Hand-ground Cafe D'Arte Firenze in a vintage Nuova Point demitasse:



PC

peacecup wrote:Now that looks like the kind of collection, along with your different lever machines, that could really provide some insight into how these grinders work. We'll be looking forward to hearing about some of the differences - one thing I have heard is that the adjustment wheel on the top axle tends to change adjustment during grinding - have you noticed this on any?

I see you have one of the Dienes carved box mills - is that the one with the bakelite drawer that you recently bid on - mine has a plastic drawer, all of which seem to warp after time and don't fit well.

Sometime it may be worth taking side-by-side photos of some of the burrs if there are big differences.

Thanks for posting!

PC

The axle wheel does turn on my grinders during grinding. I turn it back a little after each rotation.

That is the Dienes mill I recently bid on and yep, it has the same drawer as yours. I haven't used it yet. How does your Dienes perform compared to your other grinders?



The side-by-side burr photos are a good idea. Maybe other leverheads will notice differences I missed.

ogatasan wrote:Doug, i am impressed by your collection.

as i am about to move country for the 5th time in 5 years i wonder if i should invest in a decent handgrinder rather than a Mazzer Mini, Super Jolly or a Maccap...

- can you or other members say something about the quality and usability of the zass mocca grinder (topleft) ?
- would you have a recommendation for a specific handgrinder (to go with the Europiccola)?
- can they keep up with a decent electric grinder in your experience? (yes, I have read the titan and other reviews)

Thanks so much,

That brass grinder is my least favorite. It is more cumbersome to use and even though it is new, it doesn't produce results that are on a par with my other hand grinders.

Grinding for a lever machine requires a finer grind than other machines. A good hand grinder is up to the task. Hand grinders produce more fluff that arguably, makes a better tasting shot.

Buy your hand grinder on eBay from a German seller and be sure it says Made in Western Germany on the bottom. My best grinder, the Zassenhaus 153, has a stainless steel shaft rather than a black one and is brass on the bottom instead of black. See if you can get the seller to take a picture of the bottom of the shaft by removing the drawer.

http://www.home-barista.com/forum...senhaus-t3751.html

Sorry to confuse you - the bakelite won't warp. My blue PeDe has an old bakelite drawer that still works fine. The newer ones were translucent yellow plastic, and these seem to warp for some reason. I'm fixin to make a wooden drawer for it but have not gotten the chance.

With the exception of one very old one, the Dienes mills I've had have all worked very well for espresso. My first hand mill some four years ago was a Dienes, and it still works.

If you look inside the hopper you'll see the Dienes has a six-star configuration on top the inner burr - this means there are six "channels" for beans to enter. The one Zass I have has only five. Does this effect grind quality? Not sure, but the Zass I've been testing does not go quite as fine as all the Deines' I've used.

It would be good to hear from some other Zassenhaus users.

PC

Zassenhaus 154

Zassenhaus 153

Zassenhaus 153

Dienes

The differences are becoming more apparent. Both of the Zass 153's have Made in Western Germany on the bottom, but even they have different shaft and burr coloring.

I'm not staying at my house, so I don't have tools for a pull apart. I'll do that another time.

Doug,

Is there a model/name under the Dienes - mine has a "623 Mokka" and German wording (some have English wording - presumably these were for export). Yours looks very similar to one of the ones in my group photo.

The drawer on that Dienes looks more like the bakelite one on my older PeDe. It looks like harder plastic than the newer one I have, and less likely to warp. Incidently, mine came "as new" with the original tag and instruction sheet - I'll try to post photos soon.

This reminds me that plastic drawers are more prone to static in areas that have that problem. Juneau is not one of those areas, with 100 inches of rain a year.


RE: burrs, all of my five Dienes on hand have the six-sided star configuration when viewed from the top. Interesting that you photo seems to show five.

PC

Ah, now I see yours is a Dienes, but not a "Mokka". From this, the writing style on the lable (font), and the flat, rather that angled handle, I gather that yours is older. It looks to be in very nice condition.

PC

Fullsack wrote:That brass grinder is my least favorite. It is more cumbersome to use and even though it is new, it doesn't produce results that are on a par with my other hand grinders.

Doug,

Thank you for your opinion, and your posts here and in other threads! I'll take your advice and look out for a boxmodel now. Besides I feel better about an unsuccessful ebay bid where a new zass turkish was sold around 45$ in germany. The turkish would be my preferred choice for its look and transportability, but grinding performance is of higher value...

ogatasan wrote:Doug,

Thank you for your opinion, and your posts here and in other threads! I'll take your advice and look out for a boxmodel now. Besides I feel better about an unsuccessful ebay bid where a new zass turkish was sold around 45$ in germany. The turkish would be my preferred choice for its look and transportability, but grinding performance is of higher value...

For transportability, a good compromise would be the Zass 156 knee mill. I have 2 pictured above, the black one and the dark red one. They take up considerably less room than the standard box models.

The one pictured in this travel kit gives you a better idea of how compact they can be:
http://www.home-barista.com/forum...t-t3212.html#40646

To stimulate the senses, here's a hand-ground, ~14 g, 1-oz ristretto, from karlschneider's private reserve Brazil Cachoeira de Grama Yellow Bourbon, 6-d post roast. I'm still dialing in the PeDe on this one, but it was silky-smooth, and still lingering as I post this. Karl is currently having a go with the conical-burr DeVe seen earlier in this thread, and seems to be finding it to his liking. Hopefully he'll be posting his impressions here soon.



Yes, those are salmon under the Golden Gate in the background. Too bad I'm missing the American Fisheries Society meeting in SF next week - not that the science is that interesting, but Doug's 1-group Astoria is probably within striking distance!

PC[/img]

And here's a hand-ground Cafe D'Arte in a brown NP tulip: