looks like this thread has somewhat died, so i'd like to revive it.
I've been thinking about this over the past year or two. Just bought a small tractor MF GC2310 (23
hp) and so i am now rethinking this with a little more seriousness.
So just some thoughts on the subject...
Has anyone made any progress?
Do the prices requested seem a bit high?
Can I build one?
Seems like the press and die are the key componant. Other than that you need the
pto shaft and gear box. Is there any existing implement that delivers the gear ratio required to power a pellet mill? Can i cannibalize something to get what i need?
I saw some vague questions regarding moisture content. What i have found is that most sites reference a pre-pelleting content of 12 - 18% with a finished moisture <8%. SOme commercial places use the waste dust to generate heat for the dryers.
Also there was a comment about not pelleting durring the winter as it's too wet. I'd think the opposite. The air is much dryer in winter than spring. The difficulty is bringing the temperature up to drying temp, no?
I am looking at using miscanthus x Giganteus (Elephant grass) as my source. Trials in europe get up to 18 metric tones per acre. More if there was a method to keeing the leaves on. The leaves fall off leaving a bamboo-like cane up to 12 feet tall. I finally located a source and purchanges 4 plants. I'll see what the growth rate is truely like. Additionally, i am considering leaf waste from fall collections. Infrastrutire is already in place with town leaf collection sites. I am gussing that using such material as the source would eliminate the need for a hammermill and i might get away with a series of weed whackers in a tube design.
Have fun!
Poppa