Searching for the perfect grinder.

spraggzilla

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Apr 26, 2012
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Hi there,

I have just invested in a chemex 6 cup coffee maker to make delicious hand dripped coffee at home, and would like help finding a burr grinder to complement it. Do you have any suggestions? I know there are lots of different parameters that need to be considered. I probably won't invest in an espresso maker any time soon so probably no need for ultra fine ground...but don't necessarily want to close that avenue entirely. I'd like something solid that looks good, and that of course is affordable.

Please just suggest the grinders that you know and love and tell me why.

Many thanks,

Dav
 
We have a Cuisinart conical burr grinder that seems to do the trick for almost any level of grind desired. Think it ran around $100.

scott
 
+1 on the Capresso Infinity. Great all-around grinder. Only issue I have with it is the large grind chamber, which can lead to a fair amount of retention with finer grinding, oily coffees, etc.

If Capresso plans to keep the Infinity in their product line they should re-design it with a smaller grind chamber, carousel and shorter delivery chute.
 
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What about manual grinders?

What are your opinions on the Hario skerton, mini mill and other manual grinders?
 
What are your opinions on the Hario skerton, mini mill and other manual grinders?

I'm a big fan of hand mills, but most models currently available don't do coarser grind ranges well. This is according to actual users. There are relatively simple fixes for most mills to help with this though. I like the idea of ceramic burr sets too. Just don't drop them!
 
Conical Burr grinders are better than a regular burr grinder or spin blade types because they produce less heat, thus saving the natural flavor of the beans.

Can you back your statement up with fact?

Burr grinders produce less friction in general. Conical burrs just happen to be found in most mainstream commercial coffee grinders but that doesn't mean the non conical burrs aren't just as good. I think you should go back and reexamine your statement.

From past experience the grind on a conical burr is more consistent then that of the cheaper mill found in home use grinders. My Cuisinart has a tendency to blow out small dust particals in one corner. They tend to ball up like espresso but the other 95% of the grind is right on the money. My bulk grinder at work however runs about 99.9% on the money. I haven't seen any bulk grinders that are completely dustless.
 
For HOME use conical burrs seem to be the better all-around choice simply because there are NO decent flat burr grinders in the same price range. For home use you either buy the typical low-end conical burr grinder for $150~ or the $50 pseudo flat burr grinder that destroys anything good coffee has to offer.

For COMMERCIAL use I think both have their advantages. Most that have used both say conical burrs seem to bring out the high notes or brightness in espresso. OTOH it's said that flat burrs bring out the bass notes or darker/bolder notes in espresso. That's a matter of opinion more than anything, but users of both say commercial conicals DO NOT require constant tweaking to accomodate changing variables such as temperature, humidity, etc. as flat burrs typically do.
 
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