Runner stone

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A 'runner' millstone. Dalgarven Mill, Ayrshire, Scotland.
A 'runner' millstone. Dalgarven Mill, Ayrshire, Scotland.

A runner stone is the upper-most of a pair of working millstones. The runner stone spins above the stationary bedstone creating the "scissoring" or grinding action of the stones. A runner stone is generally slightly concave, while the bedstone is slightly convex. This helps to channel the ground flour to the outer edges of the stones where it can be gathered up.