Motorized MaltMuncher Pro

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No experience with that mill, but I've had no issues with my Monster Mill. 2" diameter, 6" long hardened steel rollers FTW. IMO, 1-1/4" rollers are 'bush league'.

Monster sells complete bundles as well (motor, mill, base, hopper). NOT cheap, but made in the USA (motor was Chinesium when I got it for mine) ad you can actually talk with the company owner on the phone (or emails). I wouldn't expect anyone from the MB staff to know everything about that mill.
 
While I definitely see your point (and so does my wife!), I think the whole "budget" aspect of this hobby has long been disregarded. :)

I like this Maltzilla...if it ever worked! Apparently Mike from Morebeer just advised me that the ACTUAL gap sizing on the maltzilla should reflect the dials indicated on the side of the machine. I've only been asking about that since January 2021...so nice to finally have that information. I think they're going to provide a refund but shipping is insane right now so I'll probably loose $40 in shipping costs but it's worth it to be done with that mill since it's caused me nothing but problems.
 
I just bought one. I have done two brews with it. The motor is a bit on the weak side. You have to be careful not to set the gap too tight.

Once the gap is set to the grain you are using it runs very well. Roughly 5 lbs per minute.
 
With my MM2 and motor from Monster I've had zero issues with either a .032" or .035" gap. It goes through the malt more than fast enough for me. The motor is at the correct RPM (gear reduction head on it that connects to the MM) for use with the mill.

Since I have an older, 2 roller, mill I had to make a spacer/lift for the mill to align with the motor shaft. Not a problem since I have a milling machine and just bought some aluminum stock to do that. Made the cart that holds both items (plus the extended hopper) and it rolls to where I need it easily. Locking caster wheels makes it even easier.

Again, the hardware from Monster Brewing Hardware is not cheap, but it's well made in the US (in Georgia). I'd rather spend my money with a small company that will actually talk with you about things (not making you wait months on end) and appreciates the business.

I just looked at the " Maltzilla"... Wow... People actually purchase that?? wow
 
If this had been available when I built mine I think I would have just bought it and put it on a Harbor Freight cart like I did my setup on. Cost was about $1,000 to DIY with explosion proof everything. 10 to 1 speed reducer love joy couplers and cart etc.
 

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The SS Brewtech 5.83 pounds a minute vs 6 pounds per minute morebeer mill I would say it is not worth the up charge. I would say if you are considering $799.99 for SS Brewtech at 5.8 pounds a minute to pay $979.00 + $30 for a hopper extension would be worth the extra $210 to get 12 pounds per minute out of the monster mill setup.
 
I bought the MoreBeer mill mostly because it was Plug and Play. I do not have the tools or skills to fabricate a stand or modify a cart. I also bought it for the size. The stand it comes on is not at all tall. The top of the hopper is 31" from the floor. At age 67 this is important to me so I do not have to lift grain up too high.

The bucket that comes with is is extremely handy. It slides under the stand in the front and the stand stops it from sliding out the back or side, so it is positioned perfectly to receive the grain with very little gap.

The are many people involved in homebrewing of different ages and skills. The MoreBeer Motorized Malt Muncher Pro is what works for me at my budget and physical abilities.
 
Thanks everyone. I am currently back to the Cereal Killer (Cereal Killer Grain Mill for Crushing Grains and Barley) with hand drill because I officially gave up on the Maltzilla. The price was great but I just couldn't get it to mill like the Cereal Killer was capable of. The Maltzilla would get stuck partway between processing 10 pounds of grain and the adjustment dials were WAY different than the actual mill gap spacing.

Anyway, I'm happy with the Cereal Killer and I'd like a more permanent solution so maybe it's time to just purchase a solid motor and stand. What cart did you purchase from Harbor Freight Superiorsat?
 
https://www.harborfreight.com/24-in-x-36-in-two-shelf-steel-service-cart-62587.htmlI've got a couple 3/4" pieces of medium density fiber (MDF) board screwed together that are attached to the steel top to add stability. The steel top is a little flimsy due to being thin. If you end up with a direct drive type system instead of pulley you will want a solid top to mount to. There is basically not much margin for error with Lovejoy couplers. I would have preferred to have it machined out like Golddiggie. The wood was a challenge and getting everything at the right height was tough. I used different thickness pieces of plywood, osb, aluminum flashing etc. To get everything to line up right. If you had a direct drive motor instead of a 1750rpm motor needing a 10 to 1 speed reducer lining things up would have been much easier.
 

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That 1/2" MDF board picture was wrong. This is the 3/4" that I used. Pretty sure homedepot has smaller cut sheets that I got because I didn't need 8' worth. I had a link to the wrong size cart initially but I changed it to the right size 24"x36".
 

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Stay tuned...I think I found the problem. Apparently this is a 3 phase motor and Morebeer used a cheap a$$ block to try and delay the 2nd power feed. This would work great on something that's NOT constant draw but obviously doesn't work very well on a mill.

I'm going to try and find a better solution other than this static phase converter...which is garbage.
 
Ok, so $50 invested in a Variable Frequency Drive Inverter. Lets see if this system provides the 30% increase in power I'm expecting over the static phase inverter system. Also, I'll be able to reverse the system which is just another added benefit. :)

Shame I have to spend another $50 to fix the motor because morebeer decided to go with a cheaper 3 phase low power motor instead of a single phase higher amp motor...but at $400 I can understand the need for trade offs.
 
WOW!!!!

I found and fixed the problem with this Maltmuncher Pro.

Before:


After:


This "After" video was the very first run after initially programming the VFD. During the video, I was only running at 28hz. The motor is rated for 50hz but I can go as high as needed. Note: Going over 60hz probably isn't a good idea. Increasing the hz (Frequency) obviously speeds things up.

I'm going to keep tinkering with the system and I'll make another video the next time I brew, but this VFD has solved the problem with the Maltmucher Pro! It's so powerful that the crappy little grey PVC tube inside the mill hopper is no longer required. I think I'm going to add the power switch back into the system because having an emergency kill option is probably a good safety feature.
 
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https://www.ebay.com/itm/124800199932This is what I purchased. It takes a little bit of programming but I can walk you through it if you like.
I also added the original kill switch for safety. I was playing with the frequency (Determines speed) and I think 60hz is the perfect setting for speed and decreased vibration. Wiring is straight forward as well.

Power is no longer a concern with this modification. The original designed used a static box that literally fired one time to get the motor started and then turned off. So the motor operated without the third power leg which caused 0 torque during that phase of the motor...which is why it always gets stuck. So going from 0% power during that portion of the rotation to 100% power is incredibly noticable! Plus, you have the added benefit of reverse as well as a speed controller. I'm going to keep making some changes to it but I'm liking it so much that I might consider building the system and making a turn key solution for those that want all the options without all the configuration and individual purchases. Until then, purchase the ebay item listed above and let me know what you think. I'll walk you through the setup and send you some pictures of what the wiring should look like.
 
Fidelity101 said:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/124800199932This is what I purchased. It takes a little bit of programming but I can walk you through it if you like.
I also added the original kill switch for safety. I was playing with the frequency (Determines speed) and I think 60hz is the perfect setting for speed and decreased vibration. Wiring is straight forward as well.

Power is no longer a concern with this modification. The original designed used a static box that literally fired one time to get the motor started and then turned off. So the motor operated without the third power leg which caused 0 torque during that phase of the motor...which is why it always gets stuck. So going from 0% power during that portion of the rotation to 100% power is incredibly noticable! Plus, you have the added benefit of reverse as well as a speed controller. I'm going to keep making some changes to it but I'm liking it so much that I might consider building the system and making a turn key solution for those that want all the options without all the configuration and individual purchases. Until then, purchase the ebay item listed above and let me know what you think. I'll walk you through the setup and send you some pictures of what the wiring should look like.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I am very interested. So basically, you have the items shown in the link (the VFD, the switch and, of course, the motor).

I'm unsure of how to wire the switch shown (1, 3, 5) to the main power (110V).
 
Once you take the cover off of the existing white box, you will see how it's wired. Basically you have a white black and ground wire from external power. Then they take the black wire (hot) and send it into the little black box (SFD) and a yellow line comes out which goes into the red input to the motor. The motor has white, red, black and green. The VFD has a black, white and ground line input for the actual power. The ground wire for the motor shares the ground pin and then there is a spot for the black wire red wire and white wire. The manual makes this fairly straight forward. I think you're getting confused based on the picture the seller provides...ignore that. :)

Yes, I used the existing power kill switch and wired it into FWD and GND on the top pin outs. Doing this allowed me to hit a button if I needed it to stop quickly. In terms of programming, you will need to go through the menu items and set the frequency on startup, the minimum and maximum frequency ranges, the switch used to start and stop the motor (can be the button on the VFD or the kill switch). There is also a time to hit full speed and a time to stop so you don't have a sudden burst of power when you first turn the motor on...which I thought was cool. I set mine to 1 second to start and 1 second to stop.

I'll have to do a better job of taking pictures and showing how it's setup but it's very straight forward...even I could do it. :)

I also sent the improvement video to Morebeer customer service so hopefully they will consider a design improvement. I think this setup could be one of the best out there for the money if morebeer hadn't made the mistake of going with a SFD block...or simply installed a single phase motor. :)
 
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It’s the one I posted in the link above. I’m not sure what the exact model is.
This was in the description:
The variable frequency drive inverter can work with 110V single phase and 110V 3 phase input. Just connect L1/L2 to any two of VFD input R/S/T, suitable for high-speed rotation motors, such as spindle motor, engraving machine CNC.
 
Is it the same as the stock board? The VFD is only about 10% larger than the original box provided by morebeer. You’ll just remove the box and put the VFD in its place. You don’t need the on/off switch as the VFD has a start/stop button but I wired in the switch just for safety.
 
It’s definitely taller but not much wider or longer. Hopefully the wooden board is the same size as the new plastic board but either way I’m sure it will be fine. I’ll take better pictures in the next few days and post them along with the programming instructions
 
Here are some pictures of the wiring…pretty simple. The programming is the important part as it won’t work when you first turn it on without setting the frequency, low/high frequency, start switch option, etc.
 

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Fidelity101 said:
Is the discount code worth the $20 cost increase? I’m not a fan of eBay, but the price seems like a good jump over the one I listed.
Click to expand...
I received $5.00 off. I'd rather deal with a supplier other than eBay. Been burned in the past. Not happening again.

Also, the one on eBay is 2nd hand with no returns.

Link as provided in post Motorized MaltMuncher Pro
 
THANK YOU!!! to @Fidelity101.
I read your comments about the Motorized MaltMuncher Pro having a 3 phase motor. I never thought to take my switch box apart to see that for myself.

I followed your suggestion and ordered the Vevor VFD from a different Ebay vendor. It arrived last Friday. I was able to wire it up quite easily.
I went ahead and completed the set up and set all the parameters as suggested.

The mill now works fabulously!

I mounted the VFD to the base with 2) M4 30 stainless screws with washers and nuts. They hold the VFD firmly in place.

The passive roller on my mill was not centered out of the box. Wit a little fiddling I was able to center it. The mill now has no problem grinding at a 0.028" gap setting. I ran 15 lbs of Barke Pilsner malt through it this morning with no trouble.

Thanks again for all the suggestions. I do like this system very, very much more now.



IMG_Mill VFD.jpg
IMG_2389-1.jpg


IMG_2390-1.jpg
 
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I am glad I could help. You should consider adding the on off switch for safety. Also, remove that pvc pipe because it’s not longer required to slow down the intake. :)
 

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