Hmmm, well, I've been using the heavy nickel base version of the Infinity for nearly 4 years now...WITH my Silvia. It's obviously not the best grinder out there, but it's actually pretty darn good. I replace the removable top burr about once a year ($14) and I've found that really does make a difference. As for the retained grounds that get stuck inside, this is a pretty short and light grinder so when the grinding is done, I just lift and tilt and shake it a bit, and the "lost" grounds dump into the bin. There have been times when I wished I had smaller steps or stepless capability (weather influences), but mostly I get the grind I want and it's pretty consistent. I like the overall design of this grinder, it's very easy to clean, and parts such as hopper and bin and burrs are quite cheap to replace if necessary. You can order parts online or by phone and they arrive within a few days.
I haven't used the various Maestro grinders, but they struck me as looking poorly made by comparison. It seems like people really like to beat up on the Infinity as an inferior little grinder, but it seems that relatively few have actually tried it, which is too bad because it's a pretty good grinder overall, especially for the price point. I think the heavier nickel base version is worth the extra $$$ and it seems more sturdy overall than the lighter one. I've never had a static problem, and don't know if that may be due to the nickel base (I thought I read that somewhere once).
I'll add to and confirm what The_Shadow was saying: modifiying the Infinity to be stepless is drop dead simple. I have the black plastic version, but the nickel base version should be similar: you remove the top, and internally, it looks an awful lot (but not exactly) like a Maestro/Virtuoso. There's a nylon adjustment collar ring that goes around the top of the grinding chamber. If you look carefully, you'll see a white nylon post that sticks up underneath the ring. Inside the post is a ball/spring assembly that fits snuggly into the holes on the adjustment collar ring. Just yank out the ball/spring assembly and the grinder is stepless.
If anyone is interested in converting their Infinity to be stepless, let me know and I'll post better instructions.
I'd love to hear better instructions for modifying the Infinity for stepless. I have one coming in the mail tomorrow, and I'd love to have infinite settings.
This information is probably long too old as your post is over 4 months old.
However, this exact thing happened to me yesterday. It took me a little while to figure it out. The outside area around the burr piece is the part that actually needed to move, not the burr part itself. Some how that outside twisted around a little so there was a lip over the notches on the burr piece causing it not to come out. I spent 20 minutes trying to turn the burr piece, but it wouldn't budge. I finally tried (what I thought was crazy) moving the outside part (which I thought was immobile), but the outside part moved to get notches lined back up with the holes. I had to use a small flat head screw driver to push that lip area to move the outside part around.
cclavey Said:
Hi all,
I have the Capresso Infinity and I took the top burr out to clean it as I usually do. However, when I put it back in, the burr somehow got stuck: it won't come back out (or move at all) and the bean container won't lock into the base as it is supposed to. Can anyone help with this? I have tried google-ing the issue, but I can't find anything.
I really appreciate any and all help. Time is short... I am dying without coffee...
I'll add to and confirm what The_Shadow was saying: modifiying the Infinity to be stepless is drop dead simple. I have the black plastic version, but the nickel base version should be similar: you remove the top, and internally, it looks an awful lot (but not exactly) like a Maestro/Virtuoso. There's a nylon adjustment collar ring that goes around the top of the grinding chamber. If you look carefully, you'll see a white nylon post that sticks up underneath the ring. Inside the post is a ball/spring assembly that fits snuggly into the holes on the adjustment collar ring. Just yank out the ball/spring assembly and the grinder is stepless.
If anyone is interested in converting their Infinity to be stepless, let me know and I'll post better instructions.
cappuccinoboy Senior Member Joined: 27 Jun 2009 Posts: 789 Location: MILANO Expertise: Professional
Espresso: Milano pod, Milano fully... Grinder: grind on demand
Posted Sun Oct 4, 2009, 7:54am Subject: Re: Capresso Infinity - stuck burr
The_Shadow Said:
Yeah most grinders like this have some sort of ball/spring that click into detents to hold that setting. I took my Infinity apart and removed these parts so I simply spin the hopper where I want the burr alignment to be and it's stepless. Not rocket science, but it does have pretty much an infinite amount of settings. Instead of being stuck with marked settings that click in place you can really fine tune the grind. Only thing I don't really like about the grinder is the way the grounds are retained on the carousel (under the lower burr). I'm going to modify that part so it sweeps the grinding chamber, instead of the grounds being flung away all over the place. It's not my primary grinder, so I haven't taken the time to do it, but will let you know how well it works and possibly take a few pics. Later!
I'll add to and confirm what The_Shadow was saying: modifiying the Infinity to be stepless is drop dead simple. I have the black plastic version, but the nickel base version should be similar: you remove the top, and internally, it looks an awful lot (but not exactly) like a Maestro/Virtuoso. There's a nylon adjustment collar ring that goes around the top of the grinding chamber. If you look carefully, you'll see a white nylon post that sticks up underneath the ring. Inside the post is a ball/spring assembly that fits snuggly into the holes on the adjustment collar ring. Just yank out the ball/spring assembly and the grinder is stepless.
If anyone is interested in converting their Infinity to be stepless, let me know and I'll post better instructions.
Not a very clever job: now you have a stepless grinder but nothing to hold the collar in place as you start the motor and if you do not hold with your hand the torque is going to lock top and bottom burr : that ball spring is a safety device and you should not remove it unless you put somehow in place a worm screw: So next time you start your motor without beans (it happens with beans as well but without is much worse...), you are going to be in trouble, and probably it has already happened: Ciao. Pietro
Symbols: = New Posts since your last visit = No New Posts since last visit = Newest post
Forum Rules: No profanity, illegal acts or personal attacks will be tolerated in these discussion boards. No commercial posting of any nature will be tolerated; only private sales by private individuals, in the "Buy and Sell" forum. No cross posting allowed - do not post your topic to more than one forum, nor repost a topic to the same forum. Who Can Read The Forum? Anyone can read posts in these discussion boards. Who Can Post New Topics? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post new topics. Who Can Post Replies? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post replies. Can Photos be posted? Anyone can post photos in their new topics or replies. Who can change or delete posts? Any CoffeeGeek member can edit their own posts. Only moderators can delete posts. Probationary Period: If you are a new signup for CoffeeGeek, you cannot promote, endorse, criticise or otherwise post an unsolicited endorsement for any company, product or service in your first five postings.
= No New Posts since last visit 