You need to order from a dealer, I used Chris Coffee as I bought the K10 there. They didn't have them in stock but they got them in within a few days.

Excellent. Chris is my dealer.

I did the mod this morning. JohnB's guidelines made easy work of it. I used two files and several grades of wet sandpaper to get almost as smooth a surface as the original plastic. I used a miniature hacksaw to take the upper edge off. I sawed from the rear (grinder side) so the cut would be flush with the top of the chute. I tried using a piece of Dynamat to seal off the gap between the metal and plastic chutes, but felt the fit was just a little too tight and the pressure might cause the plastic to crack over time. So I used a small strip of velcro (fuzzy side), as JohnB suggests. It forms a very good seal.

When examining the stock chute, I wondered why Compak molded the "step" into the plastic chute. I don't know for sure, but it looks to me like the front edge of the metal chute is supposed to be flush with the step, making a smooth, continuous surface from the metal to the plastic. Either they got the spec wrong on the step or the metal chute isn't quite long enough. Or, there's enough slop in assembly that a tight fit wasn't possible and they changed the plastic mold to provide more space. In any event, the step makes no sense the way it is.

Initial results are encouraging, but I need more time with it. It's very nice not having to dig grounds out of the little "moat" in front of the metal chute. Grounds tended pack into the left corner there and I had to use a paper clip to scrape them out. No more. The grounds seem to fly out of the chute more easily at the beginning of the grind, and they seem to continue to extrude on their own longer than before (i.e., more coffee comes out during the grind phase.) But the grounds still eventually slow down and fill the chute entirely, as they did before. About the same amount of coffee as before (a chute-full) comes out with the first sweep, and about the same amount (maybe 1g-2g) is deposited in the chute by the first pulse after the chute is cleared. It's taking 3-4 pulses and sweeps to clear the grinds completely. That's similar to how it worked before, but my sense is that it may be more consistent. Previously, the amount of retention in the burr chamber varied quite a bit, from .5g-1g, sometimes more and sometimes zero. Sometimes I could pulse the grinder 10 times and still get some grounds coming out of the burr chamber. Now the retention seems to be settled in at .5g or a little less, and I haven't had to pulse more than 4 times to clear the burr chamber completely.

Like I said, it'll take a few days with it to verify that the mod is really making a difference. I will say that it's easy to do and completely harmless. It can only do good.

FWIW, I vacuum out the chute at the end of each session or when I switch coffees. I press the nozzle tight against the chute and pulse the grinder while the vacuum runs. This appears to completely clear the burr chamber. Frankly, so little is retained after the normal pulsing and sweeping that I wouldn't bother, but my shop vac is very handy to the coffee station and I like to use it to clean up grounds from the general area, particularly those that spray over to the range top. It's quick and easy to clean the grinder at the same time. I use a very powerful DeWalt hand shop vac that can run off AC or standard DeWalt batteries, same as I use for my power tools (had I not already owned several batteries and chargers, I might not have chosen this model.) I like the form factor of this one better, but it's more expensive for less capacity.

I should point out to prospective K10 owners that the concern about retention is mostly OCD. The stock K10 has the least amount of retention of any conical except the Elektra Nino, which runs off 220V only, runs a lot faster and costs twice as much. The K10 doser sweeps clean quite well, though it benefits from the electrical tape mod. The chute mod seems to be sensible as well. But you don't have to do any of it to get superior grinds from the K10.

Even though the chute will eventually fill up I found that it does not pack as densely with the step removed. Comparing the weight of the total grounds in a packed stock chute to a packed modified chute I typically saw a .5g+ reduction with the modded chute. If you work the front of the chute with an acid brush while grinding the chute will not back up & you won't have to pulse more then once or twice to clear it.

As for vacuuming after a session I've found that it will pull 1.5g or more out of a well pulsed/swept chute/burr chamber. This is based upon what doesn't come out with the next weighed dose as opposed to what I get back after simply pulsing/sweeping. Of course I am using a 6.5hp shop vac but I'm guessing you would still see at least half that amount of stale grounds in your next dose after an idle period if you didn't vacuum or run some fresh beans through to clear the chamber.

I took another look at your photo and realized that you cut the top edge back more than I did. I only removed the ledge itself, which left the top edge of the chute even with the side edges. It also left a thin strip of plastic across the front edge, which was easy to dent with my vacuum nozzle. So I cut the top edge back a little over 1/4" more, so the top edge of the chute is almost flush with the black metal grinder body (it sticks out maybe 1/16".)

I've only done one test grind, but access is quite a bit better and it looks like the top portion of the grind extrusion collapses more easliy, resulting in less blocking of the chute.

One consequence of modifying the chute is that the nozzle of my shop-vac doesn't make as airtight a seal as before. I need to fabricate a little adapter with a 1" square connecting to a tube that fits the vac hose.

BTW, I also noticed that the plastic skirt on your grinder (the part that says "coarse <--> fine" in white), has a smaller opening in the front than mine. The opening in mine is high enough to expose a black plastic plug, which when removed shows some markings made with a felt-tip pen. I guess this must be some sort of alignment mark used when assembling the motor and chassis. Not sure why they made the opening larger, since the plastic skirt is easily removed.

Here's my chute, yeah it's got a little coffee on it. oh well

Peppersass wrote:BTW, I also noticed that the plastic skirt on your grinder (the part that says "coarse <--> fine" in white), has a smaller opening in the front than mine. The opening in mine is high enough to expose a black plastic plug, which when removed shows some markings made with a felt-tip pen. I guess this must be some sort of alignment mark used when assembling the motor and chassis. Not sure why they made the opening larger, since the plastic skirt is easily removed.

You have the trim piece designed to fit around the U.S. finger guard & I installed the non F/G trim piece. Both of these were included with the K10WBC at one time & I requested that the non F/G piece be included with my grinder when I ordered it so I could install it once I removed the huge finger guard.

jammin wrote:Here's my chute, yeah it's got a little coffee on it. oh well<image>

It looks like you cut the top edge of the chute all the way back to be flush with the metal chute. Correct? Mine sticks out about 1/8":






Maybe I'll cut it all the way back like yours so I can see all of the metal chute.

Note the crack in the left screw mount. Don't know how that happened -- perhaps when I removed the finger guard. Or, it might have been shipped that way. Also note that I didn't do quite as neat a job as you did. The opening isn't as square and even, though it's not as bad as it looks in the photos.

There seem to be a few differences in the area above the chute. Mine is painted black and has that piece with the curved opening above the chute. Yours is bare metal and has a flat ledge above the chute. Seems like the top of the plastic chute is much thicker or there's a space above the metal chute. Which is it?

JohnB. wrote:You have the trim piece designed to fit around the U.S. finger guard & I installed the non F/G trim piece. Both of these were included with the K10WBC at one time & I requested that the non F/G piece be included with my grinder when I ordered it so I could install it once I removed the huge finger guard.

Duh. I wondered what the extra trim piece was for. I didn't notice the opening was smaller. I thought maybe they gave it to you in case the other one broke . I took the finger guard off 10 minutes after it was out of the box. Needless to say, the one with the smaller opening is on the machine now...

Peppersass wrote:It looks like you cut the top edge of the chute all the way back to be flush with the metal chute. Correct? Mine sticks out about 1/8". Maybe I'll cut it all the way back like yours so I can see all of the metal chute.

Leaving some of the upper edge will help control the spray when you first start grinding. Without it I think you will be doing more clean up but that's your call.

lolgun wrote:Really he's offering me a fantastic deal on any mazzer, but since i couldn't ever justify a Robur for home use, I figured Major in the doserless version would be the next logical step.

Brian, you know you want that Robur!

I am guessing Lavazza gets distributor pricing, and if your friend passes on those savings to you, then I really think it's a no brainer. Buy a Robur and use it for 6 months, if you're not happy at that time just sell it and buy something else (should have no problem breaking even or making a profit!). By then the Compak K10 Fresh ought to be on the market as well and hopefully gotten a verdict from the early adopters.

Barista jam at your house next time?