Conical vs Flat grinders and their range

MediumRoastSteam

So imagine two grinders which are the same, and the only thing that changes are the burrs. Imagine, for example, that a Niche could be fitted with the burrs of the Solo, and the Solo with the burrs of the Niche. Or, maybe a real world example, a Mazzer Super Jolly vs a Mazzer Kony.

Am I right in thinking that, with flat burrs, the range on the dial is a lot less for a particular brew method? So, for example, the range I have with my Niche is between 8 and 14, so, 6 marks. If it had flat burrs, would it be less, in the sense that any adjustments would become more sensitive? If so, would the adjustment collar threads need to change to be finer in the case of a Niche with flat burrs and likewise they would need to be made coarser for a Solo with conical burrs? And lastly, in the case of the Mazzers mentioned, are the adjustment threads different?

Reason I ask is that I was chatting to @HVL87 and he mentioned that the range on the eureka Oro for espresso is quite small, which got me thinking.

Sorry for the long post.

DavecUK

MediumRoastSteam

1.Am I right in thinking that, with flat burrs, the range on the dial is a lot less for a particular brew method? So, for example, the range I have with my Niche is between 8 and 14, so, 6 marks. If it had flat burrs, would it be less, in the sense that any adjustments would become more sensitive?

2. If so, would the adjustment collar threads need to change to be finer in the case of a Niche with flat burrs and likewise they would need to be made coarser for a Solo with conical burrs?

3. And lastly, in the case of the Mazzers mentioned, are the adjustment threads different?

Yes
.No
No, because beyond a certain thread pitch in aluminium, the threads become to thin/weak, so they are all around 1.5.

It can be the case that with flat burrs if they are out of alignment or there are other problems, it can give either very little grind range for espresso, or even have to have the burrs touch slightly to grind for espresso. So for example, if you have virtually no adjustment left, then there may well be an alignment issue….which could show itself as a problem if you have to go even finer as the beans age or with some types of beans.

Also, small adjustments on flats make bigger differences in the pour.

JahLaza

Hi Dave, so would you reckon I had misalignment with my eureka specialita? I detailed in another thread here how it was at its limit for the last few bean types I had. Pretty difficult to misalign that unit though wouldn’t it? I mean the bottom burr only screws in one way, the top burr screwed into its baseplate which can only go on one way also?

DavecUK

JahLaza Hi Dave, so would you reckon I had misalignment with my eureka specialita? I detailed in another thread here how it was at its limit for the last few bean types I had. Pretty difficult to misalign that unit though wouldn’t it? I mean the bottom burr only screws in one way, the top burr screwed into its baseplate which can only go on one way also?

It’s possible, there are a number of things that can cause problems and whether it’s the fixed or moving burr misaligned, shaft misaligned, or /burr on shaft carrier misaligned and lastly fixed burr misalignment. Also, whether there’s radial misalignment, my experience has been grinders don’t usually work well.

It’s also not necessarily a price of grinder thing. I have had problems with £1500-1800 grinders, where they wouldn’t grind for espresso unless burrs were wound past the first touch point. With coffee and a full hopper, they were OK as they flex straight…without coffee they were screeching!

JahLaza

Well that narrows it down!!