cannonfodder wrote:To each his own. As a said, it did produce a shot but I personally did not care for it, but if my two choices were a whirly blade, preground or the hand mill, I would go with the hand mill in a second.

Um, Dave aren't those three choices? On second thought, given those options I guess it's really only one choice: the crank.

I'm kinda curious about that Zass knee mill labeled "espresso" and given a different SKU number than their other knee mills. Is it actually different from the others outside of having an "espresso" label on it? If so, too bad it's not available in N.A. I believe Mark Prince at one time also took note of this mill but didn't have any info on it. Can anyone else shed any light?

I have a Zass box mill I bought from Sweet Marias about 7 years ago. I sold my Rocky and I am using it while I wait for the Cimbali Hybrid to be back in stock.

It makes an ok cup. I find it is better to leave the adjustment and change to dose to hit numbers. I do like that if I put 17 grams in, I get 17 grams out. I get good consistent pulls but the flavor is flat. Even my unsophisticated taste buds can tell that. The burrs are touching when I grind but SM said that is fine so....

-Steve

I have a Zass 156. I use it as my second espresso grinder (M4 is the primary grinder) and for my press pot. I pretty much screw it down until the burrs touch for espresso. For press, it is excellent - takes no time at all. For 16gr ground for espresso it takes a good couple of minutes of cranking but the results are pretty consistent. Would rather have a second M4 but the better half has ruled that out. I wouldn't use this as a primary grinder but for a second grinder it works fine.

Cheers

Ian

peacecup wrote: I'd like to know how many of you honestly can say that your electric grinder tastes better.

PC, I tried to give the impression that, if anything, the shots from my PeDe were better than those from my Majors. No scientific data, but that's the impression I was left with.
Speaking of scientific data, I'd rather have a mill that I can use now than experiment with the present 156 to see how it progresses. It will be my travel mill to go with my travel kit, and I need something that performs. The PeDe is nice, but it's old and fragile, and I need something a bit more robust.
If you'd like to continue the experimentation, however, I'd happily get you the grinder for whipping and what I have into it... ; >

I'm still trying to find someone that can tell me what the differences between the espressomuehle and the kaffemuehle are, and how to tell one from another. Ya know, for future purchases.