What is the best way to find a reliable pepper mill?

Question

After someone posted a link to a hand-turned coffee grinder, I was reminded that I needed to replace my pepper mill. My third one in about seven years.

After reading the 1 through 4 star (and skimmed 5 star) reviews of mills from $12-45, they often come down to the grinding mechanism wearing out quickly, the plastic around it somehow messing up, or something falling off while reading more pepper and rendering it nearly inoperable (which is my current predicament: some ring fell off during a refill, and now the knob that holds the top in place ends up dictating the grind coarseness loosens itself after 2-3 uses, and if you over-tighten it, you get no pepper).

What properties should I be looking for in a pepper mill, and why are my pepper mills failing so quickly?

Answer 1

Most basic mills with steel grinders will be OK

What breaks them are

• Overly aggressive grinding; just grind gently and your mill will last much longer
• Keep them dry; do not use a pepper grinder over a steaming pot. Grind pepper into a bowl or plate, and then pour into pot
• Old peppercorns; as they age and dry, they get tougher to grind, and wear most mills out pretty fast. Store peppercorns in very air tight containers, so they can't dry out more than they are meant to be dried
• Avoid those coloured peppercorn mixes; whatever makes the light colours, are also very tough. Stick with plain black pepper
• Contaminants; pour your peppercorns onto a white plate and check for small stones or twigs before loading into grinder. Also check for "insect parts", most local food laws allow some of these, but who wants them!

I have gone through a variety of grinders over the years. Some expensive, some cheap. Price was not a factor, usage and care seem to have been

Acrylic grinders generally die quickly, as the acrylic cracks as it ages. Solid metal or wooden bodies are better as they last longer in general, and keep the pepper in a light proof container (which all food should be stored in, or in a light proof cupboard)

Answer 2

Americas Test Kitchen (sorry, paywalled) has thoroughly tested pepper mills. If you can come up $5, you can get the winner from Amazon.

The big winner winner is:

The Amazon page is here

The highest rated mill under $35 is this one:

That Amazon page is here.

Answer 3

I realise that this doesn't directly answer your question, but perhaps you could also consider using a mortar and pestle? While this may be less convenient, they're much harder to break than any pepper mill.