# Delonghi Magnifica ESAM4200 - Possible grinder motor problem (video)



## antontdi (Jul 6, 2016)

Hi everyone

I was wondering if someone may be able to shed some light onto what I think is a grinder problem on my ESAM4200. The machine started to develop very loose pucks after the brew and also lower strength shots. I cleaned the diffuser but this made little difference. I then removed the grinder unit to clean out gear assembly and the outlet but this also made little difference. I then conducted a small test where I ground the coffee with the grinder being on the worktop next to the machine to see how much coffee is coming out of the grinder and I believe this is where the problem lies. Please see video link below of this test - this was conducted in a very controlled environment:






My initial feeling is that the motor has lost power and is unable to adequately grind the beans so no ground coffee is coming out (the grind speed does not look sufficient and also the sound pitch seems difference than normal). Does anyone have any reference videos to compare or have any comments on the motor performance? I'm interested in the speed as this is probably going to be the easiest thing to compare. Also if anyone has winding resistance spec for this motor then that would also be extremely helpful.

Thanks in advance!

Anton


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

The motor sounds OK. Did you completely strip and clean the burrs in the grinder and the exit chamber ? Are the burrs sharp or do they show any signs of damage ? It appears that the burrs are too close or the exit is blocked. Try backing off the grind adjuster and see if this improves matters.


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## antontdi (Jul 6, 2016)

El carajillo said:


> The motor sounds OK. Did you completely strip and clean the burrs in the grinder and the exit chamber ? Are the burrs sharp or do they show any signs of damage ? It appears that the burrs are too close or the exit is blocked. Try backing off the grind adjuster and see if this improves matters.


Thanks for your feedback! Yes the exit chamber is fully clean with no blockage. The burrs appear ok and generally do not look work. I will try what you suggested and feedback:good:


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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

Do the burrs take apart to really examine inside closely?


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## antontdi (Jul 6, 2016)

MildredM said:


> Do the burrs take apart to really examine inside closely?


I've managed to get some photos of the grinder burrs:









From personal observation they look in good condition (not that I've anything to reference them on). The burrs still appear to be sharp.


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## DrRSG (Jul 11, 2017)

Just speculating, but the problem may not be the grinder but the mechanism that creates the puck, and are you certain there is nothing blocking the channel from the grinder?


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## antontdi (Jul 6, 2016)

No, the channel is fully free and has been cleaned out. I re-assembled the machine and although it is better I think you are right on saying there may be an issue with the pucks as they seem half the size of what they used to be (and still slightly crumbly). My speculation is maybe the machine is not grinding enough coffee beans. Would it be useful to weigh the puck post brew after it has dried out a bit to see how much coffee the grinder is putting out?


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## DrRSG (Jul 11, 2017)

I'm not familiar with this model. does it accept ready-ground coffee? If so, a more interesting test would be to try making some and determine if the problem still exists.


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## antontdi (Jul 6, 2016)

Great idea! It does so I will give it a try and let you know


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## RW. (Aug 23, 2020)

Just had the same problem, the cog on the grinder that adjusts the tightness of the burrs has a big travel and only a small section of it will actually produce ground coffee.

So it can be hard to find that section again afterwards. A bit of trial and error and coffee suddenly came out of the outlet! 🙂


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## largey (Mar 10, 2021)

i have the same issue. I stripped it down and cleaned it all up (the grinder was blocked) but cannot get it to grind fine enough. It doesnt create the pucks.

I can use already grounded coffee and the pucks come out fine, so its got to be the grinder. The motor seems fine.

Anyone know where i can get spare parts for the machines ? cant find any grinder parts anywhere.

Thanks in advance


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## Tomis (Jun 22, 2021)

I have the same problem, anyone know how to fix it?


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