Sheldon wrote:
> Becca wrote:
>> Sheldon wrote:
>>> I have the old style Penzeys mill with the crank handle; Zassenhaus.
>>> I use it but I don't think it's anything special. �In fact it's not
>>> made very well, the grinding burr is in a cheapo plastic housing
>>> pressed into wood, on dry days the wood shrinks so it loosens and
>>> sometimes falls out, along with all teh peppercorns. �
>> Mine came from Penzey's, but I bought it several years ago. �The ones
>> they sell now, have the plastic grinders, like you mentioned (the one I
>> have, has metal grinders). �I was going to buy one for a friend, but
>> when I saw the plastic, I changed my mind.
>>
>> Becca
>
> The one I have I bought from Penzeys too, more than ten years ago. It
> does have metal grinding burrs, albeit very small burrs, but it's the
> little housing that holds the burrs that is plastic, and the plastic
> housing that contains the metal burrs is pressed into the wooden body
> with nothing holding it in place other than the pressure exerted by a
> slightly undersized wooden hole... during periods of dry weather the
> wood shrinks, the hole enlarges, and occasionally the entire mechanism
> falls out. I have other wooden grinders but those all have a metal
> plate screwed to the bottom that holds the mechanism in place
> regardless of humidity. Also the plastic used for that housing is the
> type used for cheap toys, it's not very stable like a nylon, delrin
> and others, so with use over time it distorts and it no longer holds
> the burrs in proper alignment. The model that Penzeys sold to me is
> very poorly made.

Using plastic, is a cheap way to make a pepper mill. I just checked
their website, and it looks like everything underneath the pepper mill,
is now plastic, there is no metal. I wonder why Penzey's still offers
them for sale.

Becca