That all makes sense. Many thanks for the reply and support!

Patrick

Just an update on my Vario. I'm still experiencing the same problems from my first post...
I also got the metal parts from the Forté (metal grind chamber / threaded upper burr carrier) and the problem persists after changing it.
I now have two hypothesis from where the misaligned could come from

1)

TheN5OfOntario wrote: I just had an Idea: I wonder if the wobble could be due to the motor capstan not being true. I should check that at some point...

This could be the problem, in my case I sent my grinder for repair twice years ago and I believe they have tightened the belt too strong, causing the motor capstan to bend. I'm not sure this could cause the wobble we see in the lower burr carrier though. Here's a slow motion video I took from the motor: In this video the belt is barely tightened. When looking at the motor dissembled I cannot tell by eye that it's misaligned.

2)

After re reading this post from Jake (Baratza Vario Super Alignment owner experience) I think that the issue could come from the bushings. The lower burr carrier I have is new (not that this means it's perfect aligned) so the problem could come from the motor plate. I'm now trying to replace this part but I can't remove the levers from it. Does anyone know how to do it? I'm afraid of breaking it, could not find a guide on the Internet.

Use the flat head of a screwdriver, or simply a key to lift it up. Don't be afraid, the motor plate won't break. Make sure you have removed the calibration screw from the motor plate.

thanks for your help but sorry for my ignorance, where exactly should I put the key? what i'm trying to do is to remove the levers which seem more fragile. seems that there are a system to get it out but I could not figure yet

Oh you just put it under the metal plate and lift it up with force. Then the metal plate will fell out. Don't be afraid. I had the same feeling as you the first time I opened my Forté.

Only then could you get both levers out. Make sure you have taken out the 2 little hex screws that hold them together first (This is for the Forté, I don't know if Vario levers have hex screws or not - check first!). It also needs a bit of force to get both levers out.

Cheers!

Thanks again, I still can't fully understand it maybe it's slightly different in the Vario. I'm not exactly sure where to apply force and from which side...
When you say metal plate you refer to that small piece that just sits in the middle of the levers? In the case of the vario they are not connected to the levers.
The levers don't have any screws. Here's a close up of the back of the levers:

Flip the levers down. I think there is a set screw on the back or bottom of the left lever that is out of sight in this view. The set screw seats in the groove in the tip of the shaft. Once that set screw is removed, the right lever in your picture can be slid out to the right.

The left lever has a raised key on it that aligns with a notch in the bore on the motor plate. If you look at your new motor plate, you can see the notch. You have to rotate the lever to an extreme position not within the normal operating range to line the key with the notch and slide the lever out to the left.

The adjustment plate also has to be removed before the left lever will come out. I pull the right lever and then rotate the left lever until the open space aligns with the adjustment plate. Then you can lift the adjustment plate out and finally slide the left lever out. It's a bit of a jigsaw puzzle.

Cheers!

- Jake

Edit: Sorry for the earlier posts! Just follow Jake's guidance.

pmark wrote:Thanks again, I still can't fully understand it maybe it's slightly different in the Vario. I'm not exactly sure where to apply force and from which side...
When you say metal plate you refer to that small piece that just sits in the middle of the levers? In the case of the vario they are not connected to the levers.
The levers don't have any screws. Here's a close up of the back of the levers:
image

Dear pmark,

Did you manage to install the new motor plate? If so, did it cure the wobble?

Thanks,

Patrick

I didn't manage to install the motor plate it even with Jake's detailed instructions. I could not get the levers out, I'm afraid of breaking it and getting the replacements parts at this moment would be hard
but I put my grinder back together and it's much better now (still a little bit of wobbling). I tried to do the alicorn alignment in the process but did not do the pen marker test yet to check accuracy.
One thing I did that I think helped the wobble the most was to carefully center the lower burr on the lower burr carrier (there's a lot of play, at least in my unit, if you barely unscrew the 3 screws you can see it) I put some pieces of post it notes on the side of the burrs (where it sides with the burr carrier) and carefully screwed the burr. I can post a video later if anyone is interested but in my case it's helped.
My grinder is now able to grind fine enough for espresso with the steel burrs something i was never able to achieve before. I'm still testing it to see how it performs but for the moment i'm happy with it.
I plan to tinker with it in the future but I disassembled it so many times in the last few days i'm tired of it.