Thread: Salt & Pepper mills

Star,
17'' is a big pepper mill. The hard part for you will be when you bore the hole down the middle. Getting that accurate is important and you will need a drill extension. I would be doing a few 7'' mills first as a practice run. You can never make too many as people always want them.

Regards
John

Try here


http://s102013272.websitehome.co.uk/...am_8.1.05..htm

http://www.crushgrind.com.au/instructions.php

They are harder than they look. I'd give you a hand, but I am off to Melbourne this Friday and then all over the place, but your other club members should be able to guide you.

Gary's mills are good, but require a threaded cap at the top, so you have to get the length right - no room for error apart from a few mm. There have been plenty of posts on pepper mills to give some ideas of shapes, likewise I'm sure Gary's mills come with instructions based on a design also. Those Crishgrind instructions Sprog has provided link to are really good.

I turn the top and bottom sections together to ensure they match perfectly on the outside. The hardest part is to ensure the fit is snug between the two main parts so that they stay together when turning. If they are too loose, you can use some double sided tape to help stick. When finished you can clean off any tape residue with some of that orange oil remover stuff. I also sand the inside of the matching components with a small rotating sander to ensure it turns perfectly.

I do finish by sanding and sealing the inside of the mill. I use a dowel with a slit at the end, insert sandpaper and push it down the mill whilst the lathe is turning. I seal using Hard Shellac and a long paint brush before assembly.

Good luck.

Thanks for the replies. I needed to know what I was in for so I know if I am pushing the favours to much. The group I am with have nearly everything you could want, it is a woodies heaven at least to me.

They suggested I go to Gary Pyne and get the mechanism's, I will ask if a 17'' is a big step and I will find out if they have an extension drill bit. My guess is they have but thanks for the heads up.

Thanks Neil for the offer, I know you are off on holidays and I do not want to overstep my welcome at your place. Thanks.

Thanks for that web address, it will help me get my head around what is in front of me.

Star, Like you I have not turned any salt & pepper mills. I have a set on hand to do sometime. One of the things I will be checking is the wood it's made from. I would think that the salt one when it gets damp in rainy weather may take a bit of sap from the wood. May have to seal the inside with something like epoxy.
Have fun

I've made a cople of pepper grinders & one salt grinder.
I sealed the inside of the salt grinder with one of the food safe natural oil mixtures & it seems to be fine.
It now lives in Hobart.

Originally Posted by dai sensei

Gary's mills are good, but require a threaded cap at the top, so you have to get the length right - no room for error apart from a few mm.

I just cut the bottom of the rod off and squash the end in an engineers vice so that it seats itself in the grinding mechanism - no problems

Originally Posted by williampp

Star, Like you I have not turned any salt & pepper mills. I have a set on hand to do sometime. One of the things I will be checking is the wood it's made from. I would think that the salt one when it gets damp in rainy weather may take a bit of sap from the wood. May have to seal the inside with something like epoxy.
Have fun

I've found that sealing them with anything is only a short-term fix for a minor problem. Salt is a pretty aggressive abrasive and it really doesn't take long before it sands away any finish with normal use of the mill. And can you guess where that finish ends up? If you said "on your meal" I reckon you'd be right...

By the same token, salt is also a natural dessicant. So long as you carefully select the wood you'll be using in the first place, then no finish is needed. Even if the timber's slightly damp, the first load or two of salt will suck the moisture out and although that load(s) would be better off dumped or used in a non-food-related scenario, future loads should be fine.