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by **DrZeus** » Sun Dec 21, 2003 10:00 pm

I'm wanting a Zassenhaus for Christmas (yes, I know it's too late to get it before then, but I'm still calling it a Christmas present for justification purposes). I need to strike that balance between a good quality one, and an inexpensive one. Are they all created equal? Is it even possible to find one under 40 Euros?

by **michel** » Sun Dec 21, 2003 10:15 pm

The Dutch e-bay ( www.marktplaats.nl ) offers a lot of hand-mills for under 40 euro... but most of them seems to be antique and more a collectors item than usefull...
I bought my Zassenhaus for (if I remember correctly) 60 euro... and it does a great job (even for espresso...). On the other hand it's hard work to get an espresso-grind because how finer the grinds the harder you have to work... (I'm chatting of the beaten track here... as you won't use it for espresso... Sorry.)
I have experience with some other mills than Zassenhaus, but as they were antique, I can't really say anything about them (except maybe that it's better not to buy one over 3 years old...) And if buying one new... (the zass has good references... others do have sometimes too...)
Good luck!
(and as said in another post before: buy one which is square... and not mutulated like mine...):

by **phil** » Sun Dec 21, 2003 11:22 pm

Mine's a 169. Got it 'cos Tom Owen recommends it and 'cos the SM list guys say it's more rigid than the cheaper ones. I got mine from a well known absolutely top-notch UK site based a few miles away from me (Another Coffee) for the best part of 80 quid. Well worth it but nowhere near your 40 euros. As Michel says, try eBay. There's this one for example in Germany for 9 euros, going in 21 hours from the time of my posting.

Also this one too - it's 11 euros but it looks like a Zass Turkish mill, which is also supposed to be very rigid.

by **alans** » Mon Dec 22, 2003 2:24 pm

Phil you're just teasing him, he's eBayphobic! I've got the turkish and I'm just not as impressed as I though I'd be, not consistent enough. I think it can't be very consistant firstly because the bottom burr is held up by a plate and secondly the shaft moves too much. But I seem to be the only one in the world who thinks so.

by **DrZeus** » Mon Dec 22, 2003 2:33 pm

hehe...yeah, I'd rather not do the ebay thing if I don't have to.

If I go with a Turkish, I assume we're talking about way too fine a grind for what I need? The price is right, though. I may just get myself an Ibrik and switch my brewing method.

by **phil** » Mon Dec 22, 2003 4:36 pm

Grind is adjustable for all grinders. The Turkish just has the capability to grind finer I guess.

by **alans** » Mon Dec 22, 2003 5:11 pm

It's got the same ajustment screw and grind range as any other zass. I'd say a lot of people make the assumption that the "Turkish" mill is finer, perhaps that's why Zass themselves call it a Mokka.

If you look at their web site http://www.zassenhaus.com/ it's interesting that the turkish is in the Kaffeemühlen section not the Espressomühlen section. Does this mean they don't think it's up to grinding for espresso?

Plus points:
Small and great for travelling
Can grind fine
Looks good

Minus points:
The finer you grind the longer it takes (same for all manual grinders)
Zass grinder settings can tend to wander a bit
Leaves your hands smelling of brass (and you wondering if it does the same for your coffee)
Mine is inconsistant

by **phil** » Mon Dec 22, 2003 6:08 pm

The setting on my 169 wanders too, mainly because it's too easy to hit the adjustment wheel when you're grinding.

by **alans** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 12:49 pm

That's interesting, adjuster is underneath the bottom burr (in the grounds container) on the turkish, so no chance of hitting it. Where is it on the 169?

by **phil** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 2:32 pm

Just under the crank handle. Easy to hit with your fingers when turning the handle.

Still love it though.

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