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OR

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I'm currently using my Rancilio Rocky with a soon to come Alexia with PID.

I have no experience with either. I had read a lot on the Macap but not much on the Compaq K3.

Other then rave reviews on seller's websites which i read with caution (Compaq K3).

My brain says go with the consistent proven performer (Macap).

Any ideas?

May not be saying what you want to here, but I'm really questioning if going with either would be a significant improvement - if any at all. Though I've not used a Rocky, it seems that all you're getting with either the Macap or K3 would be a doserless spout. Same burr size. The Rocky sure has a following, and it seems well deserved.

Unless that money is burning a hole in your pocket, I'd suggest saving until you can step into something more (see the Titan Grinder Project thread).

Not entirely true: Rocky has 50 mm flat burrs while Macap and Compak K3 have 58 mm flat burrs.

Also, I think the stepless adjustment is one of the most significant upgrades going from a Rocky to one of these other grinders.

pravspresso wrote:I had read a lot on the Macap but not much on the Compaq K3.

If doserless is a must, then I would continue researching the Compak K3 Touch. Doserless grinders, as a class, clump more than their doser counterparts. I tried the Macap MC4 and it was a worse clump monster than the Rancilio Rocky doserless. That said, the Macap doserless does have its fans, most notably Ian (cafeIKE), who recommends grinding per dose. He posted a photo of his "snout clearing tool" in the thread Have Rancilio Rocky, looking for an alternative (willing to pay more):

RAS wrote:Unless that money is burning a hole in your pocket, I'd suggest saving until you can step into something more (see the Titan Grinder Project thread).

We were discussing this topic just yesterday with regard to the Mazzer Robur, Compak K10 WBC, and Mazzer Super Jolly. We agreed that the two conicals were undoubtedly a genuine pleasure to work with, but the Mazzer Super Jolly represents the cost/value advantage "knee" between flat and conical burr espresso grinders.

I have the K3 Elite. I like it. I'm pulling more consistent shots with it. With the doser I don't have a clumping problem. It has an index on the adjustment ring, albeit so hard to read you might not notice it. Fine adjustments are possible, you rotate the ring about the same as a mazzer, but with less effort. Doser is first rate. Even with the finger guard in place you can reach the chute with a probe (bodum spoon in my case) to get the last two grams of coffee out. Can't tell you side by side if it's the absolute equal of a Mini Mazzer, but what tipped it for me was a couple local barista's raving about the K-8 they got it. The preferred the shots they pulled with that over the mazzer in the shop. It also turns a little slower (1300 rpm vs. 1600 rpm) than the Macap.

You have a LOT to gain by going to the stepless platform - I've got the Alexia pid/macap m4 dosered grinder, and I use the micro adjusting on the stepless CONSTANTLY!

Plus, you can't be much closer to perfection than matching that MACAP with the Alexia...put it this way, when my MACAP and Alexia arrived last year, I was MUCH more impressed with the quality of the grinder than the quality of the Alexia...and thats not to say anything bad about the Alexia, I LOVE my Alexia - I'm just saying, the build quality and feel of the MACAP WAY EXCEEDED my expectations.

And lastly, I wouldn't do the MACAP doserless, I don't like how there is nothing to rest your portafilter on...that just drives me NUTS.

Enjoy!

I have posted this before, however, I was upgrading for a dedicted espresso grinder thinking the MACAP would be perfect. I was convinced by Chris' Coffee to go with the Compaq and I am very happy with the decision I made with their guidance.

I can't speak to quality compared with other grinders except to say there was immediate quality increase in my espreso. I really never throw away a shot and it is simple to make micro-adjustments to vary time and/or volume. I generally grind individual doses and weigh before dosing into the basket but there are times when I make several back to back shots with more coffee in the hopper nd for those times I have adjusted the "touch" feature to dose predetermined amounts and that works quite nicely an reproducibly for a given coffee. I have also made a micro-adjustment calibration guide that I taped onto the grinder to let me adjust fine and course grind settings more easily. That was my only complaint about this grinder out of the box.

There are some clumps with this grinder that change somewhat with weather and humidity but I use WDT. The chute is easy to clean and my mini-vac hose fits right into the grind chamber for easy clean-up when changing coffees which I do regularly and between uses.

I'm sure both grinders are fine for your use but I'll let others decide how much of an upgrade they are from Rocky.

I have also been looking for a new grinder and comparing the Compak K3 Touch with both the Macap M4 doser and doserless model. I was also recommended the K3 touch by one of the larger vendors. I really like the K3 touch in aluminum finish and most of it's features look very appealing with one exception, the grinder adjustment. I feel for the money you're spending the adjuster should have less freeplay which was noted in one of the recent comparison tests, K3 Elite against a Mazzer Mini. I also feel you should have a clearer, better calibrated scale ring to work from. If the K3 had the fine adjustment of the Macap M4, it would be close to perfect in my eyes.

I'm now concentrating on the Macap M4 doser and doserless models and feel if the doserless model had some of the features of the K3, it would get my nod. Since it does not, I'll probably end up with the doser model, hopefully in red. In summary, for the money, all of these machines could be better.

Caferetro

Don't know if it's a recent update, but I don't notice any free play in my K3's adjustment. I typically am rotating the adjustment ring 1/8" on outside scale for ~3-5 sec in the pull.

That's interesting to say the least, my info came from this article;
http://www.coffeetamper.com.au/kb/reviews/mini-k3/

If they (Compak) made a production change or there is an freeplay adjustment, I would certainly like to know. It would make a difference in my final decision.

thanks,

Caferetro