Using and maintaining a hammermill? There are two important things to keep in mind. First, you need to know what brand of hammermill you are using. Second, you need to which model of a particular brand of hammermill you are using. Since every manufacturer has their own design, you do not want to use the wrong information and damage your machine.

Drotsky hammermills have been in operation for years. In fact, Drotsky has been building their specialised equipment since 1962! Let us find out how you can tell if your hammermill is a Drotsky.

1. Know you have a Drotsky hammermill

Drotsky hammermills can be identified in a number of reliable ways, other than looking at the signature yellow-and-red design colour. The Drotsky name will be clearly visible on the side of newer models and the model’s name is usually added to the side.

What becomes tricky is that there are old generations and new generation machines. The main difference between them is that the old versions have a protruding rear end plate.

(Link to video that shows the edges of the machine.)

If your machine is still working well after many years, it is most likely a Drotsky!

Drotsky has a wide range of hammermills available, but in this article we focus only on the M-range.

2. Know which model in the M-range

Within the M-range, there are 4 models available, namely M8, M16, M24 & M36.

All the machines in this range have blowers on the outside of the screen, whereas the screen is a full 360 degrees. The M16, M24 & M36 can either be powered by electric motor, diesel engine or pto driven. The M8 can either be powered by electric motor or diesel engine. In order to determine which machine you have, you need to measure the screen (Length & width) .

M 8

The smallest in the M-range, the M8 has a motor speed of 2900 rpm and requires between 11 & 15 kW power from the electric motor or diesel engine. The mill speed is 3500 rpm and the Rotor has a total of 8 hammers. The screen size is 1500 x 190 mm.

M 16

The second model has a motor speed of 1450 rpm which is obtained from 22 kW input. The hammer mill speed is 2200 rpm and has 8 hammers with the screen size of 2100 x 190 mm.

M 24

This hammer mill speed is 1750 rpm and motor speed is 1450 rpm which is a 37 kW. The hammer mill has 8 hammers with a screen size of 3000 x 190 mm.

M 36

The biggest hammer mill in the M-range is the M36 which speed it 1750 rpm. Its motor runs at 1450 rpm providing 45 kW or 55 kW power. The screen size is 3000 x 265mm and it has 12 hammers.

Now that you know which models you have, you can focus on other tasks such as replacing the screen.

3. Screen

The screen is the part of a hammer mill that determines how fine or how large material needs to be cut before it flows out of the machine. You can use multiple screens to obtain various cutting sizes for your feed. To replace the screen, follow the steps below:

  • You will need the following tools: Two 30c cm spanners. You will use one to keep the bolt steady as you use the other to unscrew the nut.
  • Unscrew the outer rim that is keeping the screen in place. Remove it from the machine.
  • Unscrew the inner rim that is keeping the screen in place. Remove this rim as well.
  • You can now take out the screen to clean it or replace it with a different size.
  • Simply screw the rims back in order to fasten the screen.

Watch the video on replacing screens to see how to do this.

Visit the Drotsky website for more information or find our products on www.Agri4all.com.