Victoria Mill with High Hopper

I bought this because I was interested in cracking some additional specialty grains to supplement home brewing kits. I figured I wasn't doing all grain brewing and would only be cracking 1/2 lb. or so at a time.

Put it together and noticed that the thing shed metal flakes at a high rate. Quick trip to the manufacturer site and found they coat it with tin. Tin is supposedly harmless to humans, though certain tin bonds are not. But I figure that fermentation requires boiling the grains and a lot of chemical reactions when fermenting. I didn't want to take the chance on myself (or my yeast) or the flavor of my beer. I returned it (Thanks Midwest!). I'll spend more to get a steel mill. And who knows, some day I may just have enough equipment to try an all grain brew.

I'm an all grain brewer who usually does 3 gallon batches with the BIAB method. The mill works great! Heavy cast iron construction with tin plating. I've used mine for over a year now, it has seen about a dozen batches of beer. Never experienced any metal shavings like another reviewer noted. At less than half the price of most grain crushers, it a real bargain.

I have put about 100+ pounds of grain through mine in the past 6 months. It did shed a few flakes the first time I cranked the handle, but it never did it again. Once you learn where to adjust the plates with the set screw, you get great results. It is a lot of work to grind big batches, but I some times use my cordless drill with a 1/4-20 hex bolt in the handle socket plus a socket driver. It will mill 2 lb. of grain in 40 second.
If you cant afford the big one, or justify the expense yet, then get one of these. It will take your beer to the next level if you have been ordering pre-milled grain, and honesatly milling the grain is one of my favorite parts of the brew process.

I use of of these and it works decently well. Many of these Corona/Victoria mills are designed to make flour for bread, so you need to modify them a little to make their crush course enough to not shred your husks. I used 6 washers (3 on each side) to space mine out more to make it stable at that large space.

I used a bolt (forget what size) to hook my corded drill up to it to speed things along. This creates a lot of dust but it beats the half hour of hand cranking it took for my first AG brew with it. I also use a gallon water jug that I cut the bottom off of as larger hopper (I set it inside the hopper). After the test grain I put through it to set the spacing right, I have not had problems with metal flakes.

In all, this will function as you need it to. However, I wish I would have just spent the extra money on a better one because I am planning on upgrading to a better one anyway.

It does work, but you can end up with more flour than you would like.
Also, you need to run a couple of pounds of grain through it the first time to break it in, and get all the metal bits that break off out of your beer.
In retrospect a Monster Mill would have been a better choice.

Pros: Solid cast iron construction with tin plating. This is durable.

Cons: This design is better suited for grinding flour, not cracking barley. It does work, but it's more likely to shred husks, make flour, or not crack as well.

As from shedding metal bits, all mills have to be broken in. Buy some grain and grind it a few times, then the mill will be fine.

I view this as a short term solution before you can buy a better mill.

This item is worth every penny. I purchased two other mills off amazon and had issues with them. Then I purchased this one and was amazed that it met my expectations for a mill under 150. its not the best mill out there but definitely does the job! I wish the aluminum coating was not on there though.

This is a great product and the best part about it is the price. Why should I pay a lot a money for a monster mill that does the same job as this? Honestly i was a little skeptical at the beginning, but after trying it out, I was convinced that it was worth it. All you need to do is adjust the bolt to the right grain and you're fine, like you do with all kinds of mills. I don't see any problems; I love it.

I cannot say that I would not like to have a larger mill, but this mill works perfectly fine. I find that I have to adjust settings mid grind and it can take same time, but it does exactly what I need it to do. I am not producing cloudy wort and my efficiency is dead on. Great deal, good bargain.

I'd have to describe these units as much better than nothing. My last bill of barley wine grain took me about 15 minute using a drill to grind 22#s without hurrying. However, the crack is fairly inconsistent - from some flour to some completely un-cracked grains (along with plenty of the good stuff). You can adjust the grinding plates down to eliminate the uncracked grains but you'' end up with lots of flour. A VM is a good place to start for an unsure all-grainer. However, if you know you like to brew beer, all grain is the way to go, spend the extra $70 for a good mill. You will be much happier with a much more consistent crack and better, more predictable efficiencies.