- Great for starter grinding - Can be re-calibrated for finer/coarser grinds - Easy to clean - Cheap replacement parts
Negative Product Points
- Could use a metered system to sho you the size of the grounds that will be coming out. - Kind of messy (spews grinds out) - Really loud - A bit slow at its finest grind
Detailed Commentary
I got this grinder on sale at Starbucks a while ago, and since I worked there got it even cheaper! It's a great starter for anyone looking for a good and cheap grinder to use for home espresso making. It gives a good consistent grind and doesn't really choke up at all, aside from needing a second to feed in a few more beans. It is however a bit messy when it comes to pouring the grounds out and could be a bit cleaner in that respect (possibly by using a small hole to drop them out).
You can also buy calibrated inserts for the machine to allow for a finer or coarser grind from Baratza. These allow you to better grind for Turkish-style coffee or French Press-style. These are also very cheap so it's definitely a great economical grinder.
The machine is very simple to clean. All you need to do it turn it all the way fine plus one click to lift the bean hopper off, however you should empty the beans first as it does not have a mechanism to lock it shut. It also has some very nicely made burrs that just need a quick wipe with a damp cloth from time to time (more often for more oily beans) to keep them in working order.
Replacement parts can be found just about everywhere and come really cheap. We're talking like <10 USDs for burr replacements.
It comes with a nice timed grinding feature in which you just dial it back and it will grind away for up to about a minute. It's really great for when you know the rough time needed to dose out the right amount of grounds for your shot or press and have jimmied a solution to hold the portafilter in place (or bought the official one!).
One downside is that it is quite loud for such a small grinder. I don't feel mean enough to wake up my whole house in the morning by grinding the ~14g of coffee I need for an espresso shot!
Overall this is a great grinder for starting out in the home espresso world. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a grinder that can do the basics and do it right for a great price. Definitely would not recommend it for people who are about changing grinds by a micrometer.
Buying Experience
Bought it from Starbucks while on sale and with my partner discount so I shouldn't comment on customer service :P
