When the Captain Crush mills was 20% off I picked on up since I had a bunch of gift certificates to NB from Christmas, a friend that wanted to buy my Barley Crusher and an irrational desire for a 3 roller mill. I wasn’t able to find any feedback on the mill so I took a flier on it but I figured I should post something to help others that might be looking at it.
The mill is surprisingly heavy, the business end of it is quite meaty and appears to be built for the long haul. I was a bit concerned that the hopper and base might be a flimsy thin acrylic but it is pretty thick stuff and seems like it’ll be pretty robust. I wouldn’t want to throw it at the floor to see if it survives but I don’t anticipate having problems.
The adjustment is actually pretty slick, I do like being able to adjust it quickly with out having to break out the feeler gauges. I set it up using the recommended settings other than I went a ‘1/2 notch tighter’ on the final roller. Just loosening up the retention thumb screws a bit made it pretty easy to feel the detents in the adjustment knob such that I was confident both sides were set the same. With the easy of adjustment I may actually adjust my mill for different grains where as I left my Barley Crusher set once I got a setting that worked well.
I’ve only used the Captain Crush once and I was brewing 10 gallons of Helles and the grain was 97% Floor Malted Bohemian Pilsner so I’m not yet sure how the mill will work with a wide variety of grains. Typically I condition the grains by stirring in a 1/4 cup of water into the grains the night before I brew but this time I didn’t measure my grains until I was ready to brew thus they weren’t conditioned.
Crushing the grains was pretty simple as it was with my Barley Crusher though the flats on the drive shaft of the Captain Crush seemed to give more secure engagement to my drill chuck. It was nice having a bit bigger hopper but that isn’t really too big of deal. I was a bit surprised at how fast the throughput was though, I typically run the mill at the lowest speed my corded drill can easily maintain which seemed like it chewed through the grain 2x as fast as my Barley Crusher.
What really mattered to me was the quality of the crush and I was quite pleased. I can’t say I was unhappy with the crush I got from my Barley Crusher when I conditioned grains but I didn’t always have time to do that and if I didn’t change the gap I’d end up with a lot of shredded husks. Even when I did condition I did end up with a fair bit of flower in my crush though I’ve never had a problem running off from my cooler mash tun (I batch sparge). With the Captain Crush I had less flour, had a good amount of husks that were intact and few if any uncrushed grains.
I brewed as usual and ended up getting about 5% better efficiency than typical but I was doing a 2 step mash (via infusion) so I’m not sure if it was from that or some other variable.
Overall I’m quite pleased with the mill. I think it is fair choice compared to the 3 roller Monster Mill which comes in about the same price as the Captain crush if you get the stainless rollers, base and hopper.
I’m interested to see how it performs over time with a variety of grains and to see if conditioning the grain makes a difference. I may also play with going a bit tighter on the gap to see how that works.
I’m interested in the mill, however, I do have several concerns (some of which you touch on).
1.) Polycarbonate seems brittle and may get more brittle over time.
2.) The stainless steel screws through the Polycarbonate sides and bottom just don’t seem strong enough.
3.) The Polycarbonate itself doesn’t appear very “tough”.
4.) What about replacement parts/service?
5.) At such a high price point, why not all stainless?
6.) Is it cheaper to knurl or to cut a groove in a roll of stainless? I’m guessing both are automated CNC procedures.
7.) Do the grooves really improve the crush?
8.) I malt my own wheat, barley and corn. Can I crush the corn in this mill? Right now I have to use a Corona mill.
9.) Is a hand crank included? (Sounds funny but I like to crank my corn, maybe just used to the Corona!)
Barley Crusher, Monster Mill, Crankenstein, JSP Malt Mill, Corona Mill, Generic mill, etc… this falls in the price point of the higher end 3 roller mills.
1.) Polycarbonate seems brittle and may get more brittle over time.
It does not seem brittle at all in the present; can’t speak to future
2.) The stainless steel screws through the Polycarbonate sides and bottom just don’t seem strong enough.
All screws go into the mill; washer and split washer. It will hold.
3.) The Polycarbonate itself doesn’t appear very “tough”.
There seems to be some confusion whether the hopper and base are polycarbonate or acrylic. It’s rigid, and thick either way. I have no doubts about its ability to stand up to normal wear and tear.
4.) What about replacement parts/service?
We’ll see. I’m curious too.
5.) At such a high price point, why not all stainless?
I’m guessing it’s the unique look they wanted. In all metal, it would look like every other mill.
6.) Is it cheaper to knurl or to cut a groove in a roll of stainless? I’m guessing both are automated CNC procedures.
I wouldn’t know.
7.) Do the grooves really improve the crush?
Story goes, the grooves tear the husks less. Which improves everything; Bla, bla, marketing. In reality, I’m not sure one way or the other.
8.) I malt my own wheat, barley and corn. Can I crush the corn in this mill? Right now I have to use a Corona mill.
I Dunno.
9.) Is a hand crank included? (Sounds funny but I like to crank my corn, maybe just used to the Corona!)
It is not.
[quote=“TJHatchit”]
Barley Crusher, Monster Mill, Crankenstein, JSP Malt Mill, Corona Mill, Generic mill, etc… this falls in the price point of the higher end 3 roller mills.
Maybe when/if it goes on sale again…[/quote]
I sure wouldn’t pay full price. That 20% off sale got me. I haven’t actually used it yet though. I don’t have fermenter space for a new batch, and several pounds of grain that I purchased pre-crushed. It’s been like getting a bike for Christmas, and having to wait till spring to ride it.
My concern about the polycarbonate/acrylic is that I’ve heard it builds static. I’m worried about impossible to clean flour and husks clinging all over it. Maybe conditioning first will help?
While it did collect some dust it cleaned up pretty well with a paint brush, same one I used to clean my Barley Crusher. It is still a bit dusty but no husks stuck to anything.
I just broke down and purchased this through the 20% off 4th promotion. I have been eyeing it for quite a while. Is it more than I could have spent on a different mill? Yup. Is it slightly overkill for someone who’s never done all grain before? Possibly. I’ll try to post results when it arrives and I get to actually use it.
I’ve used mine several more times since I got it and I’m pleased with the purchase. Even when I don’t condition the grains I get a nice crush with plenty of husks left but the rest well crushed.
My hopper snapped at the base, where it attaches to the mill. I only used it three times, and promptly put it away clean each time. Not repairable.
So while the situation seems like a total Sh*tbag; the upside is that NB is totally standing behind the product. They offered me a full exchange. They received the broken mill late Thursday, and I am expecting the replacement to ship on Monday.
I’m thinking the best approach is to store it with the hopper detached from the base. Any ideas for a quick release?
The mill is pretty heavy and that is a long hopper, that is why I grab mine by the base. It is quite tall to store with the hopper, perhaps attaching it with thumb screws would make it easy to take on and off. I made room on a top shelf of where I keep my brewing stuff so that I can leave it together.
For those concerned about PC longevity, don’t be. It’s one of the most durable mainstream resins out there. Most of your headlamp lenses are made of the stuff.
Just don’t store it in direct sunlight as it’s not UV stable and will craze over time.
So I finally got to use my Captain Crush this weekend. I used it at the recommended settings that came with the mill. I may play with the gap a little bit as I use it and move closer to full all grain. I just did 3.5 lbs of grain with this for my partial mash. From pictures I have seen online, it looks like it was a very good crush. I did not condition my grains before running them through the mill. Assembly was simple and the adjustment seems like it is very simple and precise. Next time I use it, I’ll try to remember to take a pic of my crush.
I am having an issue with mine. I had a barley crusher and I never had an issue. The problem I am having is only the drive wheel spins and doesn’t do any crushing. Seems like the wheel is having an issue with turning. I have to take all the grain out to get it freed up. I have gotten it to work but it is hit or miss. I have made sure they are aligned and tried different space settings. If there is no grain all the wheels spin just fine. Thoughts tips?
So I finally remembered to take a picture of my crush using this Mill. This is what the results are with the top knob set at 3 and the bottom knob set at 4. My last two AG batches have run just barely under 75% efficiency.
Also, in response to the comment above, the last two times I have put grain in, when I first spin the drill, the non-driven roller does not immediately engage. I typically will reach up and manually rotate it a bit or adjust the depth in and out back to the third hash mark. Once it engages, I have no problem putting the full bill through it. It has just been finicky on the initial startup.
Another update, today I narrowed up my gap a bit as a test. I set the top rollers at 4 and the bottom roller at 5. I finished up with 80% efficiency. This is going to be my new permanent gap setting. I also had no problems getting the mill started with this gap as I did on my previous setting. Grain bill was as follows:
9.75 lbs Canada malting pale ale
4.75 lbs Simpsons golden promise
12 oz English crystal 60
8 oz Aromatic malt
2 oz English roasted barley
Was brewing a Surly Furious clone from Craft beer from the Homebrewer. High hopes for this one!
I must say, I’ve been happy with my second Captain Crush mill.
I’ve found that the non-drive rollers tend to stick when the thumbscrews are too tight. So I keep them tight just tight enough to hold in the little divots, and no tighter. That was the key for me. It’s also nice to be able to see through the body of the mill and confirm that the two non-driven rollers are actually spinning.
I like the look of my milled grain, but I’m no expert; it does look exactly like the “good crush” pictures I see. My efficiency ends up all over the map, but I still have too many other variables to rule out. So I blame the brewer for the inconsistency at this point, not the mill.
It also helps to have a drill with a nice variable speed. Mine is a cheap Home Depot Ryobi One.
I don’t like that there is a little “floor” on both sides of the hopper, so a little pile of grain gets stuck on both sides and needs to be manually pushed into the rollers.
I’d still like to go to a metal shop and get a slightly better hopper. But that’s just because I’m still a bit scarred from the first one I had snapping.
Had to laugh that when I looked back it turns out I actually started this thread. After 16 months of having the mill I still really like it and all the original stuff I said holds. It appears they changed the mechanism for how the adjustment knobs work now and it seems like the new design is a bit friendlier. Found the same thing as JMcK that if you crank down on the thumbscrews the roller wants to bind, doesn’t look like that’d be a possible issue with the newer design. Checked on retro fitting mine but it isn’t possible and the reality is the old design works fine once you know not to crank down the thumb screws super tight.
Didn’t hate my barley crusher, just that with this mill I can get milled grain looking the way I want resulting in good efficiency and easy lauter with no special effort.
I have the captain crush and I have used it for two batches. I really like the mill. My eff has gone down a little bit but I changed a few other things too so it might not be the mill. My biggest complain in the drill. I am using a low rpm drill and it likes to overheat/smoke for me. I would like to see if anyone has made up a motor setup for it yet?
I’ll try to post results when it arrives and I get to actually use it.