Cereal Killer Mill: Fallen apart after 3 batches.

[Gavin C]

As the thread title says.

3 batches and this piece of equipment is broken. Total and utter waste of money. Avoid at all costs.

 

[gwaugh]

What do you mean "fallen apart". I've used mine for at least a dozen batches so far with no problems,

 

[stpug]

There must be some kind of warranty on that. Can you get it replaced?

 

[markstache]

Had mine for 1.5 years and 40 batches. Highly recommended.

Hope AIH can make it right for you.

 

[Gavin C]

The hopper is only attached with 2 screws. These have loosened and the thin metal they anchor to cannot be secured any more. The walls of the hopper are also letting grain through the sides and around the rollers.

I don't believe this to be user error as I have not done anything special to the gap settings or the hopper. I do to passes anyway for my BIAB setup but this would be needed with my mill as lots of grain gets past the hopper unmilled

I have contacted AIH so we will see what the response is. I have bought lots of stuff from them and find them to be excellent. Love how they vacuum seal their grains for shipment

 

[augiedoggy]

I have had no issues with mine either in the 9 months I've used it.... There is certainly not enough room between the rollers and the sides on my walls to let grain through either... could you post pictures? it sounds like something is very off with yours...

The two small screws just hold the hopper in place but if you knock the hopper around or try to pick up the mill by the hopper thay arent going to stay secured... This is a $99 grain mill afterall..

 

[The_Bishop]

I have milled (literally) over two hundred pounds of grain through mine with no issues.

 

[brew_ny]

since july 2013 I have put 1400 pounds of grain thru mine

no problem great mill for 99 dollars

S_M

 

[Backslide]

I've put 250lbs threw mine so far with no issues at all. IMHO it's prob the best 100.00 I've spent for this wonderful hobby. I could be wrong but it sounds like you've man handled this mill and didn't see the signs. Only takes a second to make sure screws are tight.

 

[barnaclebob]

No issues with my cereal killer, only put about 50lbs thought it though. I'd like to see some pictures too. As long as rollers and base are in good shape anything to do with the hopper should be fairly easy to fix. Are the grains getting through at the bottom of the hopper or along the riveted sides? Are the 2 bolts that hold the hopper on stripped?

 

[fixitoscar]

I have had mine for over a year with zero problems. great budget mill imo.
Lets see some pictures.
I'm sure aih will take care of whatever is going on.

 

[2B_Brewing]

I've had mine for a year and love it. The only trouble it had was when I loaned it to a brew buddy and he was running the roller in the wrong direction and complained to me that it didn't work.

 

[LandoLincoln]

The hopper is only attached with 2 screws. These have loosened and the thin metal they anchor to cannot be secured any more. The walls of the hopper are also letting grain through the sides and around the rollers.

I don't believe this to be user error as I have not done anything special to the gap settings or the hopper. I do to passes anyway for my BIAB setup but this would be needed with my mill as lots of grain gets past the hopper unmilled

I have contacted AIH so we will see what the response is. I have bought lots of stuff from them and find them to be excellent. Love how they vacuum seal their grains for shipment

I don't know how many screws you need to attach a hopper. Did you drop the mill?

 

[danorocks17]

had mine almost a year. haven't had any issues either.

 

[edroberts]

A corner of my hopper had started to separate from the mill and was experiencing the same thing. I eventually realized I was holding onto the hopper while milling. I was able to pop it back into place. I just double-check that it's in place each time I mill now. Luckily it was only the one corner, so I really haven't had any further problems.

. . . I also make sure I hold onto the BASE when milling.

 

[edroberts]

I've had mine for a year and love it. The only trouble it had was when I loaned it to a brew buddy and he was running the roller in the wrong direction and complained to me that it didn't work.

That's a slick little setup with the drill. Does the drill stay in place permanently?

 

[Gavin C]

I don't know how many screws you need to attach a hopper. Did you drop the mill?

I've had mine for a year and love it. The only trouble it had was when I loaned it to a brew buddy and he was running the roller in the wrong direction and complained to me that it didn't work.

Like the setup there.

no I didn't drop it. 2 screws clearly was not enough as it is no longer attached

No I don't hold it/lift it by the flimsy hopper

I guess my expectations for the product were higher than they should have been.

My experience is clearly the outlier. Operator error would be top of the list in my provisional assessment were I not the OP

 

[barnaclebob]

The hopper is only attached with 2 screws. These have loosened and the thin metal they anchor to cannot be secured any more. The walls of the hopper are also letting grain through the sides and around the rollers.

This statement doesn't make sense to me. What does "cannot be secured anymore" mean?

Either the metal on the hopper under the nuts has been bent or broken off or the bolts/nuts are stripped and not providing clamping force. Is one of those the problem?

I am assuming you attempted to retighten the bolts.

I just am having trouble visualizing any possible issue that this hopper attachment could have that isn't fixable by someone who can use a drill or a wrench.

I'm certain that with a picture or two you would have a solution in minutes.

 

[day_trippr]

Maybe the holes tore through to the edge?

Cheers!

 

[dbj]

I like that you slagged AIH in a public forum before even waiting for a response from them.

 

[stpug]

I like that you slagged AIH in a public forum before even waiting for a response from them.

AIH, that you? (post 2)

 

[kh54s10]

I like that you slagged AIH in a public forum before even waiting for a response from them.

This and that the problem being experienced is a relatively minor one. I expect that it would take me less than an hour to come up with some sort of easy fix for this problem.

I can think of something without even seeing the mill. Put some sort of filler between the hopper and the body of the mill and use some washers to make the connection with the bolts tight.

 

[barnaclebob]

The OP hasn't said anything bad about AIH, just bad things about the cereal killer which I believe is exclusive to AIH.

There is likely an easy fix and until the OP proves otherwise it doesn't seem like his original post is worth much.

 

[The_Bishop]

And we're all still waiting for pics of the problem so we can attempt to help.

 

[Gavin C]

I like that you slagged AIH in a public forum before even waiting for a response from them.

Never mentioned AIH in my post. I have nothing but good experiences with them. I simply relayed my experience of buying a new product and having it fail. Advising others against purchasing.

When I purchase a new item I don't plan on having to do running repairs in such a short time. Reparable or not, to me that is a failure of the product

As I see it potential buyers of this grain mill could see this thread and read all the positive experiences others have had with the product and form their own opinion. Similarly the majority of reviews on this product are excellent. I do not share your opinion that I "slagged" any company.

I don't feel that giving my opinion on a product is out of line in this public forum. The banner articles "Brew and A" repeatedly and regularly ask the question; (paraphrasing) "what is one product you bought that you would not recommend". Clearly this is an acceptable topic for discussion here so I am not understanding your vitriol.

Clearly I have angered/offended some through my lack of skill/knowledge in grain-mill maintenance. That was not my intent. I have no objection to the post being removed by moderators if they feel the need.

 

[barnaclebob]

I don't feel that giving my opinion on a product is out of line in this public forum.

Your topic is quite acceptable, the problem is that you haven't provided an adequate description or really any evidence of your problem.

For example, what is preventing you from tightening the bolts that hold the hopper on?

This machine is so simple that its one step above saying a mash paddle is terrible because it doesn't stir well. I have said before that there are really only two things that could have gone wrong with the area you describe. Both are easily fixable.

 

[ram5ey]

I love my cereal killer for the price. Yes the hopper is flimsy, but that is something I noticed out of the box and have always paid attention to when moving it or grinding. For the money IMHO it is the best mill out there. I've put easily several hundred pounds through it. If it totally busted and I couldn't rig up my own hopper I would buy it again.

Also I would be shocked if AIH doesn't help you out. They have always been amazing to me.

 

[BadWolfBrewing]

Never mentioned AIH in my post. I have nothing but good experiences with them. I simply relayed my experience of buying a new product and having it fail. Advising others against purchasing.

When I purchase a new item I don't plan on having to do running repairs in such a short time. Reparable or not, to me that is a failure of the product

As I see it potential buyers of this grain mill could see this thread and read all the positive experiences others have had with the product and form their own opinion. Similarly the majority of reviews on this product are excellent. I do not share your opinion that I "slagged" any company.

I don't feel that giving my opinion on a product is out of line in this public forum. The banner articles "Brew and A" repeatedly and regularly ask the question; (paraphrasing) "what is one product you bought that you would not recommend". Clearly this is an acceptable topic for discussion here so I am not understanding your vitriol.

Clearly I have angered/offended some through my lack of skill/knowledge in grain-mill maintenance. That was not my intent. I have no objection to the post being removed by moderators if they feel the need.

I'm on your side. You didn't bash AIH (who is my LHBS), just mentioned a problem you've had with the product. There's nothing wrong with that.

It is important to keep in mind that a single point isn't a pattern. With limited info, it seems equally likely that it was a manufacturing error, shipping damage, rough usage, or just rotten luck.

The other users shouldn't try and keep people from posting about product problems. Maybe in this case it is a rare occurrence. It isn't always a rare occurrence though, sometimes it is a genuinely bad product. If there's a bad product out there, I'd prefer to know about it. We won't be able to get to the bottom of it unless people are allowed to post without backlash.

 

[kh54s10]

Maybe it was the way the post was presented. To say that the Cereal Killer is a total waste of money and to advise against it without first getting a response form AIH is not really helpful to someone considering the purchase.

I agree that I wouldn't want to have to do any "fix" of a new product but then again it is an entry level roller mill.

Again I say this is a pretty minor problem with the mill.....

Worded differently you would have gotten very different responses.

 

[augiedoggy]

The OP hasn't said anything bad about AIH, just bad things about the cereal killer which I believe is exclusive to AIH.

There is likely an easy fix and until the OP proves otherwise it doesn't seem like his original post is worth much.

No he made a post saying the mill fell apart and is broken is junk and a waste of money despite the hundreds of owners and mant threads about these here who do not share his issues... By that something is amiss here and some of us thought pictures of a better explaination would sort it out whether its the operators use (or misuse) or an assembly issue or actual defect that has caused his rant...

I will share that unless both cam knobs are abjusted just right my CK binds up against the side walls very easily and the markings on the knobs are totally inaccurate for even adjustment... Many people sent theirs back because they thought it was broken from this issue..