Paul's got some fantastic photography gear, a Nikon D100 and a slick macro lens. We took some nice photos of the two burr sets. Check this out:
Yet better photo of my Nino bottom burr... (Flickr link: 1, 2)
Robur E's Bottom Burr for comparison (Flickr link)
Robur and Nino bottom burrs facing each other at the base--Robur burr is on top here (Flickr link)
Robur and Nino bottom burrs facing each other at the tops--Nino burr is on top here (Flickr link)
Robur and Nino top burrs facing each other at the bottoms--Nino on top (Flickr link)
Robur and Nino top burrs facing each other at the tops--Nino on top again (Flickr link)
Robur and Nino burrs stacked on top of each other--Nino on top (Flickr link)
So... I'm thinking the Robur isn't that special, and that calling them "71 mm burrs" in contrast to "the other 68mm conicals" is a bit mistaken on our part/disingenuous on Mazzer's. Which isn't to say there aren't some distinct differences (beyond the mounting systems of the top burr): The Robur's finest cutting face (the shiny part) seems "wavier" and smoother overall. Also, its crushing knobs on the upper and lower burr are thinner, though this seems purely superficial. Did you guys know any of this? It's crazy, I never checked with my own Robur because it just looked bigger to me when looking at the two in their respective grinders. Turns out that was just skewed perspective...
Anyway, Paul and I both agreed that my bottom burr looked somewhat more damaged, particularly with some notches along the lower ring, but that both burr sets looked rather sub-par on their bottom burrs. Have we both taken minor stones? Is this what these things look like from the factory? Are they designed to deteriorate in this way?
Finally, it sounds like most of the signs are pointing to that I just sucked at dialing in 2 blends last week and made a big deal of it when I saw the crappy looking burrs in my grind chamber. Damn. Well, we'll see. I got some coffee this morning, and the Notchy Robur E vs. Notchy Nino test is on for Saturday. I'm also going to ask Jon to pull his burrs and see how bad they look. If they look better, I may try to get him to bring my old Robur back for the fun instead, maybe a 3-way elimination test or something.
Moderator note: topic split from the thread Elektra Nino Grinds Through Rock; Request For Help From K10/M7KR Owners; please refer to the original thread for context.