# New Eureka Mignon XL arrives!



## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

My new grinder arrived this morning and although yet to be used looks pretty much like a specialita but a little taller.

It also comes with a taming mat and stand that it sits on which I didnt realise.

Anyway, I am very excited and tomorrow the Synchronika arrives.

Coffee heaven and finally emerged from the upgrade rabbit hole!


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## EmmaC (Jan 17, 2021)

Geezercdg said:


> It also comes with a taming mat and stand that it sits on which I didnt realise.


 I hear they're pretty fierce if you don't get them under control 

Looking forward to mine arriving today too, let us know how you get on!


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

Yes, as you say, pretty fierce. Thought I had a clumping issue but it was just a popcorning issue. With enough beans in its fine. I did notice the coffee was quite warm after a lot of experimentation!


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## nekromantik (Nov 13, 2011)

i got mine yesterday also

posted pic on the other thread

not too sure about the rubber matt though haha nice its free


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

How are you finding the Mignon XL? I've a preorder for one in Chrome (the wife likes the shiney shiney) arriving around the end of Feb.

Have you noticed any burr alignment issues? Has anyone gone through the process of aligning the burrs?


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## nekromantik (Nov 13, 2011)

Dallah said:


> How are you finding the Mignon XL? I've a preorder for one in Chrome (the wife likes the shiney shiney) arriving around the end of Feb.
> 
> Have you noticed any burr alignment issues? Has anyone gone through the process of aligning the burrs?


 Is Burr Alignment issues a known problem with the XL?


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## cuprajake (Mar 30, 2020)

its a brand new grinder so not much will be know in terms of this, fwiw my mignons never needed it,


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

It's a bit clumpy so far but I'm hoping that will go with use. The mat that comes with it is a bit shite, it seems to be hard to clean and acts like a magnet to coffee grounds. Happy with the grinder so far but as mentioned above its a little clumpy. Really fast though for what im used to 18g in 8.5 secs using milk buster.


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

@Geezercdg what grinder were you coming from? Any noticable improvement in the cup?


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

I had a Sage Oracle and so have overnight gone from that to a Synchronika and new Mignon XL. It's been a bit of a learning curve to say the least!


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## Fleckers (Dec 27, 2015)

Evening all

Good to see others finally receiving the XL and getting first hand experiences . A lot of speculation on what it is/how it performs so imagine lots of eyes on this thread👀

@GeezercdgI'm also collecting my new Synchronika / XL bundle from BB tomorrow afternoon 😬 so like yourself are on a new learning curve... Excited an understatement !

I can see that other new XL members have chipped into the post so keen to see their feedback and if the extra £200 over the Specialita was worth it 👀 👍


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

My XL arrives on Monday, although Saturday is a possibility as my local DPD driver works on Saturday and will often deliver items earlier than the day scheduled. I am excited to see how it performs. I'm prepared for a lack of parallel alignment. Dry erase marker and brass shim sheets arrive tomorrow. I am torn as to when I have a go at alignment of the burrs. I have read that it's not worth trying to get burrs aligned until 5 Kg of beans have gone through the grinder. I drink quite a lot of coffee even still it's about 1.5 kg per months. So three or so months until I can align the burrs (assuming the first kilo is QC failed beans that I just run through on the first day. @DavecUK @coffeechap does that sound right to you? Or should I align the burrs from the get go


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

Dallah said:


> My XL arrives on Monday, although Saturday is a possibility as my local DPD driver works on Saturday and will often deliver items earlier than the day scheduled. I am excited to see how it performs. I'm prepared for a lack of parallel alignment. Dry erase marker and brass shim sheets arrive tomorrow. I am torn as to when I have a go at alignment of the burrs. I have read that it's not worth trying to get burrs aligned until 5 Kg of beans have gone through the grinder. I drink quite a lot of coffee even still it's about 1.5 kg per months. So three or so months until I can align the burrs (assuming the first kilo is QC failed beans that I just run through on the first day. @DavecUK @coffeechap does that sound right to you? Or should I align the burrs from the get go


 Probably best to align them from the start, if you find them out of alignment. Just spin them with your finger as you just reach the touching point.


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

Again I find myself out of my depth. I am unsure of how to align the burrs or what that even means. Now had it a week and clumping is getting less but still there a bit.

Should I (as a newb) realign the burrs?


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## Fleckers (Dec 27, 2015)

Correct me if I'm wrong but I'd expect the product out the box to be *bob on*!

Surely Eureka can't release a product to market that needs tinkering with to make it perform it's best? 👀

Spoke with BB about this when I picked up the Synchronika and advised they sell approx 800 Mignons a year with less than 1% returned.


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## Ando (Jan 11, 2021)

I'm with you on this one, Fleckers. I think it's pretty poor and it just puts me off the product / brand in question.

I do expect when buying something like a grinder that it will require some form of maintenance long term - but not straight out the box.

But I am inexperienced, so who knows ..


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## nekromantik (Nov 13, 2011)

yeah cant spend this much and then have to mess about

mine is clumping less the finer it goes but as I only used 0.5kg of beans to run it in and only drink 1 a day at moment It will take a while for me to see less clumps


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

Even the most expensive flat burr grinders could do with alignment. The main video that most people refer to when aligning flat burrs is Matt Perger (former WBC) align the burrs on an EK43 which I believes retails around £2500. Just the burrs that go into an EK 43 cost more that a Mignon.

(910) How to Align an EK43 Grinder - YouTube


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## Deegee (Apr 5, 2020)

Geezercdg said:


> Again I find myself out of my depth. I am unsure of how to align the burrs or what that even means. Now had it a week and clumping is getting less but still there a bit.
> 
> Should I (as a newb) realign the burrs?


 It's not hard, assuming the XL is similar to the Specialita inside - albeit with larger burrs, if you feel you happy enough to change a plug or generally repair stuff around the house it's simple enough to learn how.

I know this is for a Specialita but ignore the ridiculous voice and please please don't use mole grips.....


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

@Fleckers despite being a sponsor of the forum, Claudette at BB does have mixed feelings about some of advice given here. For instance she believes that shimming flat burrs to achieve correct parallel alignment is eyewash and could damage a grinder.

I imagine if done incorrectly it very well could damage a grinder, so if you don't feel confident messing in the guts of your grinder, then don't and be pleased with the best results you can get.

Me, I've had a number of ex-commercial grinders and have made a couple into very handy single dosing or microhoppered machines. The idea of placing some very small shims of tinfoil or shim stock doesn't phase me.

Just remember the biggest factor affecting the taste of your home espresso that you control is your grinder setup. Right now I am constrained by counter space and spousal approval therefore (for now) I am opting for Mignon form factor. But when the right time comes I will be going for a Lagom or similar.


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## Deegee (Apr 5, 2020)

I'd 100% go with @Dallah comments re alignment, do it if you feel competent and able, otherwise don't. I'm an engineer and am happiest pulling things apart and rebuilding them, that doesn't mean you should fwiw.


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## Fleckers (Dec 27, 2015)

@Dallahspot on advice all round... Such a fascinating hobby for sure.

Listen, I'm in this as much as anyone else, my wife thinks I've gone completely mad. Maybe its the start of me mid life crisis who knows 😂...

My Grinder rabbit hole had gone on long enough and although I'd prepaid BB for the bundle, I picked up the ECM and actually left the XL there. WTF ! The unbiased advice i received on the grinder was commendable from BB and Monday I should receive a shiny white Specialita instead. This will do until something more fitting to my needs becomes available. Sounds like there's lots of competitive single dose innovation due to hit the market this year👀

Nevertheless, I'm still intrigued to hear what tangible improvements you gain with the shims over a factory tolerance.. Everyone's on a learning curve here and those who take these first steps are invaluable for the followers👍


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

Fleckers said:


> I picked up the ECM and actually left the XL there. WTF ! The unbiased advice i received on the grinder was commendable from BB


 @Fleckers Can I ask why you changed from the XL to the Specialita? What was the advice you received?


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

Yes as @Dallah says, I'd be really interested to hear what they said. When I phoned and spoke to David at BB he said the XL would be a `game changer`and was really impressed with it and by this time I was so far down the grinder rabbit hole i was happy to be guided!!!


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## Geezercdg (Dec 29, 2018)

Fleckers said:


> Listen, I'm in this as much as anyone else, my wife thinks I've gone completely mad. Maybe its the start of me mid life crisis who knows 😂...


 Yes, I really am with you with this comment. I started out with a delonghi bean to cup and now I think (and everyone else agrees) that I've lost control!!! Now i'm stiring coffee grounds in the basket with a toothpick!!!!


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## nekromantik (Nov 13, 2011)

Dallah said:


> @Fleckers Can I ask why you changed from the XL to the Specialita? What was the advice you received?


 same here be good to know what advise you were given @Fleckers


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## Fleckers (Dec 27, 2015)

The ECM was 100% right for our needs but the grinder choice didn't feel quite right that's all. 
Apart from some pour overs our household enjoy flat whites using Oatly milk with barista sugar so chasing any marginal improvements in the cup via my grinder choice felt illogical. More importantly we need a slick method of swapping between various beans, decaf included. For me the XL would of felt like a make do compromise still so until I can get my hands on a P64 or similar high end SD machine the Specialta will do a similar job of the XL at a fraction of the cost.

I'm sure the XL will fit a lot of user's requirements even carrying over the SD mods were all accustomed to but I decided at last minute it wasn't enough for me that's all.
BB listened to my rationale and agreed, not trying to up sell the more expensive product one bit 👍


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## nekromantik (Nov 13, 2011)

Fleckers said:


> The ECM was 100% right for our needs but the grinder choice didn't feel quite right that's all.
> Apart from some pour overs our household enjoy flat whites using Oatly milk with barista sugar so chasing any marginal improvements in the cup via my grinder choice felt illogical. More importantly we need a slick method of swapping between various beans, decaf included. For me the XL would of felt like a make do compromise still so until I can get my hands on a P64 or similar high end SD machine the Specialta will do a similar job of the XL at a fraction of the cost.
> 
> I'm sure the XL will fit a lot of user's requirements even carrying over the SD mods were all accustomed to but I decided at last minute it wasn't enough for me that's all.
> BB listened to my rationale and agreed, not trying to up sell the more expensive product one bit 👍


 Ah fair

Yeah I dont swap beans often so didnt bother with Niche Zero. As that would been mine go to for SD grinder.


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## jorgen83 (Feb 15, 2021)

Fleckers said:


> Sounds like there's lots of competitive single dose innovation due to hit the market this year👀


 Wait what? Any more on this? I'm currently in the market for a grinder, but should I hold off a little?


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## HelmerFudd (Apr 25, 2021)

NEED MORE INFO ON THE XL PLEASE

Hello everyone. I am new. First post here. I, like many of you, am at the tail end of about an aeon of grinder research. I am absolutely and utterly exhausted. After being suggested a plethora of different grinders from baristas, roasters, and retailers/salespersons we didn't know what to do. We have a brand new Linea Mini and have been trying to find the right grinder to pair with it. We originally went with a Ceado E6P. This was a mistake. We are in the process of returning it. And literally just this past weekend we completely decided that the Specialita was THEE grinder for us. We need something good quality, that is good for low volume, single dosing and fits our budget. Aside from spending $$$$$ on a single doser we found enough positive praise for the specialita to feel confident in this decision. THAT was Friday.

Since then I've found the XL. AND NOW I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!

The ELR system sounds very promising.

Can someone share their opinion and experience on the XL and, if possible, in comparison to the Specialita? For me the extra few hundred doesn't bother me at all if I can get a 65mm flat burr grinder with 0.2 gram retention!

(lastly, we are sure about the specialita and do not want to research any more grinders, so if you could please stay within the Specialita and Mignon XL I would greatly appreciate it please!)

Thank you so much!


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## P1Fanatic (Mar 6, 2021)

@Coff Heysummed it up nicely on the other thread. Get the XL ordered


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