My opinion -- If you can source decent roated beans spend the $ on the grinder first. No sense roasting your own if you're not getting the best grind you can.
Coffee gear and discussion thread
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After I roast, I use within a 2 week period (usually only roast enough for a week) and they are kept in a double valve bag. After ground, the freshness takes a huge dive, so I usually grind right before using. Remember, it's the oils that provide the flavor, and they dry up quick after exposed to oxygen, hence the stale flavor. To answer your second question, use in less than an hour after grinding, but preferably right away.
PM me I may be interested.
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Tempting as it is, that may be too much for me to handle - not enough space for it either, and I would not seriously be looking to buy before February. Jason, if you take the MM, what will you be selling?
Stefan
Right now I have a couple Mazzer Mini's, but have been looking for a used Major for awhile.
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Mmhh, I think a Mini would fit here. On local Craigslist someone is offering a used Jolly with new hopper, new lids and burrs in 'excellent shape', that made me think also. Again, bigger than I wanted and at $475 a touch more than it should be, but saving the hassle and cost of shipping one of these monsters out here is probably worth some extra cash. Dor the same money I get a factory refurbished Baratza Vario-W which supposedly is on one level with the Jolly but has a much smaller foot print - and much more plastic. Any thoughts on the Jolly vs. Mini vs. Vario-W? I guess all are ugrades over the Rocky, and I know there is no final word on this, I read the home-barista and coffee-geek discussions.
Stefan
On local Craigslist someone is offering a used Jolly with new hopper, new lids and burrs in 'excellent shape', that made me think also. Again, bigger than I wanted and at $475 a touch more than it should be, but saving the hassle and cost of shipping one of these monsters out here is probably worth some extra cash. Dor the same money I get a factory refurbished Baratza Vario-W which supposedly is on one level with the Jolly but has a much smaller foot print - and much more plastic. Any thoughts on the Jolly vs. Mini vs. Vario-W? I guess all are ugrades over the Rocky, and I know there is no final word on this, I read the home-barista and coffee-geek discussions.Stefan
I don't know if I'd put the Vario on the same level as the Jolly, but it's a very capable machine. I'm not a fan of all the plastic for such an expensive grinder (in comparison to commercial grinder tank build). $475 for a used Jolly is too expensive. Considering burrs will almost always have to be replaced for a well used one, the usual sale price for a used one should be around $300, give or take the condition and how much it was used. I'd love to get a $2K grinder, but thats way above my needs at this point in life. Out of the three, if you go used you can't go wrong. For your situation, a used Vario may be the best option.
Mmhh, I think a Mini would fit here.
Stefan
I never had the mini, but I had both a vario and a super jolly. The vario was good and happy for about 6 months or so, then started to have lots of issues with consistency and static. I couldn't shake it off and I got a great deal on the SJ. The SJ I think was way better in terms of consistency.... then it got me curious, so I got a Major (for the bigger burr), and more recently I was more curious and wanted to try out a conical, so I got the K10. I didn't find the major to be much of an improvement over the SJ...
I'd recommend getting a used SJ if you can. they are built solid and fit great into the home environment.
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Thanks guys, the more I am thinking about it, the more interesting the SJ sounds. I just contacted the person on Craigslist and offered him $350 for the used SJ, and if we agree on something under $400 I will just go for it. I decided I will drink espresso-based drinks 90% of the time at home, so if I can sell my Rocky, which is in very good shape, and offset the cost a bit, this could work out fine even if it was not planned right now. We'll see. Oh, and the reliability of the Varios has been my main concern about them, so hearing that yours had issues after 6 months is another argument for the true and tried SJ. Of course, the SJ won't fit under the cupboard, but I'll deal with that if it gets to that point... And if not, I am not desperate... They just don't come up used out here very often and I want to at least check it out.
Stefan
Stefan
x100 on the SJ. Picked mine up used, and the burrs were still in good condition. I don't use the hopper; I keep a tamper in the throat and it fits under the wall cabinets.
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Score. Picked up the SJ today. :doublethumbsup: Lost a little bit of paint in a few tiny spots, but the burrs, hopper, and both lids are new. Paid $400 for it in the end. But with the new parts and close to $100 it would cost just to ship one I haven't seen from the mainland that sounded fair in the end. Big, but somehow not as big as I had feared. But, of course, it doesn't fit under the cupboard... :scratchhead: Funny thing, the seller also has an Anita, so it may be more than half way dialed in already. Will play with it over the next week or so. Anybody need a Rocky?
Stefan
Stefan
wenus2
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Same here, I find it looks much better with a Reg Barber in cocobolo than it ever thought about with that hopper.
I actually have an old Gaggia single filter basket that happens to fit so that the lip rests right on the grinder collar, then the tamper sits in that to weight it down. Helps protect the tamper and keep it smooth.
Congrats on the SJ!
wenus2
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Vinster, I'm gonna play 20 Qs cause I've been eyeballing that grinder for a minute.
What do you think of it?
Conical > flat?
Do the Titan Shootout results hold up?
I'm presently down to 1 SJ, was considering a K10 Fresh maybe next summer, but then I read a review (cafeculture.com) that stated it held a lot of grounds in the chute. I was talked out of a Robur-E several years ago for the same reason, you essentially have to flush at least a whole dose every time you come to the machine. Fine in a commercial setting where you are steady, but not practical at home. 50% is too much waste. I don't think the dosered version has this problem as bad, or at least you can scrape the chute.
Which version do you have?
Do you know what its grind retention is?
Care to weigh it?
(I realize that sounds tedious to most, but coffee nerds understand each other, lol)
One nice thing about the Fresh I guess is that there are 2 presets, so say your grind retention is 7g, you can set one preset to ~7g for a chute flush and then go live with the other preset at ~20g.
If those numbers were real (they are not)... I guess I could live with 25% waste, begrudgingly.
rahimlee54
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I have the k10 wbc and it holds around 7 g in the chute. For single dosing I suspect the wbc would be less wasteful since you can sweep the chute. That is what I do, it works great.
Doh! I was typing a long post and I accidentally closed the browser window... So here goes again.
I have a K10 PB. I picked the PB over the Fresh because of cost and the grinds retention issue (IMO present in nearly all doserless models). I only make 1-2 drinks a day, so the waste was a deal breaker for me. I picked the Compak over the Robur and Kony because the Mazzer titans wouldn't fit under the cabinets in my kitchen. I wasn't really planning to switch from the Major, but came across a good deal and was curious to try a titan conical. The K10 is a solid heavy duty grinder, but not in the same class as the Mazzers. The Mazzers look and feel more substantial. I also like the feel of the doser on the Major over the K10. That being said, I'm happy with the purchase and have decided to keep the K10 and put the Major up for sale.
I have to admit that my palate (and skills) aren't sophisticated enough for me to consistently discern taste differences between a large burr and a large conical. If anything, it might be a little easier to make out the distinct floral/fruity notes with the K10. I also get more consistency with the K10 and I find it much easier to dial in shots because the adjustments to the collar aren't as sensitive on the K10 as they were on the Major. Meaning, for a same rotation on the collar, the resulting difference in grind was bigger on the Major.
The K10 PB doesn't grind as fast as I expected it would -- it's probably ~25% slower than a Major... something like 7s vs 10s for a 18g dose. Don't put too much stock in my numbers because a hopper full of beans would obviously grind faster. I'd consider modding my grinder one day to add a timer and running it with a hopper if I had the space. I've found that using a hopper loaded with beans results in MUCH more grind consistency on all the grinders I've tried. It would be nice to have a loaded hopper and pretty a button to get a preset amount of grinds...
Regarding grinds retention, I single dose on my K10 without the hopper and I sweep the chute clean, so I don't have any solid numbers for you to work with. With the electrical tape on the doser vanes mod, there's virtually 0 grinds rentention. I measured .1-.2g (lost in the burr assembly or chute) in the beginning when I first got the machine, but I don't bother to weight the output anymore. The design of the K10 chute causes more retention than the Mazzers. Whereas the Mazzer chute is a smooth and slightly sloping, the Compak chute is virtually level, and there's a plastic piece that creates a lip for the grinds to traverse on their way out. If I didnt sweep, there would be significantly more grinds retained in the K10 chute vs the Major or SJ. You can cut/file the plastic component to reduce this, but I haven't gotten around to it yet. If I had to guess, I'd probably have at least 5g hiding in my K10 chute if I didn't sweep it out.
If I remember, I'll weigh how much is retained tomorrow morning on a couple shots.
So if I had to do it all over again, I'd probably stick with with an SJ or maybe a Major, depending on the deal I can get. If I wanted to go with a doserless conical (and had the space), I'd probably go with a Kony or Robur, since the design of the chute results in lower grinds retention. For a doser conical, I've been happy with the K10, which I picked up as a demo unit from Chris Coffee.
I dont know if you've guys have seen this video before, but it's funny (and appropriate):
[video=youtube;sK7pnwQ8YpA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK7pnwQ8YpA[/video]
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Played around a bit tonight until I at least produced a few donuts... So much to do, need to take out the finger guard and do the tape mod, get a small scale and then see what I can come up with. Somehow the doser is much messier than I expected, have to figure that out and maybe I will do this mod with the dispensing hole that I saw somewhere. Any other Jolly tips you guys can give me?
Oh, and I like the animation
Stefan
Oh, and I like the animation
Stefan
Here's a thread that should help: http://www.home-barista.com/grinders/how-to-tame-messy-mazzer-doser-t6499.html
I usually tame donuts with WDT. Or turn the PF all around as you're dosing and focus on getting the grinds around the sides.
I usually tame donuts with WDT. Or turn the PF all around as you're dosing and focus on getting the grinds around the sides.
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Great, thanks! I read about this sophisticated technological device but did not know exactly what it was. I did WDT the Rocky output in my yoghurt cup all the time, maybe I have to adapt one to the height of the Jolly. With a Shnozzola and a yoghurt cup, what could go wrong? And how stupid must this sentence sound to the uninitiated?
Stefan
Stefan
I pulled two shots this morning and weighed the grinds that had to be manually swept out. The grinder kept ~ 6.3g and 5.9g in the chute. I've never seen the K10 fresh so I cant comment on whether the retention would be similar there.
wenus2
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That's awesome, thanks guys. I guess I was only half making up that 7g retention number. Now I just need to figure out what the Fresh holds.
Enjoying some Blue Bottle Ethiopian Lima Wolenso this morning.
Yeah, the rabbit hole is pretty deep, similar to many hobbies. Just depends how involved in the process you want to get.
I would normally do this in the "for sale" section, but if anyone is looking for a moderately used, well maintained Mazzer Mini then IM me. I just picked up a Mazzer Major and already have two Mini's.
wow, thread was a slog, feel like a slacker.
all i use is either a french press or Vietnamese phin.
do roast my own green beans though....
Nothing wrong with a French press. I use one occasionally and I get a pretty good brew out of it. My fav from it is pre-ground Serrano from Cuba. I'm sipping some right now. Passed over a real espresso shot for it. The heart wants what the heart wants
