Worn burrs ?

Naki_chap

Hello,

I have been given a Macap MXA to try out, Iput some beans in tonight and it seams to be very slow at grinding,
I removed the hopper and dosed straight into the throat ,now it seams the burrs are not grabbing a pulling the beans in quick enough more like bouncing them around,
So I removed the top burr carrier to inspect and to me the burrs look and feel very blunt,visable chips and a shiny edge at the cutting tip,
My question is if the burrs are very blunt will this slow the grind,Im thinking that the blunt burrs are not grabing and dragging the beans in as they should ?

What sort of speed should the Macap be ginding at ? , it has 65mm burrs and this one is far slower than my old mazzer mini.

Thanks
Cadan.

Koffee_Kosmo

The speed is about the same as the Macap Blunt blades will slow down the grind and the grind won't be optimum I advise to use a genuine burr set as the cut of the blades is important for to spec operation KK

Naki_chap

Thanks KK :thumb: I see coffeeparts stock replacement burrs, but I'm not sure if they are the genuine item, Who would stock genuine burrs here in Aus ?.

Brett_H

Cadan wrote:

Thanks KK :thumb: I see coffeeparts stock replacement burrs, but I'm not sure if they are the genuine item, Who would stock genuine burrs here in Aus ?.

If you email coffeeparts someone will get back to you ASAP. I've had gold class service from these guys on even the smallest items.

Koffee_Kosmo

Cadan wrote:

Thanks KK :thumb: I see coffeeparts stock replacement burrs, but I'm not sure if they are the genuine item, Who would stock genuine burrs here in Aus ?.

Coffee parts can source original parts from the importer KK

Lacehim

Or you can buy from the importers direct.

mycuppa

You need to know what you are looking at when you think it's a case of worn burrs. Most flat burr grinders have a series of cutaways that provide for product flow and I've seen and heard people think these are defects or chips on burrs. Generally it can be 3, 4 or 5 cutouts depending upon the grinder design. If you can see visible signs of chips/dents on the cutting edge then it's a good sign you should toss the burrs in favor of a new set. Worn burrs (as opposed to minor chipped burrs) generate quite a bit of heat, even when operated for a short period and as a result they may taint the coffee, or at the very least create an unpleasant "burnt" aromatic of the freshly ground particles. They may not necessarily be noticeably slower in grinding speed (obviously, depending upon wear), particularly if you are not familiar with that model grinder in terms of it's regular or expected throughput. It can be quite normal for beans to bounce about when there is minimal product in the hopper or if you have removed the hopper - this happens on all models of grinders I have used in the last 20 years and it can be quite challenging to dose beans directly down the throat.

Naki_chap

Thanks everyone for the replys, Do you know if the first two digits of the model number on the Macap is the year of manufacture ?, like on the Mazzers. This grinder was apparently used in a coffee van, so its had a lot of beans through it and as far as I know the burrs have never been replaced.

mycuppa

Likely they will be stuffed - no doubt about it if used in a commercial environment. Most vans do between 6 and 12 kg per week, so you are looking at say 6 - 10 months at best of usage on those original blades before they are worn. As you suspect, most likely the grinder is a few years old and has never had the burrs replaced. Even at lower weekly volumes, it's still going to wear down far quicker than in a domestic situation.

Naki_chap

The first two digits of the serial number are 07 so possibly 2007 build date ?.