There is no need to remove the upper to find zero. When your hopper is empty, turn it on. Adjust the burrs down until you hear them start to chirp. That is the zero point. You will not damage the burrs by doing that. They have a flat ridge on the outer perimeter, no teeth.

In the titan girder project, I believe we noted that as a generic trait for conical grinders. They tended to produce a brighter cup accentuating the higher, floral and fruit notes while muting some of the deep flavors. The flat burr grinders accentuate the lower chocolate and peat notes while muting some of the acidity and high notes.

Should I be concerned? This morning (my 2nd with the grinder) on a couple of start-ups the burrs sounded stuck, just the hum of the motor and no grinding. I immediately switched off the machine and shook it and then on the power up it ground beans again. Is this common, my Mini never bound up like that?

In the titan girder project, I believe we noted that as a generic trait for conical grinders. They tended to produce a brighter cup accentuating the higher, floral and fruit notes while muting some of the deep flavors. The flat burr grinders accentuate the lower chocolate and peat notes while muting some of the acidity and high notes.

It's nice to know I'm not imagining it. Doing side by side comparisons again this morning I especially noticed how the immediate after-taste of the Mini's cup got sharper versus the CMH which stayed smooth and turned towards fruit.

It's quite different to read about it and then finally have access to 2 different machines and be able to have first hand experience.

Additional first impressions for would be buyers: It's really nice to have a grinder that stays in place on the counter when you dose. My Mini would always slide around on the granite counter. I thought that this grinder was going to be a speed demon from what I'd read. My Mini takes a 17 count to fill the PF and the CMH takes an 11 count. I've been paying closer attention to the look of my pulls during this trial period because I'm skipping the WDT and just doing a Stockfleth. My shots have been much more consistent in the "looks" I haven't seen any premature blonding but I have caused only 2 squirters so far. Another interesting point in back to back comparisons is that I get more of a "cone" from the CMH. I can taste the difference between the 2 machines but without some more formal training I'm at a loss to properly describe them other than my "men in pajamas, cheap seats" way. So, I taste less dark almost baking chocolate and a smoother finish that changes away from the milder dark chocolate to a hint of some fruit - sorry I can't identify this. I think I've lost the caramel which is something I miss. Although I like the flavor from my Mini and is something I'm use to, I am happy about the change in the finish or after taste. Lastly, beauty is in the eye of the beholder - she ain't pretty. This is like having a Hummer on your counter top versus a Lamborgini and I can see that some of the plastic trim won't age well.

BTW how could I learn what "floral" tastes like ... please don't say "eat some flowers".

Thanks in advance.

edwa wrote:how could I learn what "floral" tastes like ... please don't say "eat some flowers".

Try smelling a few different varieties. Don't eat flowers. You may be disappointed to know they don't taste like they smell...

That is odd, I have never had a grinder stall on me unless I adjusted the burrs tighter with beans in the hopper and the motor not running. That can bind the burrs but other than that, never had it happen on either of my Max's.

How does floral taste, you defiantly would not want to eat a flower. There are a few that can be eaten but most cannot. Try some rose hip tea, or go a florist, open the big glass front refrigeration case that is packed full of flowers. Take a deep breath through both your nose and mouth at the same time, you will actually 'taste' the aroma. I get the same effect on a cool and fogy morning when I ride the motorcycle past the sewage treatment plant, mmmmm musty sewage, yum.

edwa wrote:BTW how could I learn what "floral" tastes like ... please don't say "eat some flowers".

Separating aroma from taste is pretty much an exercise in futility, particularly with a drink as aromatic as coffee. If you have a floral aroma, you have a floral "taste."

A side note for anyone who is interested: outside the coffee world, the scent of flowers is customarily described as their "fragrance." But, for reasons unknown to me, coffee "fragrance" refers only to the aromatics released from freshly-ground, dry coffee, an important step in the cupping ritual. The scents released from brewed coffee are called "aromas."

Today is my 4th day with CMH and I'm going to return it. This evening when I got home from work I tried to grind some beans for an evening shot. Once again it jammed. Nothing had changed since the morning when it worked. I shook, knocked, and jostled - nothing. I turned it over and emptied out all the beans, still didn't grind. Finally, I got out a screwdriver and removed the hopper, vacuumed and used my WDT pick and dislodged whatever fragments I found. Finally the burrs spun. While it spun I adjusted the grind and was surprised to find zero not far from the ring indicator. I was already at 0.5. I can't imagine having to do this first thing in the morning when I'm half awake and jonesing for a cuppa.

It sounds like something is wrong with your grinder. If I had to guess, I'd say it was damaged in shipping and something internally has been bent or broken. I've not had any problems at all with any of my 3 Max's, and none of them has ever come close to jamming.

The Compak WBC K10 grinder I received was destroyed in shipping, and although the external damage was obvious the internal damage was even worse and did not become evident until months later. Understandably, I had a very poor opinion of the Compak. Compak ultimately replaced the grinder with a new one, and I could not be happier with it.

ken

edwa wrote:Today is my 4th day with CMH and I'm going to return it. This evening when I got home from work I tried to grind some beans for an evening shot. Once again it jammed. Nothing had changed since the morning when it worked. I shook, knocked, and jostled - nothing. I turned it over and emptied out all the beans, still didn't grind. Finally, I got out a screwdriver and removed the hopper, vacuumed and used my WDT pick and dislodged whatever fragments I found. Finally the burrs spun. While it spun I adjusted the grind and was surprised to find zero not far from the ring indicator. I was already at 0.5. I can't imagine having to do this first thing in the morning when I'm half awake and jonesing for a cuppa.

I can't imagine having this sort of problem . . . my Cimbali MaxHybrid has worked perfectly from Day One!

Ditto. This morning, as a TEST ONLY, I adjusted from 1.0 to 0.25 while off. Grinder started right up with no complaints. 0 on my indicator ring is just the first kiss of burr contact. I regularly grind at 0.5 and have never had an issue.

FWIW, I bought a 'demo' Isomac grinder from the same vendor. 'Demo' in this case was short for demolished : Missing and stripped screws required a complete teardown and rebuild. As it's a drip grinder only and the missus likes its appearance, I let it slide. Complaint to vendor went unanswered. Recently, I did receive a replacement O-ring for the CMH in short order when I notified them.

I appreciate the reassurances, as I really do hate to pack her up and drag both our asses down to the UPS store to ship her/it back. With my busy work schedule, part of me wishes I could just live with it but after 3 separate occasions having it jam I think the wisest choice is to send it back. I have no way of knowing what this grinder suffered before me, it arrived in perfect condition, not a ding on the box or the interior styrofoam. Stuff happens. I'll probably get another though I am more curious than ever to experience an SJ. I went back to the Mini this morning and she sure felt ... well, mini, in comparison. To be fair, she pulled some decent shots. Ian, thanks for the test and good to know that I was in the zone on the indicator ring.