Grinder for filter coffee only

[Alaarx]

Hi CS,
Im a terrible creature of habit and pretty much have only been using my kalita wave for the last 2 years. Using an EM0480 but ready to spend a bit more cash. I always make a 2 cup pot in the morning and very rarely have to bang out a 3-4 cup pot (although it happens). Thinking about a hand grinding (looking for a 2nd hand Pharos) but if i can't find one I'm open to suggestions. Budget of $350 or so and happy to buy second hand.

[kbc]

Second hand Macap m2m or Compak K3 for $350ish.... Maybe...

[TC]

G'day Alaarx,

For mine, I'd get a Lido 2 or 3 if you're prepared to do it yourself. Way more usable that the Pharos for the same grind quality.

If you're Melbourne based, you are most welcome to come give ours a test run... Orphan Espresso | Product Categories | Talk Coffee

Chris

[Alexpid]

Baratza vario with steel burr upgrade!

[timdimdom]

i can vouch for the lido 3 doing an amazing job at filter grinding. (dont bother with the 2, its just so hard to crank it on a daily basis and beans flying everywhere). very even grind, very tasty - cleaner cup than the other grinders ive used. I use my kony for my filter grinds and my brother's lido 3 did a much better job in terms of taste in the cup (same batch of beans). we also did a cold drip and a hot brew with major vs kony vs lido 3 and the lido came up on top. my lido 2 didnt perform nearly as well as the 3 but still blows any sub 300 electric grinder out of the park IMO.

to top it off the grind retention is great.

only problem is of course the cranking vs pushing a button but the lido 3 really did address ease of cranking when compared to the 2. you might even find it therapeutic after a week or so

anything else electric in the 350 range doesnt quite compare (cant say much about the vario w steel upgrade - havent tried it). you might be slightly better off with a breville SG (which i dont think is really that much of an upgrade from the em0480 except for ease of chute access and maybe some grind quality). if you're lucky to bag a second hand k3/m2m for the price then you might get a good improvement from the em0480 - but will be still left wanting more when you compare to a filter done at a good cafe.

the lido is not without it's problems and the 2 has many more than the 3. the grind adjustment rings came off more often in the 2 than the 3 which now has a gap between the 2 rings to help with wear n tear and staying in place. the 3 still does come loose every now and then but is much more rare. i'm also not totally thrilled about the plastic jar of the 3 but then again ive never (touch wood) broken the glass jar on my lido 2. static is still an issue with the jar and grind path but i suspect more due to the fact that i can visualize the base of the burrs on my hand grinders vs my electric ones every time i pull it apart...

If you're in melb you're lucky enough to have chris show one to you in person so you can make your decision

i know many will ask about how i did each comparison and all i can say is it was our own user experiences. we didnt expect the lido 3 to be that much better - but we didnt do it blind or scientifically or even cup the brews - we just compared them side by side for funzies.

just my 2 cents

[kyeba]

I was lucky enough to come across a compak k3 push second hand for only $200.

Sits at the shed with the brazen to make really nice filter brews

[timdimdom]

ah it seems i got the italian burr set which explains the difficult cranking. if you get your hands on a swiss burr set it should mean you get the same easy cranking... but without the hopper stopper.
keen to see if chris knows if the current stock is italian or swiss burrs

[TC]

ah it seems i got the italian burr set which explains the difficult cranking. if you get your hands on a swiss burr set it should mean you get the same easy cranking... but without the hopper stopper.
keen to see if chris knows if the current stock is italian or swiss burrs

They're all Swiss now and have been for a while. FWIW, I use both burr sets regularly and neither causes me any difficulty. More weeties for breakfast timanaddom