Hand grinder shopping

[carrie kennedy]

Hey Peacecup, Prof, and others-
Been looking on ebay, cant remember the specs to look for. Forged or cast, stepless or not. If it is stepless, what is the grind? Thanks.

[prof_stack]

Hey Peacecup, Prof, and others-
Been looking on ebay, cant remember the specs to look for. Forged or cast, stepless or not. If it is stepless, what is the grind? Thanks.

Mostly you'll want to look at German made mills. Forged and stepless. Most all the German grinders are forged and stepless, so no worries.

The grind settings are infinitely adjustable. For espresso you'll go pretty tight.

I've picked up a few on ebay. Surprisingly, older ones are often as good or better than cleaner, newer ones.

Demand seems to be down since the holiday season is past so you can probably save some $$ on one.

Have fun shopping!

Peacecup will have more to say.

[roadman]

I have an old German hand grinder that's been used for grinding spices. If it can be cleaned I was thinking of using it as my on-the-road grinder. Any cleaning tips?
Jon

[timo888]

I have an old German hand grinder that's been used for grinding spices. If it can be cleaned I was thinking of using it as my on-the-road grinder. Any cleaning tips?
Jon

You might try grinding a mixture of Rock Salt and Minute Rice.

Regards
Timo

[peacecup]

Mostly you'll want to look at German made mills. Forged and stepless. Most all the German grinders are forged and stepless, so no worries.

Not all German-made grinders are stepless - if they have a little wheel-nut with four notches on top to adjust the grind they are stepped - you have to select one of the four settings on any given turn of the nut. I would avoid these.

Also, you want MACHINED, not cast burrs. The grinders do not say this, so it can be hit and miss. Try asking the seller if the burrs appear sharp - cast burrs will not adjust finely enough.

Most say "guarantied forged" or some such, but I'm not positive if this means for certain that they are machined.

I agree with profstack that some of the older ones still work well. I think that as the burrs wear their ability to grind more finely and evenly may increase. Considering my oldest is ~50 years, and capable of producing a fine, even, powder, I'd say most quality hand grinders will outlast the espresso machine and the barista!

pc