Manual Coffee Grinder, Stainless Conical Burr with Hand Crank and 18 Settings

About 4 months ago, my wife bought us an espresso maker for our anniversary. After seeing prices upwards of $100 for every electric burr grinder out there, we decided to go with this little guy instead. Now, after having two of these grinders and making espressos every day (no that is not a joke, and yes, we like our coffee), there are four big takeaways: 0) First off, this thing grinds quite well, which it should since that's is sole job (but see #2). Espresso absolutely tastes noticeably different between this and an electric blade grinder. If you want espresso, you need a non-blade grinder of some sort, for certain. 1) This device is ... SLOOOOOW ... at grinding espresso for two people. It is quite fast if you want a French press (takes us about a minute), but if you want grinds small enough for several shots of espresso, be prepared to elbow grease it for 5-10 minutes. While this is typically a non-issue (you simply grind while talking, or watching the news, etc.), we have days where 5-10 minute grind sessions are just not possible and others were it just seems like my time should be better spent elsewhere (like walking the dog, or helping my kids). If you are a rush out the door type of morning person or have large family commitments, heads up! 1A) My friend has an electric grinder; he makes us espresso every time we go over. It takes about 5 minutes for four of us to have cups in hands. My family visited, and it was a solid 20 minutes before four of us had an espresso in hand. This is absolutely, without question, a personal use device only, at least for fine grounds. 2) Customer service for this company is BEYOND PHENOMENAL. Our first grinder just seemed off, but being espresso newbs we weren't quite sure. After explaining how it was grinding, they instantly said "nope, that's not supposed to happen" and shipped us a new grinder express. It was quick, it was polite, it was easy. Great, great, great service. 3) So the new grinder arrives, and as noted it grinds beautifully! The problem: the bottom half of the grinder (the storage container) slips off quite easily, as in, if you don't hang onto it while grinding it falls off. The fix was simple: just switch the bottom with our defective grinder. Regardless, my experience at this point, coupled with the thousands of reviews saying just how great their costumer service is, leads me to believe that the company does not have a great quality control unit and instead relies on great customer service. THAT IS FINE. If you're going to treat people like kings and queens when we contact you with defects, by all means, use that as your business model. This remains a buyer beware situation, but quite possibly the nicest one you will ever find yourself it. So why 4 stars? Because after 4 months, I think the drawbacks are noticeable enough to call this a very good, but not great product. People need to be aware that you will spend a good chunk of time and energy grinding, and probably spend time and energy making sure your product is actually up to standard. Bottom line: I would definitely recommend this, warts and all, based on the price and quality grinds. Just don't kid yourself about the warts.

I've had this grinder for about eighteen months and use it two or three times a day, grinding one cup of coffee worth at a time. I've loved it the entire time I've had it and have nothing but good things to say aside from one flaw that recently made the grinder unusable. Despite regular cleaning, the ceramic grinder component that's attached to the grinder itself has come loose so that the entire grinding mechanism rotates inside the steel cylinder rather than the two ceramic pieces grinding the beans between them. After taking it apart to figure out what exactly had happened, it seems that nothing actually broke, but the outer ceramic grinder part was attached to the inside of the steel cylinder with glue, and the glue bond I guess wore out, allowing the entire apparatus to come loose. I'm not an engineer, but it seems like physically indexing the ceramic cylinder in place would better secure it, but as it is, my grinder is sadly unusable for now while I look for an effective way to fix it. I followed the links on Amazon to the manufacturer website, but the link that says "contact us" just loops back to the FAQ, and as far as I can tell, doesn't provide an actual way to get in touch with the manufacturer. If I'm able to find a fix for this, I'll update this review to share what I discover.

So, I'm not like most bears. Right now up here in Orr, Minnesota, the rest of the bears are sleeping. Contrary to popular belief, we bears don't take our deep winter naps just because it is cold - we do it because food is hard to come by in the Winter weather. It's simply far more efficient for us to fatten up and sleep the weight away during the snowy months. But I am still awake, you see. Like your Yogi, I am smarter than the average bear. I have a plan. It works. It is brilliant in its simplicity, really. I don't bother to forage for food. No, instead, I let the food come to me. As I said, I'm not like most bears. Oh hush, I'm getting to the coffee grinder, really I am. We bears tend to expound quite a bit so I'm afraid you'll just have to suffer and, ahem, bear with me. There are several Boy Scout troops in my area. These aren't the soft, pudgy ones you get from the big cities you humans love so much. No, these are the real Boy Scouts of old. They will come camping in any weather, even during the worst blizzards, testing their furless, pink little bodies against the might of the weather. These Boy Scouts, you see, are the source of my - no, no, settle down, I haven't eaten any of the Boy Scouts. Don't be silly. The Department of Natural Resources - hmph, can you imagine, a majestic beast like myself relegated to being called a "resource," how demeaning. I mean really, your human-centric, primate-archal worldview is such a problem. You simply have no respect for us creatures of the forest anymore and if I had the mind to I'd just - I, ah, I apologize. Anyway, as I was saying, the Department of Natural Resources would be rather upset, and I'd like to evade the hunters for years to come. So no, I haven't eaten any of your Boy Scouts. Boy Scouts. Coffee Grinder. Right. So, as I'm sure you have surmised by now, I wait for the Boy Scouts to go camping and then I pay them a little visit. They don't mind, really. It's quite a thrill for them to have a visit from the natives, you know, and a little cultural exchange can go a long way towards building the understanding needed for long term cohabitation of Northern Minnesota. They love seeing my pawprints all over their camp. It's endearing, really. Although I don't sleep as deeply as my brothers and sisters, I DO still need a little something in the mornings to get me going, especially as I am getting on in my age, and sometimes the Boy Scouts bring coffee. Unfortunately, the last group brought full coffee beans. Can you believe that? Camping with whole coffee beans. Had I known I would have taken their coffee grinder, but by the time I had noticed I was already back in my den and the Boy Scouts were already on their way. Well, thankfully, I also took one of their smart phones. Silly boy had a simple password to guess on his account as well, so this really works out well for me. After browsing Amazon for a while - I mean, really, what better company to service nature's wild population than one ran by those who live in a rain forest? - I decided upon this coffee grinder and ordered it. You think your postal carriers are scared of dogs, hm? Imagine one trying to deliver a package to "A Pine Tree, Orr, MN." Not only did he have to figure out WHICH pine tree I meant, but on top of that I happened to be on site. I stood up to say hello, it's only proper really, but he just dropped the box and ran. Can you believe it? It's really no wonder that you humans complain about the postal service. They're so rude and speciesist and had very little regard for my packa- oh, right, the grinder. You humans are so impatient. Yes yes yes, THE GRINDER. I get it. Well. Let me tell you that once I fumbled the box open (my paws aren't quite as dexterous as your hands, as you may imagine), I found a rather beautiful coffee grinder. Pristine, gleaming stainless steel, something that is rather important if you live out in the woods as I do. It won't stain or rust. Assembly was simple as well; all I had to do was seat the handle over the large nut atop the device. It was then ready to grind beans! The handle is easily removed, by the way. This is a great feature as it makes storage far easier (my den is rather cramped). Boy Scouts: Order this coffee grinder! The handle is very sturdy and it will stow away nicely in your packs, and I won't mind having an extra to gift to my friends. I was concerned about being able to adjust the grind of the coffee. I am a bear, after all, and my paws are clumsy. Also of note: The nasal membrane of a human is about the size of a postage stamp. We bears have one the size of a bed sheet. As you can imagine, our senses of smell and taste are quite discerning, and having just the right grind to release the over 1,000 different chemical compounds fond in coffee can alter our experience greatly. However, the knob at the bottom of the grinder is of an ample size, even for a bear. I found no trouble operating the grinder. The knob itself has gentle stops along the way, so that it will hold its current position quite readily, only changing when you want to turn the knob. The cover on the bottom is a great addition. It is used to collect your fresh grounds. It is snug, but not too snug. You won't have to worry about it simply falling off, but you won't have any issues sliding it on and off as needed, either. Since I live in a den without electricity, I often cold brew my coffee and this technique requires a rather rough grind. This grinder did not disappoint; the grind was quite even at a rough grind, something many other grinders can't quite manage. Just as a test I tightened it up and soon a fine powder was falling out the bottom. I found this quite entertaining until I inhaled. I did mention the sensitivity of our noses, yes? We can smell carrion miles away. Imagine a fine coffee powder inches from my nose! Well, I sneezed of course, and when we bears sneeze it can be rather, ah, wet. So there I was with a "misted" coffee grinder. I was a bit worried at first, but after a quick trip to the nearby river I was able to clean the grinder up quite easily. Stainless steel, you know. Big enough for a bear, small enough to be readily portable. An excellent, even, variable grind that I am sure will last many years. All without the need for electricity! At the price I paid - or, well, the Boy Scout paid, bless his soul - this grinder is an excellent deal and a great item for the discerning coffee lover in YOUR den. With Compliments, Mr. Bear Update, Five Years Later I'm an older bear now, it's true, and it seems that I have outlasted this coffee grinder. The plastic piece which sits inside of the burr and rotates it finally developed stress fractures and broke. However, FIVE YEARS of almost daily use by a bear with big clumsy paws? That's a well-made product.