Want to make a Bicycle Grain Mill

Why not rig up a friction fit to the drive tire, so you don't actually sacrifice a bike? Then you can build what ever you want and just slide it in behind the back tire and peddle away.

 

I just googled friction fit and found an interesting article on using a weed eater engine. I have a weed eater and see them at yard sales quite often. My bike has already been sacrificed so has my old wagon. I will be looking through the metal recycle bin at work today. I should find some good stuff.

I have to set this here for later reference Weed Eater Friction Drive Bicycle

 

@Motomom34 Here are some ideas to consider...no need to reinvent the grain milling wheel....

 

Or just start with a grinder that has a pulley already on it like in the above pictures.
That right there solves most of your problems.

 

I do not have one with a pulley on it. I think a small bicycle or tricycle wheel may work

 

Be careful that your driving and driven pullies don't get your mill speed out of an efficient speed range.

 

Am a missing something, or have we not really discussed what/how you are going to do the actual work of grinding the grain? Because how you power said device is far secondary to building the device in the first place.

 

Posts 19 and 20.

 

That is very true. I want to do the work and I want to hopefully rig something using my old bike and recycle items (or non-PC= junk). Got any ideas? Since we just moved we do not have extra stuff laying around. The motorized thing is quite interesting and I know our weed wacker will be dismantled soon. But that is not this project.

 

I was considering at one point rigging a grinding wheel powered by the rear wheel and pedaling it either upside down or backwards, depending on the length of the frame.

 

And..... are you going to try it? We are in pretend land, pretending that SHTF and we need to mill some corn. Make it work. The bicycle way will produce more in less time. We believe the more we learn to pieces parts together something, using scraps. we are learning and will be prepared if ever needed. Most of these bicycle grain mills I see have a lot of store bought parts. That is what we are trying to avoid. I like looking at all variations but we want simplicity.

 

I can appreciate that. VERY used to being in the negative money, not just "broke". I actually got a grain mill for free (1900-1910 vintage) off a blacksmiths widow I was buying some other stuff from. Seems to work so far, and I have not had enough need to grind grain to have an output issue. If I get the grinder working, I'll post about it.

 

Having a grain mill that can grind a lot more grain a lot faster than what can be done by bashing it with a rock or with a hand crank mill with out electrical power could be a big advantage.

It's kind of difficult to make good power transmission setups with out store bought parts. I think the only way you can make effective long lasting power transmission setups is with old bicycle parts, which will require welding.

This is why I build or heavily modify my own equipment.
1 I over build my stuff so it shouldn't break.
2 If it does break I know how to fix it.
3 I keep spares for most of the wear parts on hand.

I don't use chain drives for a few reasons.
1 high speed motor driven chain drives are dangerous.
2 they are messy, high speed applications should have an oil bath or at least be oiled between uses.
3 it's very dusty here, chains and gears would wear out even faster.

 

That mill is going to be problematic for a couple of reasons:

1. The clamp mount is weak and you will be constantly tightening it and even then it will shift around so whatever you have driving it will have issues with alignment. You could possibly drill dome bolt holes and make a solid mount, but I don't know how strong that casting is.
2. The crank has to be replaced by some sort of pulley that doesn't interfere with the mount or the mill. The closer you get it to the bearing the better. Not impossible, but it looks like it will be a lot of work.

You might be better off spending money for a mill better suited like the Wonder Mill Jr, that has available bike sprocket and pulley attachments as well as different auger types.

 

I have a couple cheap grain mills like that. Hand cranking gets old fast, but the kind that can be easily powered is expensive. Maybe one day....

 

Not in English, but this guy used a cheap pepper mill and some wood, then powered with an electric drill for about $15


IMO given the limitations of @Motomom34 's grain mill I think I'd go the DIY route to come up with something more workable, but less than the $200+ needed for a higher quality mill that could be more easily adapted.

 

I like the price, I have a drill.

You are correct on my grain mill and the clamp. It seems quite shallow.

 

could you drill through the upper support of the clamp, and put a pair of bolts through it into a board? Seems like a better way to do it. Heck, push came to shove, could you not do that to the support arm, and mount it to a stump/post (so it would sit "sideways" from the way it would normally clamp on)?

 

Just to clear the air, grain is still ground via a millstone. Millstone - Wikipedia
Invest in 3M or General Mills if grinding grain isn't part of your everyday lifestyle. JMHO.

 

Different but similar......
I remember using Dad's handcranked sausage grinder in my youth. He'd buy forty pounds of meat at a time and we'd grind it all. Whew! Wore our arms out! He finally bought an electric grinder. He passed on about four years back, and I have both those grinders now.
I have two small electric coffee bean grinders too, but don't know if they would work for corn or wheat. Probably wear them out quickly, if they worked at all.