Hello: I wanted to get inside my K-30 Vario for a more through cleaning but have not found the way in. I removed the screw on the side of the grind adjusting top plate but the plate does not lift off at that point. Printed manual says remove 3 screws but not which or where. PDF from Ditting (on grinder that looks exactly like mine) seems to say the one side screw is all that needs to be removed to pull the top but it's not working. Anyone know?
Thanks, KDM

I don't think it has been established that disassembling a grinder for cleaning serves any useful purpose, especially with the tiny quantities that run through it in home use. The nooks and crannies where coffee grounds accumulate will quickly fill up again, and those places never touch the coffee you are brewing, anyway.

Probably more home users have damaged their machines (cross-threading, etc.) than improved them by taking them apart. I would just run a commercial grinder cleaner like Grindz or Puly Crystals through it.

Although Marshall may have a valid point, different people have different preferences regarding grinder hygiene. I occasionally clean mine to avoid the eventual "funkiness" that staling coffee oils can experience. To me, if I can smell it then it affects my overall experience (even if it is true that these older packed-in grounds never touch the coffee I drink).

The K30 is made to be very easily serviceable with very little chance of cross-threading if the well documented instructions are followed closely. Remove the side screw and adjust coarser past the scale a few degrees so that the "keys" (installed on the lid) arrive in the slots of the body that allows you to remove the top.

Once you have the lid in the proper alignment then it should lift off easily. Download the manual and review pages 14 and 15 for detailed instructions. RIGHT CLICK HERE and "SAVE AS" for the manual

Marshall wrote:Probably more home users have damaged their machines (cross-threading, etc.) than improved them by taking them apart. I would just run a commercial grinder cleaner like Grindz or Puly Crystals through it.

Grindz is expensive and you'd have to be a massive idiot to cross-thread your burr carrier when reassembling. I have never ever read a report about someone cross-threading their grinder. Just endless warnings that you could and thereby totally destroying your grinder, which is also highly unlikely unless you're using a meter long cheater bar to torque the thing in.

Not to mention my four decades of experience working on compex machinery(of course no one knew that). I tried the method recommended but the top would not come up so I stopped at that point to ask. Never force anything unless:
A) It is going to be junked anyway or
B) A proper amount of force is known and necessary
There seems to be a gap or shelf above the top burr that was trapping grounds. I swept it with a toothbrush from above but could not reach it all. Next time the hopper is empty I'll try again.
Thanks all for the advice.
KDM

Bluecold wrote:Grindz is expensive and you'd have to be a massive idiot to cross-thread your burr carrier when reassembling. I have never ever read a report about someone cross-threading their grinder.

I suppose one can achieve a certain sense of satisfaction by calling everyone who is less mechanically adept "a massive idiot," but consumers have been posting help requests for years, saying they've locked their burrs together after cleaning out their grinders. As for myself, I only knew about the "first turn in the opposite direction until it clicks" trick from my old days with threaded SLR lenses.

Marshall wrote:I suppose one can achieve a certain sense of satisfaction by calling everyone who is less mechanically adept "a massive idiot,"

I also suppose it's easy to dismiss grinder disassembly for cleaning as "doesn't serve any useful purpose" after you've spent $1k on a grinder that you can't disassemble.

but consumers have been posting help requests for years, saying they've locked their burrs together after cleaning out their grinders.

I personally have never found such a report here on H-B or on Dutch coffee related fora.

As for myself, I only knew about the "first turn in the opposite direction until it clicks" trick from my old days with threaded SLR lenses.

That trick is posted next to every grinder disassembly guide. Use it and it's almost impossible to lock up your grinder.

Bluecold wrote:I also suppose it's easy to dismiss grinder disassembly for cleaning as "doesn't serve any useful purpose" after you've spent $1k on a grinder that you can't disassemble.

You have it backwards. After 10 years of using burr grinders at home (the last 6 or so being a Mazzer Mini and a La Cimbali Max Hybrid), I had already decided cleanings were a waste of time (at best). And once you are buying high-end equipment, the expense of commercial burr cleaners is trivial, especially if you put a value on your time.