Make a Ball Mill in 5 Minutes

Step 4 Clamp the Assembly to a Table Top

Fill the container with the screwdriver bits or with steel balls or lead balls. Add the chemical you need to grind. Close the container and clamp the whole assembly to a table top.

I use a popsicle stick to hold the screwdriver button down. I jam it between the clam vise and electric screwdriver (see video). But that depends on your electric screwdriver.

Comments

[MrBrownstoo]

hmm... methinks you should support the container. lead balls are heavy and (I'm assuming most people will want to make gunpowder with this so they'll have to use only lead balls) the current setup is going to make the screwdriver wear a lot, and the bottom of the container isn't going to last very long... I like this idea though, I haven't found a suitable motor to drive my ball mill, they're all either too weak or they're way too fast.

[comander01]

Supporting the container world be tricky, but posiible. Try something like this. Not quite sure what you'd make it out of, but something along that idea.

[RiddleOfSphinx]

OR, you could just attach a bolt into the cap like he did for the bottom. Make a triangular piece of wood. Drill a hole for the bolt to fit through. And find some way to support the piece of wood? Seems like it would work to me, could even make your own cradle to support everything for that matter :P I'd never use something like this so have no need to make one, but that would be my advice :D

[comander01]

Thx, that looks much easier to make than my suggestion. Ill keep itmin mind.

[RiddleOfSphinx]

No problem, hope it works for ya, I don't have the materials to make one myself :(

[muberblob]

shotgun balls work really good if they are of the lead variety

[JJrulz]

Can you only use lead if you intend to make black powder? Why does it have to be lead?

[demolitionNerd]

No you can also use some of the new ceramic balls but they're even more expensive than lead balls. The reason you have to use lead or ceramic balls is because the won't spark when they slam together in the ball mill. Which if you were making black powder or another explosive chemical would otherwise result in an explosion.

[netbuddy]

Powders can explode due to the mix of fine particles and air. If you have ever worked in dangerous situations and had the "Health and Safety" training videos, you may have seen the "Exploding Flour Lorry" video. You wouldn't normally associate flour as in the stuff you bake with as being highly explosive. The video shows a flour truck being detonated, the film crew are about half a mile away when they ignite the truck contents. They couldn't fine anything of the truck other than a mangled chassis and one set of wheels. The rest of the truck had been blown to bits. So when grinding, you are advised to follow some basic H&S protocols or you could end up seriously hurting yourself, killing yourself or find the local anti-terrorism squad kicking your door off and holding you under the prevention of terrorism laws we all now live under. Happy grinding.

[demolitionNerd]

True but the chances of that happening in the mill, because it's in such a small tight space (not saying that it won't happen, but that it is very unlikely).

[netbuddy]

Go ahead, blow yourself up. A bullet only needs a few grams of powder, so what do you think half a pound could do to you?

[recon506]

try using something like an old drill press motor, or you could check out one of the tesla motor instructables, and use a gear system to put into low speed - high torque.

[fatboy106]

(removed by author or community request)

[Kryptonite]

You'd have to gear it down, you don't want it going too fast.

[mlapoi7995]

There are many ways this can be done. you could build a simple jig out of plywood to mount the motor and the entire drum assembly. you can also use bearings scarfed from old roller blades for the end shaft. motors can come from anything but if you use an AC motor I would suggest you get a controller from Harbor Freight to control your speed its just a plug with a potentiometer built in and is used to control the speed of a router...If you wish to use DC motors one of the best sources is Goodwill or any thrift store, look for old calculators that use paper rolls. They have heavy duty motors in them and if you go even older on them they have small AC motors...I also scarf motors from printers, washers and dryers for AC motors. You get a motor turning 1725 RPM and about a 1/4 HP. Thanks for the Instructable my wife wants a rock tumbler so you have given me a way to do it cheaply with parts I already have. ANd a way for me to polish metal parts.

[randyclark747]

You know what crossed my mind for grinding media is heavy steel nuts, instead of steel balls, since they are more commonly available.  What do you think?  Or do you think you can find steel balls at a  auto junk yard, under ball bearing request?

[Hairywiener]

dude you can use lead balls, much better, you can easily get them at big 5, they are used as weights for fishing, although their not really balls more like egg shaped but whatever

[randyclark747]

Ok, the container you drilled a hole in for bolt, may leak powders that are ground up, unless you got it sealed somehow.  I am thinking of using an electric can opener as motor with direct drive to container instead.
Do you think this will work?  What Rpm's should be used for ball mill grinding.?

[joedynamite]

can i just use a motor instead of a drill

[Gjdj3]

Yeah. The idea is just to get a motor to spin it around.

[deadeye]

use pvc pipe with end caps, run a shaft allway thru supported by bearings on both ends. power with any size motor ya got. gear down with however many 10 speed wheel hubs you need to get a sutible rotational speed. a little more involved but still an easy to do and compact design.

[amishmime]

Perhaps instead of screw driver bits, those lead weights used for fishing would work? Various sizes and real cheap.

[Biotele]

Yes, that will work very well. The bits I got for $3. I am thinking of soldering them together in a cluster to make them heavier.