# Blade Grinder or Burrs for Novice?



## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Aye up guys,

I've just purchased the Gene Cafe roaster. Now I wasn't much of a coffee drinker before so I doubt I'll be able to distinguish the quality of grind however what would you recommend? Blade or Burrs for a beginner?

I've already got a blade version, so shall I just stick to that for a while till I'm able to appreciate something more expensive like the Rocky?

Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Blade grinders are not fit for purpose.

They hack away at beans and do not create similar size grounds int he same way burr grinders do.

What machine do you have?

What budget do you have?

Would you consider second hand?


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

How are you brewing? A burr, hand grinder may be a possibility for manual methods?

Technivorm make some blade grinders for their drip brew machines, but most folk would opt for a burr grinder.

Grind size (average) & quality (too much silt) are easily identifiable if way off the mark.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

Beans said:


> Aye up guys,
> 
> I've just purchased the Gene Cafe roaster. Now I wasn't much of a coffee drinker before so I doubt I'll be able to distinguish the quality of grind however what would you recommend? Blade or Burrs for a beginner?
> 
> ...


I guess it doesn't matter what prep method you're using a blade grinder is not much good....infact I have a couple of stones in the garden that would probably do a better job than a blade grinder.


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Stones in the garden!! LOL!

At present I'm just french pressing. Gonna look into espresso later once I've saved up for a decent espresso machine as I'd rather purchase a quality one that produces well.

Second hand I would probably only consider if it's a refurbished item.

Maybe a manual burr mill is appropriate for time being? I'll be roasting and grinding every day as I want to get as much practise and experience as possible.

Thanks again guys!


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

If I was to get a brand new one now, then something like the cuisinart would be in my budget. its about 55 quid off amazon.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

One of the Lido hand grinders could be an option, or one of the Made by Knock grinders. Many of the cheaper hand grinders can be a chore for large, or repeated French press grinding, as they are easy to turn, but slow to grind.


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Save your money, get a burr hand grinder from one of the forum advertisers for about half that price and put the money saved toward green beans.

A Rhino, Porlex, Hario Slim or similar hand grinder should suit your needs - if grinding for a small french press.

For larger volumes go with the suggestions above


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Ok. Cheers Glenn, I appreciate the advice.


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Blade grinders also create a lot of heat, which is bad..


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

If you are roasting and grinding every day I would have thought a hand grinder might get a bit tiring, but others get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

Ex commercial grinders sell on ebay and gumtree for under £100 all the time, many a filthy and old and not worth the time, but you can get a good one if your patient. Worth some thought.


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

Rhys said:


> Blade grinders also create a lot of heat, which is bad..


Ive got a krups 75 blade grinder :it was a present and I will use it for a while longer before I get a burr grinder out of respect to the person that gifted it to me.

I have read that they make the grinds hot, this is not my experience and I can sometimes grind for 40 seconds continuously.

Pros include zero retention and they are stepless and you can go from french press to espresso without faff., also VERY cheap

cons are variable grind size.

would I rather have a burr grinder? of course, its an emphatic YES, but they are not that bad for the money


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Jumbo Ratty said:


> Ive got a krups 75 blade grinder :it was a present and I will use it for a while longer before I get a burr grinder out of respect to the person that gifted it to me.
> 
> I have read that they make the grinds hot, this is not my experience and I can sometimes grind for 40 seconds continuously.
> 
> ...


You have such a shock coming when you do upgrade!


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Jumbo Ratty said:


> Ive got a krups 75 blade grinder :it was a present and I will use it for a while longer before I get a burr grinder out of respect to the person that gifted it to me.
> 
> I have read that they make the grinds hot, this is not my experience and I can sometimes grind for 40 seconds continuously.
> 
> ...


relativism.


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

froggystyle said:


> You have such a shock coming when you do upgrade!


I'm properly looking forward to it. i've pretty much narrowed it down to a new chrome eureka mignon. Height being my restriction here

I forgot to mention the Krups 75 single doses


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Hmmm.... that's interesting Jumbo Ratty. So how long would u reccommend I grind for if I doing a french press? I've got one of these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/James-Martin-Grinder-ZX595-Stainless/dp/B000HEZ98C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449658137&sr=8-1&keywords=James+Martin+Mini+Grinder+ZX595


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Blast the crap out of it, shaking the grinder as you do it, i had one of those when i first started out on french press, try and get rid of all the large lumps.

End of the day though, get shot and pick up a burr grinder, hand one if that's all you can afford, it will be better!


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

My aim is to save up for the Eureka Mignon Mk2, unless someone cane advise me with something else more suitable?


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

Beans said:


> Hmmm.... that's interesting Jumbo Ratty. So how long would u reccommend I grind for if I doing a french press?


It does depend on which beans. For espresso it can vary between 25 seconds to 40 seconds. Also freshness plays a part, I can increase grind time by up to 5 seconds during the course of a Kilo bag.

for french press 12 to 17 seconds roughly IIRC, I mainly do espresso.

These time scales are all based on grinding 28 \ 30 grams at once. Times reduced if grinding less


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Ta


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## h1udd (Sep 1, 2015)

noooo ... seriously just get a burr grinder ! .. the only people that can advocate a blade grinder are those that dont have burr grinder.

you need a burr grinder, doubly so if you are roasting !

lets see why

you want brew, you decide to go CCD ... and you want to keep your process the same every time, to minimise variables, so you opt to start at 60g/l ratio, brew for 2m .... so start with 15g of coffee and 240ml of water, brewed for 2 mins. ... Grind, the consistency of brown sugar, we know this to be about 13 on the burr grinder (arbitrary number)

its a little tangy, it flattens out quickly \

change the dose to 14 ... bit more bitterness, some sourness, some sweetness .. and now has body .... but could be better

change to 13g ... too far, its a bit ashy, its become thin, brackish

ok, seems like 14 is our weight, ... now lets alter the grind. .. make it finer, 12.5 on the grinder.

you grind ..... it "feels" the same but the balance in the cup is now on the spot, it sweet and bitter and sour, good acuity, creamy chocolate feel in the mouth ... you cant do this with a blade grinder, every single time you use it you will get a different grind, it might feel the same, but your fingers cant tell minute differences.

you bought a roaster, you want to tell the difference in your roast profiles ? ... but you cant manipulate the cup with a blade grinder.

EDIT .... I started with a blade grinder years ago .... my coffee was so crap back then .. just going from a krups 75 (which I still have, it grinds spice now) to a gagia mfd changed my opinion on coffee overnight .... repeatability ..... coffee that wasn't bitter one cup, sour the next, then bitter ..... oh and espresso, became like a new drink


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

OK, so which grinder would you recommend? Something that does the job good and proper. Something that I can use for all types of coffee and brewing methods.... but the least taxing on my wallet?


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

If you are on a very limited budget you are not going to find a 'do it all' grinder.

You could use a cheap hand grinder or cheap burr grinder for brewing, and buy a Mignon for your espresso.


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Yeh, so if I was to save up for a Mignon, that would be alright then yeh? Is that grinder consider a good all rounder?


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

Jumbo Ratty said:


> i've pretty much narrowed it down to a new chrome eureka mignon.





Beans said:


> My aim is to save up for the Eureka Mignon Mk2


A wise choice.

Use that for espresso and keep your blade grinder for french press. You know it makes sense


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## Dylan (Dec 5, 2011)

Beans said:


> Yeh, so if I was to save up for a Mignon, that would be alright then yeh? Is that grinder consider a good all rounder?


Not really, its great for espresso and ok for brewed. But mind you it is a LOT better than a blade grinder for brewed.

The problem is that espresso requires you to 'dial in', and then micro adjustments if your shot is slightly out. When you change the grind this loses your position, and even if you go back to the same point on the dial you will likely still need to tweak. Its a waste of beans and energy.

Buying a Bodum Burr grinder for £40 would do you a damn sight better that a blade grinder. Or a Porlex hand grinder or something like that.

Do yourself a favour and ignore JumboRatty's advice and dont keep your blade grinder.


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Mignon for espresso, hand grinder for brewed, rhino can be had for cheap enough, in fact i have one going spare if you want it, £30 delivered?


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## Beans (Dec 8, 2015)

Thanks froggystyle.... but I tend to stick to brand new gear when it comes to the kitchen!


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Has been used maybe 10 times, can take a photo if you like.


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