The start button on this grinder is weak, and mine has broken. I need to dismantle the grinder so I can fix it. However there are no screws visible, even under plugs or other covers. The only screwhead I can see through a hole in the base is deep in the body. I guess I'll just have to try it but is there anyone who has done this and can confirm that this is the correct screw to remove?
Peter Scott
Looked under the feet?
It could be a welded case of course and no easy way in.
I think you are lucky to have found a screw, and even luckier to have a screwdriver bit that fits!
If it's out of warranty I would regard it as disposable but I do understand if you regard it as a challenge!!!
Peter - i've sent you an email with my experiences with Krups (all good i'm glad to say, and they'll definitely get my trade again !)
It includes a name and contact number, hence not wanting to repost it here in full.
On Wed, 29 Jul 2009 22:24:00 +0100 (BST), "Dave Liquorice" had this to say:
It certainly looks like that - there's a seam down the 'back' (and part of the base), with no obvious left-right fastenings. I've only had mine for a month or so, so I hope it does last a while longer. To be honest the switch does seem to be a bit of a weak point, although it hasn't (yet) given any problems (and the blue LED is so sexy!).
My previous one, a Russell Hobbs, was similarly unserviceable - although there were several (Triwing) screws you could undo, you still couldn't get the bu66er apart when it started discharging ground coffee through the motor :-)
It seems that coffee drinkers are deemed to be incapable of doing what should be simple repairs.
The Dualit grinder, too, seems to be very plasticky and doesn't seem to be in the same league as their toasters, for example.
Yes. Take care with the switch. There are two 'safety' microswitches so it won't start unless the top and the hopper are fully in. If it doesn't start it's tempting to push a bit harder on the button. I'm sure you know that, but others who use might not.
Yes I do like a challenge, as well as thinking it wasteful not to try. It's also a very good grinder.
I've looked under the feet plugs. Blind hole.
I'll try Colin's helpful suggestion then if no good or too expensive...
Search for a suitable screwdriver. I once heard someone question where all the kilos of needles and pins went. I reckon the same is true of screwdrivers.
Peter Scott
Frank Erskine wrote on Jul 30, 2009:
For what it's worth I'm very pleased with my KitchenAid grinder. It was a bit pricey but it's made of cast iron and built like a battle-ship. The on/off switch is a massive toggle on the side which I wouldn't expect to fail ever. The burrs of the grinder are user replaceable but are expected to wear after grinding 300 kg of beans - that's about 25 years of use at my rate!
I've not seen that one. Does it have grind settings for fineness? I usually grind mine very fine for an espresso machine. Anyway I'll bear it in mind if all else fails with the Krups. Didn't they used to make very big guns?
Peter Scott
Since no body else has said it - angle grinder!
For the grinder or the coffee beans?
Peter Scott
Peter Scott wrote on Jul 30, 2009:
Yes there's a dial on the front that you can set to anything from coarse to espresso. There's only one slight design fault and that's that the last few beans usually seem to stick at the bottom of the hopper and need a helping prod with a spoon to shift them
[snip]
I've had a Dualit grinder for about 8 years. It's ground a _lot_ of beans to fine espresso consistency during those years. The plastic is still fine. Since I use oily high roast beans, it does require a thorough clean inside from time to time. It would be easier to clean if it was more dismantlable, but fine bottle brushes and shap pointy things get enoug out to keep it going. The grinder mechanism takes apart reasonably easily, it's the path to the collection hopper that clogs up.
I've also had a Gaggia mill which I cannot recommend. It did a good job of grinding, but is so loud you need ear defenders to operate it! I was pleased when the motor burnt out.
BTW to another poster in this thread: Krupp were the armament family. Krups make kitchen stuff.
On Thu, 30 Jul 2009 23:22:49 +0100, Mike Lane had this to say:
Krups coffee grinders are molished in China...
Just press the button again - it's probably 'timed-out' from the first time. One snag with all these plastic-based grinders is that the ground stuff seems to cling to virtually all the plastic surfaces by virtue of 'static electricity'. If only the manufacturers would try to use some material which is ever so slightly electrically 'conductive' it would make them a killing...
On 30 Jul 2009 22:49:30 GMT, Jan Wysocki had this to say:
As I said earlier, it seems to be a BIG problem dismantling any electrical coffee grinder completely with a view to mending/thoroughly cleaning it, whatever make you choose. Clearly there are variations amongst the beans and their water/oil content to be taken into account as well..
An extra P, I think:
Frank Erskine wrote on Jul 31, 2009:
No, no, this is a KichenAid grinder. As I said earlier in the thread it's made of die cast metal and built like a battleship. It has no such fancy stuff as a timer - just a simple on/off toggle switch.
Where would we without rules eh?
Where would we be with too many rules ?
Casa Dennis !
Did you ever see Al Murray's Road to Berlin on Discovery? Adds a dimension to the guy.
On Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:16:27 +0100, Peter Scott had this to say:
Hmm - now mine has failed - after only about six weeks. AND I can't find the receipt from House of Fraser, from where I bought it. I've already shredded the debit card wotsit (after I'd reconciled it with my bank statement), so I'm still searching high and low for the receipt...
Also failed recently are the aforementioned shredder (now replaced) and my TomTom.
That's the three................ ;-((
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