Bob_McBob wrote:Major (new): $1375
Major (used): $800 (possibly plus new burrs)

Not saying this is typical but locally purchased Major (Astoria plate) was $450.00 and a factory burr set from EPNW was a bit over $50.00 with tax and shipping.

So for a bit of cleaning time you could have one of the longest running, best track record 83mm grinders for the $5-6 bill range. Good deals like that are around a lot of the time, I know they had at least two more sitting there for that price.

All I am saying is that going big may not cost as much as you have budgeted for.

Good luck on your hunt.

-Cecil

CRCasey wrote:Not saying this is typical but locally purchased Major (Astoria plate) was $450.00 and a factory burr set from EPNW was a bit over $50.00 with tax and shipping.

Yep, that is fairly typical. My final price of $800 is in CAD, with a 2.5% exchange fee, 13% sales tax, and $100 shipping. All the prices I listed represent the final overall cost to me for each option.

Used Majors and high-end grinders in general seem to be pretty much impossible to find in Canada. I've been checking the Toronto-area Craigslist for a couple of months, and I've only seen one Super Jolly, which was long gone by the time I heard back from the seller. On eBay, Majors are rare enough in the States, let alone here, now that most of the liquidated Starbucks stock is gone.

I got to play around with a bunch of high end grinders from the Super Jolly up through the Robur. The one I wanted when I left after pulling about 10-20 shots on each was the Super Jolly. I didn't think it was better than the Robur in my unscientific and haphazard testing, but it wasn't obvious it was noticeably worse either for a home barista. (Extra speed, electronic dosing, etc are fun and a bonus, but not essential for me at home). The SJ had the advantages of being a better size for my kitchen and much cheaper, so it was an easy choice for me and in the 6 months or so I've owned it I've never had any desire to replace it and I don't think that will change. Even if the Robur, K10, etc had been the price of the Major I would have gone with an SJ. if they'd all been the same price as the SJ I probably would have gotten one of the huge grinders and been banished from the kitchen. So I guess what i'm saying is that the Major probably has advantages over the Super Jolly, but I wouldn't sweat it.

Also I didn't do a search to give you a direct link, but I've seen Dan mention several places that if he weren't running HB he'd be happy with a SJ as his grinder (and that deserves far more weight than my comments)!

Hugh

Bob_McBob wrote:Used Majors and high-end grinders in general seem to be pretty much impossible to find in Canada.

You're right. But that applies to any Mazzer. I put my Mazzer Mini on Craigslist in Canada and it was sold the same day for 80% of what I paid new.

Another good reason why not to shy away from buying a new Mazzer.

I do love the grind my Major gives me day in and day out. But there is one down side. The thing grinds so fast that it is hard to flip it on and off fast enough to run doserless. But I am building a timer for it that I can adjust to .1sec. That is the benefit of DIY I guess. For most cases that would be overkill, but not for that beast.

-Cecil

This is a tougher choice than I thought it would be. I'm thinking of starting a poll!

On the one hand, the Super Jolly seems like a reasonable upgrade to the M4 (unless you head over to the coffeesnobs forum...). On the other hand, the idea of even fluffier grinds, much faster grinding and perhaps somewhat less day-to-day tinkering with grind settings is very appealing to me. The added size and issues with the interlock collar on the new Majors are annoying, though.

I don't really see myself buying a conical or anything really crazy beyond this any time in the next few years, so I don't want to let that idea influence my decision. I'd certainly like to make it a big upgrade I won't regret and end up upgrading again later. Hmm... To update prices, we are talking about C$885 for the SJ or C$1300-1400 (depending on whether I can call in a favour with a visiting friend) for the Major.

Whatever grinder I buy, I definitely want to run it off an external timer. It's not so much for dosing (I weigh all my doses) as being able to thwack and distribute in the PF basket without having to worry about turning off the grinder in the middle so I don't overshoot. This is probably a topic for a separate thread, but I'd certainly be interested to see what you're putting together, Cecil. The only feasible options short of tinkering yourself seem to be the 1s Waring timer and used (ugly!) darkroom timers on eBay.

The timer for the Major is second or third down on my list at the moment. But when I do get to it I will post coverage of it. But in general it is simple... A small micro controller, a display, a knob or switch or two, matching cords for the grinders AC plugs, and a 110/220v solid state relay will fill the bill.

If there is a calling I could move it up on the project list. But it would be in the $80-100 range depending on the cost of the SSR.

That would be in line with a timer that comes on the machines equipped with them.

-Cecil

A lot of diy grinder timers seem to be built around digital timer units like this. I think espressoparts actually has a modification service that fits a Delta CTA4 into the side of the grinder. Add $200 worth of very expensive Mazzer parts and it seems to be functionally identical to the dosereless electronic grinders.

What's required in addition to the timer other than a relay and switch? I assume a little more is needed if you want an external box for the grinder to plug into vs. just bypassing the internal switch.

The only thing you need other than that is a legal team to make sure you are not liable for any damages.

You know, water and 1500 watts of power are a suit waiting to happen if your box is on the counter.

No matter how much you idiot proof anything they will always come up with a better idiot.

-Cecil

This is pretty much how darkroom timers and the Waring appliance timer work, isn't it? Obviously the appliance timer is reasonably well-protected against splashes, but darkroom timers generally aren't. Anyhow, the only benefit to building an external power box like this is to avoid having to disassemble the built-in switch like I originally described.

Apparently the doserless chute Mazzer uses on the larger electronic grinders is not available for purchase separately. I read a post from espressoparts last year saying they'd have them by October 2008. I just heard back from them today, and it's still not available. I'm not holding my breath on that one...