# 3 Grinders to Choose from



## gazbea (Jul 11, 2011)

I currently have a Gaggia Classic and am bored of way below par fresh ground coffee from the local market.

I have narrowed down my grinder choices to 3. Iberital MC2, Baratza Virtuoso and the Rancilio Rocky.

I would like to easily switch between grinds so this is what is turning me away from the Iberital and don't want to have to have multiple grinders for different cups of coffee. I want a good all rounder.

I understand that the Virtuoso is about 60-70 quid cheaper but I don't want to let that stand in the way as I may have to purchase the portafilter holder for it which brings the price to knocking on the door of £200.

Do I spend an extra £30 on the Rocky or save my money and go with the Virtuoso?

I am new to this coffee addiction and have spent a lot of time researching these grinders but unfortunately I can't seem to find an independent retailer of both grinders for advice.

I'm throwing this to the forum for any assistance as I am completely stuck now and don't know which direction to choose.

This grinder will potentially be the only grinder I will be buying unless the one I do get actually breaks.

Any help is really appreciated.

Thanks


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## gazbea (Jul 11, 2011)

Nobody with anything to add?

Which one has a more uniform grind across the ranges. I want to use this grinder for all types of coffee. Be it Espresso, French, Drip, Cafetiere, stove, etc.

Thanks


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## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

Sorry, never used any of them but there are other threads on this forum that will be helpful if you want to have a scan.

An important factor is getting one that doesn't retain much grinds, otherwise you'll need to waste beans purging them each time you change your brew method/grind size.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

My advice would be to get the MC2 as a dedicated espresso grinder (does a great job for that purpose as minor tweeks to grind are easy) and then get a Porlex hand grinder for everything else (zero grind retention and easy to switch between drip / french press / aeropress etc)....also gives you some portability

Both combined circa 150 quid

Ive found a good grinder for espresso doesnt equal a good grinder for courser grinds...if youre interested in a great cup rather than a good cup. Plenty of threads about this recently.


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## RolandG (Jul 25, 2010)

Can't say I've tried either myself - I use an MC2 for espresso and a Dualit for filter/brewed, but that's purely limited by price







The one I'd love to get to replace the two is a Mahlkoenig Vario - but that's a lot of saving up!

I don't want to self-promote (I work for them) - but HasBean offers both the Baratza and Rancillio; I'd suggest dropping Steve an e-mail for his thoughts (Contact page on the website).


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

I wouldn't worry too much about getting the PF attachment for the Virtuoso. Maybe think about getting it later on but all it does is give you somewhere to rest your PF while you're grinding into it. You can just hold it there yourself without it. I've lived without it for many months


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## MonkeyHarris (Dec 3, 2010)

All good grinders from what I've heard but the Rocky is stepped so I'd rule it out on that reason alone.


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## gazbea (Jul 11, 2011)

Why should it be ruled out for it being stepped? Wouldn't stepped be the best solution for switching between grinds? Or is there any other way to dial in easily?

Virtuoso is stepped too isn't it? If that is the case then should that be ruled out too?

I've emailed Steve at HasBean and just waiting on a reply at the moment.

Like the idea of the Compak K3 Touch too but not sure how easy it would be to switch between grinds?


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## bobbytoad (Aug 12, 2011)

Rocky is handy for grind switching - 9 setting for espresso 35 for 500ml chemex brew and 42 for 700ml chemex brew only issue probably same with others is you have to send through a decent amount of coffee to clear out the previous fine or coarse grinds when switching


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## MonkeyHarris (Dec 3, 2010)

gazbea said:


> Why should it be ruled out for it being stepped? Wouldn't stepped be the best solution for switching between grinds? Or is there any other way to dial in easily?
> 
> Virtuoso is stepped too isn't it? If that is the case then should that be ruled out too?
> 
> ...


It's not so much that it's stepped, more the gap in between the steps, 5-6 seconds for instance on espresso in between two steps. I don't know so much about the Virtuoso but if it's anything like the Vario (which is also stepped) then it is fine as you have a two adjustments on the Vario, one for a large step and then one for fine tuning in between. A very good grinder for lots of different brew methods. The K3 is great but not if you change brew methods lots. I only grind for espresso so it suits me perfectly.

Edit: Looking at the specs of the Virtuoso it doesn't seem a great deal different to the Rocky. 40 steps is not enough IMO for espresso anyway. I'd check with a Virtuoso owner on the pour time in between steps before making a decision. 2-3 seconds is fine but 5-6 is way too much.


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## gazbea (Jul 11, 2011)

Right, I think I've finally decided...

Iberital MC2 for my Espresso. And either a Krups Expert GVX2 or a Cuisinart DBM8U for press, drip, etc grinding (both available at John Lewis). Hand grinder probably not plausible at this moment in time for medical reasons (RSI is really kicking in at the moment so can't introduce anything else at the moment that could make it worse). Hopefully hand grinder will be a possibility within the next 6 months.

Any thoughts?


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

I think you've probably made the right choice there. The more you get into espresso the more you'll appreciate the accuracy of the Iberital. However versatile the Virtuoso is, I'm beginning to think it's just not got enough detail for my needs


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

gazbea said:


> Right, I think I've finally decided...
> 
> Iberital MC2 for my Espresso. And either a Krups Expert GVX2 or a Cuisinart DBM8U for press, drip, etc grinding (both available at John Lewis). Hand grinder probably not plausible at this moment in time for medical reasons (RSI is really kicking in at the moment so can't introduce anything else at the moment that could make it worse). Hopefully hand grinder will be a possibility within the next 6 months.
> 
> Any thoughts?


If hand grinder is not possible then for en extra 30-40 quid on the brewed coffee grinder you could plump for this

http://www.hasbean.co.uk/products/Baratza-Maestro-Coffee-Grinder.html

Read the review here

http://theotherblackstuff.ie/machines/baratza-grinders/

Bare in mind I am biased as I want one too..leaving my Porlex purely for work and travel !


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## MonkeyHarris (Dec 3, 2010)

MC2 is a great choice for espresso. I don't brew anything else so can't comment on the other items.


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