INTRODUCTION AND ATTRIBUTES OF TYPES OF GRINDERS

Any questions on grinders can be answered by emailing rainydayfoods@yahoo.com

 

 

 

All About Grinders

 

 

Purpose of this section: These pages compare the differences between the manual grinders readily available today. Sure, there are a lot of manual grinders being used every day, but I expect there have been thousands of manual grinders sold to the public that have never ground a kernel of wheat. They are sitting in the back rooms of homes all over the country waiting for that time when they will be needed. When that time does come, many people will be surprised about the capabilities of their grinder. All grinders are not created equal. There are huge differences in the performance between the different makes. This section will explore many aspects of the different manual and electric grinders and will hopefully educate you on the grinder you have already purchased or help you make a more informed choice if purchasing a new grinder. Along with conducting several performance tests, 10 cups of wheat were ground with each grinder to make enough flour to make a four loaf batch of bread. You will find the author's comments on each of these grinders and how he endured that '10 cup grind.'

 

 

·         Introduction to Grinders

·         Attributes of different types of grinders

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grinder Introduction

Note: We may not carry all of these grinders but may have included some information for comparison purposes.

Grain grinders come in many shapes and sizes. Some are large and bulky and some can be picked up with one finger. Some take a lot of work and others require only the flick of a switch. As there is such a big difference between the different grinders, we've worked up these pages to give you some idea what to expect from each one. Hopefully, after studying this section, you will have a much better idea which grinder is best for you. The kind of grinder that is best for you depends greatly on how you plan on using it.

Grain grinders come in three basic type:

• Stone
• Burr

• Impact

Stone Grinders are the oldest type of grinder there is and was the only kind until only a few years ago. Stone grinders have two circular grinding stones. One stone turns against a stationary stone. Grooves are cut, radiating out from the center of the stone. These grooves diminish until they disappear towards the outer edges. When grain is ground, it falls through a channel into the center of the two stones. As the rotating stone turns, it pulls the grain out through the channels and is ground, with the flour falling out the outer edges of the two stones. A hundred years ago these stones were often two or three feet across, weighed hundreds of pounds and were turned by windmills or water wheels. In modern home grinders these stones are small, usually only about three inches in diameter. They are not natural stones like the grinders of yesteryear, but are made from very hard materials that will last a life time if used with care.

A Country Living Mill Burr.

Burrs are similar to stones except their grinding wheels are made out of steel. These burrs are sometimes referred to as teeth in grinder advertisements. Burr grinders have some advantages and disadvantages over stone grinders. More on that later.

Impact Grinder Micronetic Chamber.

Impact grinders use 'blades' placed in circular rows on metal wheels. One wheel turns and the other wheel is stationary like the manual grinders. But this is where the similarities end. When the two wheels are put together the rows of blades intermesh, running microscopically close, yet never touching the blades from the opposite wheel. The rotating wheel turns at several thousand RPM. As grain is fed into the center of the fixed wheel, the interaction between the two wheels 'impacts' the grain and literally pulverizes it into a fine powder as the grain works its way to the outside of the wheels.   The K-Tech Grinder and the Wonder Mill both are impact grinders.
        Concerned about the temperature your mill heats the flour up to? The people at K-Tec, who make the K-Tech Grinder told me, "Our grinder doesn't grind grain but bursts it into flour on contact with the 'micronetic heads.' This is why our mill grinds grains at the very low temperature of 135 degrees, helping keep the nutrients and enzymes intact." Doing a bit of experimenting myself, I find that the flour is 30 degrees F warmer as it comes out of an impact grinder.
        Some of the health food stores try to make a really big deal about this saying, "Our wheat is slow ground at a low temperature, leaving all the nutrients undamaged. Those fast turning grinders heat up and destroy your flour." If you grind your wheat just before use, I can't see that it matters as within an hour or two it's going to be in the oven anyway. Flour starts to lose nutrients within hours of when it was ground, so in spite of what they say, your flour, freshly ground, will have many more nutrients and will be fresher than any flour you could buy anywhere unless it too has been freshly ground that day.

Hand or Electrically operated: Some consideration must be given to whether you will buy a hand or electric grinder, or both. This all depends on what your present circumstances, any preparations you may want to make for the future, and how often you plan on using your grinder.  Powered grinders are nice, fast and work well with the quality of flour put out.  The drawback for electric grinders would be lack of power. The Country Living Mill can be motorized and be used either way.  The Wonder Junior Grinder can also be motorized but it nullifies the warranty of the grinder.  Incidentally, hand operated mills come in the stone and burr varieties. Impact grinders must turn far too fast for manual operation. One last thing to remember about hand grinders is that they are require some work.  Ease of turning and grinding is a big plus in hand grinders.  For families that intend on using their grinder on a regular basis, they may  consider  an electric grinder for every day use, and a hand grinder for emergencies.

 

Positive and negative aspects for each class of grinder:

Stone Grinders

Favorable Characteristics Grinds finer than burr grinders. Adjustable to any setting between cracked wheat and fine flour. Should last a lifetime.

Unfavorable Characteristics Manual stone grinders tend to turn harder than manual burr grinders. Stones quickly become 'loaded' if you try to grind oil bearing seeds.

 

Burr Grinders

Favorable Characteristics Will grind dry grains as well as oil bearing seeds - wheels will not load up. Adjustable to any setting between cracked wheat and fine flour. Much safer machine if you are grinding grain that has not been completely cleaned of grain sized stones and small pieces of metal. Should last for many years of normal use. Generally turn easier than stone grinders.

Unfavorable Characteristics Will not grind quite as fine as a stone grinder.

 

Electric Impact Grinders

Favorable Characteristics Very small, light and compact. Grinds very quickly. Grinds grain into very fine flour.

Unfavorable Characteristics The blades are somewhat fragile: Small rocks or metal pieces can make the micronetic chamber eat itself! (K-Tec says their grinder will eat some small rocks but care should be taken in grinding). If you take care to only use well cleaned grain, these grinders will also last many years. Noisy Even on the coarsest setting the flour comes out relatively fine. These things won't give you cracked wheat. Won't work without electricity.