# Head spinning...which grinder?



## Pompeyexile (Dec 2, 2013)

Having just bought my first coffee machine (second hand Gaggia Classic) before Christmas, I haven't had chance to use it because I just can't make up my mind as to which grinder to buy within my budget.

My original budget was £200 and as we drink Cafetiere and drip coffee at present I was looking for something that would be a jack of all trades. The only grinder which seemed to fit the bill was a Sage Smart Grinder. But the more I read about this real coffee lark the more I became unsure and my dithering is down to maybe too much research and thus being bombarded with 'expertise' and 'experience'.

There are some who wouldn't give the Sage the time of day some who wouldn't give any stepped grinder even a nod if you are serious about espresso. OK so stepless it is then. Not for £200 (well not a good one it seems). The nearest one I could find that had any sort of reasonable reviews has been the Eureka Mignon at £280. It's a struggle but I can just about manage that sort of money at the moment. I've also read that compared to other stepless grinders actually moving it from espresso to cafetiere and back again isn't as big an issue as some. Also it has some features such as a gate to close off the hopper and not having to re-dial in after dismantling for cleaning.

Of course there is the second hand market and even as I type this there are a couple of Mazzer Super Jollys (which many seem to rave about) on ebay well under £300, but then being a newby at this do I really warrant that sort of machine? Let's face it, I wouldn't know if a cup of coffee was bitter or sour or if that taste was just a characteristic of real coffee after drinking instant (sorry for swearing) would I? I mean my palate is not even dialled in yet.

I'm not bothered by a few stray grinds, I mean it takes a moment to wipe up. I'm not bothered about clumping, I mean just how many seconds does it take to give the grinds a quick stir to break them up? As for noise, well the time it takes to grind enough for a single or double shot or even at a push enough for a drip machine is hardly Quantanamo Bay style torture now is it?

So, buy a Mignon (or other stepless) and keep it only for espresso, Latte etc and use pre-ground for the Cafeteire and drip, or the Sage and if my palate improves and my desire to walk on further down the real coffee road becomes too much to ignore, in a few years or when funds allow upgrade.

What would you do or suggest?


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## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

I would suggest going to the store that sells the Sage grinder and walking straight past it, the dual boiler Machine is great, the grinder not so much. A point to remember particularly with a Classic is the better your grinder the better your espresso will be so pm Coffeechap and see what ex-commercials he has, he is bound to have something decent in your price range that would knock 7 bells out of a Mignon and it would be thoroughly cleaned and serviced with decent burrs, kind of akin to buying a used car through a manufacturers approved used car program. With most grinders there are issues with swapping between brewed and espresso ranges, don't even think that a Vario will do this reliably as they won't, in terms of switching between grind levels a Mazzer is as good as it will get to this, particularly if you single dose and not down your settings. An alternative approach, depending on how much brewed coffee you drink is to get a hand grinder for that and leave the espresso to the electric.


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## Pompeyexile (Dec 2, 2013)

Thanks Charliej your response is much appreciated and I think you're right; as decent a grinder as I can get for my money for the Gaggia and something cheaper for anything else.

I'll contact Coffeechap.


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## Pompeyexile (Dec 2, 2013)

Just wanted to say thanks for your advice.

I contacted Coffeechap and he had just the grinder I wanted.

I hope he hasn't sold it because I've had trouble getting onto the website as it seemed to be down every time I tried to contact him.

Anyway you'll be interested to know its a Brasillia RR55OD. I had to convince my other half that it wouldn't really look like a huge metal monster squatting in the corner of the kitchen and luckily after showing her pictures of your setup managed to sway it for me. Loved the idea of the camera lens hood and tin lid; it actually looks OK.

Not a lot of real info on the machine but like anyone I'm going by more experienced users and you have championed the Brasilia quite heartily and I found a Utube of the grind off at Rave and I'm sure the Brasillia was being tested and it sounded very quite for such a beast.

I was concerned that it is not a stepless grinder as everything I've read seems to indicate that if you want quality you need to spend on a stepless grinder but in this case perhaps not.

If I'm lucky and Coffechap hasn't already sold it i'll post a picture of my set up on the forum and I may be bugging you for some tips as this is my first foray into espresso ground coffee.

Thanks again


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## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Well yes it is a stepped grinder, but, it has 80 very fine steps I haven't yet found a bean I haven't been able to get just right as if a bean would really really need an in between step then the difference between 2 steps can usually be made up for when tamping i.e go a step further and tamp a little lighter or a step back and tamp a little harder.

They do look huge with the hopper on and wouldn't fit under a standard kitchen wall cupboard that way. The lid for the lens hood is a scented candle tin lid from Tesco I took the lens hood with me when shopping and tried them until I found one that fit and my ex was happy with the candle too lol. When you get it pm me your address and I'll stick you some of the aluminium tape in the post if Dave hasn't already done that mod for you. You won't be disappointed with it and they are very quiet too.


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## Pompeyexile (Dec 2, 2013)

Dave has responded and he's confirmed the grinder is mine, I'm over the moon and can't wait to receive it so I can get cracking, as I've had my Gaggia Classic since late November and have only tried to pull one shot using some pre-ground coffee from Whittards (no don't laugh) supposedly ground for espresso and it was simply pants. No matter how hard I tamped, it would only take 10 seconds to pull. So that's been binned and again after ploughing through the forum once again learned a lot from other much more knowledgeable members posts and so I've ordered two lots of beans from Rave, their signature blend and Suarez.

To have all the equipment sat there and not being able to use it has been so frustrating and the I've been the butt of a few jokes from mates too plus there's a lot of expectation that once I do get up and running the coffee had better taste good. Here's hoping!


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## drude (Apr 22, 2013)

Although the RR55OD is stepped I've never had any problem with needing a grind between two consecutive points, and I've never had a coffee I've not been able to dial in with mine. It's a great grinder - you should be very happy.


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