Oily beans, how to clean the hopper?

[petje]

I have a macap with standard hopper. friends gave me very oily beans and now my hopper looks like a piece of butter was in there!
Should i clean it? (i certainly think so!)
how? that strange plastic fingerguard is in there. rinse it with some dishwasher by hand?

[jesawdy]

I think it is a good habit to wipe out the hopper with a towel or otherwise between batches. I will remove the hopper and wash with soapy water about once a month, probably less (I never have terribly oily beans though).

[HB]

I handwash hoppers with soap and warm water. A baby bottle brush gets where its too narrow. Otherwise the hopper is dishwasher safe (top rack).

[Psyd]

I have a macap with standard hopper.
that strange plastic fingerguard is in there.

This one? 'Standard' is so, well, vague...

That finger guard comes out if you're careful. Comes out in pieces if you're not. You can gently pull up on each corner of the triangle, just be sure that you don't snap it off when it releases, and you'll be fine.

[Niko]

Chris,
you've taken the guard off your hopper? That thing is an abomination to me, you've given me hope! Even if I manage to remove part of it and it starts to break off, will the remaining pieces come out easily for a clean look?
Does anyone have any pics of a MACAP hopper without that fingerguard?

And back to the OP, the hopper is extremely easy to clean. I wipe mine with a paper towel once a month and it looks as good as new.

[petje]

Thanks all. i will try gently pulling the guard, and handwash the hopper with soap later.

[Psyd]

Chris,
you've taken the guard off your hopper? That thing is an abomination to me, you've given me hope! Even if I manage to remove part of it and it starts to break off, will the remaining pieces come out easily for a clean look?
Does anyone have any pics of a MACAP hopper without that fingerguard?

How's this? This is the experiential lesson I passed on for the removal of the guard, as well. I've slipped a slip of paper between the broken parts of an 'over-enthusiastic' removal. If you remove the paper, though, you can't tell that it's broken when it's installed.



And this one will let you compare what it looks like next to Mazzer's mini hopper. You'll notice that the hopper is missing it's lid, but a butter tub lid seems to fit just perfectly.


Hey, if you want the Macap hopper, I need a lid for my mini hopper, I think we might be able to work something out! ; >

[Fr. John]

OK, what gives with the pink eggs? I must have missed a thread somewhere.

[Psyd]

OK, what gives with the pink eggs? I must have missed a thread somewhere.

Oh, those are just some easter egg halves that I 'molded' to fit over the adjustment apparatti so that they don't gather grounds. Makes sweeping up after grinding a coupla shots faster and easier. Ya need to get the larger egg, and use the taller part of the egg, preferably. Once I have the grinder apart, I just take the upper star and heat it gently with a bit of a gas stove flame, and then set it on a flat surface. I rest the egg on it, careful to center it, and let it mold itself to the star and come to a rest against the flat surface. Clean up the parts that spooge out with a razor knife. You want to be careful not to get the star too hot, use common sense when using hot things (they burn and put out noxious fumes) well ventilated area, and all the other caveats that go along with hot and sharp things, and think about having a couple of eggs to experiment with.
The downside is that it isn't really 'removable'. To get the star on and off, the egg has to be out of the way. To solve that, I've been using a 'gorilla glue' that covers the gaps and holds the egg on, but will come off without too much effort, and will clean off both surfaces easily.
I'm contemplating having a regulator knob (the knurled nut that holds the star assembly on) made in the shape of the egg, or maybe a cone. Anyone with metal shop toys?

Since I had the boys apart for cleaning recently, and the decaf Major isn't all back together yet, I've got this lying around the kitchen.