Tuesday, Jan 26 2016
My grinder (a Rancilio Rocky) is about 10 years old. I decided that it needed new burrs. My thought was $42 plus some time would give me a product good for another 10 years. The note at the bottom of the order page from Espresso Parts mentioned that I should probably buy some replacement screws, too. I did.
One of the screws holding the upper burr came out with a little bit of effort. The other two weren’t moving. I put that piece away for a bit to tackle the bottom burr.
I was able to remove all three screws. The burr did not want to come off. There is a slight gap between the burr and the rotor on the inside edge of the burr. A little bit of leverage applied at that gap got the burr out. It was being held in place by old, sticky, bean oils that had seaped into the gap over the years.
I attached the replacement burr with new screws and installed the rotor back in the grinder. The new and old burrs look the same to the eye, but if you run your finger across the face you can fee the difference between sharp and dull.
I drilled out the heads of the stuck screws using a series of drill bits, each slightly larger than the last. When the heads were gone I knocked the old burr out and used a pair of needed nose pliers to remove the remaining screw body. I attached the new burr and put the grinder back together.
Grinding is quieter. The coffee tastes great. Maybe I shouldn’t wait 10 years before I do this again.