Grain Mills - Your opinion?

[Black Island Brewer]

I don't see that anyone has mentioned it, but I bought the DIY maltmill from Austin Homebrew Supply last year. The main complaints I saw on the reviews was the rapidly changing price. One person got one that wasn't milled properly. I've only milled about 100 pounds so far, so it's too soon to tell for longevity, but set at .032 I have been very happy with the crush. I had to build the hopper, and it was a little tough to mount due to the bolt arrangement, but for $80 I am thrilled.

 

[noblesquirrel]

I've put probably 400lbs of grain through my Barley Crusher and it still runs like a champ. Is it the best mill out there? No. the best I've seen, and my next mill, is the slotted mill at Northern Brewer. Better and more consistent than the knurled rollers on almost every other mill.

 

[brewguyver]

I have the barley crusher with the 15# hopper. Pretty happy with it ... have left it covered outdoors for a while and had it at the lowest setting crushing grain so it's a little grumpy (read: slips every now and again). If you have a bunch of money to blow and want something you can automate long term, go with a monster mill or something similar. If you're doing 5 gallon batches and either hand crank or use a drill, you should be good for a few years with the BC.

Mine's mounted to a board on the top of a cabinet as well, so no issues with twisting the frame and such - can't weigh in there.

 

[Puddlethumper]

Since you asked...
I've owned the non-adjustable, fixed-roller model of the Schmidling MaltMill since 1997 which is stock except that I've added a bigger hopper (picture in imageshack album linked in sig). I'd guess it has crushed close to a ton of grain over its lifetime for me and never given me any reason to regret my purchase in the 17 years I've owned it.

I spent quite a while poking around the JSP website and I like this guy. I run a small business too and enjoy his no nonsense way of saying what he's about. At this point I've about decided to go with his unit. Since I have never owned a mill and so many manufacturers make a big deal about adjustability, I must assume that in your opinion it isn't really all that important?

 

[beernutz]

I spent quite a while poking around the JSP website and I like this guy. I run a small business too and enjoy his no nonsense way of saying what he's about. At this point I've about decided to go with his unit. Since I have never owned a mill and so many manufacturers make a big deal about adjustability, I must assume that in your opinion it isn't really all that important?

My efficiency is in the low 80's and while that is not solely the result of the mill's crush it is a factor. Perhaps there is some big advantage to adjustability but in over 20 years of brewing I haven't found it, but since I'm happy with the maltmill's crush I haven't looked too hard either.

I know that my longtime LHBS where I shopped for over a decade when I first started brewing used a maltmill in the the store. I know that the very nice LHBS where I shop now which has been in business since 2000 uses a maltmill in the store. To me, those are the best kinds of recommendations.

 

[Puddlethumper]

To me, those are the best kinds of recommendations.

I agree. Thanks for your comments.

 

[sniperd]

What ever mill you choose I strongly recommend a spider coupling set if you plan on powering it with a drill, it will greatly increase the longevity of your mill.

What is a spider coupling? I want my mill to last!

I have a JSP Maltmill, and have run several hundred pounds of grain through it, no problems. It's adjustable, but I find that the default setting works just fine. If I slightly tweak it I do get better efficiency but it gets close to a stuck mash. I really like having it gear driven, that just makes sense to me as opposed to depending on a grain to make the passive roller turn. Of the 4 homebrew shops near me one always gave us the best efficiency and they all have different mills, same grains.

We had a lot of debate, was it the grain age, storage, etc. and after enough research we felt that it must be the mill. The best store used the JSP Mill, and had been for many many years.

 

[KTRyan]

I want to second the notion that adjustability is over rated. My Monster Mill (which I love) came factory set at the same gap as the JSP fixed roller mill, and the first thing I did when I got it was tighten down the adjustment lock bolts to keep the factory setting. JSP fixed roller is a great mill, the only thing its lacking is a good hopper. 5 gallon water cooler jug makes a great hopper btw. Good luck with your mill.

For the above poster, the attached picture is of my mill and spider coupling. There really cheap on Mcmaster, feel free to message me if you have any questions about them.

 

[TonyG]

Here's another vote for the JSP maltmill, I have one with the hardened, adjustable rollers and the belt drive kit and am quite happy with it. I picked it up used off of craigslist with mess of gear, and if I ever need to replace it (highly doubtful) it will be with another maltmill.

 

[Puddlethumper]

What is a spider coupling? I want my mill to last!

Thanks for your comment on the MaltMill. Just pulled the trigger and ordered one from him direct. Will be looking forward to getting it next week and putting it to work on a batch of Porter.

We use spider couplings a lot in my business. it's a link between the drive motor and the driven unit with a rubber-like bushing to absorb vibration, torque and mis-alignment. Sometimes referred to as a jaw coupling, here's a link to an image that helps illustrate:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaw_coupling

Cheers!

 

[nhindian]

Those with an MM2, what drill do you use to power it?

 

[KTRyan]

I grabbed a cheap low speed 1/2" drill from harbor freight.

 

[stpug]

I use the Harbor Freight 1/2" Heavy Duty Low Speed drill as well. With a 25% off coupon and the store nearby, it was an easy option.

 

[y2jrock60]

3 Roller Monster Mill, love it, will never look back.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Home Brew mobile app

 

[Airplanedoc]

What is a spider coupling?

Spider coupling is also known as a lovejoy coupling. I just pain $15.70 for all 3 parts (black and orange thing in the middle of the pic) from amazon, prime eligible, so free shipping, and no tax.

 

[FredTheNuke]

MM3-2.0 with hardened rollers. It will be for sale at my Estate Sale in 50 years...

 

[y2jrock60]

My Monster Mill has a 1/2" drive shaft, the stock one is 3/8". My 18v Dewalt drill is able to crush 30+ lbs of grain on one battery. Make sure your drill has a 1/2" shank, I've taken my mill to friends houses only to find out their drills only support up to 3/8".

Sent from my VS980 4G using Home Brew mobile app

 

[Cottonmouth]

I don't see that anyone has mentioned it, but I bought the DIY maltmill from Austin Homebrew Supply last year. The main complaints I saw on the reviews was the rapidly changing price. One person got one that wasn't milled properly. I've only milled about 100 pounds so far, so it's too soon to tell for longevity, but set at .032 I have been very happy with the crush. I had to build the hopper, and it was a little tough to mount due to the bolt arrangement, but for $80 I am thrilled.

$80 Wow, it's $129.99 now

 

[gatsby174]

I love my monster mill mm2. I use a milwaukee 1/2" hammer/drill, but will probably get the hf low speed drill. I'm in the process of making it automatic, but even with the drill, crushing takes 5 minutes from start to finish. Consistent and reliable.

 

[Black Island Brewer]

$80 Wow, it's $129.99 now

Yeah, I saw that. Austin Homebrew updated their site recently and it seems they jacked up the prices on a lot of things. I bought my mill in August, and it was $79 plus shipping. Lucky I guess...

 

[Gameface]

Just want to double check...No one with a monster mill is disappointed? No one? Not a single person who has purchased a monster mill wishes they went with a different mill? Nobody?

Got it.

There is a safe bet out there and it's called monster mill. They make good mills.

 

[old_tx_kbb]

I have an MM3.....save your $$ and don't opt for the hand crank. I use an el cheapo 1/2 inch drill - no problems. I changed out some of the thumb screw with set screws and shorter thumb screws for easier access if I want to make any adjustments.

It was one of my best purchases. Combined with me getting in on group grain buys, it's paid for itself twice over.

 

[wiggybrewer]

I've had my Barley Crusher for two and a half years now. Brew almost every week. I use the 1/2 in. HF low speed drill and have had no problems with the mill.
I think when it craps out, I'll go for the Monster Mill 2.

 

[augiedoggy]

Cereal killer user here and it works great for me but I have found its easy to misadjust the cams that move the secondary roller in and out (and up and down) this causes the roller edges to bind against the side frames and not turn easy or constantly stick.... Its easy enough to remedy though with a feeler gauge once you understand whats going on.. just adjust each side individually while spinning the roller by hand.

time will tell if the bearings in the cereal killer will really have long term advantages over the bushings many other mills are using.

 

[bad coffee]

MonsterMill, Don't remember which model, but I did opt for 1/2" shaft and Stainless rollers.

I condition my grain, so I didn't want to worry about rust. Stainless just made sense.

Living in a small NYC apartment, I needed a mill I could setup and store easily. I built a frame out of 1/2" ply that sits on top of a 5 gallon bucket. When it's stored, the hopper bucket, the catch bucket, the mill and the 1/2" cheapo drill all fit nicely together.

If you're concerned about oil/shavings/etc. on your rollers when you get it, put a few slices of stale bread through the mill. The bread will soak up oil and pick up any loose shavings.

 

[augiedoggy]

MonsterMill, Don't remember which model, but I did opt for 1/2" shaft and Stainless rollers.

I condition my grain, so I didn't want to worry about rust. Stainless just made sense.

Living in a small NYC apartment, I needed a mill I could setup and store easily. I built a frame out of 1/2" ply that sits on top of a 5 gallon bucket. When it's stored, the hopper bucket, the catch bucket, the mill and the 1/2" cheapo drill all fit nicely together.

If you're concerned about oil/shavings/etc. on your rollers when you get it, put a few slices of stale bread through the mill. The bread will soak up oil and pick up any loose shavings.

I assumed (falsely) that most grain mills including the monster mill came with a plywood base that was pinned or notched to fit on a 5 gallon pail... I know my CK did.

 

[bad coffee]

I bought mine in 2008/9. It showed up with rubber bands holding the mill together. I'm betting they've upped the 'box opening' experience since then!

 

[plankbr]

+1000 to my MM2! Love Love Love it. Works like a champ. I ditched the base and used an old table that I modified and the standard hopper works as intended.

 

[2BeerSpeer]

Great thread. I know what I'm getting....now it I can find a thread this informative about hooking up a motor and getting the rpm's I need. I saw an adapter somewhere that worked great but have to find it again...

 

[Wreck99]

I love my MM2 2". I opted to get it fully upgraded and was well worth the money. 2" rollers, hardened ss, and 1/2" drive. Bought the hopper and extension too. Been using a drill to power it for now, but planning to motorize it in the near future.