I picked up a used Bunn G3 in nice shape recently & while it is a little tall my only real complaint was the stepped/preset grind settings. Since I brew primarily with a vac pot I wanted to be able experiment with different grind settings for various steep/drawdown times so the preset grind selection was a drawback.

After removing the 2 pieces that made up the stepped assy. I was able to convert the grind selector to stepless mode by drilling two holes & installing springs similar to the set up used on the Mazzer SJs & Majors. With a stepless mod I can definitely recommend the G series Bunn for home brew grinding as long as you have room on the counter for a 23"-27" tall grinder. In stock form I think the grind options are limiting but if you are only grinding for drip the factory setting might be fine.

I've been buying wall mounted hand crank grinders, trying to find one that works well with espresso. However, they all seem to work well with drip. Very well, in fact. They retain very few grounds, dose directly into a cup or the dripper and take about sixty turns for 4 scoops of whole beans. (I'm not weighing them). I add 12 ounces of water, in a SM Clever Dripper, and the results are really excellent. I never liked drip coffee before this. They work much better than the lap mills which are very annoying to use unless you have thighs like vises.

The two I've had most experience with are Spong No. 2 and an Arcade Crystal No. 3 (I think). Since I have no interest in storing beans in the hopper or glass that comes with the grinder because I have many different beans and like to change them easily without changing a hopper of them, here is the trick:

Watch eBay for grinders that don't have the glass hopper or cup. Collectors want the latter two things and the way I use them, I'd just toss them if I had them. You can get a good grinder for $20 or so almost anytime on eBay if it doesn't have the glass. (Spong doesn't have glass in the first place, but it has a catch cup that was missing. I need to make a substitute. ). Not dealing with an electric grinder, cleaning, noise, hopper, etc. has been really great.

The Spong has potential for espresso; I just haven't had time to see how it dials in, and when I took it apart before using, it was clear it had never been used at all. Brand new. I guess it was bought for display.

dan

iginfect wrote:John, the Bunn G series has 3 models, with increasing capacity. Does this make any difference for vac pot brewing? Also waiting for your more detailed how to modify.Marvin

The only difference between the G1/2/3 seems to be the hopper size & resulting height, neither of which will affect the grind quality. My typical 5C dose (43g in, 42+g out) just fills the hopper/auger throat & I've seen no signs of popcorning during grinding. The G1 would be the obvious choice for home use because of it's smaller size but the G3 is what usually comes up on the used market. At some point I plan to either pick up a G1 hopper or make a custom single dose piece & reduce the overall height of the upper/lower cases. If I really get ambitious I might build a custom enclosure out of stainless or wood that blends into our kitchen a little better.

DJR wrote:They work much better than the lap mills which are very annoying to use unless you have thighs like vises.

You exaggerate a bit; for espresso it needs a bit effort to grind - with KyM's, or takes a bit longer and less force. But for coarser grinds there's no problem!