# Doserless grinder for £250-£450 budget? Espresso only



## thesmileyone (Sep 27, 2016)

So my hand grinder packed up. It cost me £10 on amazon and was a pretty good grind for costa rican beans (hasbean) but it was a PITA to use and yesturday during grinding something snapped and now it just goes round and doesn't grind :/

I could just buy another but...hassle. It lasted over a year so happy with that!

I like the idea of an electric grinder but I don't want to sacrifice grind quality. Nor do I want a doser type one...on demand.

I have a £30 dehlonghi burr grinder, it is terrible, clumpy, and you get white/light brown strings of...something in the grind. I use a cheap dehlonghi machine currently and when I use this grinder even the top of the shot is watery, as the clumpy stuff won't tamp properly. I honestly plan to buy something like Londinium L1-R and a mythos grinder in the future so I don't really wish to waste lots of money stepping up over and over, however I will probably get a Gaggia Classic or Rancillo pretty soon.

But I do appreciate that the grinder is more important... so what is really good sub £500, preferably sub £400. A quick look round suggests Baratza 270W, Or Orphan Espresso do Pharos which seems a bit complicated but the shot is supposedly pretty great.

I don't mind 2nd hand but I don't like refurbing stuff and tbh I would like a warranty.

For £500 I can't find anything better than this, new? https://www.bellabarista.co.uk/eureka-zenith-65e-grinder.html

Thank you


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## itguy (Jun 26, 2015)

I've got a Sette 270W and I love it. Mine has been totally reliable and now the burrs have bedded in it's nice and reliable in the weighing too.

Small size, Fluffy grounds, no clumping, minimal retention. Yes it isn't metal cased like a lot of other grinders (I've had some of those too previously) but for home use I think it's just fine.


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## igm45 (Mar 5, 2017)

thesmileyone said:


> So my hand grinder packed up. It cost me £10 on amazon and was a pretty good grind for costa rican beans (hasbean) but it was a PITA to use and yesturday during grinding something snapped and now it just goes round and doesn't grind :/
> 
> I could just buy another but...hassle. It lasted over a year so happy with that!
> 
> ...


Couple of things:

1) When you get into the region of spending £500 on a second hand grinder you will get lots for your money. The 2nd hand machines in this price range are built like tanks and if bought from this forum are likely to have been looked after.

2) If you insist on brand new, imo, should your budget stretch that far I would go with the Zenith. The 270 is regarded as a fantastic grinder if you get a trouble free one, I would be concerned about longevity its certainly not got the build quality of the zenith.


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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

Echo the above. Keep checking the For Sale threads here, there are some superb, well cared for grinders popping up all the time


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## thesmileyone (Sep 27, 2016)

I think I am going to hold out for a Mythos at around £650 or less. That is my end game so...

Then I can concentrate on a machine!


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## sm808 (Jul 18, 2017)

This was extremely useful for me too as I was facing the exact same uncertainty about 65e vs. 270 so thank you!


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