Discount Tommy Corona Mill

[KAMMEE]

I know there are a lot of threads on HBT about corona mills, and I'm not trying to start a discussion about whether they work or not. I just purchased a mill from Discount Tommy, and it arrived smelling of gasoline... not just a little, but as if the entire box was soaked in it along with the mill. Has anyone else had this problem with Discount Tommy and these mills?

 

[Hermit]

If it was imported it may have come covered in a wax like substance and he may have used gasoline to get it off. Just my guess.

 

[wilserbrewer]

What you smell i believe is an anti-rust agent applied by the manufacturer. Just wash your mill w/ hot water and dish soap, rinse well w/ hot water and dry well. You just need something to cut the "oil" that was applied at the factory.

If it smells really bad, maybe you got a fresh one...no worries

 

[OMJ]

I have one I washed it really well with hot water and scrubbed it with a bottle brush. Its been working great ever since

 

[KAMMEE]

I did a soak in dish soap and water, then rinsed. It would make sense that it could be an anti rusting agent as its made of cast iron. I let it air dry over night, and it still has a faint smell. Perhaps just letting it air out today will help. Thanks for the advice everyone, I'll give it another shot tonight if it doesn't dissipate by the time I get home from work.

 

[KAMMEE]

I received a reply from the sales staff at Discount Tommy: "The smell you are smelling is from the black rubber pad." After I returned home from work, I verified that the parts I soaked and let air out today do not smell any longer, but the black rubber pad definitely does. I will give it a few more days and let it air out some more.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Unless you plan on putting the rubber pad through the mill and mashing it...I think you are OK...

Welcome to the world of cheap ugly junk milling.

 

[KAMMEE]

Actually I may not even need the pad... I was planning on putting this together on a board over a bucket and I don't think I need the pad, I will probably pitch it if it all works.

 

[OMJ]

I dont even use that black rubber pad because of the way it smells.

 

[patrck17]

What is the function of the pad? And why would it smell that way, just the rubber?

 

[OMJ]

It helps keep the mill secured gives it some extra grip I guess. Not sure why it smells so bad maybe really cheap rubber?

 

[KAMMEE]

I've done some reading on this, and my conclusion is that the rubber might be a low quality natural rubber that contains a higher level of organic components. Mainly, some fatty acids that break down and cause the off smell as a by product of decomposition. I'm just going to pitch the pad because it smells and I'm sure that it will harden up quickly and become useless.

 

[KAMMEE]

Just an update to this thread. The smell completely dissipated after separating the mill from the pad. I mounted the mill and got pretty good efficiency (70%) from the crush. I'm pretty happy with the mill even though it is some ugly junk.

 

[Jbt]

Just finished my first batch with my new Tommy Mill and 70% also!

 

[Scut_Monkey]

Yeah, it is the rubber pad. I threw the pad out as it smelled like turds. Just an FYI..... I tested the paint for lead on my discount tommy mill and it was most definitely NEGATIVE. I washed mine with soap and water and it no longer smells like gasoline and works awesome for $23 shipped.

 

[BuzzCraft]

Yeah, it is the rubber pad. I threw the pad out as it smelled like turds. Just an FYI..... I tested the paint for lead on my discount tommy mill and it was most definitely NEGATIVE. I washed mine with soap and water and it no longer smells like gasoline and works awesome for $23 shipped.

thanks for posting that....i've been using one of these mills for well over a year and have wondered about the paint.

funny though, i got my corona mill from discount tommy (prolly 18 months ago) and there was no such rubber pad. sounds like i should be thankful!

 

[Scut_Monkey]

thanks for posting that....i've been using one of these mills for well over a year and have wondered about the paint.

funny though, i got my corona mill from discount tommy (prolly 18 months ago) and there was no such rubber pad. sounds like i should be thankful!

Yeah the rubber pad is bad and made everything smell. The crappy part is I just bought a pair of shoes online a couple months ago and they smell exactly the same because of the black rubber soles. Probably the same chinese manufactured crap.

 

[Sigafoos]

$23 shipped? It says shipping for me will be $15. If it was <$25 total then I'd pull the trigger on one so I didn't have to bug my friend every time I wanted to brew.

 

[Scut_Monkey]

$23 shipped? It says shipping for me will be $15. If it was <$25 total then I'd pull the trigger on one so I didn't have to bug my friend every time I wanted to brew.

I forget how much the mill itself was but yes it was $23 shipped. At the time he was having occasional sales on them where they would be marked down and the shipping I think must have been less. I don't know if he has the sales anymore. He might have got popular and increased the prices as I know a lot of people around here have recently bought from him.

 

[Sigafoos]

Ah, ok. Makes sense. Thanks... I'll just have to keep an eye on him.