Decided to upgrade my Rancilio Rocky after years being a happy user to a Macap MC4.

Just tried using a brand new black one today, purchased from 1st Line Equipment. I found the zero point, then clicked one notch up.

Inserted some beans. Motor runs, beans move around, but no ground coffee dispenses.

With motor running, I clicked up a notch. And again, and again, and again. It took about 10-15 clicks to a dial setting of about 2.5 as the absolute minimum before grounds start dispensing.

Tried making espresso at this setting. Pulled 2 ounces in less than 10 seconds. This is like a medium grind. Not at all suitable for espresso.

I vacuumed out the grinder. I unscrewed the upper burr and inspected the inside of the machine. It appears fine. There's nothing blocking anything, it looks as it should. I brushed it and vacuumed anyways. The burrs look good. (I'm not a pro but I mean there aren't any obvious cracks or immediately visible flaws.)

I put it back together and after about an hour of working with it and trying different coffees, I get consistent results. A minimum of 2.5 (about 15 clicks up from zero) until the grinder dispenses. I had one coffee (an espresso blend) that did actually pull too slow at this setting.

I hooked back up the Rocky. The Rocky will dispense grounds even if the burrs are touching. It had no problem producing espresso that extracted in 25 - 30 seconds with all of the coffees that I tried in the Macap.

The reason I upgraded, is that the Rocky will sometimes, with some coffees, not be possible to dial in. One setting may take 35 seconds to do 2 ounces, where one click up will result in a 22 second or so pull. Not a HUGE problem when making different coffees, but I wanted finer tuning. (It seems like Rancilio should make a v2 of the Rocky that has finer stepping.)

To me, this is a downgrade, since the Macap will not work at all with a lot of coffees. The Rocky also has a MUCH easier to read index: silver with black index marks for EACH setting. The Macap has no index marks and only has raised black lettering that I need a flashlight to see in my dark kitchen. I also noticed that the Macap is more messy than the Rocky. I had grounds all over my counter despite HOLDING a container under the dispenser. That doesn't happen with the Rocky.

Because I grind shot to shot (i.e., I don't fill the hopper), and drink different coffees with each shot, a stepped grinder makes more sense because I can get better repeatability. I use a Gene Cafe Roaster and roast all my own coffee in 8 oz batches, so I can't really afford (time and effort wise) to waste coffee dialing in each time.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? Do I maybe have a defective machine? Can anyone confirm if the Macap MC4 can dispense grounds at the zero point, or how much they have to dial up from zero before grounds are dispensed?

AllNight wrote:...

Because I grind shot to shot (i.e., I don't fill the hopper), and drink different coffees with each shot, a stepped grinder makes more sense because I can get better repeatability. I use a Gene Cafe Roaster and roast all my own coffee in 8 oz batches, so I can't really afford (time and effort wise) to waste coffee dialing in each time.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? Do I maybe have a defective machine? Can anyone confirm if the Macap MC4 can dispense grounds at the zero point, or how much they have to dial up from zero before grounds are dispensed?

No, doesn't sound familiar.

I use the MC4, stepped. My espressos are ground between 2.0 and 2.2. I have no grind retention issues as described. I also use the same grinder at a lower setting for Turkish grind and have no problems getting the grounds to come out of the snout, as designed.

I don't grind at the zero point so can't help you there.

So it sounds like I might have a defective unit. (Maybe defective burrs?)

Don't they bench test these before shipping them? It would seem this problem would have shown up.

I tried sending a message using the web form to 1st Line Equipment; I also tried e-mailing them. I also e-mailed Macap (I tried using the web contact form but I got an "error sending" message after clicking the submit button).

Will update with further developments.

I think one of the bigger 'issue' here is the expectation - you seem to expect the Macap to grind at near zero setting (which is rarely the case for a well built grinder). Macap is built to a higher tolerance after all. For instance - with the burrs touching on the Rocky, the Rocky might not even grind as fine as the Macap at, say, 5 notches from zero. So, I think what happened was that you started grinding too fine on the Macap, which somehow clogged the grinder.

Since you've vacuumed out the grinder, it should be fine now. Just work around the 2.5 (15 clicks from zero). My guess is you probably don't ever need to grind below 1.5 for espresso. Also, are you using darker roast? Darker roast sometimes has oil built up on them, which will have a tendency to clog the grinder as well.

So I don't think your Macap has a problem *yet* from what I understand and what you presented here.

samuellaw178 wrote:...My guess is you probably don't ever need to grind below 1.5 for espresso. Also, are you using darker roast? Darker roast sometimes has oil built up on them, which will have a tendency to clog the grinder as well...

For the OP's reference, when I grind espresso (or Turkish) on my MC4, the deepest I roast is a couple of snaps into 2nd, at the darkest. Never oil.

Yes, all my coffees are City - Full City+ beans. I never go into 2nd crack. All beans are non oily.

I see. That rules that out oily beans then.Try working from coarser to finer since you're single dosing. Try a grind. Too coarse? Then go finer. I think you should be able to get the grind dispenses below 2.5 that way (not the other way round). Otherwise, it's worth looking into 'buyer's remorse' policy. Some doserless are less efficient when single dosing and designed specifically for hopper use (not sure if the Macaps are this way).


Also, *sometimes*, a pair of new burrs need to 'burn in' before grinding optimally and starts producing more fluffy grind. No first hand experience in that though.

samuellaw178 wrote:I think one of the bigger 'issue' here is the expectation - you seem to expect the Macap to grind at near zero setting (which is rarely the case for a well built grinder). Macap is built to a higher tolerance after all. For instance - with the burrs touching on the Rocky, the Rocky might not even grind as fine as the Macap at, say, 5 notches from zero. So, I think what happened was that you started grinding too fine on the Macap, which somehow clogged the grinder.

I would have the expectation that I should get equal or better performance from the Macap MC4 since it is of a similar design to the Rocky doserless. No?

I already tried again after I vacuumed out the grinder. It stays consistent at the 2.5 setting. Any setting below that, with any coffee, will not dispense.

That setting produces WAY WAY too coarse a grind on coffees (shots pull in less than 10 seconds for 2 ounces) that I can put through the Rocky and get a proper grind that makes an espresso that pulls in 25-30 seconds.

I opened, brushed, and vacuumed out the machine several times in fact. I tried at about 10 notches above zero after cleaning and still get nothing dispensing. As soon as I go up those five extra clicks, then it dispenses.

And as I mentioned, all beans are non oily and not roasted into 2nd crack.

I have never had anything like this happen ever in all of the years I've used the Rocky. I'm confused by your statement that a well built grinder would not dispense at the zero setting. The Rocky is not a grinder that I would describe as "not well built" because it can grind at the zero point.

I'm at a loss. I'll try anything at this point.

samuellaw178 wrote:I see. That rules that out oily beans then.Try working from coarser to finer since you're single dosing. Try a grind. Too coarse? Then go finer. I think you should be able to get the grind dispenses below 2.5 that way (not the other way round). Otherwise, it's worth looking into 'buyer's remorse' policy. Some doserless are less efficient when single dosing and designed specifically for hopper use (not sure if the Macaps are this way).

It appears to have a very similar design to the Rocky. You are saying that the weight of the beans in the hopper would push the coffee through? I did fill about a cup of beans into the hopper and it had no effect. I CAREFULLY used a spoon to apply SLIGHT pressure to the beans with the motor running. It had no effect.

Not sure how this is a case of buyer's remorse. I should be able to put 30 or so grams of coffee into the machine and get an espresso grind for a ~$500 machine!

AllNight wrote:I would have the expectation that I should get equal or better performance from the Macap MC4 since it is of a similar design to the Rocky doserless. Is that wrong of me?

I already tried again after I vacuumed out the grinder. It stays consistent at the 2.5 setting. Any setting below that, with any coffee, will not dispense.

That setting produces WAY WAY too coarse a grind on coffees (shots pull in less than 10 seconds for 2 ounces) that I can put through the Rocky and get a proper grind that makes an espresso that pulls in 25-30 seconds.

I opened, brushed, and vacuumed out the machine several times in fact. I tried at about 10 notches above zero after cleaning and still get nothing dispensing. As soon as I go up those five extra clicks, then it dispenses.

And as I mentioned, all beans are non oily and not roasted into 2nd crack.

I have never had anything like this happen ever in all of the years I've used the Rocky. I'm confused by your statement that a well built grinder would not dispense at the zero setting. The Rocky is not a grinder that I would describe as "not well built" because it can grind at the zero point.

I'm at a loss. I'll try anything at this point.

Ahh, you seem to take it the wrong way. What I mean that, in my experience, some home grinders need to be touching in order to grind fine enough for espresso. All the commercial grinders I've used do that well before the zero points. Thus, if I take the commercial grinder to the similar setting as the home grinder, it'll definitely choke due to the overly fine coffee ground.

But yes, if you can't get the ground to dispense at setting 2 on the Macap (after vacuuming), then there's a problem with the Macap. It should be able to dispense grind at that setting (if it can't choke the machine). It may be a design problem since mechanically nothing is wrong from what you diagnosed.