# Grinders: sub£100 (ish)



## standard issue (Jan 10, 2010)

Hello,

I'm currently looking for a grinder (Christmas gift from my gf), We're recent graduates so not exactly flush at the moment, the grinder will be ideally sub £100 with a little movement for a machine that will last.

Currently looking at (to be paired with Gaggia Baby Class:

Dualit burr grinder

Bodum bistro burr grinder

Gaggia MM

I'm tired of using pre-ground or getting a coffee shop to grind it for you, only to get home and find their setting isn't quite right and you have a full bag of tamping experimentation to get a half decent espresso.

Anyway...The question, What advice do you guys/gals have for a suitable home grinder (ideally adjustable burr) it will be used for espresso mainly, but occasionally some course grind will be needed for my lovely CafeSolo.

Quick note: I appreciate this is a heavily discussed subject, I have tried trawling the previous threads but it is very tiring reading 7 pages coffeeforums banter (as interesting as it is) to wean out a small amount on info regarding £400 grinders that I simply can't afford. So I thought I'd ask my personal question direct.

Thanks for reading and I hope you can help bring some Coffee flavoured Christmas cheer to this house!


----------



## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Out of the 3 above I would chose... none

I have used the Dualit grinder (linked)and it does not grind fine enough

The Bodum grinder is good for cafetiere but again didn't grind fine enough for espresso

The Gaggia MM is average but in my opinion not as good as an Iberital MC2 (Happy Donkey sells the Iberital MC2 for £105 + VAT)

The only downside is that as it is a stepless grinder you will need to note the setting to return to when manually adjusting between coarse and fine for use in the Cafe Solo.

For less money you can get a Hario Ceramic Slim Mini Mill grinder (approx £30), or a Porlex (approx £50)

Both are hand grinders and can take 1-2 minutes to grind 14-18g coffee (for espresso)

They are also easily adjustable too (between fine and coarse)

The grinder is the most important accessory to purchase. The saying 'buy cheap buy twice' fits perfectly with coffee grinders.


----------



## Eyedee (Sep 13, 2010)

Dont mess about with crap just go straight for the Iberital, you will not be disappointed.


----------



## vintagecigarman (Aug 10, 2009)

+1 for the Iberital MC2. Definitely the best bang for your buck and worth the extra cash. I've had one and loved it.


----------



## standard issue (Jan 10, 2010)

Thanks for the advice.

The Ibertial is a machine I have looked at in the past, the description mentions blades, do they simply call burrs blades or do they actually mean metal blades like a food processor?

The problem I have now is my gf thinks the "decent" machines are really ugly and refuses to have one on the work surface!!! (personally I love the industrial look, but it's her kitchen)

Are there any machines out there around £150?


----------



## DonRJ (Apr 3, 2010)

There are no electric grinders for less than £100 retail that can do an espresso grind, it is either an Iberital MC2, a hand grinder or a punt on Ebay. Personally I would say go for the MC2, I reckon you would have to spend twice as much again to improve on it.


----------



## Greenpotterer (Nov 29, 2009)

Just another thought second hand grinders are much more reliable than most other devices and new burrs only cost £20 ish. Impressed with the Iberital MC2 but laborious to switch between espresso and filter grinds. the Hario slim is great as a hand grinder just takes several minutes but the work makes the coffee more worth while. Good luck with your search, but persevere its worth it

Gaz


----------



## DonRJ (Apr 3, 2010)

The Iberital MC2 is a conical burr grinder with extremely fine adjustablity to get the grind right, not one of those horrid blade spice choppy things. For some reason (American sites usually) the burrs are referred to as blades on grinders, no idea why.

MC2 is available at Happy Donkey on the web for £105.99 plus vat plus £4.50 postage = £129


----------



## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

Another option which is a bit more money but will perhaps satisfy the gf a bit more is the Eurika Mignon available from Bella Barista for £260. Available in funky colours however it's a worm drive adjuster like the mc2 so not great for going from drip to espresso.

It was reviewed very highly not long ago, I believe you can view the review via a link on the product page.


----------



## standard issue (Jan 10, 2010)

OK, I think I'll ask the gf to get me the Ibertal MC2 but show her some "prettier" machines and if the Ibertal offends her so much she can dig a little deeper (bearing in mind she forked out about £350 for the new Baby Class when I asked for a Classic as she thought the Baby was a little prettier)

One final question...Is there any advantage to the Automatic over the Non-Automatic?

I'm guessing the Non-Auto has the little flippy handle to deliver a dose, which looks like fun, but then will that mean there will be ground beans sitting there all day while I'm at work which I'll get in my first espresso when I get home?

Do you guys have any preference for home use?

Thanks


----------



## standard issue (Jan 10, 2010)

Just realised I've been spelling Iberital wrong the whole time...ooops!


----------



## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

I recommend the doserless for home use. Less to clean and also less grind retention too


----------



## DonRJ (Apr 3, 2010)

The jury is split regarding doser or non doser grinders for home use. I would reckon that more people go for non doser due to the grinds left in the doser issue you mentioned and the fact you grind directly into the portafilter. However some users swear by their doser grinders, finding ways to resolve the leftover grinds issue and finding them overall less messy and also less "clumpy"

My experience is with a doserless so far and it has been easy to use and adjust if occasionally messy dependent on beans (Monsoon Malabar go everywhere). Soon to move to a Mazzer doser grinder which admittedly will be modified to reduce grind retention (some grinders are better than others in this respect, Compak and Macap to name two).

Look at the Compak K3 if the looks matter, it has a more homogenous design than many others, £300ish though, what I would have bought but for my recent mad Ebay moment.

Here is my take on grinder price / performance hierarchy with a few examples, bear in mind there are loads out there but not all have a lot of information available :-

Under £100 - go for a handjob, er, umm, I mean hand grinder.

£100 -200 - Iberital MC2

£250-350ish - Compak K3, Macap MC4, Eureka Mignon, Mahlkonig Vario

£400- 500ish - Mazzer Mini, Compak K5, Macap M4D, Mazzer Super Jolly

How much? - Compak K10, Mazzer Robur, Mazzer Royal, MahlkonigK30


----------



## standard issue (Jan 10, 2010)

Cheers guys!


----------

