[Avodah] kitniyot & size of kezayit weight or volume

[Micha Berger]

On Sat, Mar 23, 2013 at 09:43:58PM +0200, Eli Turkel wrote:
: On another matter (from Kinor David by R. Rimon) Ashkenazi poskim state
: that the shiur is in terms of volume and not weight.

: However, Kaf Hachayim (168:46) states that the minhag for Pesach and bracha
: achrona is to base the shiur on weight. Yechave Daat *ROY) concurs with
: this...

I didn't understand ROY that way. A kezayis is definitely a volume.

However, it is nearly impossible to measure volume. And today's sheets
displaying area end up being gross estimations because of the assumptions
they make about thickness.

However, all matzah is flour and water, and therefore regardless of air,
variations in thickness, etc... a similar volume of any matzah will weigh
roughly the same. A much much closer estimate, at least.

So I would have said the shiur is based on volume, but estimated using
weight.

:                                          Note that basing the shiur on
: weight is a major chumra since matza weighs more than water

That part, I agree with. But if we got a standard weight for a kezayis
of matzah, it would be the most precise way to get the right volume.
IIRC, a kezayis of water leshitasam is 27gm, and a kezayis of matzah would
weigh 20gm -- if it weren't for the chumerah of assuming the weight of
water.

Or LeZion vol 3 pg 30 says that the old estimation involved a different
matzah, and with tofay's matzos one can use the smaller weight.
He says the iqar is a volume of 29cc.

(To contrast with Ashkenazim: this is larger than RMWillig's kezayis of
22.5cc, but well below RMG's 43.5cc.)

:-)|,|ii!
-Micha

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Micha Berger             I long to accomplish a great and noble task,
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