually insuring that they don't lock up. I also learned "The Barley Crusher is also made in the USA and it too comes with a lifetime warranty. I'm betting that there are others made in the USA as well, so why the bold statement from Millar's?

The harder the rollers the better, for better life and a better crack. You can't harden stainless.

Corrosion isn't a concern as long as the work space is reasonably dry and clean.

Commercial mills use hardened steel rollers.

Actually... it is possible to surface harden stainless steel via Heat Treatment techniques which is what Miller's seems to imply they've done to their rollers. I mean no disrespect to anyone here and I only mention this because I used to be a heat treater and I feel like the better informed a person is, the happier they'll be with their purchase.

Reference:
http://bodycote.com/en/services/heat-treatment/specialty-stainless-steel-processes.aspx#tab2

Weezy said:

You can't harden stainless.

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Pick up a typical kitchen knife and you will know this is false.

Martensitic stainless is hardeneable and would include some of the 400 series stainless steels as claimed on the millar site. My money would be on 410 stainless. It is odd that they don't just say the exact alloy, 400 series is a pretty broad term.

IwanaBrich said:

The JSP Malt is another very fine mill. I like the fact that the mill comes with an option to gear both rollers virtually insuring that they don't lock up. I also learned "The Barley Crusher is also made in the USA and it too comes with a lifetime warranty. I'm betting that there are others made in the USA as well, so why the bold statement from Millar's?

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JSP mills are indeed nice, but just too costly for my likes. Marketing 101 is focus on items that others take for granted. Maybe most are American.
Really just want a quality mill that would last a homebrew a lifetime. No warranty went unnoticed by me on the Millars Mill.

I was not aware of that. Very cool. Can it get very hard?

KartRacer54 said:

JSP mills are indeed nice, but just too costly for my likes. Marketing 101 is focus on items that others take for granted. Maybe most are American.
Really just want a quality mill that would last a homebrew a lifetime. No warranty went unnoticed by me on the Millars Mill.

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Costs about the same $110-$155.

Well the adjustable mill is $155 plus 30 for hopper adaptor plus 35 hardening. So somewhat more expensive unless I'm missing something.

Weezy said:

I was not aware of that. Very cool. Can it get very hard?

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Weezy,
Kolsterising does increase the hardness and it's a type of case hardening, meaning the hardness goes into the surface of the SS. THAT allows it to be very resistant to wearing out from friction.
The process produces surface hardness levels in the order of 1000 to 1200 HV where HV = Hardness Value? Back in the day when I was a heat treater, we used Rockwell scale as the measurement of hardness so I'm not sure how modern HV scales relate.

So did you end up getting a mill? I'm in the same boat, want the best, but don't wanna pay the price.

Haven't bought it yet, but I have decided upon the Monster MM 3 with 1/2" shaft without stainless rollers or hopper. I'll make the hopper myself, I'll post a pic when its done.

Everyone's input was very Helpful.

Thanks!!

I just came across a really NICE mill. The "MillMaster Grain Mill" grain mill sold buy Mashmaster (http://www.mashmaster.com). Its fully adjustable (both sides), has 1-1/2" stainless rollers, is gear driven (both rollers), with a heavy duty frame. It's only a 2 roller mill but I like the fact that they are gear driven. It's the only fully adjustable gear driven mill that I've ever seen, the JSP mill gear driven mill is only adjustable on one side (it too is pricey).

The downside is that the MillMaster ss a tad pricey ($193.63). Well I figured...what the heck..buy it! So I added to my cart, put in my country and Zip Code and hit enter. Thats when the "fhit hit shan"....OMG the shipping cost was US $68.40, making the grand total of US $262.03!! I realized that its coming from Australia, hence the high shipping cost.

Does anyone know of a US distributor? Maybe buying it from then will reduce the shipping cost.

IwanaBrich said:

I just came across a really NICE mill. The "MillMaster Grain Mill" grain mill sold buy Mashmaster (http://www.mashmaster.com). Its fully adjustable (both sides), has 1-1/2" stainless rollers, is gear driven (both rollers), with a heavy duty frame. It's only a 2 roller mill but I like the fact that they are gear driven. It's the only fully adjustable gear driven mill that I've ever seen, the JSP mill gear driven mill is only adjustable on one side (it too is pricey).

The downside is that the MillMaster ss a tad pricey ($193.63). Well I figured...what the heck..buy it! So I added to my cart, put in my country and Zip Code and hit enter. Thats when the "fhit hit shan"....OMG the shipping cost was US $68.40, making the grand total of US $262.03!! I realized that its coming from Australia, hence the high shipping cost.

Does anyone know of a US distributor? Maybe buying it from then will reduce the shipping cost.

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Did you ever purchase a mill? I'd like to know about this MillMaster; my Barley Crusher is on its last legs and the MillMaster looks pretty great.

Just to throw a different perspective. I own a MM3 with stainless rolls. I also live on a tiny island where everything rusts, and I brew in my garage.

Even without that factor I like that I can spray my mill off with a hose and get it really clean. This is especially handy because I brew both regular and gluten-free beers.

Yes....I finally purchased a grain mill!! Unfortunately I didn't get the mashmaster mill due to the crazy high shipping cost. I ended up getting a MM3 mill (not stainless) from Monster Mill. I've used it a quite a bit and it works really well, I'm very pleased with it. I just make sure that I clean it real well after each use, so I don't think rust will be an issue. That said, it does sound nice living on small island somewhere (I live on Long Island)!

I made a hopper for it using some 3/4" pine that I had laying around. I made the hopper large enough to handle the grain for a typical 6 gallon batch. I posted some pics of it on this thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=541602.

I used 3/4" wood mainly because it is easier to work with and I had it laying around. I joined the sections with wood glue and biscuits, but there are a few brads it. After I took these photos I added a couple coats of polyurethane to it, so it would be easier to clean. The grain dust seemed to stick to the raw wood like glue. Now I just lightly brush it off.

I'm very pleased with my MM3 and folks over at Monster Mill are great to deal with.