Wife wants to buy me a grain mill for Christmas. which one ??

[Toecutter]

been looking at the Grain Gobbler from MoreBeer for $149. probably lots of opinions on here. I'm brewing 5-10 gallon batches. would like something I can put a drill on or another type of motor. thanks for all advice

 

[Bluesssman]

I have a Chrankenstein and really like the unit. It is easy to clean and adjust and has been a great work horse for me.

Gary

 

[BrianP]

I have a barley crusher and like it very much.

 

[ipazilla]

Check out austin hombrew's site they have free shipping over 100$.
Barley crusher with 7lb hopper 125$.

 

[user 40839]

Absolutely LOVE me my Monster Mill MM-3

 

[iaefebs]

Man, depending on how many people respond you will know less after asking that question then you knew before. Everyone seems to like whatever one they have. But I have a Crankenstein and I like it.

 

[Catt22]

Man, depending on how many people respond you will know less after asking that question then you knew before. Everyone seems to like whatever one they have. But I have a Crankenstein and I like it.

+10,000 No offense, but asking this question is like asking someone if their child is attractive. Unfortunately, the same applies to a lot of other home brew equipment as well. On the plus side, you will likely love and fawn over whichever one you happen to buy just like everyone else.

 

[user 40839]

True.

If you're just doing 5 gallon batches with the occasional 10 gallon one, the barley crusher is EXTREMELY hard to beat. I'd get the one with the bigger hopper tho, it's really annoying to have to stop and refill.

Only drawback is that you can't motorize it "traditionally" because of the bushings. (Needs to be direct driven)

 

[artguy]

Everyone seems to like whatever one they have.

Totally. It's a great present whatever you get. I was gifted the Monster Mill MM2 last Christmas and love it. Got it with the optional handcrank and was surprised that I can mill 10-12 lbs. of grain in under 3 minutes without being motorized. It's a beast!

 

[Pappers_]

The Malt Mill hasn't been mentioned yet - I've been well-satisfied with mine. http://schmidling.com/maltmill.htm

 

[dmfa200]

I vote Monster Mill.
Don't forget a set of feeler gauges to set your gap.

 

[SankePankey]

Absolutely LOVE me my Monster Mill MM-3

+1. Love it. Doing around 35 lb of grain for my 15 gal batches. Motorized.

 

[Toecutter]

thanks for all the opinions. Looking at the Monster Mill MM-3, but they also have a MM-2 2.0, and MM-3 2.0, which has larger diameter rollers. Would this be overkill or worth the extra $$$ ??

 

[bumstigedy]

I have the barley crusher with the small hopper. It works fine. I hand crank it to burn some extra calories so I can drink more beer. I would definitely recommend getting feeler gauges since you may want to play around with the gap settings.

 

[passedpawn]

The Malt Mill hasn't been mentioned yet - I've been well-satisfied with mine. http://schmidling.com/maltmill.htm

I have one of these. I bought it used from my LHBS, so I can attest to the durability of this unit. It ground a LOT of grain over the years at that shop.

 

[Red Clay]

Check out this Brew Strong podcast on grain milling. John and Jamil talk quite a bit about mills and have a pretty good (although scattered...which is typical for the show) discussion on the pluses and minuses of each one. They talk about multi-roller mills versus multiple pass vs single pass, which was interesting as well.

 

[SankePankey]

thanks for all the opinions. Looking at the Monster Mill MM-3, but they also have a MM-2 2.0, and MM-3 2.0, which has larger diameter rollers. Would this be overkill or worth the extra $$$ ??

I kinda think the extra size rollers are overkill. Especially if you plan on motorizing. I certainly get enough torque to handle, well probably rocks would be crushed. I believe the increased size rollers provide the same crushing power with less torque... (anyone want to confirm this??)

I didn't think that stainless rollers were overkill though and got those... but I have a stainless problem and currently attend SA meetings for it.

FYI- Fred of Monster uses a 2 roller for himself. Not like he doesn't have the option...

 

[nebben]

Corona mill! It can be modded with buckets and hoppers and such, plus with some work you can hook a drill up to motorize it.

With the leftover money, request a few kegs or a CO2 tank, or more fermenters...etc.

 

[artguy]

thanks for all the opinions. Looking at the Monster Mill MM-3, but they also have a MM-2 2.0, and MM-3 2.0, which has larger diameter rollers. Would this be overkill or worth the extra $$$ ??

Well, I only got the base MM2 version, so I can't compare it to the others, but I went through the same questions about them when I was trying to decide. The larger diameter rollers or 3-roller versions might be even better, but the base version is really excellent. It is definitely NOT one of those situations where I am wishing I had spent the extra money on an upgrade.

 

[Red Clay]

I kinda think the extra size rollers are overkill. Especially if you plan on motorizing. I certainly get enough torque to handle, well probably rocks would be crushed. I believe the increased size rollers provide the same crushing power with less torque... (anyone want to confirm this??)

I didn't think that stainless rollers were overkill though and got those... but I have a stainless problem and currently attend SA meetings for it.

FYI- Fred of Monster uses a 2 roller for himself. Not like he doesn't have the option...

IIRC, in the BS grain milling podcast, they were giving a little bit of credence to the larger diameter mills producing less shear on the husks. But they couldn't say it made better beer.

I agree on the stainless roller point...I wish I had them on my mill. It would be much easier to clean if I could use water from time to time. Everytime I try to clean them with water I get a bit of rust, no matter how much I dry them. Perhaps I should try a hair dryer next time...

 

[Catt22]

I kinda think the extra size rollers are overkill. Especially if you plan on motorizing. I certainly get enough torque to handle, well probably rocks would be crushed. I believe the increased size rollers provide the same crushing power with less torque... (anyone want to confirm this??)

I didn't think that stainless rollers were overkill though and got those... but I have a stainless problem and currently attend SA meetings for it.

FYI- Fred of Monster uses a 2 roller for himself. Not like he doesn't have the option...

Larger rollers require more torque, not less. This is easy to visualize if you imagine taking it to the extreme with huge rollers and a tiny crank handle. The advantage of larger diameter rollers is that the pinch angle between the rollers is wider which makes it easier for the rollers to "grab" the grain. Again, this becomes obvious if you visualize the gap between two huge rollers. There would also be more surface area of the roller face in contact with the grain at any given moment as it passed between the rollers. The effect is more of a crushing action with less tearing of the husks.

I like the way the MM's are constructed with the integral roller pins (axles/shafts). IMO the two roller mills can produce grist every bit as good as the three roller mills. I have one of the now extinct single roller mills, and it too can match the grist of any.

FWIW, a metallurgist once told me that stainless steel is not as hard as carbon steel. The question came up when I was once considering buying an all stainless steel handgun. I do not know if this is significant or not regarding the mill rollers.

 

[Toecutter]

Thanks for all the feedback. just placed an order for a standard MM-3 with stainless rollers, and hopper/base. Look forward to using it over my Holiday break,and best of all I can buy my grain in bulk by the sack saving $$, since now I can mill it myself

 

[Captain_Bigelow]

I like my Barley Crusher, but I am unsure how it will last over time. I imagine I will get a few good years out of it, but don't think it is something which will last me a lifetime.

+1 for getting a drill or a motor. I still hand-crank and it is a real workout.

 

[Randar]

absolutely love me my monster mill mm-3

+1

 

[Strongbad52]

My wife got me a Crankandstein 3 roller mill for my anniversary a couple years back. I prefer that one because of the preset detents for the roller adjustment. the adjusters click through 9 positions when turned change the gap .005" each and ranges from .025" to .065". The Monster Mill is adjustable but I don't think they have the presets on the roller adjustment.

 

[Atl300zx]

i love my crankandstein

 

[Brewing Clamper]

Pretty much we all love the one we have. You can't really go wrong with any of the suggestions here. I personally have a Barley Crusher and it rocks. I do feel that it could last me a long time. Congrats on the awesome wife!

 

[GaryJohn]

Get a used cast iron corona miller of Ebay. Use the money you saved to get more presentz.

 

[user 40839]

Thanks for all the feedback. just placed an order for a standard MM-3 with stainless rollers, and hopper/base. Look forward to using it over my Holiday break,and best of all I can buy my grain in bulk by the sack saving $$, since now I can mill it myself

Ah crappo, I got the hopper and base I could've sold you that I'm not using!!

Good choice tho, that's the exact one I got. And I tellya, it's nice getting 50# sacks of 2-row for $33 each and storing it, as opposed to having to pay $1.75 per pound at my LHBS.

 

[TheMan]

3 roller monster mill is fantastic. My buddy bought a grain gobbler from Morebeer, every time I brew with him he requests me to bring my mill...the gobbler just isn't that great.

I have noticed with my 3 roller that I do not have to use rice hulls anymore, even in a wheat. Whether that it due to my 3 roller or not, it's worth mentioning. It completely seperates the husk for me.