simple ball mill build

[Hunting the yellow]

Hi all been busy with work so little time for fun but on the odd day i get off i work on projects in the shed this is just one.

so below is my very simple and easy to make ball mill yes i could use rods but i prefer the steel balls.

everything except for the balls and motor and rollers and some screws i got for free.

very simple setup just an old gas tank on its side with one hole cut in only one end why only one end ? i plan to rig up a pully system and only empty it out the one end with water. however it runs too fast at the moment the motor wants to pull it off the rollers and catapult it into the back fence. so im buying a reduction gearbox soon. to slow it down yes i could put a bigger pully on the motor but if i wanted to use the motor for other things i would have to keep pulling it off again depending on what i use it for of course.

so im hoping that when i get the gearbox i can hook it up and have it turn slower and put my gold Bering sands into it with water and the balls to crush it all to a very fine powder instead of a sand witch my hammer mill dose already but i only recover 90% of what is in the stone with my ball mill ill get a finer recovery that i can later separate out the gold via a blue bowl or with borax and a homemade blower wood furnace to melt it kinda like a blacksmith type but slightly different.

 

[Goldfreak]

That's cool. If you find the belt slips sideways on the bottle try slightly increasing the diameter where you want to make the belt stay. I know this sounds counter intuitive but the belt will draw toward the area it gets the most friction so stay centered. It also prevents wear on the belts sides. Alot of older machinery worked like this. Good luck with your project.

 

[Nightjar]

HTY,
The drive pulley needs to be smaller not larger to slow rotation of drum..

 

[Noob Luke]

Hi all been busy with work so little time for fun but on the odd day i get off i work on projects in the shed this is just one.

so below is my very simple and easy to make ball mill yes i could use rods but i prefer the steel balls.

everything except for the balls and motor and rollers and some screws i got for free.

very simple setup just an old gas tank on its side with one hole cut in only one end why only one end ? i plan to rig up a pully system and only empty it out the one end with water. however it runs too fast at the moment the motor wants to pull it off the rollers and catapult it into the back fence. so im buying a reduction gearbox soon. to slow it down yes i could put a bigger pully on the motor but if i wanted to use the motor for other things i would have to keep pulling it off again depending on what i use it for of course.

so im hoping that when i get the gearbox i can hook it up and have it turn slower and put my gold Bering sands into it with water and the balls to crush it all to a very fine powder instead of a sand witch my hammer mill dose already but i only recover 90% of what is in the stone with my ball mill ill get a finer recovery that i can later separate out the gold via a blue bowl or with borax and a homemade blower wood furnace to melt it kinda like a blacksmith type but slightly different.

I would love to know more. What size ball bearings are you using? Is it noisy, wife hates me doing anything eg dollying in suburbia. How long does it take to process? Great job!

 

[Hunting the yellow]

I would love to know more. What size ball bearings are you using? Is it noisy, wife hates me doing anything eg dollying in suburbia. How long does it take to process? Great job!

I've since moved to rods more surface area to crush the sands i used to use 4kg shot put balls but 18 each and i needed 5 rods are much cheaper and eazy to get from any scrap metal places i used some old car axles lying around. It takes me about 40min on the bike to crush 10kgs down to a very fine powder. Noisy without water in the drum i now have it set-up on a table/frame where i can pull it off the rollers and tip it straight into a wheelbarrow next to it to get out the fines and pan out the gold

 

[Mike678]

My idea for a ball mill is to use a cement mixer . Remove the blades . You can buy Bocca balls from K-mart for about 6 for $30 ? They are steel . Also put in other sizes from e- bay . When the cement mixer wears out , put in a 50 lt . s/s keg . Cut the top off and weld it in . It depends on the ore how long you have to grind . Check after 1/2 hour and pass though a sceen , 100 mesh ?

 

[Mike678]

I've since moved to rods more surface area to crush the sands i used to use 4kg shot put balls but 18 each and i needed 5 rods are much cheaper and eazy to get from any scrap metal places i used some old car axles lying around. It takes me about 40min on the bike to crush 10kgs down to a very fine powder. Noisy without water in the drum i now have it set-up on a table/frame where i can pull it off the rollers and tip it straight into a wheelbarrow next to it to get out the fines and pan out the gold

I have a rough sketch with sizes ,of the rod mill , that the mets. use in the lab . It is s/s 300 m.m. long and 211 m.m. i.d . I think they put in 1 k.g. of sample plus water . It is very noisy but I did have an idea of sticking some of that sound deading foam to the out side and on the ends . Just use it when the wife has gone shopping .... Running time was 1/2 - 1 hour depending on the sample . Sample ground down to less than 3 m.m. before putting in the rod mill . Rod charge , 1 off 1 inch Dia . 6 off 7/8 inch 2 off 5/8 inch 4 off 1/2 inch 3 off 3/8 inch . All s/s . Speed is important , you need to hear the rods dropping , too fast and they stick to the outside of the drum .

 

[Jaros]

Good luck guys.

 

[ken2m]

You can also get square 20 litre containers with a large opening at one end. They fit nicely inside a cement mixer with a bit of padding inside, it is amazing the reduction in size after an hour with a 50 mm ball and a couple of 26mm balls, the 26mm are about the same size as the radius in the corners of the drum, fairly quiet as well. Located near the jerry cans (water) at Bunnings.