Advice - upgrade from Breville Smart Grinder (Rocket Giotto Plus)

[mgrobins]

Nice Luke. I was reading about the HG one and considering it very very carefully. Aside from being manual it ticks every box I have.

Noddy I have considered the Vario upgrade/gen 2 but cant find enough to know if its really a step up. The Forte I feel is more likely to be. I read on another forum some guys got it at just over $700. Not sure where and who sells them in Australia.

Luke, does the Forte grinding on weight with the container rely on a sensor or could you have a different container to grind into like the blind tumbler for your HG one (Blind Tumbler 2014 | HG one).

I figure this would be a nice mess free way to have weighted dosing and good distribution.

If the HG-2 hits the street (motorised) I might look at it haha. I didn't see pics but it's in prototype stage.

K8 Frsh will be out of my range too.

I might look on ebay/gumtree at some of the second hand commercials too. If I can get a mazzer running the large conicals I could get a nice result with a small custom hopper (and perhaps mod the doser to go grind on demand). I airbrush for a hobby .... could turn an ugly eye-sore into art :P

[Lukemc]

Happy to let anyone have a go if they live near brighton Le sands too. Just got a hg one if anyone wants a shot on that too!!

[Lukemc]

Advice - upgrade from Breville Smart Grinder (Rocket Giotto Plus)

I've got a forte. It's great. Dial up a weight and grind into the bin. Then tip into your portafilter. The portafilter holder is good and didn't slip on me but it is timed. Each time you change a find setting you have to rethink if you want exact dosing. I don't bother.

The grinder will convert the weight dose to a time dose for you. Just need to waste one dose once you have the grind set. It saves it as a timed dose if you tell it to.

[noddyc43]

I am also in a similar situation looking to upgrade from a smart grinder. Have you considered the vario gen 2 as an alternative to the forte? Have read that it is smaller, less noisy and leaves less grind and about 3 hundred cheaper. There is a good thread on it here http://coffeesnobs.com.au/grinders/3...e-grinder.html

[mgrobins]

This was one of the grinders that got me thinking about the upgrade. I do note though that the forte only does by weight into the hopper (and counts the time). you then have to manually tell it to set that time in memory if you want to use grind on demand with a PF. I may as well use my kitchen scales and set the time!

A shame really as at first glance the grind by weight option sounds perfect.

Otherwise it seems to get quite good reviews with grind quality being equated to a Mazzer Mini which I have never tried (though I did read the PF slides/vibrates out when filling??)

[Lukemc]

Baratza forte will dose by weight to .2 gram I think...... It's just under 1k

[mgrobins]

Thanks Barry.

I have recently gone back to dosing 18g for my VST basket and adjusting the grind around that (accepting volume changes that occur). The 'IQ' of the Breville tries to adjust all of the elements so it's hard to grind by weight on the pre-sets.

I have owned a K3 push before.

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

What is your budget? If $500 or so, consider the Compak K3 Touch (I'm led to believe the timer is now 'useful'). But remember that dosing the 'correct' amount requires you to determine what the correct amount is....and will vary across beans and bean age. There is some grind retention (like most grinders), but it's no big deal. Some people find them a little messy.....but I operate mine with my eyes open and the lights on and haven't had a mess problem. If you're spending a bit more then the Vario or then Macap M4M are obvious contenders.

[mgrobins]

Hi .

been a while since I have posted here and I'm hoping to get some insight into options for a grinder upgrade.
I'm trying to gain insight into the benefit to be gained vs outlay with a new grinder.

I find the BCG800 very convenient. I make a small change to grind each day or so to accommodate the aging of my beans and the 'smart' aspect manages the volume. It seems ok.... but not awesome. I am OCD and love my coffee as a hobby but I'm not a cupping expert .


My machine is a Rocket Giotto Premium Plus (V2 I think).

I drink 1-3 cups a day, mostly with milk and occasionally straight espresso.

Beans are roasted at a local roaster and I buy a KG/month roughly. I keep them in a sealed vacuum container and distribute a small'ish amount into the grinder every 2-3 days.

My first two questions are obviously:

1. is the Breville BCG800 limiting my coffee quality?
2. What is a good upgrade choice?


My criteria for an upgrade would be:

1. controlled dosing so I can set it and have it automatically dose the correct amount.

2. little to no retained grinds to reduce wastage.
3. very tidy distribution into the PF or container - again minimise wastage but also the cleanup.

4. Improved quality of taste over the BCG800

Cost is definitely a factor. I haven't set a specific budget at this point though I did choke when I saw the K8 fresh advertised at $2k :P