I am getting ready to get some new burrs for my SJ. I was reading about the duraniums and that they offer grinding speeds close to that of the Major, but I also read about frequent stalling. If anyone would like to chime in on their experience with these, it would be appreciated. I have read many threads about it and they haven't been updated in a while, and so I am making a new thread. I am particularly looking for the answer to these following questions:

1- has yours stalled?
2- how often has it stalled?
3- if it stalls, do you just turn it off and then back on or do you adjust coarser and then back to original setting?
4- does it get annoying? and if you adjust coarser (Q #3) do you end up wasting quite a bit of coffee?
5- would the duraniums work better for a doserless SJ setup (clumping/speed/waste) than the regular burrs, or would it be about the same.

thanks guys

I used the Duranium burrs for about 6 months in my SJs, first in my 06 w/doser & then in my 02 w/funnel conversion. I never had a stall in either but I only ground for espresso in the large body 06. The 02 doserless was used strictly for vac pot grinding & if it is true that the narrow body versions had less power the stalling issue "might" have shown up when grinding finer. I personally found that I got nicer pours with less effort with the stock seasoned burrs in my 06 then with the Duraniums but I suppose its possible they weren't used long enough to fully break in?? No idea but I saw a definite improvement when I put the stock (low mileage) burrs back in the 06.

Thank you for that John. That's something interesting to note...sort of driving me away from the Duraniums. The only reason, to be honest, that they are enticing, is their speed. I don't care much for the lasting long (what's 50$ every few years when we spend 1000s on the machine?!). Is this enough of a reason to get them?


Any other opinions?

Hello all,

About a year ago I purchased a lightly used SJ (rebadged Astoria) from a bowling alley that thought it wanted to do espresso. It is an 06 machine, so newer body style. The grinder was very clean, and I don't think the bowling alley kids probably did much to clean it. Rather than wonder about the condition of the burrs (which looked fine and felt sharp), I purchased Duraniums, cleaned the grind path and dropped them in. I never did try the old burrs, but the Duraniums have worked fine for me. I have not had any stalls, I can easily grind fine enough to choke my machine (Elektra, which likes a pretty fine grind) and it is super fast (about 7 sec for a double). My shots are as good as my technique; that is to say I don't think there are any negatives associated with the grinder or these burrs (and it sure is a step up from my Solis Maestro). Others who have compared both commented that the Duraniums seem to produce fluffier grinds than the the stock burrs; you have probably found the links by now. Overall I have been very happy with my setup.

Backing up some of Michael's thoughts, I went the other way with my SJ. I have the doser and left it on, so I added the Mini finger guard (which looks like a grate), polished the chute to encourage flow in an attempt to reduce waste (made no difference whatsoever, but satisfied my OCD) and attached a stainless steel Schetermatic to address static issues. I added sweeps to my doser fins, so I can easily empty the doser if I grind the right amount. Assuming you grind what you need and empty the doser, most of the waste in an SJ is in the grind path, so doser or doserless, you will have nearly the same amount of waste. I jab a brush at the grate, then grind and dump the residue if it has been sitting for a while. The overall waste is probably equivalent to a single or a little more if I am careful. A small price to pay for good results.

Enjoy your Experience.
James

Thank you all for your responses/opinions. Do you guys think there would be any difference in waste if I go doserless between the stock and the duraniums?

Michael, my fault, I inferred from your single dose comment that you had removed the doser. Agreed, it is relatively easy to single dose with the SJ, doser or doserless. Just for further info on the finger guard, I had the standard finger guard, it did not seem to make much of a difference in the static issues. I even tried attaching strong magnets to it hoping that getting the coffee to slide past the magnets would knock down the static; it did not (and I later found information stating that magnets will have no effect on static, in contrast to some other information I had seen). I suggest trying the Mini finger guard and leaving off the original doser guard; you can still get to the chute to clean the opening, and the grate design does help with static for me. Also, because the coffee pushes through the grate, it does not fly around, mostly it piles up at the bottom. Someone here on the site even made a removable grate for cleaning the chute; but you still can't clean around the burrs easily. My conclusion is that purging and regular cleaning are the best bets for the SJ; otherwise buy a Nino! .

GewoW wrote:Thank you all for your responses/opinions. Do you guys think there would be any difference in waste if I go doserless between the stock and the duraniums?

As far as waste between Duraniums and standard burrs, the only issue I can see is that you have to pay more attention with the Duraniums because they grind faster. Once you get used to timing the grind for a dose, there shouldn't really be any difference.

Enjoy your experience, James

michaelbenis wrote:Ha! James: I've got a Nino and love it!

Yes, I know - I have followed the Nino thread with great interest; only money keeps me from a Nino/GS3 upgrade . It must be coincidence that since you joined HB, you've added the Elektra MCal and Nino, right ?

michaelbenis wrote:I'm even considering getting a Major to maximise my flat burr excesses....

Wow, I am pretty sure that you would have more equipment than any coffee shop I ever visited in the UK except perhaps the one at Harrods!!

By the way, did you ever get by RedRoaster on St. James? Just curious what you thought.

Best, James