[denny]

I adjust for crush, not gap.

And this is the way it should always be, but I will add;

knowing the gap setting once you find the correct crush for your system helps to take out the guess work shold you ever have to send your mill in for repair (like I did) or if it gets dropped, or anything happens that might change the setting.

But in the long run it is the crush, not the gap, that matters.

Did that make sense?

For me, it's easy to be repeatable without measuring.  I simply close the gap as far as it will go.

[jeffy]

I'm using the same mill as Denny, I have never measured the gap like Denny, my mill only adjusts on one end, like Denny's, and I crank it all the way tight, sort of like Denny, except when I mill raw wheat as I have to loosen the gap a little or it won't turn very well.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

I'm using the same mill as Denny, I have never measured the gap like Denny, my mill only adjusts on one end, like Denny's, and I crank it all the way tight, sort of like Denny, except when I mill raw wheat as I have to loosen the gap a little or it won't turn very well.

for reference (those reading this post) it would be interesting to know what "all the way closed" mean.  .020. 025 or ??

[ynotbrusum]

My JSP is adjustable at both ends, but it is marked for factory spec by a small tick mark scratched on the knurled knob and face plate.  I just tighten it from twelve to one clockwise beyond the factory marks.  I gapper it when I was initially adjusting it and I think this is at .038.  IIRC....

[blackislandbrewer]

And this is the way it should always be, but I will add;
knowing the gap setting once you find the correct crush for your system helps to take out the guess work shold you ever have to send your mill in for repair (like I did) or if it gets dropped, or anything happens that might change the setting.

THIS. You can say that you adjust for the crush, but without knowing your gap and adjusting from there, it can be tough. Set a gap, check the crush, look at your crush, if it looks wrong, check your gap. Stuff happens, gaps can move, always check the crush, but know your usual gap.

[ynotbrusum]

And this is the way it should always be, but I will add;
knowing the gap setting once you find the correct crush for your system helps to take out the guess work shold you ever have to send your mill in for repair (like I did) or if it gets dropped, or anything happens that might change the setting.

THIS. You can say that you adjust for the crush, but without knowing your gap and adjusting from there, it can be tough. Set a gap, check the crush, look at your crush, if it looks wrong, check your gap. Stuff happens, gaps can move, always check the crush, but know your usual gap.

That's why Jack Schmidling scratches the tick mark in the plate and and adjustment knob - as the factory setting.  Line it up and you are at factory settings.  Tighten from there and note the change from factory and you are all set.  If you were to take it fully apart you might have issues, but I've never done that.

[ScottBeh]

If you have a gap number in mind, whether its yours or someone elses suggestion and you have to adjust it from there then you don't really know 'your' gap for your system, but you may get there.  Downside  is fiddling with it on brewday or several brewdays to get it right.  You may as well start with the factory setting.  Me I cant stare at a bucket of crushed grain and tell you 'that's perfect'.  There is a sieve testing method to optimize your crush.  Here is a dude that went all in.  http://brewlikeapro.net/maltmilling.html.  I didn't go that far cause you cant rent sieves.  There is a much simpler method passed on to me from a pro brewer.  Did it once with a few ounces of grain, 2 sieves, magic marker on the mill once it was perfect, haven't touched it since. My mill works off detents so it doesn't appear to move or need adjusting.  I check my conversion in the tun against Kai's first wort table and it doesn't stray, yet.

[69franx]

Make sure when using feeler gauges that you can do simple (or apparently not so simple) math. As in .025+.0015 does not =.040. Guess I figured out my high efficiency on last batch, but also discovered that my system will flow, albeit slowly, with the flour from that crush. I just now opened it back up to .032 and will see how that works on batch next Sunday. Good luck, I'm only a little closer to knowing where to set mine

[TMX]

If you have a gap number in mind, whether its yours or someone elses suggestion and you have to adjust it from there then you don't really know 'your' gap for your system, but you may get there.  Downside  is fiddling with it on brewday or several brewdays to get it right.  You may as well start with the factory setting.  Me I cant stare at a bucket of crushed grain and tell you 'that's perfect'.  There is a sieve testing method to optimize your crush.  Here is a dude that went all in.  http://brewlikeapro.net/maltmilling.html. I didn't go that far cause you cant rent sieves.  There is a much simpler method passed on to me from a pro brewer.  Did it once with a few ounces of grain, 2 sieves, magic marker on the mill once it was perfect, haven't touched it since. My mill works off detents so it doesn't appear to move or need adjusting.  I check my conversion in the tun against Kai's first wort table and it doesn't stray, yet.

would you care to share?

[ScottBeh]

Gladly, I don't think he would mind, but I have to ask him first.

[ScottBeh]

The below is with full credit to Kevin Pratt. 

You'll need some tools:
#14 sieve (14 strands per inch)
#4 sieve, or just mesh fabric. (optional)
Both of the above are available on ebay
Scale precise to .01 oz. Even better if it'll do grams.

Take a 8 oz sample of the malt.
Mill it
Weigh it and make sure it is still 8 oz. Look for places in the mill that might be collecting grain and clear them.
Don't shake it or compact the sample. Ideally, it should be as fluffy as it comes out from the mill.    Sieve the crushed malt through. Capturing the dust is a plus, but not required.
Use a fresh paint brush to remove any particles that went through the sieve but clung below the screen. 
Carefully pour the remaining malt into a clean container to weigh. Make sure to tare the scale to the container.

You should have between 5.2 and 5.6 oz of grist. This represents 65% to 70% of the grain weight. Above that and the mill gap is too wide, below that and it might be too fine. The number in a pro brewery is 50%. This is pretty perfect for a homebrewing setup and shoots for 85% total mash efficiency when fly sparging.

Secondary, you can sieve this through a #4 screen to separate out large and uncrushed grains. This weight should not exceed 5% and is hopefully just 2%. Look for out of parallel rollers as a source of large sized particles. This may not be correctable since at least one manufacturer (Schmidling) purposely engineers their mill to have a varied gap.

Obviously, you'd repeat the above until the crush lined up with optimal settings.

I got the sieves from McMaster Carr 
# 3469K12
# 3469K23

[TMX]

Thanks a ton

[ScottBeh]

Your welcome, but all I did is copy/paste.  If you ever run into Kevin, pick up his tab, whether he likes it or not

[denny]

I'm using the same mill as Denny, I have never measured the gap like Denny, my mill only adjusts on one end, like Denny's, and I crank it all the way tight, sort of like Denny, except when I mill raw wheat as I have to loosen the gap a little or it won't turn very well.

for reference (those reading this post) it would be interesting to know what "all the way closed" mean.  .020. 025 or ??

I'm not sure why it would matter.  The gap that one person uses will have little bearing on someone else using a completely different system.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

Sure, correct. I'm not asking for your benefit. But like a lot of things on this forum, people read about others equipment and processes and then try to get the same equip. and replicate processes.....which is ok. My process is a culmination of others processes and equipment they've experienced, blended with my own experiences.

Just a faster learning curve when you have all the information and then decide what you want to try is all.


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