# Shaftless crushgrind peppermill



## DKMD

With the recent interest in peppermills, I thought I'd show my process for making the shaftless Crushgrind mill. I'm sure there are lots of ways to skin this cat, and I look forward to hearing how anyone else might do it differently/better.

I start with a 3x3x12ish piece of dry wood between centers.


 



In this case, monkey butt from the Rebuilds is rounded up and a tenon is placed at *both* ends of the blank.


 



The instructions call for the lower section to be three inches long, so I mark the blank at three inches. I plan to include the tenon at either end into the finished piece, so I measure from the end of the blank. If I wanted to eliminate the tenon, I'd measure from the shoulder.


 



I use a homemade thin parting tool to minimize the size of the kerf. This one was made from a used OR saw blade. I don't part completely through the blank, so I use a thin dovetail saw to complete the cut.


 



Now I mount the bottom portion of the mill in the chuck, and I turn a tenon on the other end of the piece. Also, I make sure that I true up the right hand face of this blank since it will ultimately form the lower half of the joint in the finished mill… It needs to be dead flat. Also, note the tenons used are barely smaller in diameter than the actual blank… This allows me to 'keep' this wood in the finished mill.


 


Next, I flip the bottom section of the mill around in the chuck and drill the 1 3/4" hole to a depth of 3/4" per the instructions. This is probably the least important measurement in the whole process, and this step could easily be done with standard tools if you didn't want to buy the forstner bit.


 


The final step in drilling the bottom is to drill the rest of the way through the lower portion with a 1 1/2" bit. Since this mill is actually made for metric sized holes, I tend to widen the lower portion of this hole just a bit to allow room for the 'fins' on the outside of the mechanism. Alternatively, you can file the fins off of the insert. Although not shown in the photo, I generally go ahead at this point and sand the bottom of the mill and the inside walls that will be visible on the finished mill. The lower piece is finished except for final turning and sanding the outside shape.


 


Now, we're moving on to the upper portion of the mill. Here it's mounted in the chuck with the tenon formed at the initial rounding step.(second photo) Here's where I deviate from the printed instructions… I drill the lower portion of the upper mill section with the 1 1/2" bit to a depth of about half an inch.


 

Continued in the next post….

Reactions: Like 2 | Way Cool 1


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## DKMD

So the next step is to drill the rest of the way through the upper section with a 1 1/16" bit.





A drill extension is a necessity for taller mills. I generally drill this from both ends, but for the sake of brevity, I've just shown it in a single step here.





Next, I remove the upper mill section while it's still in the chuck. I put a scrap piece of hardwood between centers and form a tenon on one end. In this case, I'm using ash from a reject baseball blank, but any dry hardwood will do.





I put the ash piece in a chuck and turn a 1 1/2" tenon on the end of it. The length of this tenon should be equal to or slightly less than the depth of the 1 1/2" hole drilled in the upper blank. I generally sneak up on this tenon by stopping frequently and checking the fit against the upper mill section.





Next, glue the tenon into the upper mill section as shown. I generally use epoxy, but CA should be fine… It was faster for the photos.





Once the glue is set, I turn the ash tenon to fit the upper portion of the lower part of the mill. The instructions specify an 11/16" long tenon. Again, I sneak up on this tenon by checking the fit frequently against the lower portion of the mill. If this is too tight, it squeaks… If it's too loose, the mill will feel sloppy in use. This is probably the most critical portion of the whole process.






After getting the fit right, I drill the ash tenon with the 1 1/16" bit to restore the hole through the entire upper mill.






Next, I slip the lower portion of the mill onto the tenon of the upper mill section. I bring up the tail stock with a urethane cone attachment(Rubberchucky Products), but the standard nose cone on the live center would probably work as well. I turn the shape of the upper and lower sections all at once. Here's the rough shape I'm after and a quick wipe of DNA to show the color in the wood.





That's all I got done in the time I had, I'll try to post some photos of the final few steps when I get a chance to do them. Again, I'm looking forward to hearing how other folks may do this… I'm always interested in learning a better way.

Reactions: Like 1


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## okietreedude

I think the easiest way for a pepper mill is to go BUY ONE!

Dam doc, you make things look easy peasy...


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## Wildthings

Thanks for taking the time to post this. I'm fixing to start my first PM as soon as the blanks arrive and this tutorial is spot on. Looking forward to seeing the final steps

WT


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## davidgiul

Thanks for the excellent directions, Doc. As I mentioned before, this forum has some outstanding artisans and you are one of them.
Where do you get your mechanisms?


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## Mike1950

davidgiul said:


> Thanks for the excellent directions, Doc. As I mentioned before, this forum has some outstanding artisans and you are one of them.



I will second your statement David. I am not a turner but very informative tutorial. Very Nice piece of wood also.


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## cabomhn

Thanks for the little tutorial! Very informative.


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## Dane Fuller

Great job, Keller. Very informative. Can't wait to see the rest of it.


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## DKMD

davidgiul said:


> Where do you get your mechanisms?



I bought these from CraftsuppliesUSA. They're a few bucks cheaper than the versions with a shaft, and blank length is relatively unimportant.


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## DKMD

Here's the final installment of the process that I use… Again, there are probably other/better ways to do this, so feel free to weigh in if you have any tricks or tips.


Here, I've flipped the top around, and I've got the ash tenon held in a chuck


 


Using the live center for as long as I can, I turn the shape for the very top of the mill. I sand to final grit on the top at this point as well.


 


This photo shows the actual mechanism that is inserted from the bottom of the lower section. I use 5 minute epoxy applied to the mechanism just to the area below the rim of the mechanism(about the level where my thumbnail is). The first time I did one of these, I applied the epoxy to the wood… Bad move on my part since I got epoxy all over the mechanism which was a mess. I try to scuff up the outside of the mechanism with some coarse sandpaper to improve adhesion. In this case, I sanded off the little ribs that come on the mill because it wouldn't slide into the hole easily.


 


The next thing I do is take a little burr and create three little shallow mortises for the tabs on the other end of the mechanism.


 


Here's a shot of the little recesses that I make with the dremel. They're roughly 120 degrees apart to match up with the tabs on the mechanism. I fill these little pockets with 5 minute epoxy just before I connect the upper and lower sections.


 


Here you can see the three little tabs on the mechanism that will clip into the epoxy filled pockets that I just made. There's no turning back at this point… Once the little tabs engage, you can pretty much forget about getting the mill apart.


 


Here's a shot of the little ziricote plug that I turned to cap the hole in the top of the mill. There's a lot of room for creativity here. The little O ring came with my kit, and I had to fiddle with the groove to hold it… The depth of the groove determines how loose or tight the plug will be. You can actually see another groove near the bottom of the plug… That one was a little too deep, so I turned another groove.


 


Here's the mill with a quick wipe of walnut oil. I forgot to put the plug in for the picture, but I think you get the idea.

Reactions: Like 3 | Thank You! 1


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## woodtickgreg

I've never turned a pepper mill, but when I do this tutorial will be a great help, thanks David for taking the time to do this.  Great job.


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## Dane Fuller

Again, excellent tutorial, Keller. You're right, these would sell like hotcakes in my store. I need to buy some forstner bits and a few mills.


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## AXEMAN58

I'm inspired. Thanks for a very informative tutorial.


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## brown down

outstanding, i can't tell you how many pepper mills i have turned and this is awesome! is that a colt drill bit extension? I have one and love it! only problem with them is that you have to use their bits! great choice of wood also!


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## Kevin

Jeff you can buy any generic forstner bit extension and that's all you need. Don't get a hexagonal insert get the 1/2" round since most forstner bits have a 1/2" round shank, at least the sizes we use for Pm i.e. 7/8", 1 1/16", 1 1/2", 1 5/8, 1 3/4", . You don't want to buy a paddle bit extension they are for 1/4" shank and too small and will wobble.


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## Kenbo

Very cool stuff. That's awesome.


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## DKMD

brown down said:


> ...is that a colt drill bit extension?




Nah, it's just the generic variety from CSUSA. I've never used the Colt bits, but I've heard great things about them.

Thanks for the kind words folks!


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## brown down

Kevin said:


> Jeff you can buy any generic forstner bit extension and that's all you need. Don't get a hexagonal insert get the 1/2" round since most forstner bits have a 1/2" round shank, at least the sizes we use for Pm i.e. 7/8", 1 1/16", 1 1/2", 1 5/8, 1 3/4", . You don't want to buy a paddle bit extension they are for 1/4" shank and too small and will wobble.



i saw the one i have at woodcraft and i will say they are fantastic. they come with a number 2 morse taper so i know its running true. i have used those extensions, and if not careful they tend to walk inside where you can't see. or maybe i was forcing it a bit :lolol:
i had a few that went to the burn pile due to this fact lol i could have made a jam chuck but this was in the beginning of my pepper mill venture lol the bits are a little on the pricey side but they due hold an edge. and are worth sending out to get resharpened when you are working with harder woods! 
Like i said tho you do have to buy the specific style of forstner bits which sucks, i wish i could figure out how they lock the bits in place and modify some other brand forstner bits!


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## Kevin

I think if you turn a lot of pepper mills the Colt system would be worth it just for the fact that they allegedly will not pack the shavings in deep holes. I never used them either but they are supposed to bust up the shavings into small pieces so they don't jam up inside even on deep cuts and can be vacuumed out easily as you drill. That's what they claim anyway. With my Bosch and other brands you have to go in and out often to remove the shavings or you'll trap your cutter head in the longer mills. Works fine but just takes more time going in and out. I've gotten pretty fast at it though.


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## DKMD

goslin99 said:


> Thank you for this!!!


You're welcome, Dave. It looks like the pictures aren't inserted in the text anymore... I think that happened with the changeover.


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## Mike Jones

Doc, could you comment on the efficacy of this 'mill drill'? Worth the 84 bucks, ya think?


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## DKMD

Mike Jones said:


> Doc, could you comment on the efficacy of this 'mill drill'? Worth the 84 bucks, ya think?


Not for me, Mike. The hardest part for me is the long through hole, and the mill drill doesn't help with that. I suppose if I were in production mode, that thing would be great. Since I only make a dozen or two a year, I think I'd probably stick with my Forstner bits. If you get one, please post your thoughts on it... I might be persuaded!


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## Mike Jones

Not likely I'll get one. Two dozen mills in one year would be doubling my production. I probably won't even get an appropriate extension for my Forstner bits. For a 12" mill, I go at it from both ends and hope the hole meets in the middle. :)


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## Kevin

I was doing both ends and meet in the middle for a long time too Mike but the extension is definitely worth it - at least to me it is.


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## DKMD

I agree with Kevin about the extension. I bought the longer one from CSUSA, and I wish I had gotten the shorter one too. I drill from both ends, and I'd prefer the shorter extension for that purpose.

That reminds me, I've got a couple of extensions that have never been used, but they aren't made to hold my Forstner bits(too small)... I need to list them here for sale/trade.


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## ClintW

Very thorough post! Thank you, I was curious where you purchased the shaftless mechanism from. I have only found craft USA to carry them.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Karl_TN

ClintW said:


> Very thorough post! Thank you, I was curious where you purchased the shaftless mechanism from. I have only found craft USA to carry them.



Clinton, You can also get the shaftless variety at LeeValley and Rockler:

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=57737&cat=1,43243
https://www.rockler.com/crushgrind-mill-mechanisms-mill-mechanisms


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## Gdurfey

David, @DKMD , sure appreciate this and the new link back to it. I am watching Michael’s thread as well as I am about to embark on my first peppermills. Sure appreciate your time.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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