I made a comment about using bicycle powered equipment in a thread elsewhere on B&B. That generated a tickle of interest, and I wanted to offer some context. This sub seems like a better place for that...
This makes me sound like some kinda super-hippie. Honestly, I'm not all that but I can see how one might get that impression.
We have the GrainMaker No. 99 flour mill and the No. 275 flaker/crusher. We also have the bicycle adaptor frame they make, and a grain huller attachment for the flour mill.
I use the No. 99 flour mill for...well...that's obvious, isn't it? Wheat, rye, barley, buckwheat, oats; also it's fantastic for milling bean flours. According to the company a lot of people also use it for milling various nut butters. Milling oily things is OK, but the mill doesn't have sealed bearings so no wet-milling for masa. That's OK. For that I have the Victoria mill.
The No. 275 flaker/crusher makes polenta and cornmeal, crushes brewing grains, breaks down beans for some fermentations and makes the grain mix we use for baking, hot cereal and granola. One thing to point out is that the "Big Boys" flake wet grain which is how they get those nice flat flakes. I have little interest in soaking grain overnight before milling, milling, then having to spread it out for a couple weeks to dry before I can put it in storage. So ours is "crushed" more than "flaked." Different texture.
If one is going to crush grain for a mixture -- such as the rye, oats and khorasan that we use -- each grain type should be crushed separately, then mixed afterward.
Crushing corn for polenta and cornmeal requires a bit of commitment with the bike. I used to be able to fill the hopper, climb aboard and strain like heck to pull all those kernels through the rollers. Deteriorating arthritis in my spine means I can't do that without severe pain now. I spin up the rollers and Mrs. Hippie slowly pours a stream of kernels into the machine. Once the first pass is done I can tighten down the rollers and proceed normally. It's a bit rare to find a mill sturdy enough to crush or grind corn, particularly flint corn.
I'm told that I'm one of the people the GrainMaker folks have in mind when they say that "some really committed users actually mill corn with a bicycle kit." They really suggest hooking up a sturdy electric motor and a good reduction system. I can see that day coming but it's a ways out yet.
GrainMaker mills look like they would emerge from a nuclear explosion at high speed, bounce for a bit, and be ready for another batch of grain.
O.H.
This makes me sound like some kinda super-hippie. Honestly, I'm not all that but I can see how one might get that impression.
We have the GrainMaker No. 99 flour mill and the No. 275 flaker/crusher. We also have the bicycle adaptor frame they make, and a grain huller attachment for the flour mill.
I use the No. 99 flour mill for...well...that's obvious, isn't it? Wheat, rye, barley, buckwheat, oats; also it's fantastic for milling bean flours. According to the company a lot of people also use it for milling various nut butters. Milling oily things is OK, but the mill doesn't have sealed bearings so no wet-milling for masa. That's OK. For that I have the Victoria mill.
The No. 275 flaker/crusher makes polenta and cornmeal, crushes brewing grains, breaks down beans for some fermentations and makes the grain mix we use for baking, hot cereal and granola. One thing to point out is that the "Big Boys" flake wet grain which is how they get those nice flat flakes. I have little interest in soaking grain overnight before milling, milling, then having to spread it out for a couple weeks to dry before I can put it in storage. So ours is "crushed" more than "flaked." Different texture.
If one is going to crush grain for a mixture -- such as the rye, oats and khorasan that we use -- each grain type should be crushed separately, then mixed afterward.
Crushing corn for polenta and cornmeal requires a bit of commitment with the bike. I used to be able to fill the hopper, climb aboard and strain like heck to pull all those kernels through the rollers. Deteriorating arthritis in my spine means I can't do that without severe pain now. I spin up the rollers and Mrs. Hippie slowly pours a stream of kernels into the machine. Once the first pass is done I can tighten down the rollers and proceed normally. It's a bit rare to find a mill sturdy enough to crush or grind corn, particularly flint corn.
I'm told that I'm one of the people the GrainMaker folks have in mind when they say that "some really committed users actually mill corn with a bicycle kit." They really suggest hooking up a sturdy electric motor and a good reduction system. I can see that day coming but it's a ways out yet.
GrainMaker mills look like they would emerge from a nuclear explosion at high speed, bounce for a bit, and be ready for another batch of grain.
O.H.
