The Cereal Killer is a damned BEAST!

[fendersrule]

I had it set at .027" using a filler gauge, and just milled 12lbs of grain with it. Took about 50 seconds with a drill....MUCH faster than my corona mill....and it goes right into a food safe bucket with no dust or mess.

And oh my gosh...look at this grain....perfect for BIAB!

It feels so consistent on the hand....not complete powder but pretty darn close!

I'm measuring my efficiency this coming Saturday. It appears that I may be around 80% if not even greater with what you see below!

 

[Carolina_Matt]

Looks good! I keep my cereal killer at 0.025 based on the markings on the mill, but I don't have a gauge to measure the exact size. I thought it was supposed to be close to 300 rpm, so I set my drill on the slower setting and don't pull the trigger all the way down. It takes several minutes to mill it all, and there's powder on the underside of the base.

If it does that good of a job at higher speeds, I may have to give it a shot next time. It would be a lot faster and easier to set my drill to the higher setting and pull the trigger all the way.

 

[fendersrule]

Yeah. I kept the drill on half speed, and it’s a slow drill. Maybe it was more about 1-2 minutes but it just flew by!

 

[augiedoggy]

I get 91% pretty consistently at home with my CK set with a credit card to .030 (3 vessel rims) over 5 years now and its still going strong.

 

[fendersrule]

Nice! Good thing my last catch was something that could use more ABV if needed, because I definitely need to readjust my efficiency!

I’ll know my efficiency exactly this evening after I boil my wort.

Btw, I would recommend using something to verify your cereal killers setting. Sometimes .025 is not really that...it could be smaller or even had already started to reverse the cams and is actually bigger. There’s some small dead zones in the adjustment as well.

I’m really meticulous in adjusting, and it takes me a good honest 10 minutes on setting up the cereal killer exact to the hundred thousandth. But seeing how this performs, it seems you don’t have to be so diligent!

 

[augiedoggy]

the dial marks on both the CK and kegco 3 roller I have are not accurate. I use feeler gauges and at home I used a credit card to adjust the gap..

 

[kh54s10]

I have used my Cereal Killer 3 times now. The first time I didn't have the thing tightened down tight enough and the roller shifted on one end and it would not feed. I set it by eye, tested, reset til the crush looked good. Efficiency has not changed from my Corona mill. I need to get some feeler gauges and experiment some more. I may even try conditioning my malt.

My Corona was difficult for my drill to start, when it did, it would spin really fast, I would let up on the trigger and it would slow, then too much and it would stop. Repeat again and again. The Cereal Killer starts easily and it is easy to control the drill speed. It makes the process of milling a lot easier.

 

[fendersrule]

My efficiency with the corona mill was 58%. I tested my efficiency with the cereal killer and I landed right at 70%...that's with untreated tap-water and a single infusion mash.

But that's a bit of a blanket statement...I never grinded as fine with the corona mill because I wasn't BIABing then and I was using a less-effective means of mashing than what i'm doing now. I believe you can get good efficiency with the corona mill...but as you said, it's just easier to use the cereal killer. Less mess, less time, less refilling the hopper, less awkwardness of transport, no more having to transfer grains from a tray to the bucket, etc.

 

[kh54s10]

My efficiency with the corona mill was 58%. I tested my efficiency with the cereal killer and I landed right at 70%...that's with untreated tap-water and a single infusion mash.

But that's a bit of a blanket statement...I never grinded as fine with the corona mill because I wasn't BIABing then and I was using a less-effective means of mashing than what i'm doing now. I believe you can get good efficiency with the corona mill...but as you said, it's just easier to use the cereal killer. Less mess, less time, less refilling the hopper, less awkwardness of transport, no more having to transfer grains from a tray to the bucket, etc.

70% with the Corona and so far 70% with the Cereal Killer.. I don't BIAB so that doesn't come into factor. There is no difference in the mess. I actually had a bigger hopper on my Corona. Tray to bucket????

But... So far I prefer the CK!!

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

I love my CK. I used to use a cordless drill, but I finally bit the bullet and bought a motor for it. It's so nice to fill the hopper, start it up and do other things while it's milling.

 

[fendersrule]

70% with the Corona and so far 70% with the Cereal Killer.. I don't BIAB so that doesn't come into factor. There is no difference in the mess. I actually had a bigger hopper on my Corona. Tray to bucket????

But... So far I prefer the CK!!

There's definitely a difference in the mess unless you have built a specific container for the corona mill like found in the ugly mod thread. The cereal killer produces zero mess that gets outside of the bucket. All the mess/dust falls down, unlike the corona mill that spits out dust around it, and churns up grains that flick up on the sides quite often.

Tray to bucket meaning, unless you built a platform for the corona mill, you likely are grinding into a large tray (that can sit under the mill), and then have to stop to transfer into a larger container when the tray gets full.

Yes, you can build stuff to help fight against the Corona Mill's weaknesses, but it's going to take up 2-3x more space by doing so than a cereal killer would take up, and by the time you spent $40 and a few hours "building" stuff, you are already half the cost of a cereal killer. Not to mention the cereal killer's hopper is 2-3x size the size of a standard corona grill's hopper. Not to mention adjusting the CK is easy, whilst getting the corona mill "dialed in" takes washers and some patience.

The cereal killer kills the Corona mill, hands down, in absolutely every regard! For all-grain brewing, the Corona Mill's weaknesses become more apparent than with extract (obviously) or mini mashing.

 

[wilserbrewer]

The cereal killer kills the Corona mill, hands down, in absolutely every regard! For all-grain brewing, the Corona Mill's weaknesses become more apparent than with extract (obviously) or mini mashing.

I respectfully disagree, I use both a Corona mill and a kegco 3 roller / MM clone, they both work very well when set up correctly....

After a nuclear holocaust, likely see Kieth Richards grinding some grain w/ a Corona mill....cast iron is pretty tough stuff!!!

 

[kh54s10]

There's definitely a difference in the mess unless you have built a specific container for the corona mill like found in the ugly mod thread. The cereal killer produces zero mess that gets outside of the bucket. All the mess/dust falls down, unlike the corona mill that spits out dust around it, and churns up grains that flick up on the sides quite often.

Tray to bucket meaning, unless you built a platform for the corona mill, you likely are grinding into a large tray (that can sit under the mill), and then have to stop to transfer into a larger container when the tray gets full.

Yes, you can build stuff to help fight against the Corona Mill's weaknesses, but it's going to take up 2-3x more space by doing so than a cereal killer would take up, and by the time you spent $40 and a few hours "building" stuff, you are already half the cost of a cereal killer. Not to mention the cereal killer's hopper is 2-3x size the size of a standard corona grill's hopper. Not to mention adjusting the CK is easy, whilst getting the corona mill "dialed in" takes washers and some patience.

The cereal killer kills the Corona mill, hands down, in absolutely every regard! For all-grain brewing, the Corona Mill's weaknesses become more apparent than with extract (obviously) or mini mashing.

I had no mess with the Corona since I built a guard over the grinding plates. A couple hours to fit it right and $0 specifically for it since I used stuff I already had. I built a cabinet for the Corona that fed into a bucket. No moving of trays because no tray. My CK is now on the same cabinet that held the Corona. And the only thing I paid for was 4 hinges, some screws and casters for the bottom, the rest was scrounged. My Corona had a plastic cookie jar taped on as a hopper extension, it was BIGGER than the CK hopper. Dialing in the Corona with washers took me maybe 20 minutes about 7 years ago. And one 10 minute adjustment last year..

I didn't find the Corona mill's weakness to be a problem that needed to be solved for about 7 years. Even still it was not a necessary change to go to the CK. I just wanted to.....

 

[FatDragon]

There's definitely a difference in the mess unless you have built a specific container for the corona mill like found in the ugly mod thread. The cereal killer produces zero mess that gets outside of the bucket. All the mess/dust falls down, unlike the corona mill that spits out dust around it, and churns up grains that flick up on the sides quite often.

Tray to bucket meaning, unless you built a platform for the corona mill, you likely are grinding into a large tray (that can sit under the mill), and then have to stop to transfer into a larger container when the tray gets full.

Yes, you can build stuff to help fight against the Corona Mill's weaknesses, but it's going to take up 2-3x more space by doing so than a cereal killer would take up, and by the time you spent $40 and a few hours "building" stuff, you are already half the cost of a cereal killer. Not to mention the cereal killer's hopper is 2-3x size the size of a standard corona grill's hopper. Not to mention adjusting the CK is easy, whilst getting the corona mill "dialed in" takes washers and some patience.

The cereal killer kills the Corona mill, hands down, in absolutely every regard! For all-grain brewing, the Corona Mill's weaknesses become more apparent than with extract (obviously) or mini mashing.

A grain bag around the output and a clamp or bungee cord to keep it closed. Tada! I guess I just saved $40? I don't worry much about adjusting my corona mill and I get over 80% mash efficiency every time, even with barleywine-sized grain bills. The one exception was one brew day when it loosened up a bit and let the wheat in a 50/50 grain bill go almost unscathed, but that's more on my bad practice of not checking the gap more regularly than a fault of the Corona itself.

Mind you, I would love a mill like the cereal killer, but the corona's alright too.

 

[fendersrule]

Gotta build this....gotta do this....gotta check this.....gotta make this...gotta clamp that....gotta...

You guys are completely missing my point, especially being one that doesn't even have a Barley Mill.

This thread is about the Cereal Killer. Please take the Corona corn mill discussions outside.

The Cereal Killer is BETTER. Just because your Corona mill is "good enough" does not mean it's better than an actual barley mill. No body is saying that the Corona Grill isn't "alright". I gave mine away after using the CK Mill once. Hopefully he learns how to makes beer with it instead of sticking to Cider.

For the Cereal Killer owners, since we are in a Cereal Killer thread, did you bother to take off the blue wrap?

 

[FatDragon]

Gotta build this....gotta do this....gotta check this.....gotta make this...gotta clamp that....gotta...

You guys are completely missing my point, especially being one that doesn't even have a Barley Mill.

This thread is about the Cereal Killer. Please take the Corona corn mill discussions outside.

The Cereal Killer is BETTER. Just because your Corona mill is "good enough" does not mean it's better than an actual barley mill. No body is saying that the Corona Grill isn't "alright".

For the Cereal Killer owners, since we are in a Cereal Killer thread, did you bother to take off the blue wrap?

You brought the Corona into the discussion, you know. I'd love a proper roller mill. In the meantime, my Corona mill is good enough.

 

[Sailingeric]

I have had mine for a couple years now. Great mill for the price.

 

[Novacor]

For the Cereal Killer owners, since we are in a Cereal Killer thread, did you bother to take off the blue wrap?

Yes, but only because I started to before I realized what a PITA it was going to be to get it all off.

 

[fendersrule]

Yea. I plan to leave it on. So far, so good. If it wants to peel off, I'll slowly do it!

Looks kinda cool blue.

 

[kh54s10]

I have used my Cereal Killer 3 times now. The first time I didn't have the thing tightened down tight enough and the roller shifted on one end and it would not feed. I set it by eye, tested, reset til the crush looked good. Efficiency has not changed from my Corona mill. I need to get some feeler gauges and experiment some more. I may even try conditioning my malt.

My Corona was difficult for my drill to start, when it did, it would spin really fast, I would let up on the trigger and it would slow, then too much and it would stop. Repeat again and again. The Cereal Killer starts easily and it is easy to control the drill speed. It makes the process of milling a lot easier.

My efficiency with the corona mill was 58%. I tested my efficiency with the cereal killer and I landed right at 70%...that's with untreated tap-water and a single infusion mash.

But that's a bit of a blanket statement...I never grinded as fine with the corona mill because I wasn't BIABing then and I was using a less-effective means of mashing than what i'm doing now. I believe you can get good efficiency with the corona mill...but as you said, it's just easier to use the cereal killer. Less mess, less time, less refilling the hopper, less awkwardness of transport, no more having to transfer grains from a tray to the bucket, etc.

I guess I brought up the Corona mill first. Though the next post was quick to follow up.....

Gotta build this....gotta do this....gotta check this.....gotta make this...gotta clamp that....gotta...

You guys are completely missing my point, especially being one that doesn't even have a Barley Mill.

This thread is about the Cereal Killer. Please take the Corona corn mill discussions outside.

The Cereal Killer is BETTER. Just because your Corona mill is "good enough" does not mean it's better than an actual barley mill. No body is saying that the Corona Grill isn't "alright". I gave mine away after using the CK Mill once. Hopefully he learns how to makes beer with it instead of sticking to Cider.

For the Cereal Killer owners, since we are in a Cereal Killer thread, did you bother to take off the blue wrap?

And so far I would NOT say that the CK makes my beer any better. It may after I dial it in. It does run better as I stated earlier.

I did take off the blue wrap.....

 

[geoffm33]

The corona mill was actually mentioned in the OP.

 

[toddo97]

Gotta build this....gotta do this....gotta check this.....gotta make this...gotta clamp that....gotta...

You guys are completely missing my point, especially being one that doesn't even have a Barley Mill.

This thread is about the Cereal Killer. Please take the Corona corn mill discussions outside.

The Cereal Killer is BETTER. Just because your Corona mill is "good enough" does not mean it's better than an actual barley mill. No body is saying that the Corona Grill isn't "alright". I gave mine away after using the CK Mill once. Hopefully he learns how to makes beer with it instead of sticking to Cider.

For the Cereal Killer owners, since we are in a Cereal Killer thread, did you bother to take off the blue wrap?

Mine is still blue I've also done 6-8 batches and still haven't gotten around to using a drill. Go hand crank!!

 

[kh54s10]

The corona mill was actually mentioned in the OP.

Missed that one. So all the comparisons to the Corona, and the discussion is valid.

 

[tegman]

blue wrap is still on!!!

 

[geoffm33]

I've used both corona and the cereal killer. I love the cereal killer. Never really had issues with the corona mill though. Blue wrap FTW.

 

[fendersrule]

I may move to the hand crank, not sure yet.

I've been using my corded craftsman drill. It gets pretty warm and toasty with the low speed high torque required to spin the mill at a .027" setting. Infact, I'm starting to smell stuff that I shouldn't be smelling from the drill.

I could use my 4.0A Makita Wireless drill, but I'd like to prolong that drill because it's super nice.

I do have a 4.0A makita "impact" wireless drill as well that I may try out next.

Something high torque and low speed would be ideal!

 

[geoffm33]

I use this cheap HF drill:

https://www.harborfreight.com/12-in-heavy-duty-variable-speed-reversible-drill-69452.html

 

[kh54s10]

I use the hammer drill version of that one (with the hammer function off). It works very well. I am trying speed controllers. The first one I got doesn't work well. I want to lock the trigger down and control the speed with a controller, hands off.

 

[bleme]

I ran mine for a long time with a cheap cordless drill. If the grain bill was over ~12 pounds, I'd have to pop in the spare battery. The only time I had real problems was the time I conditioned my grain. The drill wouldn't turn that for anything! I had to pull out the hand crank for that one, and of course it was a barleywine grain bill... For the last year, I've used a cordless Ryobi and it doesn't even flinch.

 

[Still Brewn]

I do have a 4.0A makita "impact" wireless drill as well that I may try out next.

Something high torque and low speed would be ideal!

I would reconsider using an impact on anything like this.
I don't have any of these grain mills and have never looked at one close up so I can't say for sure what the effect would be on one but I do know that using an impact on something not meant to withstand the 900+ inch pounds of force slamming into it will not last long. The only way it would not start damaging the gears in your grain mill is if you could get it to turn without activating the hammering action of the drill. I have a cordless that delivers 133 ft lbs almost double and it will shatter a drill bit, a Phillips bit and even twist screws in half and not even slow down. Way to powerful for what the impact drivers were originally designed for.... driving screws and small bolts etc.

If your drill has a gear adjustment lever switch it to the lower output rpm gear and run your drill motor at a higher rpm, this will get more air to the motor and most importantly reduce the load on the motor allowing you to run it longer before it heats up.

 

[Still Brewn]

Does anyone know the optimum rpm for these things to run at and maybe the torque needed to turn it when full?

 

[fendersrule]

Yea. My Mikita impact has only a 1/4" chuck anways, so it won't work.

I'll try my Makita 18V wiress drill for the next go around. It has more torque than my craftsman corded does, and it didn't have a single bit of issue crushing coarse with the corona mill. My Craftsman was struggling.

Looks like my 5.0Ah 18V Makita is 480in/lb. it's enough torque that you could seriously hurt your wrist if you're not careful. It has a 0-600 RPM mode that provides high torque (assuming 480 in/lb) that I'll probably use...and just keep the trigger around halfway. Keep in mind that's the no-load drill speed too at that setting. Turning a tight miller will likely cause it to fall some!

I know that the CK are 300 RPM max. Don't take my word for it, but all you're doing is applying torque on one cam, so I can't really see any thing damaging to CK if you're going faster. It's probably more about getting the right amount of grains moving at the right time for best efficiency.

 

[Still Brewn]

https://www.grainger.com/product/DAYTON-Continuous-Speed-Reducer-23L537

Someone needs to try something like this.
If someone has a inch lb torque wrench I could get closer to what is actually needed these little gear boxes can run into the hundreds of $`s so knowing what is actually needed to get the mill started would be helpful.