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Best and most economical Ball Mill Jars? DIY


Kaokin

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So my ball mill is under construction and almost ready to make lots of BP for the fourth!

 

I soon will need a Jar, and there seems to be no cheap way out here. Even a 6" PVC DIY jar is going to run $50.00 in fittings.

 

Have you guys found a source of heavy duty durable food containers for ball mill use? Is PVC DIY the recommended way to go? Any other mill jar ideas i may be missing? I was going to use 6" HDPE pipe instead of PVC as i heard it was more durable, however, one post on this site experienced static electricity issues when using HDPE.

 

Another forum member was using epoxy filled end cap inserts, and still others use rubber end caps on a reducer to keep the charge in the jar. Which method works best to avoid spillage?

 

 

I woudl appeciate your insight!

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If you are in the USA in the lower 48, I can get you brand new a 6" PVC ball-mill jar for $40.00 delivered.

 

PM me for details.

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PM sent :)
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I've seen some with wooden disks cut to fit in the ends of the pipe. Well, one that fits inside the pipe, and another attached disk the OD or larger than the pipe. If I build another ball mill I will probably go that route, and probably with HDPE personally. The static thing does make me think again about that material choice though.
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I have been using the health food/protein products containers. They are round and not tapered and have a large dia. cap. I super glue or hot glue 3/8 square lengths of plexiglass three or four places around the insdie to allow for tumbling action. Work like a charm....contact your health food junkie friends...you'll find a few.
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I have been using the health food/protein products containers. They are round and not tapered and have a large dia. cap. I super glue or hot glue 3/8 square lengths of plexiglass three or four places around the insdie to allow for tumbling action. Work like a charm....contact your health food junkie friends...you'll find a few.

 

 

 

Health food??? Whats that?? ;)

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Hmm Those are interesting... The links you provided are just to pictures; where do you purchase them from so I can get some more information? Do you know the approximate cost?

 

 

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The website is the beginning of the address: http://www.profesional.bg 50, could you translate for us?

 

 

Lol Yes I tried that. I was hoping for a link in english :) I like the PVC barrels best so far, I was hoping to find something a bit cheaper this year. I have already spent $200 bucks on supplies and i havent even started buying actual 1.4g stuff for my show yet! And on top of that, MY JOB SUCKS (venting)

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see your neighbor just down the road who has recently completed a re paint on his house and ask him for the empty can
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see your neighbor just down the road who has recently completed a re paint on his house and ask him for the empty can

 

 

Well, that's a terrible idea if I've ever seen one. The use of metal ball mill jars for explosive compositions, in addition to adding (hopefully) dried paint chipping and contaminating your compositions and chemicals is asking for trouble.

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Meh, the way I see it is that everything that MMDC says should be taken as wrong and applied as something NOT to do.
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Meh, the way I see it is that everything that MMDC says should be taken as wrong and applied as something NOT to do.

 

 

Metal was never even a consideration, I enjoy explosions but not when they destroy my ball mill, ruin my comp, and potentially endanger people and property! I bought brass rods off of ebay that i am going to slice into 5/8" chunks. Paint cans arent exactly made of heavy gauge steel either, They dont seem like they would hold up to the abuse of a constant brass media barrage.

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you can get plastic paint cans nz made from heavy duty plastic, also with plastic ones, you can very easily scrape the paint out-which is non flamable if you get the right brand
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The website is the beginning of the address: http://www.profesional.bg 50, could you translate for us?

 

The site is just a shop for construction stuff. The PVC thing I showed you is called:

 

1. socket

2. sleeve

3. coupling

4. tappet

5. thimble

 

These are what the dictionnary shows me. Here's an old photo of a drum filled with media and caked KNO3 in it.

 

http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/8119/drum.th.jpg

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you can get plastic paint cans nz made from heavy duty plastic, also with plastic ones, you can very easily scrape the paint out-which is non flamable if you get the right brand

 

I am going to be confirming that, but don't you think the fact that you should only use plastic is a pretty important fact to mention?

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Lol Yes I tried that. I was hoping for a link in english :) I like the PVC barrels best so far, I was hoping to find something a bit cheaper this year. I have already spent $200 bucks on supplies and i havent even started buying actual 1.4g stuff for my show yet! And on top of that, MY JOB SUCKS (venting)

 

To get started CHEAP, empty plastic peanut butter jars work well. They will not last forever, but as long as you keep eating peanut butter, you get a new jar every month or so. I've been using them for years, as I just never get around to making one from PVC.

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As I mentioned in an earlier post, containers for health supplements work great. Go to a health food store or a health bar or a friend who is into supplements...hair dryer will help remove the label, WD40 will remove the adhesive residue.

This one is 8" dia. and 9" tall....works great!!

post-10839-0-76032200-1302455913_thumb.jpg post-10839-0-55964200-1302455964_thumb.jpg

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in nz, the majority of paint cans are plastic, about the only type of wood coverer you can easily get in metal is varnish
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Check this out! So I was doing some shopping in BJ's the other day (Local wholesale club) and I was keeping an eye out for any food containers that I could use on a regular basis then utilze the container as a ball mill jar. Every year I make at least a creamora or two for the fourth display, and it turns out that these coffee mate containers are just about the perfect size and are made of heavy duty HDPE!! There is even a few handle indentations to act as lift bars! Dimensions are 5.5" Diameter x 10" High. Screw Cap; (Probably add a few windings of making tape to assure the lid doesnt pop off). Nice Thick plastic wall, and the handle indentations make them nice and rigid too. If I keep making creamoras I should have an endless supply of mill jars :) Even if they only last for a dozen runs, these should get me going until a I can buy a few nice PVC jars.

 

 

 

 

 

gallery_10413_87_82528.jpg

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Do you happen to have any photos of the handle area? I'd be worried they'd be too large to be efficient.
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Sure.... The depressions are triangular and are only 3/4"at their deepest point. I can take a better pic if you want, these were taken for my last post.

post-10413-0-40940700-1302793721_thumb.jpg

post-10413-0-49044200-1302793736_thumb.jpg

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gallery_10713_78_116656.jpg

 

1/2 or 1 gallon salad dressing, mustard & mayonnaise jars can be found at Costco & other bulk grocery places.

 

Not that I would trust them for long term use. But, they are free if you use the content first.

 

EDIT TO ADD:

SEE ALSO

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23856&catid=604

 

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=22720&catid=604

 

 

Edited by oldguy
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1/2 or 1 gallon salad dressing, mustard & mayonnaise jars can be found at Costco & other bulk grocery places.

 

Not that I would trust them for long term use. But, they are free if you use the content first.

 

EDIT TO ADD:

SEE ALSO

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23856&catid=604

 

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=22720&catid=604

 

 

 

 

Oldguy, The people at the store must have thought I was nuts, I was literally walking up and down the isles poking every plastic jar lol These coffe mate containers feel to be alot more rugged than the salad dressing and mayo jugs. Id also have to eat a helluva lot of mayo for one jar :) I checked US plastics too, i get their catalogs. Thanks for the suggestions!

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