Ground size and other questions please!

[ratchet]

I'm just getting started grinding and brewing. I was given a "pour over" gift for Christmas and have already started using a Clever Dripper. From what I can ascertain, when using either, a course ground is recommended. Could some folks please link or post an image of a course ground size? After that, kindly suggest steeping time(s) and when and how long to stir?
Also, I notice there are a lot of used burr grinders on ebay. Any significance to that, e.g. do folks have issues with them? I can pretty much get a consistent size with a regular grinder by not grinding all of the beans at once for even one cup.
Thank you for the help!

 

[peterjschmidt]

Are you using a paper filter in your pourover? Do you have a pourover besides the Clever Coffee Dripper? It sounds like you use a blade grinder, which is why I ask about the paper filter. If you use paper, the best way to use a blade grinder is to grind very fine, because that's the only way a blade grinder can achieve any uniformity in particle size. If you want to grind less fine, they suck, and you'd be better off plopping down the cash for a burr grinder, and a conical burr grinder at that.

Grind fineness is on a teeter-totter with steep time. For full-immersion brewing such as CCD or press pot, my preference is to grind finer and steep shorter.

An image won't tell you much; even with a coin in their for scale reference, it's very hard to tell the differences. Look for a grind that mimics table sugar, or even a little finer.

But remember, all the advice is nothing more than guidelines; you'll have to experiment and see what works best for your equipment, and for your tastes.

 

[flphotog]

Are you using a paper filter in your pourover? Do you have a pourover besides the Clever Coffee Dripper? It sounds like you use a blade grinder, which is why I ask about the paper filter. If you use paper, the best way to use a blade grinder is to grind very fine, because that's the only way a blade grinder can achieve any uniformity in particle size. If you want to grind less fine, they suck, and you'd be better off plopping down the cash for a burr grinder, and a conical burr grinder at that.

Grind fineness is on a teeter-totter with steep time. For full-immersion brewing such as CCD or press pot, my preference is to grind finer and steep shorter.

An image won't tell you much; even with a coin in their for scale reference, it's very hard to tell the differences. Look for a grind that mimics table sugar, or even a little finer.

But remember, all the advice is nothing more than guidelines; you'll have to experiment and see what works best for your equipment, and for your tastes.

How fine do you grind for French Press? I find with a finer grind I get a lot of grounds in my coffee and for this reason use a courser grind. I have my Encore set on 35.

 

[peterjschmidt]

My Virtuoso is set on 12, with 40 being the coarsest. My press pot has a screen that's a tad finer than most. But to my way of thinking, there's no way around the sludge in a press pot; coarser or finer, you'll still have plenty. So I stay away from the last schluck, and all is well. 14oz. water, 28g coffee, steep for 3:30, with a fine grind.

 

[flphotog]

My Virtuoso is set on 12, with 40 being the coarsest. My press pot has a screen that's a tad finer than most. But to my way of thinking, there's no way around the sludge in a press pot; coarser or finer, you'll still have plenty. So I stay away from the last schluck, and all is well. 14oz. water, 28g coffee, steep for 3:30, with a fine grind.

Thanks, I just tried a slightly finer grind and it seemed ok, I'll keep experimenting with it.