I'm starting up a little small batch chocolate company and the grinder I've been using for test batches (Premier Wonder Grinder) has just died. It's a little 1.5kg capacity thing, and I can probably get it replaced as it's less than 6 months old, but in the mean time I was wondering if it's worth upgrading to something a little bigger.

Does anyone have any recommendations for grinders in the 5 - 10kg range that are reasonably affordable? I realise that these things are inherently quite unreliable and difficult to get parts for, so that may be a long shot. 

Dom -

There are only the ones from CocoaTown and Santha in this size range. From what people tell me, even though the Premier is small, it's better built than the larger ones. If all you are looking for is a test grinder, the Premier may be the way to go. When you're ready for production, save up your money for a grinder with a larger batch capacity.

Even though your Premier just died, I still second Clay's thought on the Premier. I got one a while ago for test batches, and I am very happy with it. It runs for days without the slightest hint of overheating, hits particle size with no problem, and is fairly easy to clean. Also, I think that the 1.5kg volume probably refers to idli and dosa batters. In regard to chocolate, I don't think I've ever put less than 4-5 pounds in it, and I'm guessing you would have to get over 6 lbs before you had a problem.

And at $200 each, you really can't beat the price. Compare that to the Spectra 11 at $800 or the Cocoatown 12SL at $500. The latter two grinders can hold a few pounds more, but I think that this is more than mitigated by the fact that you can buy 3-4 Premiers for the cost of one of the others. Quite frankly, even if I had to replace the Premier every year or two, at $200 I'm good with that.

As far as getting something bigger, that just depends on your budget and your production needs. Three Premiers can produce 30-45 lbs of chocolate a week. Yes you use more electricity with three Premiers, and you probably also have a bit more waste. Then again, if you have one bigger grinder and it goes down (which is not uncommon believe me) your production comes to a halt. If you have 3 or 4 Premiers and one goes down, you only lose part of your production capacity. And you can get a new Premier from Amazon in a couple of days.

All that having been said, I believe Santha makes a 10kg grinder called the Spectra 20. If you're ready to move up to that level of production it might be worth looking into.

Hi Dom,

recently had a similar dilemma and looked a lot into the santha and cocoatown products as they seem to be the only step up in volume from my 2ltr premier grinder without spending 1000's on a much larger machine. However I decided to buy 4x more 2ltr premier grinders for the same reasons as already mentioned, they work hard (i run mine for over 60hours at a time and is still going strong...touch wood), and cheap in comparison to other machines. So now can produce 10kg at any one time

a bit of a tip though is if you are buying from amazon, directly contact the company supplying the machines and mention you are planning on buying multiple machines and ask if they will supply you directly (as they normally have to pay high selling fees to amazon) would they consider offering each machine at a discounted price. I did this and they offered £25 off each machine i bought so saved total £100! then got a proper VAT invoice from them which i then claimed back and saved a further 20%, so the machines worked out very reasonable indeed.

also if you do run into problems with the machines, DMenkes who is a member here posted a really helpful servicing/repair guide online

http://www.instructables.com/id/Premier-Wonder-Grinder-Repair-Belts-and-Gears/

James - Do you have the 2ltr grinder that tilts? I've been wondering about this unit for a while now; for obvious reasons I really like the tilt feature, but I have been concerned that it might not hold up to long use like the 1.5ltr unit does. In the photos of it I've seen, I don't see any vent-holes for the motor like the 1.5ltr unit has. As I said above, I'm going to be gettin several more of these soon, so if you're using the 2ltr with tilt and they're working well for you I'd love to know. Thanks!

Hi Michael,

I dont have the tilting one i have the other 2ltr tabletop one, i will try add a picture.

I did also think about getting the tilting one for the same reason as you but i had a horrible thought that it may wobble a lot (as it looks quite top heavy), shift something loose that holds it upright, and suddenly tilt in the middle of the night whilst conching and pour my chocolate everywhere, i am sure that this wouldnt happen, but even so i thought best to stick with the machine that i have used and tested and know that it is capable of running for days without overheating.

James

Hi James,

About direct contact with company supplying the machines for buying multiple machines  - you mean the company that produces them ? If so, you have their contact person to turn fot it?

Thanks

I have some of the tilting ones and they work fine, fully ventilated just like the 1.5litre version, and no issues with overheating. Coming up on 12 months use. Belts don't seem to last long though.

I'v got one it works greate