A Week with Mazzer Kony -e

[huez]

thats actually really well done. i might be able to get the tube machined down at work. thanks heaps!

[BLrdFX]

Maybe you might want to do it this way.
2inch I.D. X 2-1/2inch O.D. and machine off enough to just slide into the throat.


This ends up a very clean setup and you are not constantly fiddling around with that locking collar and the safety interlock(wooden flat stick fixed that!).

[huez]

Sorry for digging up an old thread, but blrdfx do you remember what size the tube was? ive given up on removing the hopper until i know i can get a tube that fits!

[BLrdFX]

The heat gun trick is a good one and I wish I has thought of it. I ended up using a small hopper/tube that holds 4oz of beans with a weight above the beans. It seems to get the electronic dosing fairly close(if anything it under doses) and since I dose into a portafilter basket with an OE dosing funnel, all sitting on a scale, it works great! The clumping has diminished a bit but I still stir the basket and with the OE dosing funnel there is no mess. The Kony-E is pretty amazing.

I think that since I am not in a commercial environment I might put a switch on the fan. It makes noise when silence it what I really like.

[AREXTwo]

A very interesting read, just waiting on delivery of my Kony E can't wait!

[dumiya]

I used a heat gun to soften the tab. The temp is above 100*C. A flame is far too hot. Once softened they were easy to pull away from the ridge. The process takes some time and adjusting the temp so it is less than the melt point. Search for something like Kony e excessive clumping or Kony e modifications. I have improved on what I posted by extending the pipe so it is impossible for curious fingers to get near the cones. This is important if you are a vegetarian!! I have several caps sized to weight of beans I want. At present I am using my 17gm cap to two cups.

I did not realize that the cones were running in until they did. I think it took about 500 cup grinds. Sounds a lot but in a commercial setting only a couple of weeks. It may be that the machined finish on my cones were rougher than usual. I twigged when I saw an article with photos on the finish of Mazzer cones. The rough finish grinds an uneven particle sizes and I think that causes the clumping.

[timdimdom]

It took quite a few cups in a domestic situation to run in the cones. Once run in the clumps disappeared.

just curious to know roughly how long that took? i got mine from a cafe and was really wondering about that when it comes to getting new burrs (which thankfully wont be for a long while).

Of course I removed the static screen.

relieved to hear that bascially everyone does it after reading a post in HB not to (and never really finding much on it on google or searching the forum here).

[BLrdFX]

I have safely modified the bean holder to hold a measured amount of beans (plumbing cap). All the safety devices are in place and working. I was able to remove the collar from the container.

How did you remove the bean hopper from the safety collar? I tried for hours to do it and gave up and got out the dremel tool to cut out the locking tabs on that collar. If I had gotten the hopper off without cutting the tabs then I could have machined the clear cylinder to have a corresponding ridge to lock in place. In fact I did do something close to that by only removing part of the collar locking tabs and then machining in a slot in the bottom of the tube. Eventually I caved in and took out the tabs entirely.

The electronic dosing is not reliable with removal of the OEM stuff but since I either fill the basket or dose into a basket on a scale it does not matter.

[dumiya]

Well it's me again two and a half years later! Kony is simply getting better. It took quite a few cups in a domestic situation to run in the cones. Once run in the clumps disappeared. Of course I removed the static screen. I only wish that the chute angle was sharper as I, like the above post, have to brush out the chute and run again. Perfect shots happen more often than not. Totally no regrets and absolutely no upgradeitis. I have safely modified the bean holder to hold a measured amount of beans (plumbing cap). All the safety devices are in place and working. I was able to remove the collar from the container.

[BLrdFX]

did the same with the static screen. another thing i do with each shot is brush out the retained grinds from the chute, and run the grinder again to push out the left over grinds in the vanes. seems to work well - i really should check out how much grind retention i get after all that.. but it doesn't seem much =). but that was just the thing - if i didn't brush out the retained grinds i'd imagine i would have to purge a whole shots worth of beans before i can get to some fresh grounds - which is why i'm really curious about the versalab. taste wise i really don't have much to compare the kony against but definitely a whole world of difference compared to an em0480!

The VL retains about .4g. I took the screen out and ran about 125g through the Kony to re-zero in on my favorite bean bleand. There is indeed a bit more static and yes, you must brush out the chute, run the machine and re-brush, if you do not want stale grounds in the machine. The VL is much more straight forward.

If you are running several shots then the Kony is the way to fly and with the screen removed then the clumping disappears!

[timdimdom]

awesome comparison! recently got a kony myself and did the same with the static screen. another thing i do with each shot is brush out the retained grinds from the chute, and run the grinder again to push out the left over grinds in the vanes. seems to work well - i really should check out how much grind retention i get after all that.. but it doesn't seem much =). but that was just the thing - if i didn't brush out the retained grinds i'd imagine i would have to purge a whole shots worth of beans before i can get to some fresh grounds - which is why i'm really curious about the versalab. taste wise i really don't have much to compare the kony against but definitely a whole world of difference compared to an em0480!

[BLrdFX]

BlrdFX care to enlighten us with the differences you find between the versalab and kony?

Not sure exactly to which aspect of the differences you are referring. The size difference is obvious. The build quality is about equal, but without removing the cases/housings it is hard to tell. The Versalab has a very slightly noticable wobble in the main shaft but when the machine is off and the burr clearance is run to zero and then the burrs manually turned they seem to touch evenly. I measured the wobble at .003 inch. The versalab really should have another inch or so clearance between the lower cone and the base, but it still works OK. If single dosing the versalab a shot glass will work as a dispenser; I use a 2oz stainless steel measuring cup that looks like a shot glass. The grind quality is amazing with the Versalab! I dose directly into the portafilter using an Orphan Espresso short dosing cone (which barely fits under the versalab cone) and when I remove it from under the versalab cone it takes one thump un the tamping stand to get all the grounds into the basket :-) There is .4 grams retention from static cling with versalab. The Kony is another beast entirely.

The Kony is much more quiet. With the static screen in place the grounds retention much more and I use medium roast beans which have less oils than those dark sticky ones :-) I dismantled the Kony yesterday to give it a good cleaning and remove the static screen and the ground coffee yield was somewhere in the neighborhood of 15g :-( More beans arriving today so I will be able to report the retention and dosing differences in a day or so. That screen also contributes rather dramatically to clumping, although the clumps go away with a quick stir with a small pointy stick. The vertical size of the Kony is a bit much but I guess that is the price you pay for a conical, electronic timer dosed grinder; the Robur is taller and more $$$$!!!!!!!! I really do like the dosing cone on the Kony so I cannot complain to much about the height of the machine. The stretchy squiggle cord that goes from the body of Kony to the electronic control cone cap is terrible! A simple non squiggle cord would be better, or how about just using a connector that engaged the machine when the top was in place! Wake up Mazzer... If the i-Phone and it's clones can do it...

As far as a taste difference I am leaning toward the VL but with that static screen removed it could make a difference since there is less time for the machine to impart heat to the grounds.

Stay tuned.

[timdimdom]

BlrdFX care to enlighten us with the differences you find between the versalab and kony?

[BLrdFX]

Hopper sizes and single dosing

Probably so, but I tend to go by what my taste buds tell me. It is pretty tempting to own both a large slow flat burr grinder & a conical burr grinder. I suppose there are some coffees that taste better with a flat burr grinder.

The particle shape, number of fines, the heat generated by the grinding process. There is quite the discussion on HB about motor rpm Vs burr speed and the rotational speed at the edge of the burr compared to the center of the burr, etc.

I still go by the taste of the beans that I like and can afford :-)

My Morning Launch Pad

[GrahamK]

The grind from the kony had the same look and feel as the grind from a mazzer mini

I imagine if you studied the grind using something like a microscope you would determine a difference in the shape etc of the grounds, which would then possibly explain some of the differences?

GrahamK