This is a basic breakdown of the Mazzer Mini grinder adjustment mechanism, burr carriers, and burrs. For cleaning out excess coffee grounds and cleaning or replacing the burrs, this is a basic look at the pieces and parts involved.
A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION: So that it doesn't get left unsaid, please make sure the grinder is unplugged before attempting any of the following disassembly, if you're going to try any of this yourself. The photos here are meant for informational purposes but are not meant as professional instruction. Disassembly of your own machine is at your own risk, so please be careful if doing so. This is definitely not an officially endorsed procedure, but merely my way of visually documenting how I worked with my own grinder.
Top view of the grinder showing open doser and the grinding assembly that houses the burrs (with hopper removed and finger guard removed from doser).
Close-up view of the grind adjustment collar (occasionally referred to as the adjustment disk, dial or wheel).
To remove the collar, the vertical collar safety screw must first be loosened and the horizontal hopper safety screws should be (but don't necessarily have to be) removed from the upper burr carrier. If the hopper safety screws are left in, the collar can still be loosened enough to lift both the collar and upper burr assembly simultaneously from the grinder. The collar safety screw is not visible in this image, but can be seen in the next photos, below.
Close-up of the adjustment collar safety screw and the hopper safety screws.
The adjustment collar loosened and ready to be lifted off the grinder body.
Rotating the grind adjustment collar clockwise (with the aid of the collar handle) loosens the collar so that it can be removed. The above view shows the doser removed, but doser removal is NOT a necessary part of this procedure. The doser's absence is purely coincidental in this photo.
Close-up view of the adjustment collar and threads, fully loosened and ready for removal.
If removing the adjustment collar separately from the upper burr carrier, this is what will be seen after lifting off the collar.
Adjustment collar and upper burrs removed from grinder (shown as removed simultaneously).
As shown above, the adjustment collar and upper burrs can actually be lifted off simultaneously, if desired. (But, even if the hopper safety screws are not removed before lifting the adjustment collar and upper burr carrier from the grinder, those screws should be removed and the parts should be separated at some point for proper cleaning).
Lower burrs and lower burr carrier revealed after removal of adjustment collar and upper burr carrier.
Adjustment collar and upper burr carrier removed from grinder.
In the above photo, the hopper safety screws have been placed back into the upper burr carrier to not lose track of them. They'll need to be removed again when it's time to reassemble the grinder so the adjustment collar will slide over the upper burr carrier after the burr carrier is slipped into place. The adjustment collar safety screw may be left in place in its loosened state.
Close-up of the upper burr carrier.
Removal of the three screws that go though the burrs enables the upper burrs to be removed from the carrier (if necessary, for replacement or thorough cleaning as desired).
If the upper burr carrier is taken apart, the short hopper sleeve (which inserts into the upper burr carried) can be separated from the carrier. There is probably little need to separate these pieces unless you're being extremely thorough with wiping down and cleaning the parts.
The adjustment collar and handle, bottom thread view.
Close-up view of the bottom threads of the adjustment collar.
One of the three adjustment collar springs in its place.
Three adjustment collar springs that allow the upper burr carrier to "float" and work in a stepless manner (that is, the springs help allow the upper carrier to be raised and lowered steplessly with any minor or major adjustments of the collar, with the springs keeping upward pressure on the upper burr carrier at all times).
Adjustment collar springs.
The three springs can removed simply by pulling them straight up and out after removal of the upper burr carrier (they are not secured in place in any way once the upper burr carrier is removed, except by gravity). Careful not to lose track of them after removal of the upper burr carrier. If the grinder is turned onto its side or further disassembled for cleaning, the springs could easily fall out and be lost.
View of the bottom burrs and bottom burr carrier after removal of the adjustment collar and upper burr carrier.
Removal of the three screws from the bottom burrs enables the burrs to be separated from the bottom burr carrier. Sometimes the bottom burrs stick and must be "tapped" loose by exerting sideways pressure on the burrs (for instance, with a screwdriver or a blunt-ended instrument inserted through the grounds chute and up against the side of the burrs in such a way to enable a light tap to the outside of the burr ring).
Bottom burrs removed along with the three screws that hold the burr ring in place.
Although the above photo shows the bottom burrs, these could just as well be the top burrs, since both appear exactly the same and are held in place with identical screws.
After bottom burr removal, the lower burr carrier is revealed.
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR REASSEMBLY: When reassembling the grinder and reinstalling the grind collar by screwing it back into the grinder, BE CAUTIOUS and DO NOT CROSS-THREAD the collar threads. Take it slow and easy and make sure the threads engage smoothly. Cross-threading would likely be a mistake that's difficult (and very expensive) to correct.
