Hi Zach, congrats on your awesome looking grinder!
Can't wait to hear/see some reviews.
I was wondering if a stainless steel version might be on the cards at some point? No pressure.
Cheers.
awesome! thanks for your review!The ZAMGrinder
New on the market and jammed full of new innovations in the world of grinders!
Innovations in this area have all been around tooth design and non-stick interior coatings and of course the material the grinder is made from.
The ZAM grinder is all aluminum and is made in China but the design and final quality check and assembly is done by Zach, the maker of these grinders. I think this is the best of both worlds!
This equals cost saving for the end users, which is always appreciated!
I have used aluminum grinders since I started this journey 25+ years ago and have never had an issue with the material. Stainless grinders are great but so heavy!
A ZAM SS grinder would be amazing!
Enough product talk lets dive into the grinder itself!
This series of pics is of the ZAM grinder in both black and silver and all the pieces taken apart as well as it assembled to its smallest form factor!
Total disassembly = 8 parts for a full grinder with kief screen.
6 aluminum parts.
And in it's smallest form factor = 6 parts with no middle section or kief screen.
3 aluminum parts only!
The finish is excellent and there is enough grip for those dense nugs to be ground with ease.
The grinding action is nice and smooth and you can also turn it upside down to achieve a finer grind.
Straight from the grinder it is not quite a fine grind but not medium either, somewhere in-between.
It does give a nice fluffy grind and does not seem to strip the trichomes too badly, another bonus!
The top section in the lid does not really appeal to me although for on the go type people, it is a super handy storage solution for herb, concentrates or even your ABV.
I have another grinder that incorporates this feature that I have never used.
One area of improvement I would like to see is the lid being held tighter to the body by the round magnet system. I have spoken to Zach about this and it is an easy fix.
I feel that the lid may pop off while in transit or could be lost. A firmer connection would be desirable imo.
So far it has worked perfectly in a few of my vaporizers, so no complaints about the grind consistency.
This was the first real world test grind! I used some very nice Black Fin Tuna that is trimmed to perfection and very sparkly!
I broke off a small chunk and added it to the grinder. It closed easily and the grinding was very easy.
A few turns was all it took for the nug to be ground.
This nug was enough to fill my Sticky Brick OG bowl, perfect for my needs and now I will be grinding a lot more often and be able to switch strains without having left overs!
I did find the chamber to still have a bit of bud stuck to the teeth as you can see but nothing a quick tap or brush cannot sort out. That chunk on the right fell into the collection chamber just after the pic was taken!
And now for the money shots! What we all came here to see!
Still inside the ZAM grinder and sitting on top of the kief screen. No kief was present in the bottom section, see the last pic to find out where the trichomes went…
Trichome reveal!!!!
They are all still on the ground herb!!!
Just where I love them to stay!
FYI- this herb is quite fresh and sticky, much drier herb will give you lots of kief to collect if that is your thing!
The ZAM Grinder is meant to be the ultimate in portable grinders and I think it achieves this admirably! The fact that you can assemble it in many ways and sizes is a great feature, especially if you do not collect kief and like using a 3 piece grinder.
For vaporizers it produces a great grind consistency for myself using both conduction and convection vaporizers.
For $40, everyone should own one of these grinders!
They feel great in the hand and do not take up a lot of desk space and do not look like your typical grinder either.
Recommended by me, if that means anything! LOL!
) but there is no EU shipping option, only UK wich is soon to be no EU. Are you going to sell in EU @ZAM ?
Wtf after reading @lazylathe impressions I compulsively placed my order (btw thhhhank you LL for triggering my compulsive buying
Haha, you might want to choose your wording more wisely. You make it sound like a risjy business, buying a weed grinder where possibly something could go wrong in the process.
I may get one myself, I'm just waiting on my insurance to come through first.
I believe in you Alexis.
not jk 
I wonder if the magnet adjustment is something that can be done now, for this initial release or something to be changed for the next batch? @ZAM I saw that you said it’s an easy fix but that’s not the same as quickly; do you have to sell 10,000 that are in stock before the revision can be implemented? I guess what I want to know is, did you do a small run to get feedback and iron out any wrinkles or do you have a garage full of ZAMs? Please understand, I’m not trying to be a dick, I dig your vibe and your attitude; what you said to @Alexis was the nicest thing I’ve seen in a while, on a forum that is chock-full of niceness. Disgustingly so, sometimes.
So I really like all the features packed into this cool little grinder and again, like BCG, dude outta nowhere comes up with valuable innovation, not gimmicks, to a product and blindsides the market leaders who have been doing the same thing over and over for years. New teeth and hole patterns, sometimes colours, was enough evolution for them. I love these guys that appreciate their customers because they were a customer who wanted something better and determined to run his business with honesty and integrity. Somewhere big companies lose that, it’s all numbers. I love that our hobby’s Industry has some really intelligent, kind souls who want to earn an honest living and be good people at the same time. A remarkable amount.
But I really like that you get it all: “Blam, there’s the lot of it! Now put it together in whatever configuration you want.” For forty US buckaroos, ZAM gives you everything, which is great because what you want/need can change, even on one holiday trip. And that’s where this grinder would fit me, I think the black version would disappear in a toiletries bag. Zero compromise on the grind and lots of options for day trips or changing circumstances. If lost, it cost $40-get a new one! I haven’t been brave enough to even consider taking my BCG out of the house, the ZAM wouldn’t sting quite so much.
*-brief aside-*
Thanks again @lazylathe for the epic write up and very nice pictures, you know exactly what I want to get out of a grinder review and part of that is PROOF. Show me the grind. I’m interested and want to know all the details and why this concept is different & better, but show me what it can do. I just wanted to say that over time, you have turned me onto some good stuff to spend money on. You, sir, got me on the BCG train very early on so yeah, your recommendation means something to me. To ALL OF US*.
Okay @Ramahs and @szai time for y’all to bring the heat! You two know a little something about grinders and I’m expecting great things from you both. Lazy’s alright and everything, for a Canuck, but I need to hear it from red-blooded ‘mericans! I mean, those Canadians are much too nice and polite to ever really trust**. And then there’s the language barrier, I’m not sure what they’re saying all the time and I’m pretty sure that it’s about me. USA!
*Us in this case being all of the voices residing in my head.
** That’s why I married one.
)
