Malt Mill Recommendations

[Gustatorian]

Looking for one that has the option to connect to a hand drill, has easy to understand adjustments with the ability to check the accuracy of those adjustments and it good with conditioned malt.

TIA!

 

[kh54s10]

I have a Corona style mill. I did a few tests and adjustments on the first day. Locked it down and have left it alone for 6 years. I have never checked the accuracy but it has been consistent. I only tried conditioning once.

But, after watching for years, I would rank my wants in this order. A Monster Mill (not sure which one), Schmidling malt mill, Millars Mill. A Monster, probably MM2 2.0 will be my choice when I upgrade.

 

[Drumminguy81]

Do yourself a favor and get a monster. I speak from experience. I bought a less expensive mill-barley crusher and it lasted me about 4 batches and I was having to adjust and clean it. I also noticed rust forming on the rollers right away. I now have a monster mill mm2pro and haven't done a thing but run it. And I run 50-60 lb of barley through it at a time 2 times a month. The thing is amazing. Been running strong with no adjustment or cleaning for 2 years. Which reminds me I should probably at least clean it..

 

[brick_haus]

I have an older MM2 with hardened rollers. After six plus years of use I give it my highest rating.

 

[Gustatorian]

Do yourself a favor and get a monster. I speak from experience. I bought a less expensive mill-barley crusher and it lasted me about 4 batches and I was having to adjust and clean it. I also noticed rust forming on the rollers right away. I now have a monster mill mm2pro and haven't done a thing but run it. And I run 50-60 lb of barley through it at a time 2 times a month. The thing is amazing. Been running strong with no adjustment or cleaning for 2 years. Which reminds me I should probably at least clean it..

Is there a place to purchase it with all part included (the hopper, rollers, etc.)? I'm only seeing the rollers.

 

[mongoose33]

For those of you w/ Monster Mills--is it worth getting the Stainless Steel roller upgrade? What kind of rollers do you have and have they held up?

 

[brick_haus]

If you plan to mill wet (conditioned) grain or plan to store it outside, stainless would probably be a good upgrade. I have hardened 2" rollers which will last me forever as a home brewer.

 

[sasky7777]

I bought mine complete off the Monster Mill website. There should be a kit under "Monster Mills" on the top header

 

[Gustatorian]

I bought mine complete off the Monster Mill website. There should be a kit under "Monster Mills" on the top header

I'm seeing the MM-3 kit with stainless steel upgrades. Is there a difference between the MM2.0 and 3? Drive shaft size should be be 3/8" correct?

 

[Mirilis]

My Mill Setup video.. it took me 30 seconds to chew through 11 lbs of grain. Perfect crush for me.. its an old Schmidling malt mill with a water bottle hopper.

 

[augiedoggy]

Do yourself a favor and get a monster. I speak from experience. I bought a less expensive mill-barley crusher and it lasted me about 4 batches and I was having to adjust and clean it. I also noticed rust forming on the rollers right away. I now have a monster mill mm2pro and haven't done a thing but run it. And I run 50-60 lb of barley through it at a time 2 times a month. The thing is amazing. Been running strong with no adjustment or cleaning for 2 years. Which reminds me I should probably at least clean it..

To be fair the barley crusher is about the worst mill to buy because it does not use hardened steel rollers and some dont even use bearings.. its an example of the power of marketing vs product quality.

I have a $99 chinese cerial killer mill and it also has never needed cleaning in the 3+ years ive been using it... the no name ebay specials are the same mill as the ck and kegco and should work fine without the problems of the barley crusher..
Not that im saying the monster mill may not be any better... just commenting on what I do have first hand experience with.

I started with a corona mill and that sucked in comparision to the grain mills ive used since... the crush was inconsistent and it was very messy to use but everyones relative experience and MMV so...

 

[augiedoggy]

For those of you w/ Monster Mills--is it worth getting the Stainless Steel roller upgrade? What kind of rollers do you have and have they held up?

because its softer, a stainless roller will likely wear out just like the barley crushers non hardened rollers... then again if your always grinding damp grain it may not.

From what I see, conditioning grain is not needed with the proper mashing setup and is only a homebrewing thing .. Ive never needed to do it myself so have a hard time understanding its benefits. but thats an off topic discussion of its own. if it really does make a difference in the beer then brewers like inbev would certainly be doing it and I dont recall ever reading about it being done in the commercial brewing industry but I could be wrong.

 

[IslandLizard]

I'm seeing the MM-3 kit with stainless steel upgrades. Is there a difference between the MM2.0 and 3? Drive shaft size should be be 3/8" correct?

You may want the 1/2" shaft, not the 3/8".

Many of us use a $50 (or less with sale/coupons) Harbor Freight Heavy Duty Low Speed drill. It has a 1/2" chuck.

I bought my Monster Mill (regular MM2, 1.5" rollers) with the 3/8" shaft hoping the older spare drill I have would run it. Not so. It didn't have the power. That's when I bought that HF drill and never looked back. Except I wish I had bought the MM with the 1/2" shaft...

The only thing I don't like about the MM is their lousy MDF baseboard, but you get it included with the hopper. I built a new 3/4 plywood baseboard for it, using the original MDF board as a riser.

 

[Gustatorian]

You may want the 1/2" shaft, not the 3/8".

Many of us use a $50 (or less with sale/coupons) Harbor Freight Heavy Duty Low Speed drill. It has a 1/2" chuck.

I bought my Monster Mill (regular MM2, 1.5" rollers) with the 3/8" shaft hoping the older spare drill I have would run it. Not so. It didn't have the power. That's when I bought that HF drill and never looked back. Except I wish I had bought the MM with the 1/2" shaft...

The only thing I don't like about the MM is their lousy MDF baseboard, but you get it included with the hopper. I built a new 3/4 plywood baseboard for it, using the original MDF board as a riser.

What's the difference between the 2.0 and 3.0? The only kit I'm seeing on the site is for 3.0.

 

[IslandLizard]

What's the difference between the 2.0 and 3.0? The only kit I'm seeing on the site is for 3.0.

They don't use the .0 indication anymore.

I see links to both kits, MM2 and MM3, both feature some options, include a hopper, baseboard, and free shipping.

The difference is the MM3 has 3 rollers, the MM2 has 2. The 3 roller systems allow for a different kind of crush, with less husk shredding.

The Pro series feature 2" rollers instead of 1.5" (non-Pro), and hardened rollers options as well as different shafts (3 flats or keyed).

The PD series are for Pulley Drive systems.

The SL has helical SLotted rollers.

Last but not least, you really should consider (semi-permanently) mounting that HF drill I mentioned before, for it is heavy, has a lot of torque, and could cause injuries and damage if the rollers lock up. I speak from experience.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

monster mm2 is a beast. I use a harbor freight low speed drill to run it, works awesome for 3 years now.

 

[Gustatorian]

They don't use the .0 indication anymore.

I see links to both kits, MM2 and MM3, both feature some options, include a hopper, baseboard, and free shipping.

The difference is the MM3 has 3 rollers, the MM2 has 2. The 3 roller systems allow for a different kind of crush, with less husk shredding.

The Pro series feature 2" rollers instead of 1.5" (non-Pro), and hardened rollers options as well as different shafts (3 flats or keyed).

The PD series are for Pulley Drive systems.

The SL has helical SLotted rollers.

Last but not least, you really should consider (semi-permanently) mounting that HF drill I mentioned before, for it is heavy, has a lot of torque, and could cause injuries and damage if the rollers lock up. I speak from experience.

Awesome! Is there a big difference between the SL and PD? Do they mention anywhere about how to clean the rollers if you're grain conditioning prior to milling?

 

[gl_az]

Ditto to the MM recommendation. I just bought an MM 2 Pro and absolutely plowed through 20+ pounds of conditioned grain in what seemed like just a minute or two. The resulting crush with factory gap was immensely better than what I am used to from pre-crushed kits from various popular online vendors. Can't wait to start closing the gap a bit and experimenting with better efficiency vs lauter difficulty.

 

[Dcpcooks]

If you want to hand drill conditioned grains you should stick with a good two roller mill.

Crankandstein and monster both have good options. A three roller mill could stick with a hand drill and conditioned grain.

Personally I'd get a 2" three roller mill and a good drill and bail on the conditioning. A good two stage mill will serve you well.

 

[Totally]

To be fair the barley crusher is about the worst mill to buy because it does not use hardened steel rollers and some dont even use bearings.. its an example of the power of marketing vs product quality.

Do you have some evidence that the Barley Crusher does not use as they state on their website "1018 Cold Rolled Steel for the rollers" or that this is not a hard enough of hardened steel for this application?

An honest question as all I have to go on is their word of course.

I agree they do not use bearings as the website even states they use "Oil Impregnated bronze bushings" (which from my reading really is a type of bearing, though here I suspect you are referring specifically to ball bearings)

http://www.barleycrusher.com/barleycrusher.php

Thank you for any information sources you can provide.

 

[wilserbrewer]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=297352

Whether it is wearing of the roller knurling, or too much friction in the roller bushings, or perhaps both, the barley crushers have a history of finicky performance.

 

[augiedoggy]

Do you have some evidence that the Barley Crusher does not use as they state on their website "1018 Cold Rolled Steel for the rollers" or that this is not a hard enough of hardened steel for this application?

An honest question as all I have to go on is their word of course.

I agree they do not use bearings as the website even states they use "Oil Impregnated bronze bushings" (which from my reading really is a type of bearing, though here I suspect you are referring specifically to ball bearings)

http://www.barleycrusher.com/barleycrusher.php

Thank you for any information sources you can provide.

Well to put it as simply as I can, the countless posts in the many threads on the internet from owners who have sent their mills in because the knurling has worn down is really all the evidence thats needed here to know something is amiss...

Try this, Just google "grain mill not turning" or "grain mill worn out" and youll see just about every comment is about the barley crusher.

I do know one of the only components in the barley crusher not imported from china is the actual rollers in question that wear out so often. If they were truly hardened cold rolled steel they wouldnt be wearing down so quickly and failing so often.

The cheaper chinese mills that use the same basic design (likely made by the manufacturer that makes the barley crusher body) uses actual ball bearings. I have a cereal killer which is one such mill that I purchased almost 4 years ago and that hasnt needed even so much as a cleaning. the knurling is still sharp and it has crushed many many sacks of grain at this point.

 

[augiedoggy]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=297352

Whether it is wearing of the roller knurling, or too much friction in the roller bushings, or perhaps both, the barley crushers have a history of finicky performance.

One of many negative threads about the barley crusher here... When doing a search for the barely crusher in this section you would find many more all with the same problem.

 

[IslandLizard]

Awesome! Is there a big difference between the SL and PD? Do they mention anywhere about how to clean the rollers if you're grain conditioning prior to milling?

The "PD" models use ball bearings on the driven roller to better handle drive systems using sheaves and a belt. Has nothing to do with "SL," as it indicates a different roller type using helical slots rather than the (more common) knurls.

IMO, you could clean the rollers by running the last 2-3 pounds of dry (unconditioned) grain through, or your flaked goods. I haven't conditioned my grain after the first trial, which didn't seem to make one iota of difference using a non-recirculating mash and batch sparge system. YMMV.

 

[Totally]

@augiedoggy & @wilserbrewer

Thank you both for the links and information, I will have a look at those threads.

I own and have been using the BC mill for about a year now, so far so good. I will watch out for the signs of failure though now.

Thanks again, always great information on HBT.

 

[Epos7]

Awesome! Is there a big difference between the SL and PD? Do they mention anywhere about how to clean the rollers if you're grain conditioning prior to milling?

I would skip the SL. I bought one and sent it back after trying to make it work for 8 brews. The finest gap it can be set to is 0.022" and due to the design of the slotted rollers, it produces a coarser crush at a given gap setting than a mill with knurled rollers. When I switched to the MM2-Pro with knurled rollers, my conversion efficiency improved dramatically.