Pepper mill Mechanisms

[VisExp]

I'm busy making my first pepper mill. I'm using a Crushgrind mechanism that I got from PSI about a year ago when I first started turning.

To those who make a lot of pepper mills, what is a good quality mechanism? I'm looking for something that would give reliable service over a long period of time and also does not place to many design restrictions on you.

I don't know if what I have is good or not, so I'm trying to get some opinions from folks with experience with pepper mills.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Daniel]

All the info I have ever gotten about mechanisms say Chef Specialty are all alone as the best. this comes from several chaf's and an Italian house wife. Never argue with the Italian house wife!
about he only Design restrictions are a 1 1/16" bore the length of the mill. length is limitless up to 24 inches if you are wiling to do some simple modifications otherwise they come in increments of 2 inches or so from 4" up to 24". with a little resourcing you can make them even longer with a square aluminum rod. also the mechanism is a straight through the mill style.

 

[nwcatman]

i'm not gonna be much help cause i quit using the crushgrind type and went back to the old fashioned kind. CSUSA sells several diff. types. just my opinion but the regular kind of grinder is sturdier.

 

[ahoiberg]

i've heard chef specialties as well. and its easiest to get one that's too long for what you want to do and cut it down to size after you finish turning the mill.

 

[VisExp]

Are the "delux" or "premium" pepper mills offered by CSUSA made by Chef Specialties?

I looked at Chef Specialties website and their mechanisms are priced similair but there is a 4 to 5 week wait when you order them.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I prefer the ceramic grinders. But, do check out what sizes of drill bits or forstners you will need to make single grinder. Some require as many as three different size bits and none of them are standard sizes. Your first grinder is sure to be very expensive if you have to buy all those bits. And you will have to.

 

[Daniel]

Yep those are the ones.

Are the "delux" or "premium" pepper mills offered by CSUSA made by Chef Specialties?

I looked at Chef Specialties website and their mechanisms are priced similair but there is a 4 to 5 week wait when you order them.

 

[Daniel]

Frank, where do you get Ceramic Mechanisms?

 

[Woodlvr]

Contact Ed4Copies he is very knowledgeable about the peppermill mechanisms.

 

[ahoiberg]

FYI, i found when making my first peppermill that its possible to make the larger hole on the bottom with a 1 1/4" forstner (that i already had) and widen it slightly with a skew chisel to the appropriate width. might limit you to only buying the 1 1/16" bit, which is all i needed, oh yeah, and the bit extender!

 

[VisExp]

Thanks for the help everyone. I just finished the second pepper mill (I had two mechanisms). I'll wait a couple days for the finish to dry and then assemble them.

Frank and Andrew, I only needed to buy the 1 1/16" bit and the extender, as I have a set of Hickory Forstner Bits. Not the best bits but they did the trick. Although Andrew that is a good tip about widening the larger hole with a skew. My 1 3/4" bit is pretty blunt and in spite of a couple of honing it was struggling to drill.

I'm going to order some more mechanisms and will go with the Chefs Specialty.

 

[TellicoTurning]

I'm busy making my first pepper mill. I'm using a Crushgrind mechanism that I got from PSI about a year ago when I first started turning.

To those who make a lot of pepper mills, what is a good quality mechanism? I'm looking for something that would give reliable service over a long period of time and also does not place to many design restrictions on you.

I don't know if what I have is good or not, so I'm trying to get some opinions from folks with experience with pepper mills.

Thanks in advance.

Keith,
I prefer the crush/grind mechanisms myself... they are the ceramics that was mentioned and they don't restrict design.. I've read about the Chef's mechanism and they are supposed to be the best.. I think they are stainless - but don't quote me on that.. my problem is they require a specific length for the body and the top of the PM and sometimes I tend to be a little challenged on getting exact and specific measurements... the CG mechanism has a 10" shaft that can be cut to what ever length you need. Restriction is that you are limited to about a 12 inch maximum pepper mill..

Frank mentioned watching the size of Forstner bits... I use 3 sizes.. a 1 3/4 for the base,
a 1 9/16 for through the body and a 15/15 for the top. I don't use the 1 1/16. My mills have a larger capacity because the through hole is the same size all the way through. I also cut a short tenon that will fit down inside the body to stabilize the top and keep it from wobbling on the shaft.

I use epoxy to cement the works in. I used CA the first few, but had a slight problem of sometimes getting the glue into the works.. still have a PM or two on my workbench that doesn't turn.