Brew grinder for home use/Vario with steel burrs

On my quest for the best possible brewed coffee at home, I got myself a Mahlkönig Vario W with the Ditting steel burrs. The Mahlkönig Vario W is identical to the Baratza Vario W AFAIK.
I got the Vario after a lot of research that yielded the conclusion that a Vario with Ditting burrs is probably the best grinder for home use. At least for me. A Bunnzilla would've been my first choice, but unfortunately it is almost impossible to get a Bunn grinder here in Germany.
I got the grinder ~ 10 months ago.
Unfortunately I was never really happy with it. Here's a short list of issues I've had:

• Grind size distribution never seemed very good to me. At least not as good as I've hoped. Actually I doesn't look and feel and taste any better than the grind my Hario Mini Mill produces.
• After ~ two months of use the internal scales broke.
• After half a year of use the drive train broke.
• Mahlkönig support has to be the worst I've ever encountered:
  • Mahlkönig never answered to my support requests.
  • However, they've got a note on their website about a partner that handles warranty claim.
  • So I contacted them, multiple times.
  • It took them three months to actually get back to me.
  • They finally managed to repair my Vario and I got it back two weeks ago.
• Yesterday the drive train broke again!

I really don't get this. I just cleaned the grinder very thoroughly two days before it broke again. And I've not been able to find any evidence of a stone or something that might have blocked the burrs.

I just ordered the needed replacement parts to repair the Vario myself this time. But I'm not sure I really want to keep this thing. I mean, the grinder cost five times as much as my Graef CM 800, which I've used daily for two years without ever having a single problem.

So I'm going to repair the Vario. But I'm not sure what to do with it and I hope to get some recommendations here.

Here are my options, as I see them:

1. Keep the Vario and hope it does not break again as soon.
   • If I keep it, I wanna make sure the grind is as even as it should be.
   • Is there an easy way for me to determine if the grind size distribution is OK?
   • What are possible root causes for an uneven grind?
2. Sell the Vario and get another grinder.
   • I'm thinking about a Lido 3
     • It seems to be of very good build quality and because it is a manual grinder, there's not that much stuff that can break in it.
     • Also I can actually take it with me to brew coffee at the office. That is a huge plus!
     • How does it compare with other grinders (especially the Vario with Ditting burrs) for brew grinding? I don't mind the manual nature of it. All that counts to me is the grind quality.
   • Maybe something like the Fuji Royal R-220 or the Kalita Nice Cut?
   • A used Kenia/Guatemala + new Burrs?
   • What other grinders would you recommend to me?

Especially selling the Vario and getting a Lido 3 is very tempting to me. But I fear this will be a step backwards in grind quality.

Please. Help me! :)

submitted by joesventek
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