Mazzer SJ collar threads - stuck / what to lubricate

[MorganGT]

You say "Coffee grounds and grease form an abrasive paste" wrong, coffee beans (vegetable matter) are much softer than the metal used in burr carriers, even if any stray grounds find their way up there (not very likely) no abrasive action takes place.

Get some grounds, place them on a metal surface and rub them against the metal with the heel of your thumb - you'll see abrasion marks. Yes, grounds are softer than alloy, but fresh ground particles have lots of sharp edges which, although they individually won't do much, over time the huge quantity of particles rubbing/scraping their way through a grinder can cause amazing amounts of wear. I could show you some surprisingly worn grinder components where the wear is all due to the action of grounds.

"you need either a wire brush" here you have an abrasive, while I doubt light use of a wire brush would do much harm my preference would be for a stiff bristle synthetic brush.

A bristle brush is usually ineffective in cleaning grounds stuck in threads. Grounds that work their way into the collar threads sit there absorbing moisture from the air, and 'set' into a solid mass which can't be brushed off - it has to be scraped loose (unless you are cleaning the grinder threads out every day, where the grounds are more likely to still be dry and 'loose').

[Yelta]

.........so sparingly that you don't actually get ANY grease on the threads. I will NEVER use grease on grinder threads, and new Mazzers that come out of the box with grease on the threads get it carefully wiped off before any beans go in. If you need grease to allow the collar to thread on smoothly, you've damaged or failed to clean the threads. If you've seen the state Mazzers can get in if they are taken out of the box with factory grease on the threads and then used forever without cleaning them out, you'd agree - the grease catches the grounds which form a nice abrasive paste which makes a mess of the grind head (and you end up drinking some of the grease).

The three things to check are:

Grounds in the threads (a toothbrush won't do the job, you need either a wire brush to sweep around along the threads, or if that isn't doing the job a sharp pick carefully scraped around the thread grooves right down to the bottom

A lock screw in the adjuster collar that is stopping the collar rotating before it bottoms out (some Mazzers have them)

Grounds built up in the holes where the 3 springs that push up on the adjuster collar sit - they can easily fill up with grounds which prevents the springs compressing, so they lock solid before the burrs meet and stop the collar turning.

Must admit, as I said recently in another thread, have never used grease on my grinders and have never had a problem.

You say "Coffee grounds and grease form an abrasive paste" wrong, coffee beans (vegetable matter) are much softer than the metal used in burr carriers, even if any stray grounds find their way up there (not very likely) no abrasive action takes place.

"you need either a wire brush" here you have an abrasive, while I doubt light use of a wire brush would do much harm my preference would be for a stiff bristle synthetic brush.

"Grounds built up in the holes where the 3 springs that push up on the adjuster collar sit - they can easily fill up with grounds which prevents the springs compressing, so they lock solid before the burrs meet and stop the collar turning."
I use my grinder a number of times daily and give it a thorough clean every 6 months or so, have never experience more than a small amount of grounds in the spring holders, certainly nothing like the amount that would prevent the springs from compressing though I'm sure it could happen if, as others suggest you never remove the top burr carrier.

[MorganGT]

Inox food grade grease available from Jaycar electronics, use it very sparingly.

.........so sparingly that you don't actually get ANY grease on the threads. I will NEVER use grease on grinder threads, and new Mazzers that come out of the box with grease on the threads get it carefully wiped off before any beans go in. If you need grease to allow the collar to thread on smoothly, you've damaged or failed to clean the threads. If you've seen the state Mazzers can get in if they are taken out of the box with factory grease on the threads and then used forever without cleaning them out, you'd agree - the grease catches the grounds which form a nice abrasive paste which makes a mess of the grind head (and you end up drinking some of the grease).

The three things to check are:

Grounds in the threads (a toothbrush won't do the job, you need either a wire brush to sweep around along the threads, or if that isn't doing the job a sharp pick carefully scraped around the thread grooves right down to the bottom

A lock screw in the adjuster collar that is stopping the collar rotating before it bottoms out (some Mazzers have them)

Grounds built up in the holes where the 3 springs that push up on the adjuster collar sit - they can easily fill up with grounds which prevents the springs compressing, so they lock solid before the burrs meet and stop the collar turning.

[Yelta]

.. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why you don't mess with the Mazzer

Not so, the Mazzer is a simple machine, if you can screw the lid off a jar of Vegemite you can remove and replace the burr carrier of a Mazzer, just remember it's a LH thread.

[Yelta]

Inox food grade grease available from Jaycar electronics, use it very sparingly.
Does the thread wind most of the way down before it binds? If it screwed out ok there should be nothing stopping it from winding back in, other than some debris or a damaged thread.

[reedburg]

.. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why you don't mess with the Mazzer

[martini]

G'day,

The mazzer SJ was finally in need of a burr replacement which I've done. But I cannot for the life of me get the collar back on without it locking up with a few threads still left to go before the burrs even get close.

I've cleaned the thread with an old toothbrush and it looks nice and clean on both sides with no obvious damage.

Am I missing something obvious here? What could I use for lubrication? If I'm careful, can I wipe some silicon lube on it?

Thoughts?