# <40cm tall grinder



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

I have a rather limited space under the kitchen cupboards at the moment and wont be able to fit anything taller than 40cm ...

Apart from Rocky, is there anything decent for espresso that would fit this requirement?


----------



## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Mignon is 34cm high?


----------



## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

Eureka Mignon and the like. When I was researching grinders some time ago I read something about the rocky having expensive burrs that need to be replaced every 1-2 years and that it didn't produce a grind as good as the Mignon or the Mazzer Mini. The Mini will be too tall for you with the hopper but if you're single dosing it might be ok with a tamper to stop popcorning but best check with somebody who has one. Iberital MC2 is popular and people say it's decent but I wouldn't recommend it as different coffees with different roast profiles all tasted very similar to me. People seem to want to upgrade quite quickly from the low end grinders anyway so you're best off spending as much as you can afford on one.

Have you considered hand grinders? OE are taking pre-orders for the Pharos now but won't be delivering until September. There's a German Mahlgut MG1 which is untested in the UK but should be just as good as the Pharos if not better (assuming parts are machined to a greater precision). It should be easier to use but is very expensive (almost twice the price of the Pharos).

Assuming all goes well with my upgrade arriving later this week, my Mignon will be for sale in the for sale section, and right now there's a Mazzer Mini E.


----------



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

Thanks Guys.

Mazzer is beyond my budget and depending on your price Rob, Mignon may be as well.

How about Iberital MC2? I'm treating Rocky as my reference so any comparison against Mignon and Rocky would be brilliant!


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

A used Mazzer SJ without the hopper is under 40cm.

Used ones on here tend to go for £200-£250 depending on condition.


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

Rocky beats MC2

Mignon beats Rocky

SJ beats Mignon.


----------



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

urbanbumpkin said:


> A used Mazzer SJ without the hopper is under 40cm.


OK.. but where would I put the beans and stop them from spraying all around?


----------



## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

MC2 doesn't compare to either the Mignon or the Rocky. If you can swing it and I know that its hard when starting to justify to your significant other the money spent on a grinder but if you buy a MC2 trust me when I tell you that you will be upgrading in a year. I know this full well having started with handgrinders then moving to an Ascaso i-1 (a very underrated grinder in my opinion) and now I am running an ex-commercial RR45OD which I am upgrading with parts to a full on RR55OD. Oh and I have a couple of Macap MXA which I have to finish cleaning up to sell onto people on the upgrade path. That all happened in about 7 months.

Spend as much as you possibly can on a grinder is the lesson. It will never be money wasted.


----------



## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

To get it under the cupboards use an acrylic or glass tube as a microhopper with a weight on the beans to simulate a full hopper. Or single dose using a camera lens hood as a hopper. That has the advantage of working as a bellows to blow any retained grounds into the doser. Don't fear the doser.


----------



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

ridland said:


> MC2 doesn't compare to either the Mignon or the Rocky. If you can swing it and I know that its hard when starting to justify to your significant other the money spent on a grinder but if you buy a MC2 trust me when I tell you that you will be upgrading in a year. I know this full well having started with handgrinders then moving to an Ascaso i-1 (a very underrated grinder in my opinion) and now I am running an ex-commercial RR45OD which I am upgrading with parts to a full on RR55OD. Oh and I have a couple of Macap MXA which I have to finish cleaning up to sell onto people on the upgrade path. That all happened in about 7 months.
> 
> Spend as much as you possibly can on a grinder is the lesson. It will never be money wasted.


Well, one thing I surely hate it this vicious upgrade loop so I would certainly want to avoid it..

Seems like I need a raise and than it should be easy!







hmm... can't really wait 2 months till my birthday









Oh.. and the lovely wife wants a kitchen robot etc so she even suggested that we should get one that grinds the coffee!!!


----------



## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

urbanbumpkin said:


> Rocky beats MC2
> 
> Mignon beats Rocky
> 
> SJ beats Mignon.


Lizard Beats Spock


----------



## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

urbanbumpkin said:


> Rocky beats MC2
> 
> Mignon beats Rocky
> 
> SJ beats Mignon.


Where does Apollo Creed fit in?


----------



## Brewer in training (Feb 7, 2015)

jeebsy said:


> Where does Apollo Creed fit in?


His coffin!

He's been dead since RockyIV


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

jeebsy said:


> Where does Apollo Creed fit in?


Thing beats Apollo

Thing beats Hulk (fact!)


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

destiny said:


> OK.. but where would I put the beans and stop them from spraying all around?


Single dose. Put wat you want to dose for a shot 15-18g of beans in the throat of the Mazzer. Put a weight (58mm tamper is pretty good) on top to stop pop-corning. Grind.

It's pretty much how most folk on hear use them as they only do 2-3 shots a day.


----------



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

Could someone measure up a SJ for me without the hopper please?


----------



## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

36 cm


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

A Mazzer Major is approx 38cm.

SJ would give you a bit more clearance.


----------



## destiny (Jun 4, 2015)

Thanks!


----------



## RASD4651 (Apr 15, 2013)

I have a eureka mignon it's tiny but well priced excellent quality and good grind. Stepless grind adjustments too. I had a rocky it's no comparison to the mignon which not much more to buy. Could never get the Rocky to the right grind with its wide stepped adjustments.. I have reviewed the mignon on the forum after using it with my L1 for 20 months and still going like new.


----------



## HappyBunny (Jul 29, 2015)

I just received a Eureka Mignon today. The quality compared to the Rancilio Silvia is shocking. And when grinding it gives big clumps.


----------



## HappyBunny (Jul 29, 2015)

Yesterday I put my 3.5 years old Rancilio Rocky for sale on this website. Today I wish I wouldn't have bought the Eureka Mignon.

I am new to this site and don't know if I can add photos as proof of how bad the bean hopper is manufactured. It is also much heavier to hold the portafilter on the cheaply manufactured fork while on the Rancilio Silvia it sits much better. The bean hopper has sharp edges on one side. The black part inside the bean hopper is on all 4 sides not properly cut out. And while dialing the Mignon in today it jammed twice. Setting the grind coarser didn't work. I can grind the same beans with Rocky on setting 0 and it doesn't stop working. I was then told that the Mignon is not better build but grinds better. Well, I took a photo. Rocky grinds without making big chunks and the Mignons threw square chunks of ground coffee at me. Rocky's setting was finer. Are these sales people getting more commission when selling the Mignon? I never thought about updating until I was told I need to.


----------



## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

Why don't you just sell the Mignon instead? Or send it back?

I've never used a Rocky but the Mignon is widely considered to be better. Clumping is due to static build up when grinding and the small grind path that compacts the grinds, it is in no way indicative of a bad grind quality and your comparison that the rocky doesn't jam on zero is irrelevant since the rocky is a stepped grinder whereas the Mignon is stepless. This means that the Mignon can grind finer and it also means that you can adjust the grinder until the burrs touch and the grinder stalls, something to be very much avoided if you don't want to buy new burrs. You should be adjusting finer while the grinder is running to avoid stalling and/or damaging the burrs.

I've had a Mignon for just over a year and the only time it's ever stalled is when I brainlessly went from a course syphon grind to espresso without the grinder running. Going back to coarse didn't fix the problem for me either, I had to clean out the burrs but I've never had a problem since and it's the only time I've ever made the mistake.

I agree with your sentiments re the build quality of the hopper. I don't like the guard to stop morons shoving their hands in the burrs either, and the lid could be a better fit. I don't have sharp edges on mine though...

Didn't you read about the clumping issues with this grinder prior to purchasing? There are plenty of reviews that cover all of the negatives as well as the positives. I even created a thread on the subject. In the end I stopped doing the WDT and just paid attention to how evenly I felt resistance while tamping and nutated gently until I could feel it was even before a full force tamp.

A super jolly clumps straight from the exit chute, even more expensive OD grinders clump to some extent. Clumping is not a sign of a bad grind quality. A good grind depends on the intended usage but for espresso it's important for there to be a very consistent grind size with a limited fines distribution, for syphon/drip you'll just want the most consistent grind you can get. I think there might even be some debate that you can get a good espresso grind without fines, but I've never really looked into it.

It's hard to describe a good grind vs a bad one but for me comparing an MC2 to a Mignon, I'd say the Mignon produces a fluffier grind which is more compressible. I found I could get more in the filter basket with the Mignon.


----------



## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

A Mignon will clump (particularly when new with new burrs) this decreases after a couple of kilos have gone through it.

I'd favour a Mignon over a Rocky for grind consistency any day of the week despite the clumping. But that's just my opinion. I know Gail on Seattle a Coffee gear loves the Rocky but they are not for me.

Also a Rocky is a stepped grinder, not ideal for espresso.

Once your dialled in for espresso you only have to make slight adjustments on the dial (about a 12th of a turn). Every bean I ever tried was within about a half a turn of this.


----------



## Bruce Boogie (Dec 1, 2014)

Rob1 said:


> Eureka Mignon and the like. When I was researching grinders some time ago I read something about the rocky having expensive burrs that need to be replaced every 1-2 years and that it didn't produce a grind as good as the Mignon or the Mazzer Mini. The Mini will be too tall for you with the hopper but if you're single dosing it might be ok with a tamper to stop popcorning but best check with somebody who has one. Iberital MC2 is popular and people say it's decent but I wouldn't recommend it as different coffees with different roast profiles all tasted very similar to me. People seem to want to upgrade quite quickly from the low end grinders anyway so you're best off spending as much as you can afford on one.
> 
> Have you considered hand grinders? OE are taking pre-orders for the Pharos now but won't be delivering until September. There's a German Mahlgut MG1 which is untested in the UK but should be just as good as the Pharos if not better (assuming parts are machined to a greater precision). It should be easier to use but is very expensive (almost twice the price of the Pharos).
> 
> Assuming all goes well with my upgrade arriving later this week, my Mignon will be for sale in the for sale section, and right now there's a Mazzer Mini E.


I upgraded to a Mignon so my Fracino grinder will be up for sale soon!

The Mignon is quieter and easier to adjust, but the Fracino is a great little burr grinder. So much better than a chopchop machine.


----------

