# Basket sizes and grind settings



## fluffles (Sep 4, 2012)

I recently had a bag of coffee I didn't much like (the guilty shall remain nameless!), so I used it to have a bit of a play with the various baskets I have.

I kept the grind exactly the same and changed the dose in order to achieve a roughly similar ratio and time across the baskets.

Dose : Output (equivalent ratio) > PreInfusionTime + ExtractionTime

VST 15g

14.5g : 29g (1 : 2.0) > 6 + 25s

14.5g : 31g (1 : 2.1) > 5 + 29s

14.5g : 31g (1 : 2.1) > 6 + 26s

VST 18g

17.5 : 33 (1 : 1.9) > 7 + 40s

17.0 : 34 (1 : 2.0) > 7 + 34s

16.5 : 33 (1 : 2.0) > 7 + 32s

16.5 : 33 (1 : 2.0) > 7 + 33s

16.0 : 33 (1 : 2.1) > 6 + 32s

IMS B68 2T H24.5 M (rated for 12-16g)

15.0 : 29 (1 : 1.9) > 5 + 37s

(Probably similar or slightly slower than VST 15)

IMS B68 2T H26.5 E (rated for 16-22g)

16.5 : 33 (1 : 2.1) > 7 + 33s

(Same as VST 18g at equivalent dose)

And for single baskets:

VST 7

7.5 : 14 (1 : 1.9) > 3 + 37s

7.0 : 13 (1 : 1.9) > 3 + 28s

7.0 : 16 (1 : 2.3) > 3 + 33s

6.5 : 17 (1 : 2.6) > 3 + 30s

(Seems to taste better at longer ratios. The coffee sits much lower in the basket and the lever consequently catches at a higher point. I'm assuming this means lower pressure and therefore harder to extract?)

IMS Single

10.0 : 15 > 2 + 42s

9.0 : 18 > 2 + 36s

8.5 : ran out of coffee!

(Lacks body, very light crema, not keen on this basket)

I'm not sure how useful this is to anyone but thought I'd share it. It seems moving between VST baskets does require either a grind change or equivalent dose change (i.e. had to dose down a lot more in the 18g than the 15g).

It will be interesting to see if this holds true for other coffees or whether it is coffee-specific.


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## Epic_Espresso (Feb 22, 2015)

Don't really understand this. Keeping the grind the same doesn't make sense. More coffee will need a coaser grind to get the shot out properly. Using the same setting for 15g as 18g is why the shot took a massive 40 seconds.

The most important variable is the time, Everything else needs adjusting to keep it around 25 - 30 seconds for 1:2 ratio.


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## fluffles (Sep 4, 2012)

Epic_Espresso said:


> Don't really understand this. Keeping the grind the same doesn't make sense. More coffee will need a coaser grind to get the shot out properly. Using the same setting for 15g as 18g is why the shot took a massive 40 seconds.
> 
> The most important variable is the time, Everything else needs adjusting to keep it around 25 - 30 seconds for 1:2 ratio.


Well, it was an experiment that's all. The holes in the baskets are cut differently, as far as I'm aware this is in order to manage flow rate somewhat.


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## Epic_Espresso (Feb 22, 2015)

I didn't mean any harm. Experiments are good and fun to carry out, I just meant to experiment with espresso, fix the extraction time and record the dose and grind setting based on that.


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## fluffles (Sep 4, 2012)

Epic_Espresso said:


> I didn't mean any harm. Experiments are good and fun to carry out, I just meant to experiment with espresso, fix the extraction time and record the dose and grind setting based on that.


I was basically looking to see if I can change basket sizes without changing grind - this should theoretically be possible, it's just a matter of figuring out what dose to use in each basket. I haven't (yet) tried it again with a different coffee to see if the results are comparable.


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

I do find some of the experiments that members try out quite interesting. As often they are things I probably wouldn't have tried myself.

Keep us posted fluffles of any further discoveries.


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## mathof (Mar 24, 2012)

I mainly use two baskets, a 7g Strada and a 15g VST. I always dose 7g in the Strada and 14g in the VST. When I switch from 7g to 14g, I have to grind considerably finer to get the same flow rate. I read somewhere that VST baskets are designed so that if you stick to the rated size of the baskets, you needn't change the grind setting to get the same flow rate. I'm not sure if your results confirm that or not.

Matt


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## fluffles (Sep 4, 2012)

mathof said:


> I mainly use two baskets, a 7g Strada and a 15g VST. I always dose 7g in the Strada and 14g in the VST. When I switch from 7g to 14g, I have to grind considerably finer to get the same flow rate. I read somewhere that VST baskets are designed so that if you stick to the rated size of the baskets, you needn't change the grind setting to get the same flow rate. I'm not sure if your results confirm that or not.
> 
> Matt


Well my results show that not to be the case and it would seem that your experience is the same


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## StuartS (Jan 2, 2015)

I could never get my gaggia single and double baskets to behave the same with the same grind. Also the single couldn't hold onto the puck so it invariable stuck to the shower screen every time I removed the portafilter - messy.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

mathof said:


> I read somewhere that VST baskets are designed so that if you stick to the rated size of the baskets, you needn't change the grind setting to get the same flow rate. I'm not sure if your results confirm that or not.
> 
> Matt


Any idea where you read that, not sure that it's a manufacturer claim?


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## Cirya (Jan 2, 2016)

I think that's IMS's thing to calibrate the baskets to same grind if my memory serves me right. No idea if VST has responded to that.

Edit. I think I got that from this video, so maybe not sure if official claim after all..


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