Motorising a Grain mill

[bigrichlock]

I though i would start a thread for motorising the Grain mill i have just bough - http://www.monsterbrewinghardware.com/mm-320.html

After a bit of quick research mainly here

http://www.monsterbrewinghardware.com/faq.html

and here

http://byo.com/stories/item/1166-motori ... l-projects

I have come to the conclusion i need a 1hp motor with a 10:1 reduction on the pulley's (working on about 2000rpm) all mounted on some nice stainless shiny thing!

So first thing is to source the motor and the pulley's.

Cheers

Rich

[Fil]

old washing machine motor? 240v and if can spin 6kg+ at 800rpm+ should be capable of driving a smaller wheel a lot faster

[Belter]

Watching this thread as I plan on doing the same in future

[bigrichlock]

Just got the tracking number for the mill so should be here next week.

1hp motors are going on ebay for about 80 quid so thats next on the shopping list, although there is a local shop in Plymouth that has a good range of motors so will give them a try.

I was thinking originally making the stand out of stainless but i am now thinking Oak, decisions decisions?

rich

[barneey]

Oak

[Hogarth]

Definitely oak.

On my mill I use a power drill with a 90 degree geared chuck. It works perfectly well, but a dedicated motor looks way cooler.

[JonA]

I motorised my mill by using the guts from an old breadmaker aquired from the local tip. Breadmakers contain amongst other bits: a 240v motor with a small pulley attached to it, another larger pulley from the mixer blade shaft (that is bolted to the mill's drive shaft) and a toothed drive belt.

[Deller12]

How about a 12v windscreen wiper motor ?

[golden brewer]

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I have used an electric bike motor I bought from China via Ebay and it is powered by a 12V supply.
The mill is a two roller Monster Mill.
It spins at about 200 RPM and has plenty of grunt. I fill the hopper with about 5Kg of grain and it starts easily.
Have been using this set up for around 3 years with no problems. It is a very safe set up with no pulleys or belts to get tangled in.

[barneey]

Nice set up GB, anychance you have any of the part numbers for the motor etc. Did you get the universal joint thingy of ebay as well?

Cheers

[john luc]

How do you find spinning at 200 rpm. Have a crankenstein myself and would like to put a motor on it.

[JonA]

Maybe the best speed depends on the mill design. I used to run mine by connecting a drill chuck direct to the roller shaft and had to run it quite fast or the drill would stall - it couldn't produce enough torque at low revs. I'd get a lot of grains that weren't cracked properly and others that were completely pulverised

Mine now runs at about 90rpm and it takes a bit longer of course but I get a more consistent crush and better mash efficiency.

[golden brewer]

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/24V-250Watt- ... 232da24496
This is the motor I have. At 24V it runs at about 400RPM, I power it with 12V and it runs at around 200RPM which is perfect for my MonsterMill. Monstermill recommend a speed of 150-200 RPM but anything from 100-300RPM is fine
I bought the coupling locally buy they are available online, search for Lovejoy or Spider coupling.
This is the power supply http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/12V-30A-360W ... 8184049377
If I was doing this set up again, I would do it exactly the same way. I keep the set up in a plastic box with a lid to keep out any vermin such as mice that are attracted to the grain.

[barneey]

Cheers GB seems a nice straight forward and cheap way of doing things + parts can be bought new.

Just to update the UK fleabay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-30A-360W- ... 0800245550?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/24V-250Watt-E ... 1089464470?

[bigrichlock]

Well the Mill and Hopper have arrived

Its a bit of a lump and looks to be well built



and here it is with the hopper attached now just for a stand and the motor!



I looks like i will be moving house next week so this project will be on the back burner for the next moth or so unfortunatly

Will keep you posted on any progress.

Cheers

Rich