# R120 on loan - first impressions



## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

My main grinder is an EK43 and I've seen a few posts on the R120 which, as a coffee gear head, got me thinking&#8230;.. Due to the stars aligning I managed to borrow Dave's for a couple of weeks and thought I'd post some initial thoughts.

Let's get it out the way, this thing is a monster, it's freakin' massive, there's no way around It, it dominates the EK in every dimension. Oh yeah and it weighs a bit too!!! Certainly not on for the faint hearted or for those with a back condition.

It's built like a tank, the materials and construction are outstanding, from the divine on/off button, the chain driven adjustment mech and just the overall feel, it's as solid as its weight suggests. It's pretty quiet whilst running which is presumably again down to build quality and thickness of the case etc..

I've been using it for single dosing and for such a massive grinder I couldn't believe how low the retention is. As others have said previously it simply doesn't retain any coffee. I measure to 0.01g and you maybe get +/- 0.02g on average. Taking its giant hood off it's easy to see why. The exit chute is located beneath the grind chamber so the coffee grounds are flushed out aided by gravity as well as the sweeper arms on the burr carrier. There is then a secondary motor which runs a second sweeper which gives the coffee a final de-clump and hand on its way out of the chute. This attention to detail is quite something! As a result of all this and combined with monster burrs and high spin speed, the grind consistency is quality. It's as easy as throwing your beans in the top, letting it work its magic and knocking the thwacker a couple of times, it's a pleasure to use. I find that the EK can make quite a bit of mess, the R120 is much cleaner overall.

My only niggle in the usability category is that the stock dial lacks some accuracy, this is no different to the EK out of the box. This could easily be resolved so as I say it's only a minor gripe.

As with any grinder this is all academic if it doesn't deliver in the cup and in this price range potential owners will be expecting something special! The good news is that it certainly does deliver. As the limited user base have already suggested the party piece of this grinder is the clarity that it delivers. It's strange really, I never felt like there was a gap to be filled with espresso, my current shots are really tasty and sweet, just delicious really but there's something different about the R120 shots. I would say that it seems more comfortable around 18-21% extraction yield, above 21% and you start to get a drying sensation on the tongue with most coffee that I've tried. I've not noticed any bitterness though, even on the 60s shot I pulled. I would guess that the R120 produces less fines than the EK but maybe a narrower main peak, hence the very clearly defined flavour profile. Hopefully someone will test it at some point as it would be interesting to see what's going on. So in the cup you are getting a traditional style body and amazing flavour clarity. I find that this extra clarity really shines through on coffee with fruit notes, these are really nicely accentuated for espresso and makes brewed coffee taste super juicy! After owning the EK for over a year now I found myself missing the sweetness that particular grinder excels at. I was quite surprised by this in all honesty as I guess I must have got used to it, but the juiciness is something new and totally delicious.

So in summary you have a fantastically well-built grinder that is totally suited to single dosing, it's a pleasure to use a delivers amazing body and superb clarity and juiciness in the cup. Would I swap it for the EK? I don't think so, I think I would miss the insane sweetness that the EK delivers. Would I own one along-side the EK, absolutely, it brings something completely different to the table, something different to any other grinder that I've used. Really glad I've had the opportunity to get one of these fantastic grinders on the bench and I look forward to continuing to experiment over the coming days.

Lid off!!










Where the magic happens..










That's not a clump crush, this is a clump crusher!










What a massive knob!










The over-engineered grind adjustment mech


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

Great write up. Thanks.

Have you had a chance to try it for brewed as well as espresso? I hear it's great for both.


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## mrsimba (Mar 17, 2014)

It does look an incredibly well designed & thought out grinder









Just needs an 'on demand' timer control to make it perfect!!!


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## Milanski (Oct 10, 2013)

Very informative post, thanks Spence.

I def look forward to tasting some shots with this grinder at some point. I believe Notes in King's Cross might have one but will have to double check when I get down there next...


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

So glad you have enjoyed the beast spence and glad it is not just me that rates this grinder, looking forward to having her home


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Xpenno said:


> Would I swap it for the EK? I don't think so


Ding ding


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> Ding ding


EK style espresso isn't for everyone, super sweet but a little low on the body, and if you favour a more traditional espresso then this the is an amazing grinder. The EK on a bad day can be a bitch but this thing is much more forgiving. I would be really interested to hear what Gary thinks of it if he ever gets his hands on it as he loves a clean espresso shot and this does that to another level.


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

coffeechap said:


> So glad you have enjoyed the beast spence and glad it is not just me that rates this grinder, looking forward to having her home


Thanks for the loan mate, after that shot you made me at the forum day I had to give it whirl!!


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

mrsimba said:


> It does look an incredibly well designed & thought out grinder
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'd imagine that there's probably some room in there for a timer









Does really need it as it works perfectly well for single dosing.


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

DoubleShot said:


> Great write up. Thanks.
> 
> Have you had a chance to try it for brewed as well as espresso? I hear it's great for both.


Yep, made a couple of Kalita Waves with Lee from Foundry (not literally, I didn't throw him in there, although I reckon he would have fit!) when he dropped it off. First couple were over, but we dialled it in with the Foundry Kenya and it was delicious, juicy and clean. Since then I've made a couple of Chemex with similar results. I'm finding that for some reason the EK produces filter with more body and the R120 slightly less but again the clarity just shines on the R120. I'm not even sure clarity is the right word, it's different in a good way!

The grind adjustment has much more movement than the EK, you can go from Powder to Boulder with a turn of the dial. The slight downside is you loose some of the resolution when dialling in however I've not found this to be an issue so far.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Xpenno said:


> I'd imagine that there's probably some room in there for a timer
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Think you would only need up to two seconds though!


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> Ding ding


Also, I'm not sure why you'd ever listen to me!!


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

coffeechap said:


> Think you would only need up to two seconds though!


Haha, yeah it grinds bloody quickly!!! I imagine if you had a full hopper it would be less than 2 seconds for 20g.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Xpenno said:


> Also, I'm not sure why you'd ever listen to me!!


Because you are the waterboy!


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

coffeechap said:


> Because you are the waterboy!


To be fair I've not had a single sink shot with my latest (and probably final) method, it's just crazy good.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Xpenno said:


> To be fair I've not had a single sink shot with my latest (and probably final) method, it's just crazy good.


Looking forward to your little supply coming my way


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Xpenno said:


> That's not a clump crush, this is a clump crusher!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The inner workings of the switch....what everybody wants to know


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> The inner workings of the switch....what everybody wants to know


No what you want to know so you can change the clunky one on the ek


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

coffeechap said:


> Looking forward to your little supply coming my way


Of course mate, gonna need a bigger car at this rate


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> The inner workings of the switch....what everybody wants to know


He, let me know if you want any extreme closeups?


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

coffeechap said:


> No what you want to know so you can change the clunky one on the ek


On a serious note, if someone can come up with a decent solution for this then I'd be interested!!


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Xpenno said:


> On a serious note, if someone can come up with a decent solution for this then I'd be interested!!


Chat to @jeebsy I believe he is looking to pimp his Ek with a new base and switches


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

Cant wait to get my hands on one


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## Jon (Dec 3, 2010)

Thanks for this.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

Sweetness enables us to enjoy the coffee, well processed, well roasted coffees are sweet but i'm all about clarity.... After all we want to taste the coffee, how it actually tastes, right?

The EK offers better clarity (and sweetness) over any grinder Ive used [so far] . As Spence mentions its a little messy a times , but we forgive it when we are savouring the results in the cup .


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## indend007 (Mar 31, 2014)

Compak is now making a brilliant bulk grinder for ondemand espresso and also great for single dose.(It looks also good for filter grind)

And it will have another neat burrset like EK style(Similar but different).

I just saw some pics of it and feel like so great!. It maybe will be smaller than R120, but it still on retail grinder range.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

indend007 said:


> Compak is now making a brilliant bulk grinder for ondemand espresso and also great for single dose.(It looks also good for filter grind)
> 
> And it will have another neat burrset like EK style(Similar but different).
> 
> I just saw some pics of it and feel like so great!. It maybe will be smaller than R120, but it still on retail grinder range.


Care to share a link or pictures?


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## indend007 (Mar 31, 2014)

> Care to share a link or pictures?


I'm asking now, if possible put some pics in here.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

Great write up Spence.


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## Thecatlinux (Mar 10, 2014)

Single dosing , no retention and great in the cup . whats not to like .

not so much a Titan though more of a mammoth grinder , it's not confirmed but I think I heard rumours of german climbing expedition attempting to climb its north face (weather permitting)


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## Mr O (Jan 14, 2015)

Nice write up and good to get another view on the beast.


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## robashton (May 9, 2015)

Interesting.

There is something to be said for being different, and if our country's coffee shops had gotten their bums into gear and started using EK43 for spro like Dog intended then I'd be excited to see one of these in a shop just for the variety.

Who am I kidding, I'd be excited to see one of these in a shop.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

I think if more ships looked at the capabilities of this type of grinder the world of speciality coffee would be a brighter place


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## robashton (May 9, 2015)

Amen


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