Great idea! I would be very interested in getting the needed parts from you to do mine too.
Thanks for posting the idea!

I had no problem finding a stronger spring, but I did have trouble finding a suitable "rubber grommet" (part E). I got around that problem this way:

I wrapped the inner tab of Part A with electrical tape. This makes its surface tackier than the hard plastic. This surface engages a raised ridge on the underside of the hopper, the one that has the holes molded into it to receive the step pin that used to be there. I lightly roughed-up the surface of this ridge with medium sandpaper. The textured ridge grips the electrical tape tenaciously - no drift, but allows easy adjustment.

This is a great mod. Invisible, easy, reversible, costs next to nothing, preserves original functionality, and works well.

I thought I would revive this thread rather then starting a new one. I have tried this mod (thanks to those who originally posted it) but so far I haven't had great results.

The spring I found seems to be a bit too tall - the first time it shredded the rubber grommet. I then went to the electrical tape but it still was too much pressure. I have now shortened the spring but am encountering some small drift. I have used teflon tape on the upper burr.

Is this just a hit and miss - ie getting the right amount of pressure to keep the burrs in place but not to much to push the button (Part A) out? Any other ways to get around this? I keep having to go back to factory setting and am now starting to wonder if stepless is worth the trouble or not (I am not even sure I need it).

Also see My cheap and easy stepless Rancilio Rocky mod for alternatives, including Sam's keep-it-simple approach:

samgiles wrote:When I was using a Rocky I used a far simpler method. Find some rubber or plastic tube and cut it down one side. Remove the hopper. Slide the cut side over the lip of the metal casing and put the hopper back on. The tube needs to be thick enough to hold the hopper but not so thick that you can't screw the hopper into place. With the right thickness you'll have enough resistance to prevent the hopper from turning as you grind but still be able to turn the hopper manually to adjust the grind. I actually used 2 plastic wall plugs that I happenned to have lying around. The second one was just stuck in to hold the lock button down. I hope this makes sense.

Thanks Dan. I may try and combine Sam's tubing approach with the above mod and see if I can get rid of the drift.

I'm so glad I found this thread. I combined this 'spring' approach with the clear plastic tubing from another thread, and I'm so pleased with the results. My shots with a NS Oscar have never been better, and more importantly, consistent.
I feel like the range of available grind is both more precise, and across a wider spectrum than before (perhaps because of the reduced variability in grain size?), leading to an overall outstanding espresso experience.
It's like I added $300 of capability for $5, which is a wonderful thing.