# Baratza Sette 270W Seasoning Advice!



## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

I've just received my Sette 270W, using an 18g preset my actual dose comes out between 14g to 19g. Is it normal to have such widely inconsistent dosing before the burrs are seasoned? Coffeehit have told me that it needs seasoned first.

How long should it take to settle down and give more consistent doses ?


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

If you have some old /stale beans you can run those through first BUT do not exceed the run and rest time for the grinder (see manual or look on machine 's label. This will help to speed it up, otherwise just use it and accept the variations until the burr's bed in. It can take quite a time before they fully settle down.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

@El carajillo thank you for the advice.

However I just don't understand why the non seasoned burrs can affect the weighing sensor of the 270W and why the dose varies so much. One theory I have is that the burr might be unbalanced at first and causing vibrations that affect the weighing sensor, maybe? Any reviews that i've read says it doses within 0.4g or better. Mine seems way off, maybe so much that even seasoning it wont improve it enough? Is it really normal to be out by so much before seasoning? Unfortunately I don't have any stale beans. In the mean time I will just put in pre-measured doses of beans to grind (kind of defeats the purpose of a measured weight dose grinder, at least for now).

Hopefully someone with a 270W or other grinder with measured weight doses can shed some light.


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

When the burr's are new they do take quite some time to "bed in" "settle down", it is quite normal for the amount ground to vary in weight.

I am not familiar with the Sette / weighing but on other grinders you do get variations in weight when weighing directly into the P/F.

Also in many grinders the output can vary depending on the amount of beans in the hopper, I do not know if this applies to the Sette.


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## DaveP (Jul 14, 2017)

> However I just don't understand why the non seasoned burrs can affect the weighing sensor of the 270W and why the dose varies so much


Does sound strange.



> One theory I have is that the burr might be unbalanced at first and causing vibrations that affect the weighing sensor,


That sounds like a cunning excuse, lol.

Scales... sensor... weight .... go if

As said above, the burrs may indeed need to bed in, but this would not affect the weight sensor, maybe make sure the scales are perfectly level and stand the scales on foam to deaden vibration (the softer feet upgrade / mod)


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

@DaveP

The unit arrived already been modded with softer feet and a washer on the rear foot. I'm going to try putting the grinder on a solid marble chopping board, being on a heavy surface should keep it stable and vibrations minimal. Don't know about cunning excuse, I think its a good theory, think about it, new burrs will have manufacturing imperfections such as rough edges, as the burr ages the imperfections should get worn away making the burr more balanced and causing less vibrations, at least that's my theory and I am sticking with it for now lol

@El carajillo

I can understand the reasoning for timed grinders to give different dosing between non-seasoned and seasoned burrs, but a grinder that measures the dose by weight going into the PF and stops when the target dose is reached should not be affected. The weight sensors are located on the arms that hold the PF.


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## u2jewel (Aug 17, 2017)

You found or received the missing foot? (Since this seems to be the newer thread, but you identified the actual problem in the older one )

Seasoning process is gradual, and gradually your grind speed should increase. But we are talking about fractional differences in time, not multiple.

I've read so many documented cases from the US with regard to the W Model and the vibration/accuracy problem.

Put on the missing foot, then if still no joy, recalibrate. And if still not solved, I say send it back, because I've not seen anyone successfully identify this w model problem to any burr related issues.

Also, another common factor was that it seems to need a really flat, solid and level surface for it to be planted on in order for the acaia scale to do its magic!


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

ddoyle said:


> @DaveP
> 
> The unit arrived already been modded with softer feet and a washer on the rear foot. I'm going to try putting the grinder on a solid marble chopping board, being on a heavy surface should keep it stable and vibrations minimal. Don't know about cunning excuse, I think its a good theory, think about it, new burrs will have manufacturing imperfections such as rough edges, as the burr ages the imperfections should get worn away making the burr more balanced and causing less vibrations, at least that's my theory and I am sticking with it for now lol
> 
> ...


I was unaware of at what point the weighing was done on this grinder.

From what you have said the condition of the burr's should have no bearing on the dose weight, it would appear to be a problem with the weighing mechanism.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

@u2jewel

I found the missing foot in the thick rug where I unpacked the unit. So the missing foot is no longer the problem.

I'll experiment with different surfaces and check that it is level, hopefully that will help.

I've also thought about weighing down the unit with something heavy on the top of its base.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

El carajillo said:


> I was unaware of at what point the weighing was done on this grinder.
> 
> From what you have said the condition of the burr's should have no bearing on the dose weight, it would appear to be a problem with the weighing mechanism.


The burr is still a possibility if it was off balance and causing too much vibrations which the weighing sensor is very sensitive to. I'll give it a week and see if it improves, if not I'll return it.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

No surprises here then, it seems like another sette w withbissues


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## DaveP (Jul 14, 2017)

> Coffeehit have told me that it needs seasoned first.
> 
> How long should it take to settle down and give more consistent doses ?


Reject it ASAP.

If you want a 270 then get the non W.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Yeah I'm going to return it, the dosing is unacceptable even if it did need seasoning first, here are my latest grinding weights for an 18g preset measured with calibrated digital scales.

9.7g

12.9g

9.5g

19g

2.2g

6.4g

16.6g

14.4g

6.7g

23.4g

21g

Other than the non W are there any other compact grinders you'd recommend for £500 or less?


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## lake_m (Feb 4, 2017)

If you can find another £90 Bella Barista are doing the Eureka Zenith 65e for £590.


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## lake_m (Feb 4, 2017)

Or a Compak K3 Touch which is a good 58mm flat burr grinder. £360.


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## kazemik (Nov 17, 2013)

I would avoid the Sette, the concept is great but it is so badly executed. The weighing mechanism is pretty bad and difficult to use. The grind speed is good butthe machine will likely not last beyond 2 years. My motor burnt out in less than a year.

I was considering the Zenith but it is not in stock at Bella Barista. The Eureka Atom could be second alternative.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Thanks for the recommendations, just uploaded a video of the issue.






Now I have to fork out £20 to ship it back to coffeehit


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## kazemik (Nov 17, 2013)

That is not so great but at least they will take it back. It is a a real sahme the Sette is so shoddy.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Still tempted to go for the non W version as I loved the fluffiness and quality of the grinds from the 270W and the 270 is only £400. The Eureka grinders are a little on the large size.


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## u2jewel (Aug 17, 2017)

Sorry to hear.. Yup, you've tried 11 times, not one of those came close to the target dose 

Just out of curiosity, do you want to try the 12th? But this time put it on a solid floor where there's no flexing. Like kitchen tile floor. If it works flawlessly there, then as you suspected, it's your counter top.

But then again, if it doesn't work where you want to use it, for you it's troublesome, I guess...


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Just tried it two more times on my tiled kitchen floor with all the feet making contact, results 23g and 16g. I've noticed when the motor starts there's a bit of a jolt, even when pressing down the base it jolts. This is probably whats throwing off the weight sensor.

Replacements I'm considering are mahlkönig vario or sette 270. Anyone got any other recommendations in the £350 to £500 range that's reasonably compact?


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## u2jewel (Aug 17, 2017)

Unfortunate.. Sorry that you have to ship it back then. Sorry that you had to waste so much beans..

Just watched your video.. I couldn't quite see..

I heard the revised models of 'w' have Acaia branding by the portafilter fork area. Old ones didn't. If you could let us know, just for reference.. Because either way, valuable conclusions can be drawn, and people can maybe avoid the pain you have to go through..

A) no acaia logo on the front = it is the pre-update unit. The ones with all the problems. Which means your supplier either took stock of huge quantities from the initial batch (unlikely) or was trying to off load refurbished unit which are returned by previous purchaser (my suspicion, but difficult to verify).

Or

B) acaia logo is there =updated version. This simply means.. Baratza sette W are all prone to malfunction, new or old.


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

It has the logo


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Anyone know if the Vario W has such issues?


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## DaveP (Jul 14, 2017)

lake_m said:


> Or a Compak K3 Touch which is a good 58mm flat burr grinder. £360.


I concur


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Thanks @DaveP and @lake_m

Would you say it's the best for under £500, I really liked the quality of the grinds from the Sette, clump free and tastes great. If the K3 can grind this good I'd be very happy. Also this might be a silly question given it's name, but is it compact?


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## DaveP (Jul 14, 2017)

> but is it compact?


Depends as to what your comparing it to, lol

Compak whilst being the makers name it's not the size... its bigger than a Mignon but with the 275g hopper does just fit under the kitchen wall units.

Size = Height x width x depth	415 (with short hopper) x 170 x 365	mm

As to the 'best' for


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

If you think the non weigh version will outlast the guarantee period then go for it......on the other hand..


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## ddoyle (Sep 6, 2017)

Ok feeling a little bit silly now, looks like it was user error on my part, I had the portafilter hook swang to the side as I was using the supplied grounds bin. Seems I missed this part in the manual "NOTE: We recommend that you only grind with the hook in the forward position as this will prevent inaccurate weighing. Hook should only be swung to the side for burr removal."

Now doses are just 0.1g to 0.2g over the preset 18g.

In my defence its a little misleading to call it a portafilter hook when it also has to be used with the grounds bin.

[video=youtube;8Q5-nnbQYeA]


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