BCG820 Upgrade

[Alzoam]

My smart grinder has recently become a little bit temperamental so looking at an upgrade. I only make a couple of milk based coffees a day so don't don't need great speed or a workhorse but definitely looking for something that will last for a good length of time and will also provide consistency of grind and more importantly coffee flavour that I will not particularly want to upgrade anytime soon. To be honest the quality of coffee I get out of the smart grinder is good enough for me. So for under $500 (in Australia) what should I get. The ones that I have considered so fare are the

lelit pl43mmi on the cheaper end
Compak k3 push (decent price step up)
Macap m2m

obviously the price of the lelit is appealing and if the quality of the coffee I make is just as good as the others then I would prefer not to spend more money (assuming the life of the product is 5 years plus that is).

So looking for advice from those who have some knowledge that could help.

cheers

[>Casa Espresso]

BCG820 Upgrade

For me the choice is between the M2M and the Compak.
They are both specialist grinder manufactures and it will show.
Remember the famous saying about price and quality. After the purchase one of them is quickly forgotten ...
.

[TC]

For me the choice is between the M2M and the Compak.

They are both specialist grinder manufacturers and shows.

Remember the famous saying about price and quality. After the purchase one of them is quickly forgotten...

Couldn't agree more...Macap/Compak (in no particular order) and then a looooooong stretch to the next option.

[wattgn]

Rocky is good. I paid $450 for it in 2005 and sold it last week for $280

[degaulle]

Hi, I have both the Compak K3 Touch and the M2M. For espresso I prefer to use the Compak, because it is stepless so it lends itself better to finetuning IMO. That said, both of them produce consistent grinds with very little clumping, are very simple to use and easy to clean and solidly built.
The mess factor is a bit more on the M2M (squirting because of static). It helps to grind into a small spouted container and then funnel the grinds into the PF, stir, tap to level and then tamp the grinds.
The Compak is slower to dispense the grinds.
With the Compak I can dose slightly more before the coffee bed touches the screen, the grinds seem to be slightly more compressible. This has led me to suspect the Macap produces more fines and the average particle size excluding these fines is more coarse to produce the same flow rate, all else being equal. I can't say the flavor potential is distinctively better for either one though.

[Alzoam]

Hi, I have both the Compak K3 Touch and the M2M. For espresso I prefer to use the Compak, because it is stepless so it lends itself better to finetuning IMO. That said, both of them produce consistent grinds with very little clumping, are very simple to use and easy to clean and solidly built.
The mess factor is a bit more on the M2M (squirting because of static). It helps to grind into a small spouted container and then funnel the grinds into the PF, stir, tap to level and then tamp the grinds.
The Compak is slower to dispense the grinds.
With the Compak I can dose slightly more before the coffee bed touches the screen, the grinds seem to be slightly more compressible. This has led me to suspect the Macap produces more fines and the average particle size excluding these fines is more coarse to produce the same flow rate, all else being equal. I can't say the flavor potential is distinctively better for either one though.

Thank you all for the responses, have just managed to convince the wife that we need to buy a new grinder. From comments above it looks like the compak is the winner, now to go shopping, any recommendations on best places to buy?

[Brewster]

Thank you all for the responses, have just managed to convince the wife that we need to buy a new grinder. From comments above it looks like the compak is the winner, now to go shopping, any recommendations on best places to buy?

Try emailing all CS Site sponsers using the QUOTE FORM link at the bottom of the page.
Might be able to jag a Xmas special

Good luck

Mal

[Alzoam]

So have probably been looking into this too much now and swinging between the k3p and the m2m . Was leaning towards the compak but have just read that the m2m is quite a bit smaller. Looking for others views on the 2 grinders who have experience with both and which one they prefer. To add I can not drink milk based coffeee and drink not need to change grind size as we don't swing between espresso and other coffee types. If I was to rank importance it would be 1. Taste; 2. Longevity and 3. Ease of use (including mess made). Note more than happy to hear that the did the difference the 2 is minimal and that I should just buy whichever is can buy at the better price.

[degaulle]

So have probably been looking into this too much now and swinging between the k3p and the m2m . Was leaning towards the compak but have just read that the m2m is quite a bit smaller. Looking for others views on the 2 grinders who have experience with both and which one they prefer. To add I can not drink milk based coffeee and drink not need to change grind size as we don't swing between espresso and other coffee types. If I was to rank importance it would be 1. Taste; 2. Longevity and 3. Ease of use (including mess made). Note more than happy to hear that the did the difference the 2 is minimal and that I should just buy whichever is can buy at the better price.

Either one will do a fine job for sure. Be aware though that even when you limit yourself to espresso, you will want to make minor grind adjustments from time to time, whenever you change coffee, as the coffee beans age or even as ambient conditions (humidity) change during the day. Yes, these factors do affect optimum grind setting. With the M2M only stepped increments can be made. So in looking for the sweet spot, you may have to play with dose and grind setting in conjunction. With the Compak it is easier to fix the dose (use a scale!) and play around with grind setting only. Other than that, they both perform equally well as sturdy "KISS" design grinders and yes, the M2M is more compact.

[Dimal]

That being said, the Step to Step adjustment on the M2M is very fine and for 99% of espresso making, you will never be caught 'wanting'... In some ways, I prefer Stepped adjustment; makes it very easy to move from one 'coffee brew' grind setting to another and back again, very easily and speedy.

Mal.

[Alzoam]

So I thought I should close this out with my resolution. I decided on the macap m2m, this was mostly due to the size of the footprint and height which is much smaller than the compak. I received the grinder about 3 days ago now and have made a handful of coffees using it. First thoughts are that I am very happy with my decision, out of the box it is a sturdy machine and very user friendly, there was no clumping and the coffee I pulled (with no tweaking) was already up there with my previous 'mastered' smart grinder coffees. I ended up buying from Antony at Casa espresso and was extremely happy with the service and price he provided, he even had the time to chat over Christmas to help with my decision and give me some pointers on how to improve my coffee making and my coffee appreciation. Most importantly my wife has given the morning coffee a thumbs up. Thank you to all who provided their input to help me make the decision.


1 very happy CS here!!!

[>Casa Espresso]

BCG820 Upgrade

So I thought I should close this out with my resolution. I decided on the macap m2m, this was mostly due to the size of the footprint and height which is much smaller than the compak. I received the grinder about 3 days ago now and have made a handful of coffees using it. First thoughts are that I am very happy with my decision, out of the box it is a sturdy machine and very user friendly, there was no clumping and the coffee I pulled (with no tweaking) was already up there with my previous 'mastered' smart grinder coffees. I ended up buying from Antony at Casa espresso and was extremely happy with the service and price he provided, he even had the time to chat over Christmas to help with my decision and give me some pointers on how to improve my coffee making and my coffee appreciation. Most importantly my wife has given the morning coffee a thumbs up. Thank you to all who provided their input to help me make the decision.


1 very happy CS here!!!

Thanks for the thumbs up! Wife is happy, you are happy and we are happy to have you as a customer .

[degaulle]

Alzoam, congrats on your purchase! Glad the grinder performs Well !