Hand (grinder) Jive - a photo essay - Page 21

by **DiYeti** on Fri Feb 08, 2008 8:08 pm

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the 'mokka' denoted a grinder that would mill the beans into an almost powder form. I have both a PeDe 'mokka' and a Zass...and they both grind the gamut, from FP to a pull-choking powder. I use the PeDe for FP and the Zass for espresso - if only for the fact that a full hopper on the PeDe just fills the FP and full hopper on my Zass is good for a two scoop double shot. Lazy? Pffft.

I do have a question about Zass grinders. I've read that the 'signature' Zass handle is the curvy bit. Does anyone know if this is correct? I have a very old grinder that was in my Grandmother's family that has no identifying marks on it....but it does have this curvy handle. Thanks in advance.

by **prof_stack** on Fri Feb 08, 2008 8:13 pm

DiYeti wrote:I seem to remember reading somewhere that the 'mokka' denoted a grinder that would mill the beans into an almost powder form. I have both a PeDe 'mokka' and a Zass...and they both grind the gamut, from FP to a pull-choking powder. I use the PeDe for FP and the Zass for espresso - if only for the fact that a full hopper on the PeDe just fills the FP and full hopper on my Zass is good for a two scoop double shot. Lazy? Pffft.

I do have a question about Zass grinders. I've read that the 'signature' Zass handle is the curvy bit. Does anyone know if this is correct? I have a very old grinder that was in my Grandmother's family that has no identifying marks on it....but it does have this curvy handle. Thanks in advance.

I don't think the curvy handle alone says Zass. I have a couple old German grinders that I'm sure are not Zass and with very curvy handle. Zass has the rep but my Trossers have the street cred.

by **Psyd** on Sat Feb 09, 2008 5:27 pm

johhnyguitar wrote:Felt like we hit the jackpot yesterday - touring the junk stores in the Southwest and found 2 grinders in one store! A Trosser and a Guarantie - we haven't tried either yet.

Yo! You touristy types stay outta the thrift stores! Go back to the malls and the resort gift stores like yer s'poseta!

(mumblegrumble hard enough to find a decent hand grinder muumble Idahoans snowbird rasstagrabinskinierve wait til I get to Idaho this summer, mumble...)

by **orphanespresso** on Tue Feb 12, 2008 1:35 am

LOL! Now that we have bought them all...well...not ALL (2 AZ cities left, and we passed on a few, here & there...) You are MOST welcome to come to Idaho to look for some! We never shop in Boise, or Coeur d'Alene areas, so they're all yours.... Arizona seems to be a hot bed of hand grinders (concluded after a study of the origins of ebay listings) Must have something to do with retirees moving to the area! We are parenthetically, somewhat professional 'finders of things' as we've been in the finding business for 15+ years. So far our tally (only stepless West German Hand Grinders): Bullhead City - 2, Phoenix & surrounds - 5, Tucson - 1. We passed by one that we should have bought in Phoenix, at the Brass Armadillo mall, white West German with flower decals, stepless, in about the center aisle, one row left maybe, towards the front of the store. Also, an Armin Trosser in a case at the first antique store in Tucson, as you head east from the interstate. Shoot, can't remember the name of the store.... Ha Ha - when you factor in the travel expenses, our cost for the grinders is ONLY about $400 each! Ah, the joys of having a quest!

by **Psyd** on Sat Feb 16, 2008 2:38 pm

johhnyguitar wrote: Also, an Armin Trosser in a case at the first antique store in Tucson, as you head east from the interstate.

Head east on what Road? Ya know that the interstate bisects Tucson both N-S an E-W, right?
Details count, and store color might be important.

by **pallen** on Sat Feb 16, 2008 3:32 pm

This thread inspired me to pick up a great-looking Dienes Mokka off ebay. $45.95 + shipping seemed like a great deal.

It grinds fine enough to choke my Saeco Via Vaneto, but It wobbles a bit more than I would like when I'm grinding. I'm happy with the grind quality, I'm just concerned about the burrs wearing from too much travel in the shaft.

You can see in the photo below where the hub that is supposed to hold the shaft has drifted around a bit.

Does anyone know what holds that in place and how this could be tightened? From looking at it, it appears to just be pressed in place somehow. It doesnt appear to be threaded or anything like that.

by **pallen** on Tue Feb 19, 2008 12:50 am

UPDATE:

I have figured out how to tighten a loose shaft on the PeDe.

First, remove the assembly and take out the burrs and shaft. I flipped it upside down so I could see the underside of the top hub that holds the shaft in place. You can see that the hub is basically held in place by the bent out metal tabs that have been folder back and hammered down.

To tighten the hub, I figured I just need to hammer the tabs back down. A 6" long 3/8" socket extension is just about the right diameter to do the job. I centered it over the tabs and tapped the other end with a hammer.

Now there is almost no play in the top of the grinder shaft. Be warned, however, I can no longer close the lid to the hopper on top as I apparently was a little too agressive with the tapping. I'm ok with the tradeoff. I would rather not have a functioning lid and a more consistent, longer lasting grind.

Anyway, I hope this helps save a grinder from the heap somewhere out there...

by **oofnik** on Sat Feb 23, 2008 8:27 pm

Well, it's about time my hand-made hand grinder prototype gave me some problems! :shock:

Recently I've had issues with the main bearing (highlight red) seizing up. I think it's mostly due to my decision to do away with the intermediate bearing that was present in the original design. My guess would be that the larger diameter allowed the force pushing downward from the bottom burr on the adjustment shaft to be distributed over a greater distance, reducing friction. My bearing isn't very happy. It's been making squeaky noises and seizing up during grinding more and more often until the adjustment mechanism couldn't handle the torque and gave way. Well, I fixed that part, but now I need to figure out what to do about reducing bearing friction. I don't really have access to machinery at the moment, so I was thinking I could just lubricate it with something like graphite powder, most commonly used to de-squeak old locks. Any other suggestions guys? Thanks

by **pallen** on Mon Feb 25, 2008 3:21 pm

hmmm. thats a tough one. I bet you could find some sort of true bearing to put in there for a permanent solution. In the meantime, you could try some of that Food-Safe Lubricant. It might also help to polish the mating surfaces to reduce friction.

by **ira** on Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:03 pm

oofnik wrote:Any other suggestions guys? Thanks <image>

Well, a ball bearing of the right size dropped down the hole might work a treat. The've been used for the bearings on inexpensive turntables for years. It would help if the end of the shaft is hardened but it's worth a try if nothing else better comes up.

Ira


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