I got home from work today expecting to have a big box in the kitchen. No luck, it was still on the UPS delivery truck. While I am upstairs changing I hear the dog bark, I grin ear to ear. A few moments later the wife calls out 'you have a delivery, what did you get?' to which I reply 'cups!'. An awkward moment of silence, aaa, this is not a box of cups??!!. I am grinning so hard my face is going to break.

So I come down stairs and there it sits on the kitchen table. A BIG box, so I meander over, give it a look. Hmm, man, they did it again! I have to quit ordering cups from Chris Coffee. Every time I order cups they send me a grinder! I got my Mazzer from him not quite a year ago and used the same line.

Thankfully she got a chuckle out of it and none of my blood was spilled.

This guy is hefty. It outweighs my Mazzer by several pounds. It is about the same size as my Mini. That squat bean hopper is deceiving, it holds a good pound of beans. It may be a little bigger than the hopper on the Mini P. It feels like there is more packed into smaller package than the MM.





I hook it all up and grind my first shot. The Cimbali has larger burrs than the Mini so I was expecting it to fly through the dose. I was somewhat disappointed in the grind speed. The grinder was still set on 2, which is where it was out of the box. So I start my level. The grinds feel finer than I am use to. Upon closer inspection, that was more a Turkish grind, power like, now I am impressed. A couple of grinds later, I have it dialed in. Noticeably faster grind than my Mini and a pretty good shot.

So I guess this means I have officially gone over the edge and there is no turning back at this point. A lever machine, Cimbali Jr and a two group commercial machine in the kitchen. I should probably seek professional help...

I have already removed the tamper on the front and I think the finger guard will be next. Not being able to sweep out the grind shoot is annoying. Thanks to Chris and the HB birthday special, I got it for 395, brand-spanking new.

I really like the micro grind adjustment. It only gets used for espresso so having rapid wide adjustments, like the Mazzer adjustment ring, is not needed. It grinds faster and quieter than my Mazzer. I was surprised at the inertia that the larger burrs carry. With no load, the burrs take several more seconds to spin down vs. the Mini.

My first few hours' impression of the grinder; I think the Mazzer has a more solid feel but that is probably due to the large, solid aluminum case vs. the Cimbali's stainless shell. However, the Cimbali appears to be easier to work on because you can remove the shell from the frame. With a Mazzer, you have to drop the guts out of the housing.

I have not looked at the burr carriers so I do not know how difficult it would be to change the burrs in the Cimbali; the Mazzer is incredibly easy to change. But given the duty cycle of the Cimbali, it will be years before I have to replace them. The Cimbali also appears to not throw the grinds as far to the left as my Mazzer does when whacking the doser. I also like the push button power switch located in the front of the machine just under the doser lever. That way you can push the power button with your thumb while dosing.

Cimbali Jr verses the Mazzer Mini, the Cimbali defiantly seems more full time business and the Mini more of a backup production grinder. The larger burrs, automatic doser fill and doser counter help emphasize that point. I am sure both grinders will serve me well for a lifetime. The Mini is going to support my Isomac at my office and my Gaggia MDF will go up for sale.

The chop stick is an interesting idea. I am currently using a long bristle brush. It is about the diameter of a pencil. I was thinking of something with a 45 degree bend so I could work from either side of the doser.

I am using a combination of both yours and Bob's idea. I have been cleaning out the chute with the brush and then giving it a two second pulse to clean out any remaining grounds.

It may still meet my Dremel at a later date. I do not believe I have one piece of equipment that has not been modified to some extent. I even returned the handle on my generic tamper to better fit my hand. My HB tamper may be the only unmodified device that I have.

Any other words of wisdom as to any specific quirks the grinder has will be appreciated.