Buy it if you're looking for a reasonably priced burr grinder for everything BUT espresso
Positive Product Points
Alright, there are some definite positive points to this grinder. To name a few: -Looks great on the countertop (your spouse ought to like it) -Relatively quiet while grinding; gear reduction seems to effectively reduce temperature of grinds -Seems like it should last a while if used as intended, however, I have only owned it for a week -Possible to grind directly into a portafilter if you use both hands (however you should not be doing this anyway... read on)
Negative Product Points
-Is incapable of grinding espresso, even with the "mod" -From what I hear, you can't buy a replacement center burr... only the outer one. -Even before I modded it, there was a wear pattern on the outer burr where the burrs had touched.
Detailed Commentary
I made the foolish decision to buy this grinder based on its reported espresso grinding capabilities after modification. Some people said it works alright after modding it. Others said that it still didn't cut it. Turns out that I should have listened to the others.
Let's be clear, the fact that this grinder claims to be capable of a turkish grind is ridiculous - before or after modifying it. Now that I have modified it, if I grind at the closest setting possible before burr contact, I still get a 10 second single on my espresso machine. This is with me tamping as hard as I can, and a pressurized filter basket (!). Without modifying it I was getting about a 7 second single. For comparisons sake, if I use pre-ground (fine) Illy in my machine, with a light tamp, I get a 25 second single.
So, for the average user I think this is probably a decent grinder. It does alright at coarser grind settings, and if you get it with a 20% off BBandB coupon, the price is quite reasonable. It is certainly worlds above the cuisinart flat "burr" grinder.
Buying Experience
Not bad, I ordered it in-store at Bed Bath and Beyond (so I could use a 20% off coupon). It came in a few days.
