Breville Smart Grinder

Lacehim · March 2012

on 1331530439:

FWIW that roast was particularly delicious and demonstrates that even when you think it's bad, don't automatically feed it to the roses... Give it a try! Look out 3rd Crack... Here we come!!!

I agree with that. Sometimes it's best to just leave that bag for a week or two or three to mature too if they didn't hit the spot the first time.

If that doesn't work, then put them on your roses. Or grind them up and put them in your worm farm! Makes them horny! hehe :thumb:

Kelsey · March 2012

Freshness certainly isn't a problem for me! Apart from a complimentary bag of Neil's delightful Nehemiah blend, my BSG hasn't seen a commercially roasted bean since early December. Even before that I only used beans with a 'roasted on' date! I've only needed one of the small shims to get the BSG to where I need it. The espresso setting is typically 2 - 3 notches from the finest setting, but I also suspect the OPV could go just a hair lower allowing me to perhaps grind a little coarser. Then again, sink shots have become vanishingly rare for me on this setup, but I'm willing to concede that my sub-standard palate may be partly responsible for that!

Springbok · June 2012

So after all this how does the Breville match up to the Rancilio Rocky? I have a delonghi kg100 ( $180) ( no sarcastic comments please - Im a stove top person) which has been pretty good - but am thinking of upgrading and buying a Sylvia - do I really need a new grinder to go with it?

Lacehim · June 2012

The Rocky is old hat these days. Look at a something like a Compak K3, or touch or similar. Personally I love my Vario but they do increase the budget a bit. I think your KG100 will struggle with a Silvia, keep it for your stove top in my opinion. What's the reason for the big change? I guess you aren't into milk based much. The siliva should be fine for your needs if that's true. Plenty of other machines in that league, Lelit, Bezzera BZ02 (I think that's what Kelsey's is)

Kelsey · June 2012

on 1339921386:

So after all this how does the Breville match up to the Rancilio Rocky? I have a delonghi kg100 ( $180) ( no sarcastic comments please - Im a stove top person) which has been pretty good - but am thinking of upgrading and buying a Sylvia - do I really need a new grinder to go with it?

I've continued to use the Breville without incident. As AM will attest, I grind way, way too fine and could probably get away without the single thinnest-possible shim I have in there. Anyone who says they can't grind fine enough is someone most likely using stale supermarket beans. I've had no further troubles - but I've not had to grind under-roasted beans since either. I'm happy with the Breville. As to the Silvia - they're a de-facto standard for the serious single-boiler crowd, but there are better machines out there for the money. You can't get my Bezzera BZ09 in the country any more, but the construction of it leaves the Silvia for dead, particularly in the temperature stability stakes. I'm also thinking of upgrading, so might be persuaded to sell.

Brett H · June 2012

on 1339928473:

The Rocky has pros and Cons VS the Breville 1: The BSG is a tad easer and maybe less mess 2: The Rocky will out last the BSG Thus depending on Cost and What usage etc, either would do fine. But the BSG does smell and feel plastic; but 110% on the KG100. I am not a fan of the K3

My thoughts exactly! Well said!! The Silvia is a fine one machine also and at the price some of them are going for new, great value for money. Just make sure your routine looks after your boiler and you can't go wrong.

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

Picked up a BSG today from the factory seconds shop on Smith Street for $169 - ill get to have a play with it today so ill let you know how it goes!

Kelsey · November 2012

What I really like about mine is the lack of mess the recessed doser allows for.

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

well I mad a few coffees for Mumma's and bubs today using both the EM480 and the BSG I definitely like the look and feel of the BSG - and it's a lot quieter to use than the Sunbeam - but I had to adjust the grind to the finest setting to be able to a decent double espresso out of it when paired with my Rancilio Epoca Which doesn't bode too well should finer adjustment be required ANd although the EM480 is noisy there's still plenty of room for the grind to go finer without choking should the need arise Did I miss the part where its possible to mod the BSG to make the grind finer? P

Kelsey · November 2012

Email/Call Breville (or even Phil) and they'll send you a shim kit. Mine needed just one .4mm shim.

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

on 1353359483:

Email/Call Breville (or even Phil) and they'll send you a shim kit. Mine needed just one .4mm shim.

And it did the job ok? Didn't effect the consistency of the grind? What im finding is that if I updose to the max on the finest setting the shot first stalls, then starts to pour nicely, then gushes at the finish - producing a perfectly acceptable coffee except that there's not enough body to the crema so the coffee doesn't fold through the milk as well, so the resulting mouthfeel is somewhat thin and watery, even though the flavour is ok But I love the ergonomics of the machine and the usability - also it's a lot quieter than the sunbeam, which keeps the Mrs happy!

Kelsey · November 2012

on 1353374778:

And it did the job ok? Didn't effect the consistency of the grind?

I couldn't speak to that - It's the only grinder I've used and I've always used it with the shim kit. I do get some significant clumping at the finer end of the spectrum, but never bad enough to bother with Weissing it. It's been a while since I've looked at a shot with my measuring shot glass, but I might do that today to see how the crema unfolds. In general I'm extremely happy with the quality of shots I get.

Kelsey · November 2012

Nope. No problems with crema. [attachimg=1] Nice tiger mottling too: [attachimg=2]

Brett H · November 2012

Love that glass ... Where from?

Kelsey · November 2012

I'm not entirely certain! I've had it for a while, but I suspect it's from the early days when I was ordering from Di Bella and needed to pad out my order for free shipping! It's handy measuring glass but very narrow - only the tightest of pours can accommodate both spouts. Even the first burst of the shot went a little over the edges.

lemoo · November 2012

those are concept art shot glasses! really nice measuring glass! i had 2 but one of them broke on me

filled it with hot water to warm it up a little and just cracked

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

I've ordered the shim fix for mine so I'm keen to see how it goes post mod

Kelsey · November 2012

AM, there's a Mazzer Mini on eBay pick up only in caloundra, so seems to not be attracting as high a price as usual. As someone who knows both, am I going to see significant benefit from a MazzerMini Doser over the BSG?

Kelsey · November 2012

Well... You know me, fat tongued and unable to spot green apple notes, or much beyond 'wow, that's good!'

It's got one bid ATM, $130. If it went for under $200 I'd consider it. But then I'm very happy with the no-fuss no-mess BSG.

Brett H · November 2012

on 1353717116:

Well... You know me, fat tongued and unable to spot green apple notes, or much beyond 'wow, that's good!' It's got one bid ATM, $130. If it went for under $200 I'd consider it. But then I'm very happy with the no-fuss no-mess BSG.

Those $ would be a steal and you will have a grinder worthy of that fancy HX on ya bench! :thumb:

mycuppa · November 2012

Beware 2nd hand grinders. Sometimes you win, other times you lose. In the last month, I've binned a couple of Compak grinders. These were abused by cafe staff (yes, my blood is still boiling) as they leave them running ALL weekend with no beans in the hopper. Symptom - motor occasionally cuts out, don't have the time to spend trying to repair and frankly I don't care - it's suffered beyond all reasonable doubt, so the only place for it is the dumpster. I could sell them cheaply on eBay - they do work and may not fail in a home situation, but it's just not the right thing to do.

Kelsey · November 2012

on 1353728759:

Those $ would be a steal and you will have a grinder worthy of that fancy HX on ya bench! :thumb:

I know. It's a little incongruous the matching of BSG and the Bezzera HX, but I can't argue with the results - I don't get better espresso unless I go to another Crema member's house! Even Lacehim reckons the brew at my place was part of what convinced him to upgrade.

on 1353730287:

Beware 2nd hand grinders. Sometimes you win, other times you lose. In the last month, I've binned a couple of Compak grinders. These were abused by cafe staff (yes, my blood is still boiling) as they leave them running ALL weekend with no beans in the hopper. Symptom - motor occasionally cuts out, don't have the time to spend trying to repair and frankly I don't care - it's suffered beyond all reasonable doubt, so the only place for it is the dumpster. I could sell them cheaply on eBay - they do work and may not fail in a home situation, but it's just not the right thing to do.

A good point - it is an ex restaurant machine, but I can inspect before sale - anything I should look out for?

mycuppa · November 2012

Just like buying a car - unless you know who and how they were driving it, you can't see the impending future risks from looking at the exterior surfaces.

Kelsey · November 2012

Fair enough. Caveat emptor!

Lacehim · November 2012

on 1353730287:

I could sell them cheaply on eBay - they do work and may not fail in a home situation, but it's just not the right thing to do.

Or you could give them to us for free and we would be happy!

Might be worth out time playing about with them?

UNM · November 2012

A lot of them, probably the majority are bargains. Just allow for the fact it may need to go in the bin if not. It is still a better gamble than a woolies poker machine, but buying coffee equipment may be just as addictive. (That little aside is because woolies just won the vote at an extraordinary general meeting to allow them to continue operating high loss poker machines.)

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

Still waiting on my shim kit for the BSG - there was no reply to my original email enquiry but a quick phone call to the service department seemed to do the trick Unmodded grinder is still making perfectly acceptable coffee - but why settle for acceptable when exceptional is the norm? P

askthecoffeeguy · November 2012

well, shim arrived today and I poped two of the little washers in - not so long ago, actually. Too late for coffee but I put some old beans through and they came out powdery but not noticeably more so than pre-modifications I'm off to work first thing in the morning so not sure if I'll get to make a coffee at home before I go - but I do have a friend from Byron staying for a couple of days and she says that she's keen for a cuppa before I go - so who knows ? Time will tell if my fluffing around with the grinder has had any benefits - seem to have a few spare washers left over, including what looks like a 'spring loaded' one - but I dont remember taking it either out of the machine, or out of the packet that the others came in - maybe its a gift from god? P

Kelsey · December 2012

From memory, the 'spring loaded' washer was already in my grinder.

askthecoffeeguy · December 2012

Yeah but whereabouts, I wonder? Seems to me that the only place it can fit is on top of the top burr? Coz its too narrow to fit underneath? But I can't see any practical use for it Made a couple of coffees this morning post-mod and there's a definite improvement - but still need to wind the grinder out to its finest setting ...

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