ZAM Grinder

[Ipe17]

I dont know whats going on.... long time wishing to have the Stashcann back in stock and to get a full mag SS if the aluminium works good... but there are no reviewa of the aluminium one...

 

[seriousTone]

I dont know whats going on.... long time wishing to have the Stashcann back in stock and to get a full mag SS if the aluminium works good... but there are no reviewa of the aluminium one...

I saw a bunch on the website.

 

[TigoleBitties]

Just got the black aluminum full mag. I like the feel of it and the weight of the top piece. Grinds quite nicely and consistently. One thing you do need to watch for is to make sure your pieces of bud aren't too tall and near the very edges of the grind area. These pieces may crumble and can spill out before the magnets snap shut.

image hosted at ImgBB

Image image in Lmcphha's images album

ibb.co

image hosted at ImgBB

Image image in Lmcphha's images album

ibb.co

image hosted at ImgBB

Image image in Lmcphha's images album

ibb.co

image hosted at ImgBB

Image image in Lmcphha's images album

ibb.co

 

[Cacahuates]

My full mag is so nice but one thing I've encountered is my thumb on the top piece slips a lot and makes contact with one of the blades when I open it. I'm clumsy and they are sharp! Haven't cut myself yet but be sure to take care when opening.

 

[TigoleBitties]

I've had the white gasket (friction slider?) from the top piece pop loose for the first time. I put it back and so far it's staying there but I'm concerned if you grind a bit rough or your fingers slip - not sure what moved it yet- then this can come loose again. Anyone else had this happen?

 

[Bakin4Life]

My full mag is so nice but one thing I've encountered is my thumb on the top piece slips a lot and makes contact with one of the blades when I open it. I'm clumsy and they are sharp! Haven't cut myself yet but be sure to take care when opening.

I have done this (just got mine a few days ago), and you're right -- it'll instantly make you wish it hadn't happened. Even worse for me, I also managed to inadvertently open the bottom section and spill about half of the contents in my lap / on the floor.
The obvious (?) cause was too much applied force to the (now-empty) top section. I had placed four smalls around the perimeter, so had a little force applied as I was grinding. And I tend to start grinding horizontally, but switch to vertical once the top / bottom are closed (better ergonomics)
Anyway... as the top section empties, less force is needed, of course.

I'm still researching but as you know, the experience is not one you want to duplicate on a regular basis.
For the record, I'd been using a BCG for a little less than a year, when I got the Zam as a backup / travel unit.

Oh... and one thing I've done... *remove* the white teflon ring to *increase* friction on the top side. There's a LOT of difference between top magnet ring strength and the bottom one (much stronger). When you think about it, it's good for the bottom one to be strong(er), so I'm not necessarily knocking that.

I've had the white gasket (friction slider?) from the top piece pop loose for the first time. I put it back and so far it's staying there but I'm concerned if you grind a bit rough or your fingers slip - not sure what moved it yet- then this can come loose again. Anyone else had this happen?

I've found that ring can be removed fairly easily (teflon, and it's technically an 'anti-friction', but I'm also the type of person that knows 'anal-retentive' is hyphenated ) Actually, when I got mine (in a vendor box; doubt that Vgoodiez opened it, either)... it had a spare black o-ring in a plastic bag, and I (accidentally) found out there were TWO teflon gaskets -- IIRC, *both* were installed on the grinder (I remember being surprised to find them stacked).

(you may want to see if you have twin gaskets as well - ?)

With both installed, I think Zam could give an Aroma3 a run for it's money, in that it spins freely. *Too* freely, IMO. I immediately packed one away, and have gone with that -- until I gouged my finger as @Cacahuates mentioned, above. Now, I've temporarily removed the ring entirely, to increase the friction and see if that helps me with my 'herculean' efforts to make this grinder one that I'll keep / use.

As I write this post, I realize that I *should* use this grinder 100% for a time, to give it a more thorough evaluation than I already have. But my daily driver is an Anvil, and frankly, I love loading the oven from that magnetic center post in my BCG. Guess I'll have to take one for the team...

 

[Cacahuates]

I have done this (just got mine a few days ago), and you're right -- it'll instantly make you wish it hadn't happened. Even worse for me, I also managed to inadvertently open the bottom section and spill about half of the contents in my lap / on the floor.
The obvious (?) cause was too much applied force to the (now-empty) top section. I had placed four smalls around the perimeter, so had a little force applied as I was grinding. And I tend to start grinding horizontally, but switch to vertical once the top / bottom are closed (better ergonomics)
Anyway... as the top section empties, less force is needed, of course.

I'm still researching but as you know, the experience is not one you want to duplicate on a regular basis.
For the record, I'd been using a BCG for a little less than a year, when I got the Zam as a backup / travel unit.

Oh... and one thing I've done... *remove* the white teflon ring to *increase* friction on the top side. There's a LOT of difference between top magnet ring strength and the bottom one (much stronger). When you think about it, it's good for the bottom one to be strong(er), so I'm not necessarily knocking that.



I've found that ring can be removed fairly easily (teflon, and it's technically an 'anti-friction', but I'm also the type of person that knows 'anal-retentive' is hyphenated ) Actually, when I got mine (in a vendor box; doubt that Vgoodiez opened it, either)... it had a spare black o-ring in a plastic bag, and I (accidentally) found out there were TWO teflon gaskets -- IIRC, *both* were installed on the grinder (I remember being surprised to find them stacked).

(you may want to see if you have twin gaskets as well - ?)

With both installed, I think Zam could give an Aroma3 a run for it's money, in that it spins freely. *Too* freely, IMO. I immediately packed one away, and have gone with that -- until I gouged my finger as @Cacahuates mentioned, above. Now, I've temporarily removed the ring entirely, to increase the friction and see if that helps me with my 'herculean' efforts to make this grinder one that I'll keep / use.

As I write this post, I realize that I *should* use this grinder 100% for a time, to give it a more thorough evaluation than I already have. But my daily driver is an Anvil, and frankly, I love loading the oven from that magnetic center post in my BCG. Guess I'll have to take one for the team...

What a plate are you using for the bcg and how does it compare to the zam for the anvil?
I only use a course grind in my bcg but I find the grind from the zam (a bit finer) works great for the Anvil.

The thumb slip is purely user error on my part. I'm glad someone else hulks it like I do.

 

[Bakin4Life]

I'd been using a coarse plate for the longest time, until recently. Now I'm using the fine plate (don't have a medium), as I kinda discovered the same thing -- 'fine' appears to be better than coarse, in the Anvil. Another reason I like the BCG, of course -- interchangeable plates.

Between the Zam's default plate and the BCG 'fine'... I kinda like the Zam's a little bit better, so far. The BCG's holes can get clogged, depending on the flower strain. But I need to use the Zam for a bit before I can say this conclusively. I think (?) the Zam's holes are a tiny bit bigger.

And, yeah... I'm not suggesting the Zam is 'faulty'. But I place a high value on ergonomics & product refinement, especially at this price point.
I will say... I didn't have a learning curve with the BCG (nor is it perfect, either).

 

[Cacahuates]

I'd been using a coarse plate for the longest time, until recently. Now I'm using the fine plate (don't have a medium), as I kinda discovered the same thing -- 'fine' appears to be better than coarse, in the Anvil. Another reason I like the BCG, of course -- interchangeable plates.

Between the Zam's default plate and the BCG 'fine'... I kinda like the Zam's a little bit better, so far. The BCG's holes can get clogged, depending on the flower strain. But I need to use the Zam for a bit before I can say this conclusively. I think (?) the Zam's holes are a tiny bit bigger.

And, yeah... I'm not suggesting the Zam is 'faulty'. But I place a high value on ergonomics & product refinement, especially at this price point.
I will say... I didn't have a learning curve with the BCG (nor is it perfect, either).

Thanks for the comparison!

 

[TigoleBitties]

I have done this (just got mine a few days ago), and you're right -- it'll instantly make you wish it hadn't happened. Even worse for me, I also managed to inadvertently open the bottom section and spill about half of the contents in my lap / on the floor.
The obvious (?) cause was too much applied force to the (now-empty) top section. I had placed four smalls around the perimeter, so had a little force applied as I was grinding. And I tend to start grinding horizontally, but switch to vertical once the top / bottom are closed (better ergonomics)
Anyway... as the top section empties, less force is needed, of course.

I'm still researching but as you know, the experience is not one you want to duplicate on a regular basis.
For the record, I'd been using a BCG for a little less than a year, when I got the Zam as a backup / travel unit.

Oh... and one thing I've done... *remove* the white teflon ring to *increase* friction on the top side. There's a LOT of difference between top magnet ring strength and the bottom one (much stronger). When you think about it, it's good for the bottom one to be strong(er), so I'm not necessarily knocking that.

I did try removing the teflon ring and I didn't love the experience of the magnet-on-magnet friction. Felt a bit too stiff and I wonder if they're any long term effects of years of friction on a magnet?

I've found that ring can be removed fairly easily (teflon, and it's technically an 'anti-friction', but I'm also the type of person that knows 'anal-retentive' is hyphenated ) Actually, when I got mine (in a vendor box; doubt that Vgoodiez opened it, either)... it had a spare black o-ring in a plastic bag, and I (accidentally) found out there were TWO teflon gaskets -- IIRC, *both* were installed on the grinder (I remember being surprised to find them stacked).

(you may want to see if you have twin gaskets as well - ?)

With both installed, I think Zam could give an Aroma3 a run for it's money, in that it spins freely. *Too* freely, IMO. I immediately packed one away, and have gone with that -- until I gouged my finger as @Cacahuates mentioned, above. Now, I've temporarily removed the ring entirely, to increase the friction and see if that helps me with my 'herculean' efforts to make this grinder one that I'll keep / use.

I don't know if my gasket got slightly stretched when it first came off but having it stay in place is a bit suspect at the moment so I'm not thinking of stacking them. Pretty sure it only came with one installed.

As I write this post, I realize that I *should* use this grinder 100% for a time, to give it a more thorough evaluation than I already have. But my daily driver is an Anvil, and frankly, I love loading the oven from that magnetic center post in my BCG. Guess I'll have to take one for the team...

I'm learning that to get the best out of the Zam, I place low-height nuggs (the lower profile the better) starting at the center of the grind area and then I put the other nuggs in a circular patter around the center nugg, staying away from the edge of the grind area.

If nuggs are too close to the edge, flower can spill out the sides and if they're too tall, the teeth won't line up nicely when turning. I'm careful too 'cause those little teeth are indeed sharp as hell. I also find the gind consistency to be on the finer side (I had been using a coarse plate on a Kannastor GR8TR V2) but it's been vaping nicely as I keep my humidity at 62%. Maybe dryer flower would be even finer.

 

[Bakin4Life]

I did try removing the teflon ring and I didn't love the experience of the magnet-on-magnet friction. Felt a bit too stiff and I wonder if they're any long term effects of years of friction on a magnet?

Metal-on-metal contact, with no lubrication? For sure it will degrade, long-term. I'm only doing it for testing / evaluation, nothing more.

With regard to load... I'm really not taxing mine at all. I might have 50% surface coverage across the plate, if that. My usual stock is smalls.

I do like how the holding chamber is deep, but I wish the top compartment was a bit roomier. The ridge in the top lid appears to be there to help provide strength for the embedded teeth. Minor quibble, but I wish there was more open depth to avoid smashing the nug so much, prior to cutting. It also encourages me to break up by hand, and if I'm doing half the 'work', every time, out of necessity... I'm not pleased. I don't mind breaking it up, especially if the herb is stemmy. But *having* to do it, due to equipment limitations... means I bought the wrong equipment

Yeah, I'm a tough judge

 

[TigoleBitties]

I do like how the holding chamber is deep, but I wish the top compartment was a bit roomier. The ridge in the top lid appears to be there to help provide strength for the embedded teeth. Minor quibble, but I wish there was more open depth to avoid smashing the nug so much, prior to cutting.

Well said. This smashing of the nuggs (if they're a bit tall) is what leads to slipping or a messy grind until the magnets click shut. You can avoid it by using nuggs of the right size and this is something to be mindful of. All grinders have their limitations.