I am quite sure that either one can be tweaked to minimize or eliminate that issue. In most instances it is a case of a pea under 6 mattresses.

I'm happy to try realignment when I have the time, but it's not something that only happens outside the normal range of grind adjustments like you suggest. It happens completely unpredictably throughout the entire length of the locking ring's thread. I don't think it's a "pea under 6 mattresses" issue to expect the shaft to reliably turn freely without binding when the grind adjustment is locked. It's not something I've experienced with any other hand grinder including the LIDO 2.

I have that intermittent rub throughout the entire length of the ring as well on my Lido 2. What helps is if I press down on the hopper while screwing the locking ring tight. The cups I've been getting are really good, so I haven't been bothered to experiment with a fix. If I did get bad cups (and I've experienced this consistently with another Lido 2), then sure, I'd give it a shot.

It does require quite a bit of fiddling with it to get all the parts in sync. It is possible to pull the individual upper and lower bearing axis out of concentricity and parallelism and that will result in tight spots at just about any locked position. There is not much clearance between those bearings and the shaft.

When I first did this I backed the lock ring completely off, loosened all 4 lower cylinder screws to the point when the cylinder would just slide on the outer burr. Turned adjustment up until I felt the first rub and repositioned cylinder to clear rub, rinse and repeat until lower ring has forced inner burr into tight contact with outer burr. The lower burr can be rotated 180 and that may help. Tighten screws evenly and only slightly and repeat process. It helps to have the inner burr out of solid contact with outer burr when tightening screws as the cylinder rides on the outer burr.

Shenrei wrote:I have that intermittent rub throughout the entire length of the ring as well on my Lido 2. What helps is if I press down on the hopper while screwing the locking ring tight. The cups I've been getting are really good, so I haven't been bothered to experiment with a fix. If I did get bad cups (and I've experienced this consistently with another Lido 2), then sure, I'd give it a shot.

That is what I stared with and it can be adjusted out.

This is all useful discussion. It has me confused, though, because my intermittent rub with the LIDO 3 only ever happens at 6 notches from zero or below. I buy the rings-based explanation even more now that I've done a partial disassembly. With both rings off, the handle off, and the rest upside down so that gravity is pulling the inner burr down into the outer burr, as shown below, the shaft turns freely with no rub to speak of. That suggests to me that the burrs mate well, so to speak. Add back the adjustment ring (with or without the washer or locking ring) and that intermittent rub comes back at the low end of the range. Pushing down on the hopper doesn't seem to help, though I'll continue to mess around with tricks like that in my spare time.

Question for others with rub: have you tried grinding through it?

My Lido 3 had some rub anywhere from 0 - 8 marks. I ground through it one time in the espresso range, and after grinding, it didn't rub and the handle was free spinning. After adjusting and locking again however, it came back. Re-aligning the grinder seemed to have fixed this for me as I haven't noticed any rub at all when adjusting and locking consecutively.

The outer burr carrier will move and is clamped into position by the hopper. With only a single bearing in play at he far end from the burr set you can tolerate a large amount of axial misalignment. Once the lower bearing is replaces alignment becomes critical and outer burr position is a large part of this. Hopper screws have to be barely snug to allow the outer burr carrier to center on the inner burr. The outer burr range of movement is small. The hopper position and the lower ring establish the shaft centerline in relation to the outer burr carrier.

Is it worth upgrading from the Lido 2? I don't find the Lido 2 that hard to turn, and haven't ever had a problem without a folding handle. it sounds like the Lido 3 is lighter, but somewhere I read it's weight, and while it might be lighter, it certainly does not seem light! Never had any issiues with my #2.

Worth upgrading from the Lido 2? Debatable, but in most cases I would say no, unless you plan on traveling with it. The Lido 3 has a great weight and feel to it, and grinds so much easier if you plan on doing eapresso. For brew, stick with the Lido 2 and install the free spinning knob.