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Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

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  • SupremeRoasters
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Originally posted by 7E73736640767470711F0 link=1205471613/21#21 date=1239693491
    So where is a good place to purchase a compak at a a good price on the gold coast and/or brisbane? any suggestions??
    thanks  
    Ally Ikon

    We sell the Compak grinder and are based in between Brisbane and the Gold Coast at Yatala. If you are able to pick up we are happy to include a training session on best use and maintenance. We can also ship Compak and a variety of other grinders if pickup isnt an option.

    FULL Kudos to Greg for doing such a comprehensive review! Its become a bit of an institution for those looking at upgrading their grinders!

    Leave a comment:


  • kotaro
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Thanks for this great, extremely detailed, write up, which i admittedly used more as a information source on the mazzer than a comparison with the K3.

    Keep up the good work mate,
    cheers,

    Matt.

    Leave a comment:


  • TC
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Originally posted by 292424311721232726480 link=1205471613/21#21 date=1239693491
    So where is a good place to purchase a compak at a a good price on the gold coast and/or brisbane? any suggestions??
    thanks
    I think the closest compak selling site sponsor to you will be Veneziano coffee- in West End...

    Many site sponsors sell Comapk and Im sure that all will be able to freight to you.

    Happy shopping...

    2mcm

    Leave a comment:


  • ally_ikon
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    So where is a good place to purchase a compak at a a good price on the gold coast and/or brisbane? any suggestions??
    thanks

    Leave a comment:


  • Dimal
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    A judicious and very carefully filed groove using a jewellers file, later filled in with white paint (or colour of your choice) would look very spic Id reckon 8-)

    Mal.

    Leave a comment:


  • wannabesnob
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    The grind adjustment is now different from the review and the link to the manual you give shows this somewhat. Ive taken a couple of photos of mine which I hope will show this better, but unfortunately they are not very good.

    There are now scale marks added to the top moving ring and these are numbered at intervals of five, ie 5, 10,15 ...... There is unfortunately and perplexedly no corresponding point to line up with on the body of the grinder so Ive put a mark at the top centered over the grind chute in permanent marking pen. This works for me It is light and ony just visible in the top photo. The second photo shows the scale markings and numbers. In practice my settings vary from 31.5 to 32 depending on the bean variety. I generally have at least two different beans on the go so Im changing it all the time. I dont find making a 1/2 mark adjustment too hard and the results seem quite repeatable to me.

    Overall I am very happy with the Compak K3 Touch, but then it is my first real grinder so I have nothing to compare with. It will be my last grinder as its projected life is longer than mine!!!!




    Leave a comment:


  • plexus
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    I just read the review because I am considering either the mazzer mini or the K3 touch (doserless version). the difference price at the moment, for me in canada, is $200CAD. the one area of concern based on the review is the grind adjustment. i am wondering if compak upgraded the grind adjustment - the reason is because if you take a look at the current manual, it looks like they have a much wider adjustment - i dont see those circles on the top. can anyone confirm?

    here is a link to the compak k3 manual

    http://www.compak.es/docs/en/K3_K3Elite_K3Touch_en.pdf

    Leave a comment:


  • Dolcimelo
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    I guess some sorts of plastics fatigue like metal, but mine still dont show any sign of it. Mind you, even if they break, I dont think it will make much difference in my situation, as there is nothing that is going to disturb the tray. However, thats not a good reason to make something non-durable (especially from Mazzer).

    Leave a comment:


  • gregpullman
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Have a really close look at where the lugs are attached. The crack on mine started off just looking like a plastic molding seam but was in fact the beginning of the end.

    Leave a comment:


  • Dolcimelo
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    I must just be lucky, then, as I remove and replace mine every day. But it doesnt feel tight getting it in. Oh well, if it breaks then Ill know I had a good run of it. It does catch the grinds really well...

    Leave a comment:


  • Dimal
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Originally posted by 2muchcoffeeman link=1205471613/0#13 date=1206917064
    I agree that the design of the Mazzer tray is really poor and the lugs are prone to breaking. If you drop it, breakage is pretty much guaranteed. Id know as I have shelled out for at least 6 trays so far. Mazzer are on a good wicket with absurd prices placed on items which should be cheap. Hoppers are also ridiculous. For example a replacement SJ hopper has a RRP of $80 and the price of a mini hopper is still over $60 which is outrageous.
    Maybe a visit to a local sheet-metal shop guru could sort this out once and for all by knocking up a replica(coffee grinds tray) made from stainless steel :-?

    Mal.

    Leave a comment:


  • TC
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    I agree that the design of the Mazzer tray is really poor and the lugs are prone to breaking. If you drop it, breakage is pretty much guaranteed. Id know as I have shelled out for at least 6 trays so far. Mazzer are on a good wicket with absurd prices placed on items which should be cheap. Hoppers are also ridiculous. For example a replacement SJ hopper has a RRP of $80 and the price of a mini hopper is still over $60 which is outrageous.

    I much prefer the design of the Macap tray. It has a hole cut into it which locates it under one of the feet of the grinder. Its not going anywhere and even if you do drop it, it wont break.

    Leave a comment:


  • gregpullman
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Hi Matt,

    Re the lugs, not too sure really. I read they were prone to breaking and mine were still intact but when I checked I noticed a hairline crack running through one; it broke off completely within a month, and from what Ive read its quite a common thing. I guess if you constantly remove it to clean it (as most would) then its likely to happen as they have to bend inwards quite a way before they lock in. Perhaps some of the resellers of these units will have a better perspective on what causes the breakage?

    Point taken about cord placement; I guess irrelevant may be a bit distorted since it got more weighting than domestic. I was mainly looking at it from the perspective that where the cord comes out is overall probably of no consequence since it largely depends on your setup, however the clean back of the Mazzer facing the customer was a plus. But I guess if its back is to the wall then a side exit is another plus for the Mazzer, which is in front commercially on this score anyway.

    Greg

    Leave a comment:


  • Dolcimelo
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Hi Greg,
    Im curious as to how your tray lugs broke. I remember when I first got mine, and noticed that sometimes the tray didnt sit flat (which would put a lot of strain on the lugs if you pressed on the tray). However, I realised that it was designed to be put down flat on the counter and then slid in under the base, rather than put in at an angle, as I had done (and most of us would naturally do...). But the lugs are not really flimsy, either.

    The point about the cord placement was simply a reference to the comment that it was irrelevant in a commercial environment. Small point, but electrical appliances for commercial use often have the cord on the side so that they can be put flush against a wall without constraining the cord, thats all. I agree entirely with your weighting - and most of your review!

    Thanks again for writing it.

    matt

    Leave a comment:


  • gregpullman
    replied
    Re: Mazzer Mini vs Compak K-3 Elite - Review

    Originally posted by Dolcimelo link=1205471613/0#6 date=1205983873
    I would only say that you might want to update it a little, as certainly the Mazzer, and probably the Compak, has changed since your test model was built.
    Yep I was aware of this potential issue and commented on this at the end of the Introduction. Unfortunately I dont have access to current models so until a nice distributor decides to send me one of each with which to pick up these updates I wont actually know whats changed apart from hearsay.

    Originally posted by Dolcimelo link=1205471613/0#6 date=1205983873
    It might also be worth noting that doser levers are designed to be used with two fingers and with much greater speed and force than shown in the video. They are, after all, commercial units.
    Agreed, though the videos were to show the smoothness / noise of the mechanism not typical usage.

    Originally posted by Dolcimelo link=1205471613/0#6 date=1205983873
    Incidentally, the power cord placement is also a commercial consideration.
    This item was already weighted as more important commercially than domestically (5/10 commercially, 2/10 domestically) :-? Unless I misunderstood your comment?

    Originally posted by Dolcimelo link=1205471613/0#6 date=1205983873
    The screw in the middle of the doser adjustment star is to enable you to remove the whole mechanism (great for the sweep mod). Not sure how you do this in the Compak. The lugs on my grinds tray are intact after a year - but users should always make sure the tray is flat on the counter before sliding it into place.
    Thanks re doser screw, never removed it so far on mine. The Compaks doser adjustment mechanism just keeps unscrewing until it comes off. Well done re the grinds tray lugs; I took pretty good care of mine after hearing about this, hardly ever removed it and they still broke within about 3 months. :

    Originally posted by Dolcimelo link=1205471613/0#6 date=1205983873
    Aesthetics are very hard to assess, being entirely subjective, and I think you always made it very clear when you were making that kind of judgement. Some things have overlapping form/function considerations. For example, the screws you didnt like on the front of the MM doser allow you to move or remove the silly tamper, whereas the integrated design of the K-3 means you cant move it, and I found that the nose combined with the high pf fork made it very difficult to see the dose and impossible to really heap up the coffee. Important for me, not for some.

    Altogether, a very worthwhile exercise, and one of the best of its kind. Thanks Greg!

    matt
    Sure thing, its a bit hard to entirely segregate components that affect more than one area and I agree re the nose on the Compak grinder; which is why the final decision depends on how you use the unit. Hopefully theres enough objective information in there to help people make the decision thats right for them. Thanks for the feedback!

    Greg

    Leave a comment:

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