The Pin Ball Machine

In the early 70’s (and many decades preceding ) , before the dawn of modern technology, we had strange mechanical devices for amusement, such as the pinball machine. These behemoths were heavy, clunky and a wonderful source of entertainment and sometimes gambling devices.
My old friend Jerry Rubin was the repairman etc. for his father in his pinball machine and juke box business. Jerry was the only friend I knew who had a beeper, and more than one Saturday night Jerry would get called out of a dinner or movie to rush to some bar to make emergency repairs to one kind of machine or another.

There were some rich people we would read about who actually owned their own machines, but that would have been some weird dream.

So, one summer day in the 70’s, being an adult with a small bit of extra cash, I asked Jerry if it would be possible to obtain a machine of my own. I wanted a 5 ball, flipper style pinball machine, and since I knew Jerry, I figured age was not a big problem because Jerry had already proven he could fix anything including replacing the master cylinder outside in a snowstorm the year before.

He called around and found one for me for $75 cash, and arranged for a van so we could go and get it. I think the transaction took less than an hour from call to installation in my house!

It remained downstairs in my family room until we moved a few years later, and then it lived in my living room for a few years. Jerry bought it back from me some years later for $75, and took it to his house. It could still be there, I don’t know.

My oldest son said, when I asked if he remembered the name of the machine, “It was an integral part of my formative years. It would be like asking you for the recipe for meat blintzes”.

We had it from about 1972 until somewhere in the 1980’s I believe. We had removed the nickel slot device early on so there was no charge for the games. It was used by all three kids, all their friends, all of our friends and was the focal point for at least the guys at all dinner and cocktail parties from that time until the end. We did keep the counter on and we racked up 15,000 games during the time we had it.

Now if we had kept the nickel thing and had done all the games (never would have happened) we would have an intake of $750 for our $75 machine.
It was a mind blowing experience that everyone loved and is as clear in my mind today as it was when we had it.

The poster for this machine (left) today costs $20.



The machine was a Bally "Trio":

Manufacturer: Bally Manufacturing Corporation (1931-1983) [Trade Name: Bally]



Project Date: July 27, 1965


Date Of Manufacture: November, 1965


Model Number: 768


Type: Electro-mechanical (EM)


Production: 750 units (approximate)


Serial Number Database: View at The Internet Pinball Serial Number Database (IPSND.net) (External site)


Theme: Happiness - Music - Singing - Dancing


Notable Features: Flippers (2), Pop bumpers (4), Mushroom bumpers (4), Slingshots (2), Kick-out hole (1). Right outlane ball return gate.


Build bonus on playfield to open free ball gate and light Special out lane. Ball through free ball gate advances backglass lights for bonus at 10th light.


Maximum displayed point score is 9,999 points.


Tilt penalty: game over.


Design by: Ted Zale


Notes: Some Trio games were made as an "Added Ball" version. In this version, the credit wheel in the backbox was removed and replaced with a larger reel showing the 'added balls' to be played. This "Added Balls" feature functions the same as the well-known "Add-A-Ball" feature; only the phrasing is different.


Bally provided production run data indicating they made 750 of these games. Their serial numbering during this time period usually started at 1001 which meant their last game would be stamped 1750. However, a number of Trio games have been located that carry serial numbers beyond the expected final number of 1750. We list a few of them here:


TR 1787 - "Added balls" version, located in the USA, Feb 2009.


TR 2106 - standard credit version located in the USA, Jan 2004.


TR 2333 - located in Italy, May 2003.


TR 2355 - standard credit version located in Italy, Sept 2002.


Photos in: Encyclopedia of Pinball Volume 2, page 238


Mike Pacak's Pinball Flyer Reference Book S-Z


Pinball Machines (Eiden-Lukas), page 82

The TV Set

These are not the same 60's RCA metal cabinet 21" TV sets but they come close.

In the early 60’s I was working at the Hecht Company in Baltimore, one of the May Company stores. I was just beginning a teaching career, and continued to work there through college and beyond to earn extra money. I worked in the record department most of the time I was there, and worked next door to the major appliances and electronics and worked with those guys when they needed help.

While I was out one day, during a TV sale, an older couple came in and wanted a “French Provincial” model TV console that we had on special. These were white and gold colored and really in pretty bad taste when I think about, but at the time it was high end decorating in my area. These people lived in a huge new apartment building, a very expensive residence for sure, and we had a trade-in sale going on at the time. We offered $1 a screen inch as a trade in for your old TV on a new model.

They had a 21” table model RCA TV to trade and told my friend Len it was almost new, but they wanted the French provincial look in their new apartment. He offered them the deal and they took it. He asked them if they would be willing to let me have it for the $21 as I was a young father and this would be great for us. They were happy to oblige, and I went to the fancy apartment house and retrieved the 21” RCA, metal cabinet TV. It must have weighed a ton as I remember, and there was a cart in the place I used to transport it to my house.


I probably wouldn’t have remembered much of this story but as people remember where they were when major events happen, I remember watching the Kennedy assignation films and the actual Lee Harvey Oswald assassination the next day on that same TV set.

As I wrote yesterday...

Yesterday I wrote before doing the recipes:


When I grew up, going out to dinner usually meant going to a deli. We had a favorite deli nearby, on Garrison Boulevard in Baltimore, called Paul’s.

On Friday evening we often would go there as a family, my parents and I, and even later on I would go with my parents and my wife and kids.

One thing I loved that they had on the menu was meat blintzes with mushroom gravy, something I have been thinking about for the last 40 years or so and thought this would be a good time to make them.

After this appeared, my old friend Joel Cohen in Denver wrote to send me a photo of Paul’s, as it stands today, the Supreme Oasis Bakery and Deli.  Time has done much damage to Paul’s and to the area. I was saddened by the photo and sadly can find no photos on the net of the “good old days” of Paul’s.

The Traditional Meal

I had another opportunity to cook today, not just my usual Tuesday, and even with the use of one and a half arms, as my right one is still a bit useless, I was able to get together a great meal, full of nostalgia for me.


I wanted to make a traditional Jewish meal because I miss my grandmother’s home cooking, and I like to recreate some favorites. As a matter of fact, both of these were never made by either my mother or my grandmother, but traditional they are.

When I grew up, goin g out to dinner usually meant going to a deli. We had a favorite deli nearby, on Garrison Boulevard in Baltimore, called Paul’s. On Friday evening we often would go there as a family, my parents and I, and even later on I would go with my parents and my wife and kids. One thing I loved that they had on the menu was meat blintzes with mushroom gravy, something I have been thinking about for the last 40 years or so and thought this would be a good time to make them.

Along with that I made kasha varnishkes, another traditional dish made of bowtie pasta and buckwheat.

I searched through lots of recipes and made up with this one and it was a winner.

Meat Blintzes

Filling:

1 pound lean ground beef (I used kosher beef because I was being traditional)

1 sweet onion, mostly (3/4) grated and some (1/4) chopped bits

1 carrot, grated

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

½ teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon flour

½ cup water

In a large frying pan cook the meat along with the onions, carrots, Worcestershire, spices, flour and the water for at least ten to fifteen minutes on medium high, until it’s cooked through. Cook covered for a few more minutes on a lower heat. Let sit covered for 20 minutes. Uncover and blend in a beaten egg to the mixture. Turn off the heat, cover and let it rest for five more minutes.

Blintze Batter (batter recipe from Jennie Grossinger’s cook book)

3 eggs

1 cup milk or water

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

¾ cup flour

Butter or oil for frying

Beat the eggs, milk, salt and oil together. Stir in the flour. Heat a 6” small fry pan and add a little oil or butter. Pour about 4 tablespoons of the mixture into the hot pan, tilting the pan to coat the bottom and a bit of the sides. Use enough batter to make a thin pancake. Let the bottom brown and turn it out, bottom side (brown) up onto a paper towel. Make all the pancakes. This will make about 8-10.

Spread a heaping tablespoon or more of filling over the top of the blintz, and turn and roll up like a jelly roll, browned side on the inside.

You can pan fry them at this point or bake in a hot oven at 425 degrees F for about 10-15 minutes until brown. You can sprinkle a bit of paprika on them if you bake to insure browning.

The blintze batter is a crepe recipe and can be used for fruit and cheese blintzes as well.


Kasha Varnishkes

In 1925 Wolff Brothers of Paterson, New Jersey, published a Yiddish English cook book with recipes culled from a kasha cooking contest run in all the Jewish newspapers throughout the country. "Recipes of thousands of Jewish dishes were sent us," they wrote modestly, "but we selected only the very best among them and these are listed here." The recipes included buckwheat blintzes, vegetarian buckwheat cutlets, and "a tasteful grits soup" made from their Health Food (merely unroasted buckwheat groats), green peas, and potatoes. The varnishke recipe was basically a kreplach-type noodle stuffed with kasha, buckwheat groats, and gribenes.

Packaged bow-tie noodles,large and small, quickly replaced the flat homemade egg noodles in the American version of kasha varnishkes. The trick to a good kasha varnishke is to toast the whole-grain buckwheat groat well over a high heat for 2 to 4 minutes until you start smelling the aroma of the kasha. This will seal the groats so that there is a nutty, crunchy taste to them, a good foil to the soft taste of the noodles. You can add fresh parsley and sometimes coriander. Although traditionalists use bow-tie noodles for this, try rigatoni, shells, or any other kind of noodle you like.

Wolff Brother’s Recipe (My version)

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 2 to 3 tablespoons margarine or oil

• 1 large egg, slightly beaten

• 1 cup medium or coarse kasha

• 2 cups water or bouillon

• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

• 3/4 pound large or small bow tie-shaped noodles

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander (optional)

1. Sauté the onions in 2 tablespoons of the margarine or oil in a heavy frying pan with a cover until golden. Remove to a plate.

2. Beat the egg in a small mixing bowl and stir in the kasha. Mix, making sure all the grains are coated. Put the kasha in the same frying pan, set over a high heat. Flatten, stir, and break up the egg-coated kasha with a fork or wooden spoon for 2 to 4 minutes or until the egg has dried on the kasha and the kernels brown and mostly separate.

3. Add the water or bouillon, salt, and pepper to the frying pan and bring to a boil. (I added a few sliced mushrooms just because I had them around.) Add the onions, cover tightly, and cook over low heat, steaming the kasha for 10 minutes. Remove the cover, stir, and quickly check to see if the kernels are tender and the liquid has been absorbed. If not, cover and continue steaming for 3 to 5 minutes more.

4. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the bow-tie noodles according to the directions on the package. Drain.

5. When the kasha is ready, combine with the noodles. Adjust the seasoning, sprinkle with the parsley and coriander. If desired, add a bit more margarine or oil.

I will admit that I used two packages of prepared brown gravy mix, two cups of water and added that to a package of sliced mushrooms that I had sautéed.

We served some veggies on the side and this made quite a feast! Definitely give this one a try!

I can't get it up (my arm, that is)

I had just written about my big fall last Friday, and making fun of myself as usual, when another week went by and lo and behold, here it comes again! I am the king of self deprecating humor.


Standing at my construction site, in my sparkling new (embarrassingly so) steel toe boots and wearing an appropriate hard hat I was prepared for anything, anything except ice, that is.

As I stood and watched people doing actual work, nursing a bad right shoulder left over from last week’s fall and grab (the banister), I slipped on the ice. I fell to the earth snapping my right shoulder against a short brick decorative wall and falling on the shoulder. My first thought after the embarrassing moment ended was that I broke something and I gradually checked each visible appendage to see that they all worked. The problem seems to be that my right arm was not working. I was able to move it, albeit with my left hand, not always a convenient way to shake hands etc. I had much pain, and was sitting on an ice bank with wet knees, a wet seat and lots of arm, shoulder pain.

The guys with me wanted to help me up but I declined, knowing it would be a painful event. I knew if I worked at it, over time, I might be able to stand. I didn’t want to take the time to go to the hospital as I was waiting for someone and didn’t want to disappoint my guest.

Over the course of the rest of the day, going out last night, sleeping, waking, walking Max and making breakfast I have realized that I may be ambidextrous or that overnight God has made me left handed.

I have full use of my right hand as I am sitting and typing into a computer. I can use my arm in a downward position, and do not need help (THANK GOD) in the toilet. I just can’t raise my arm above my hip. I can move it there with minimal pain using my left hand, but not a long term solution.

My mother was still right, as I said in yesterdays post, and I do bounce. For an old guy I can fall and not do too much damage but this sucks! I may actually have to see the doctor on Monday and seek some relief.

I hate this crap! I want to be healed! I need a miracle cure!

I need to send $5 to some radio preacher guy out there for a healing prayer cloth.

Taking A Header

The start of my father in laws down fall was precipitated by a fall down his front hall stairs. It’s not unusual for a series of medical events to be started by an accident, and his, although he clearly was having troubles with Alzheimers before the fall, was exacerbated by such an event. So, given my advancing age and my general health, I move more slowly than I used to. In terms of stairs, I definitely take it a bit slower, and I am always aware when I am on the stairs of my situation because I don’t want the same kind of thing to happen to me.


Saying that, last week on Friday morning after my father in law’s funeral, at 4:20 a.m., I had awoken and decided to go downstairs (down the same stairs at his house where he had fallen) and watch some TV. I had a long drive in front of me that day and I guess I was a bit keyed up after the funeral and didn’t sleep that well. I carefully walked to the top of the stairs, started down very slowly, one bare foot at a time when I slipped.

I started down, caught myself by my hand on a banister and ended up turning somehow in the air and turned completely over on to my stomach, my right hand on the banister. My shoulder felt like it had been ripped up a bit, I fell about four or five stairs, made a huge noise but my prayers were answered. Nothing was broken!

My wife who always worries that I may have died in some way or another came running out loudly whispering (stage whisper) “Arthur, are you all right?” I just laughed so hard.

I quoted my late mother who said, “Arthur, when we fall on our fat asses at any age all we do is bounce!”

The Coffee Grinder (revisited as promised)

On January 3, 2011 I wrote:

I received a few pounds of whole bean coffee for my birthday, and I decided it would be fun to grind coffee myself, A few friends of mine and my brother-in-law all do it, and I figured it was worth a try.


My options were limited. I guess I could have gone to somewhere that had a grinder and beg them, or surreptitiously sneak in to the super market and grind my coffee in their grinder. I could have rescued our hand cranked coffee grinder from my basement storage, a 19th century model, beautiful and antique, and probably great for coffee you boil for a while. Instead, I decided to buy one.

I knew we used to have one, a blade model, which had been used for spices and would impart a bad taste for coffee at this point. My brief investigation on the internet gave me the new concept that a burr grinder was necessary if I was going to be a player in this new world. I was getting hooked!

I looked around on the net and found models ranging from about $100 to several thousand. I was getting unhooked!

I needed a deal. Looking around, I found a Black and Decker model that sounded like what I wanted and retailed for $35 to $40 in Canada. Things are more expensive here and less is available. Sending things here from the US is often difficult or very expensive. Often, I send stuff to my mother-in-law and pick it up when we’re in New Jersey. But, I wanted to use this one now, so I bit the bullet and went out and for $35 plus all our taxes, I got the Black and Decker.

What I should have done before I bought it was looked at reader’s experiences, but I didn’t.

One of the web sites I looked at recommended a small Cuisinart one that was their version of a “Best Buy”; low end, (around $100) and good quality. My brother-in-law had one of these, I believe.

The Canadian Tire web site had a few readers’ comments which weren’t too bad. I hadn’t looked at Amazon.com yet, not until after I purchased it. I read these and my heart was stilled. There were 93 of them! This is a record for consumer’s comments in my world; this is only done if something is hated! Here are just a few edited versions, not all the bad ones:

*What this is not: a highly precise burr grinder with a wide range of grind settings


What this is: a very good alternative to a blade grinder that grinds at a lower speed (as all burr grinders do), and thus won't burn the beans and is relatively quiet


I think it's safe to say that the manufacturer didn't intend this grinder to compete with high-end burr grinders, like the great one from Kitchen Aid. This grinder sells at the same price point of blade grinders, albeit with a slight premium. And, for good reason.


This grinder provides a relatively consistent grind size (there's even a mod listed in these reviews that promises to help). The size of grind on the smallest and the largest settings really is not that different - it clearly does not have the range of a serious burr grinder. But, as a casual burr grinder, this thing is great.


*If you need an occasional grinder, like if your friend gives you beans occasionally or if you want to get started in grinding without a large investment - this grinder is a great value. If, however, you want a grinder capable of grinding coffee beans into the almost-flour-like espresso and the large almost-pebble-size-grind for your French press, and you expect this grinder to do all that - what are you thinking?


Someone included a”how to repair” the new item (why bother?)


*Paid $19 at Target and was dismayed at the random grind it produced. Realized it was a good design, just poorly executed. Here is how to fix it:


1. Pop out the top grinding head as per the cleaning instructions.


2. Carefully unscrew the two screws securing the grinding head to the plastic insert.


3. Trace the circular grinding head on a business card.


4. Cut this out to make a gasket that will fit between the grinding plate and the plastic insert.


5. Re-assemble and insert into the hopper as per the cleaning instructions.


Now it will grind your coffee beans consistently to whatever degree you want.


I'd give it 5 stars for value, but it should have been made right in the first place!


*coffee aficionado friend who roasts his own coffee once told me that for uniformity of ground size, mill grinders generally were considered best, followed by burr grinders, then blade ones. Not wanting to spend over $100 for a mill, when I saw this Black & Decker burr-mill grinder at a reasonable price, I figured, "Why not?" My current blade grinder was old; was it time to upgrade to a better grinder? This does look a lot better on a countertop than the round conventional blade grinders. The answer, I discovered, in summary, is "No," because THIS IS A DISASTER MASKING AS A COFFEE GRINDER.


*I've learned that with my blade grinder I get the most uniform grounds, as fine as I want, by holding and shaking it while grinding, counting to a given number, depending on the amount of coffee. Usually about 20 seconds is sufficient. Leaving it on the counter sans shaking still gives decent grind uniformity, but I am a perfectionist where possible, so I suspend and shake while grinding. With this burr grinder, it takes 30 seconds to grind 4 rounded tablespoons of beans, about 60 seconds plus for making enough for a pot of coffee. As with all home grinders you have to hold the switch on. Say a prayer while waiting for this to finish grinding.


*With the Black and Decker Burr Mill Coffee Bean Grinder, I ran several test grindings, with the adjustable grind control on various settings. I learned quickly that the only usable setting is on the "finest" grind, because the other settings made a grind so coarse as to be unsatisfactory even in percolator coffee makers. The knob and adjustment no doubt was put there to improve marketability of the product.


*READ THIS: with the B&D burr mill grinder a UNIFORM grind is impossible, regardless of fineness. A FINE grind is impossible; a MEDIUM GRIND without uniformity requires a second pass of the first grinding. It does, however, do a great job of making a non-uniform medium-coarse grind. Thus, the grounds will work OK in a percolator coffee maker, which uses a coarser grind. Do you use a drip coffee maker? Forget it.


What's more? Convenience and cleanliness. Never thought these would be issues with a simple machine? They are. The grinder comes with a brush, NEEDED to clean the spout and the dust particles that stick to the insides of the deep receptacle for the grounds. If you don't use it, the spout will ultimately clog with old grounds, and, even if it doesn't clog initially, per the instructions the oils in the residual grounds around the spout can become rancid. Moral? Cleaning is necessary. Further, the grounds receptacle is in two parts. Thus, to use the grounds you have to take the cover off and not misplace it. When you do, often a few grounds find their way to the countertop. Ergo, cleanup. Remember that you have to keep track of the brush and store it, also. More? Yep. The manual says the receptacle for grounds must be hand-washed; it's apparently not top-dishwasher safe.

*This grinder is a waste of money.


It does not grind with any uniformity, large chunks mixed with fine grounds


Not suitable for espresso or Turkish, or any fine grind requirements.


Spend a bit more and get a quality product with good reviews


I wish i had stayed at home........


*This is a good looking coffee grinder and doesn't take up a whole lot of space.


The bad:


1) No variation in the grind settings. It seems to grind the coffee the same at every setting.


2) Noisy. I owned a prior brand that just hummed. This one is loud.


3) Dropped lid to the grinder box and it shattered. Now looking for a replacement box and lid. Durability. Poor.


*Over the years I had heard that conical burr grinders are much better than blade grinders, but I always thought it's proponents to be gullible. My blade grinder worked just fine. It didn't "overheat" my coffee as far as I could tell, so what did I care if it used a blade or a burr? In fact, what the heck is a burr? But then I got into roasting green coffee beans myself, which puts one immediately in touch with the very upper-class coffee snobs. I soon started to get ridiculed by my fellow roasters: "What, you roast your own coffee but still use a blade grinder?" So, being the cheap fool that I am, I went to Walmart and bought one of these inexpensive Black and Decker burr grinders. It took me about a half hour with it to discover that even on it's finest setting it can only obtain a very very course grind and therefore results in a very thin, blah cup of coffee. So I stuck the brand new Black and Decker in the garage and put my old blade grinder back on the kitchen counter and my coffee tasted good again. I would never have bought another burr grinder myself, but my brother ended up giving me a Solis Crema Maestro burr grinder for my birthday. Well, I love it. I think the coffee does taste better, but who really knows since every pot of coffee tastes different to me anyway. But this Black and Decker thing is not to be taken seriously. It's a step backwards, not forwards. Don't make the same mistake I did. Keep using your blade grinder until your brother gives you a real conical burr grinder or you save up for a real conical burr grinder. Or just keep using your blade grinder; it's ok, I won't tell anyone.

*I bought this about 2 weeks ago. I think I got about 3 grinds worth before it clogged and smoked.


I was able to unclog it, though that was not easy, and I got another grind out of it before it died completely. It's not really serviceable, I threw it away. I feel like my money was outright stolen from me. I would be ashamed to put my name on a product this bad.


*If I could give negative stars, I would. Apparently, the container does not fit correctly into the grinder, resulting in coffee dust and grids that cover EVERYTHING in about a three-foot radius. I'm contacting the manufacturer to find out what to do.


*Like everyone else here, I found the B&D CBM210 grinder to look great and work like crap. It's Turkish/espresso grind was too big for a drip coffee maker. The coarsest settings were too fine for French press.


BUT...a guy on here came up with a solution...take the 2 screws out of the removable grinder part; trace the circle on a business card (or paper with similar thickness), cut it out and place it in the bottom of the grinder and place the top burr on top. Replace the screws. The whole process will take you 5 minutes.


What you will get is a grinder that now can grind perfect espresso grind. I bought as an espresso grinder...so I did not try the other settings.


I was going to return the unit, but thanks to that guy, it works and I love it now. To the guy that took the time to figure out the problem and the solution...THANK YOU!! You should be working at B&D :) You are brilliant! Thank you so much!


*This product was horrible. I saw it on the shelf at Wal-Mart and decided to buy it. I thought that a burr mill grinder for under 30 dollars was too good to be true....It was. I bought it to use for espresso, which requires an extremely fine grind of coffee. The grind came out the same no matter what setting you put it on. Everything came out from coffee dust to (literally) whole coffee beans. This machine is useless for almost every type of coffee. Too coarse for espresso and drip coffee machines. There are many fine coffee particles that would slip through the filter of a French press. I returned this product the next day. This is a lesson, never buy something that sounds too good to be true until you read the reviews.

*When I first purchased this grinder I loved it. It was inexpensive, small, and seemed to operate just fine. I tried different grinder settings to maximize the grind for my automatic drip coffee maker. After using it I realized it had several significant shortcomings. You have to use a minimum of 50% more beans to get the same strength coffee. This "hidden expense" make this a long term very expensive grinder. And even more important, the quality of the coffee from this grinder is notably inferior to the coffee made from beans ground with the grinder I replaced it with (Infinity Conical Burr model 560 - which I LOVE). Another problem with the Black & Decker grinder is the chamber where the ground coffee collects has a lid which when placed on the counter while you are making coffee makes a notable mess. I was constantly cleaning up after the Black & Decker grinder. The Black & Decker Burr Coffee Grinder is expensive to use, makes inferior coffee, and makes a mess.


*This grinder looks good, but most coffee fans don't want coarse grounds coming out of an aesthetically pleasing machine. Take my advice: Don't waste your money on this contraption. Either settle for using a hammer on your coffee beans or consider another manufacturer. This model is a piece of junk. My new BW is going into the garbage and I'm going back to the store -- for a European model. The folks at BW need to either stick to making drills or bring their development department up to speed.


They were all right! It was horrible. I tried it three times, and the coffee was terrible, thin and not drinkable. All the grind sizes were the same, coarse and not usable. I tried to regrind the ground coffee to no avail. It was a mess.

I returned the unit as unacceptable and went on my way.

I wasn’t going to accept defeat.

I ordered the $100 Cuisinart from Amazon for $43.54 with free shipping and no tax and sent it to New Jersey. Whatever happens, we’ll know in March when we’re back from March Break!

I just came back from New Jersey with my coffee grinder and it's a wonder! It grinds quietly, evenly and with a minimum of noise. Four stars to Cuisinart! It works just as it was supposed to!