The headphone hobby makes the coffee hobby seem pretty affordable….
This forum has this strange power to abuse my bank...........
My upgrade....
Last edited:
coffee-fi
- Thread starter radiohlite
- Start date
This forum has this strange power to abuse my bank...........
My upgrade....
Ah. My new coffee machine is pants!
Going to try send this back as unfit for purpose. What a messy, scruffy, horrible bit of kit.
You need at least 4 Wheatabix before attempting to secure the grounds handle. You need need to eat another 8 Wheatabix to remove it.
Once removed expect a splattering of wet coffee grounds over anything in a 5 mile radius.
Once that ordeal is over a large bucket is needed to catch the non-stop drip/splatter of water.
Absolutely useless! Looks awesome though.
Going to try send this back as unfit for purpose. What a messy, scruffy, horrible bit of kit.
You need at least 4 Wheatabix before attempting to secure the grounds handle. You need need to eat another 8 Wheatabix to remove it.
Once removed expect a splattering of wet coffee grounds over anything in a 5 mile radius.
Once that ordeal is over a large bucket is needed to catch the non-stop drip/splatter of water.
Absolutely useless! Looks awesome though.
Sorry to hear that. Gonna replace it with same machine, or something completely different (with apologies to Monty Python)?
Not sure yet. Pretty sure this one is boiling water at 135 instead of 95 even with the steam turned off.
Note to self; only use a CC for expensive purchases.
Bought the Lelit Victoria. Just waiting for it to arrive.
OceanRanger
Headphoneus Supremus
For those interested in cool caffeinated drinks for hot days, I've been enjoying both of the below
Caffe Shakerato
Espresso Tonic
Both are non-alcoholic and quite tasty. I haven't bothered making my own tonic from scratch.
Caffe Shakerato
Espresso Tonic
Both are non-alcoholic and quite tasty. I haven't bothered making my own tonic from scratch.
Everyone here posting their awesome espresso setups...I'm here thinking the coffee I make with the $8 Hario V60 tastes great.
a review of low budget coffee gear
USB-rechargeable portable burr grinder.
Model "C-grind, 13w". Conical Burr. Detachable mid-hopper style. This type of USB portable grinder is being sold on Amazon for about $25, under several different "brands", they are probably all from the same factory.
The good:
-- grind consistency is good, similar to store bought ground coffee. Now I can get freshly-grind ground right before the brew, instead of weeks-old factory grounds.
-- wide enough fine/coarse adjustment to accommidate from espresso to drip (coffee maker) needs.
-- automatically stops when (it thinks) grinding is finished.
The bad:
-- there has been report of upper E-clip falling off (then jammed/damaged the burr) --> Needs modification.
-- the ground collection jar is not locked into place, it is held only by friction, can fall off if not careful.
The not-sure:
-- light-weight build, feels kind of flimsy.
-- plastic gears, not sure how durable it can be.
The hopper holds 26~27g of whole beams (Boyers espresso roast).
fine/coarse adjuster is at the end of the burr shaft. There are "steps", not very definitive but there.
(There is no marking on the adjuster. I made up the step #'s. #1= adjuster turned all the way in)
#1, about the same size/consistency of a store-bought espresso ground, say, Lavazza Rossa. Works well in my little Salton EX-96 (a basic, manual machine with non-pressurized portafilter).
Actually it is maybe a little too fine for the Salton, the pressure builds up quickly and the pressure-relief valve in the cap trips non-stop.
#2 espresso or moka pot.
#4 about the same size/consistency as pre-grounded coffee (eight o'clock etc), so I guess it is medium. We use it in a "Mr Coffee" coffee maker at work, with good results.
ground uniformity is pretty good up to this point. Not too much powdery fines, no boulders.
It can do coarser grinds but uniformity starts to suffer.
Ground doesn't stick to the collection jar. (slow grind, not much static build up).
Grind time:
(Boyers espresso roast whole beans)
#1 setting: 7~8 minutes to do 25g
#3 and #4 setting: 5~6 minutes to do 25g. There are usually some whole beans left in the hopper when it auto-stops, I have to shake the hopper a little then start again.
Noise level is not bad. To reduce the noise I just put it into the fridge and close the fridge door..... it will auto-stop anyway.
Or put a towel/blanket over it.
Charging and battery:
Charging is done via the USB-C port. The power switch ring flashes red when charging, turns solid blue when fully charged.
It will not grind while charging.
Battery voltage after two 25g grinds = 3.96v. According to info on the web this suggests there is ~70% capacity remaining, so each 25g grind uses ~15%
--> a full charge should be able to do 6 such grinds.
power consumption estimation: each grind uses 1250mAhx15%x4v=0.75wh, over 6 minutes --> ~7.5w
Internals:
to disassemble the top/motor assembly, first pry out the power button
then pry out the sub-frame/insert (probably not the proper name, but you get the idea). The plastic material is kind of soft, similar to what is used in a sports water-bottle, no risk of cracking here.
Marking on the silver Lipo pack shows 1250mAh.
gears are made of white plastic, don't know how durable but I suspect they will outlast the battery pack.
Mod:
there are two E-clips on the square drive shaft, the top one holds pressure during grinding (pressure from the coffee pieces jamming between inner and outer burr). There is a report in Amazon reviews showing this e-clip falling off during grind.
I replaced the e-clip with a lock ring after reading about this problem.
The locking ring was made using a flat washer with 4mm center hole. I cut a slot in the washer then widened the gap so it will slide over the drive shaft to the groove spot. Then clamp it into the groove.
The e-clip in the middle of drive shaft only holds light pressure from the adjuster tension spring, I left it alone.
This is a very light-duty grinder but the grind result has been very good. I bought it for work use, maybe 2~3 grinds a day. Lets see how long it will last in that role.
USB-rechargeable portable burr grinder.
Model "C-grind, 13w". Conical Burr. Detachable mid-hopper style. This type of USB portable grinder is being sold on Amazon for about $25, under several different "brands", they are probably all from the same factory.
The good:
-- grind consistency is good, similar to store bought ground coffee. Now I can get freshly-grind ground right before the brew, instead of weeks-old factory grounds.
-- wide enough fine/coarse adjustment to accommidate from espresso to drip (coffee maker) needs.
-- automatically stops when (it thinks) grinding is finished.
The bad:
-- there has been report of upper E-clip falling off (then jammed/damaged the burr) --> Needs modification.
-- the ground collection jar is not locked into place, it is held only by friction, can fall off if not careful.
The not-sure:
-- light-weight build, feels kind of flimsy.
-- plastic gears, not sure how durable it can be.
The hopper holds 26~27g of whole beams (Boyers espresso roast).
fine/coarse adjuster is at the end of the burr shaft. There are "steps", not very definitive but there.
(There is no marking on the adjuster. I made up the step #'s. #1= adjuster turned all the way in)
#1, about the same size/consistency of a store-bought espresso ground, say, Lavazza Rossa. Works well in my little Salton EX-96 (a basic, manual machine with non-pressurized portafilter).
Actually it is maybe a little too fine for the Salton, the pressure builds up quickly and the pressure-relief valve in the cap trips non-stop.
#2 espresso or moka pot.
#4 about the same size/consistency as pre-grounded coffee (eight o'clock etc), so I guess it is medium. We use it in a "Mr Coffee" coffee maker at work, with good results.
ground uniformity is pretty good up to this point. Not too much powdery fines, no boulders.
It can do coarser grinds but uniformity starts to suffer.
Ground doesn't stick to the collection jar. (slow grind, not much static build up).
Grind time:
(Boyers espresso roast whole beans)
#1 setting: 7~8 minutes to do 25g
#3 and #4 setting: 5~6 minutes to do 25g. There are usually some whole beans left in the hopper when it auto-stops, I have to shake the hopper a little then start again.
Noise level is not bad. To reduce the noise I just put it into the fridge and close the fridge door..... it will auto-stop anyway.
Or put a towel/blanket over it.
Charging and battery:
Charging is done via the USB-C port. The power switch ring flashes red when charging, turns solid blue when fully charged.
It will not grind while charging.
Battery voltage after two 25g grinds = 3.96v. According to info on the web this suggests there is ~70% capacity remaining, so each 25g grind uses ~15%
--> a full charge should be able to do 6 such grinds.
power consumption estimation: each grind uses 1250mAhx15%x4v=0.75wh, over 6 minutes --> ~7.5w
Internals:
to disassemble the top/motor assembly, first pry out the power button
then pry out the sub-frame/insert (probably not the proper name, but you get the idea). The plastic material is kind of soft, similar to what is used in a sports water-bottle, no risk of cracking here.
Marking on the silver Lipo pack shows 1250mAh.
gears are made of white plastic, don't know how durable but I suspect they will outlast the battery pack.
Mod:
there are two E-clips on the square drive shaft, the top one holds pressure during grinding (pressure from the coffee pieces jamming between inner and outer burr). There is a report in Amazon reviews showing this e-clip falling off during grind.
I replaced the e-clip with a lock ring after reading about this problem.
The locking ring was made using a flat washer with 4mm center hole. I cut a slot in the washer then widened the gap so it will slide over the drive shaft to the groove spot. Then clamp it into the groove.
The e-clip in the middle of drive shaft only holds light pressure from the adjuster tension spring, I left it alone.
This is a very light-duty grinder but the grind result has been very good. I bought it for work use, maybe 2~3 grinds a day. Lets see how long it will last in that role.
Last edited:
another low budget grinder review...
USB-rechargable portable coffee grinder, fixxed top hopper, stainless body, (no brand, no model #)
This grinder was bought off Amazon for around $25. No model #, no brand.
I bought it because the grind adjustment is external, by turning a ring in the middle of the body. (The "C-grind" reviewed above works well but grind setting is done at the burr head so not convenient to set or check.)
Summary:
**conclusion: not recommended
the good:
-- grind quality is pretty good (for ultra-fine to Moka pot size).
-- top hopper, easy to add beans. hopper and the chute below hold about 65gs when full.
-- sturdy build with stainless steel outer shell.
-- no electrostatic build up.
the bad:
-- requires special charging cable. It can only be charged with the included cable. The power jack is of the micro-USB "type" but it is recessed in the body requiring a longer tip to reach it.
-- very slow grinding. ~15 minutes to grind 25g of dark-roast beans at the coarsest setting; ~30 minutes to do 25g at the finest setting.
-- beans can get stuck in the chute and not reaching the burr ---> burr spinning but nothing coming out ---> requires shaking the grinder once every 2 minutes or so to resettle the beans.
-- ground container is held in place by a silicon o-ring, easy to fall off when shaken ( --> coffee ground everywhere).
-- no auto-off, needs to turn on/off manually.
the maybe:
-- grind size adjustment range is very small. Adjustment is done by turning the middle ring, there are 5 steps. It goes from very fine (fluffy and powdery, finer than espresso) to medium-fine, not quite coarse enough for coffee maker.
** grounds from the finest setting yield about the same extraction time as xx3.0 setting on my j-max, (xx3.0 is supposedly 12x8.8uM=105uM). Too fine for espresso, probably not fine enough for turkish coffee.
battery capacity is supposedly 1200mAh.
30mm white ceramic burr.
Noise level is ok, the sound is probably a little less than the C-grind above, but at a higher pitch, so actually more annoying. Plus the grind time is now 3x longer so it can become very irritating.
internals photos:
the center chip has no marking.
USB-rechargable portable coffee grinder, fixxed top hopper, stainless body, (no brand, no model #)
This grinder was bought off Amazon for around $25. No model #, no brand.
I bought it because the grind adjustment is external, by turning a ring in the middle of the body. (The "C-grind" reviewed above works well but grind setting is done at the burr head so not convenient to set or check.)
Summary:
**conclusion: not recommended
the good:
-- grind quality is pretty good (for ultra-fine to Moka pot size).
-- top hopper, easy to add beans. hopper and the chute below hold about 65gs when full.
-- sturdy build with stainless steel outer shell.
-- no electrostatic build up.
the bad:
-- requires special charging cable. It can only be charged with the included cable. The power jack is of the micro-USB "type" but it is recessed in the body requiring a longer tip to reach it.
-- very slow grinding. ~15 minutes to grind 25g of dark-roast beans at the coarsest setting; ~30 minutes to do 25g at the finest setting.
-- beans can get stuck in the chute and not reaching the burr ---> burr spinning but nothing coming out ---> requires shaking the grinder once every 2 minutes or so to resettle the beans.
-- ground container is held in place by a silicon o-ring, easy to fall off when shaken ( --> coffee ground everywhere).
-- no auto-off, needs to turn on/off manually.
the maybe:
-- grind size adjustment range is very small. Adjustment is done by turning the middle ring, there are 5 steps. It goes from very fine (fluffy and powdery, finer than espresso) to medium-fine, not quite coarse enough for coffee maker.
** grounds from the finest setting yield about the same extraction time as xx3.0 setting on my j-max, (xx3.0 is supposedly 12x8.8uM=105uM). Too fine for espresso, probably not fine enough for turkish coffee.
battery capacity is supposedly 1200mAh.
30mm white ceramic burr.
Noise level is ok, the sound is probably a little less than the C-grind above, but at a higher pitch, so actually more annoying. Plus the grind time is now 3x longer so it can become very irritating.
internals photos:
the center chip has no marking.
Last edited:
ThEvil0nE
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2010
- Posts
- 1,516
- Likes
- 3,707
cheers!
Good to see another lever fan here, I have a La Pavoni Esperto Abile I roast my own beans too having just bought a Sandbox home roaster.
The headphone hobby makes the coffee hobby seem pretty affordable….
Once you get to this stage the coffee is superb and very fresh.
Users who are viewing this thread
