Hello all...long time lurker first time poster. I recently took the plunge in getting some beginner equipment to make "decent" espresso and pulling a good shot has definitely taken some time. I'm having an issue that I can't seem to figure out so thought this might be the best place to seek some help. I'm using the Mypressi TWIST with the CM45 CF grinder. I have no trouble pulling a single shot, 1 oz of water with 7-9g of coffee, but when I load up a double shot, anywhere from 16-18g with 2oz of water...The liquid barely drips out- it takes about 60-90 seconds to pull 2 oz. I'm pretty sure I'm tamping with about 30-40 pounds, so that shouldn't be an issue. Could my grind be too fine? I figured it's ok if I can pull a 1oz shot in about 15-20 seconds. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

arover wrote: Could my grind be too fine? I figured it's ok if I can pull a 1oz shot in about 15-20 seconds. Any suggestions?
Thanks!

You figured wrong... Change the grind.

I run the same rig here at work, Mypressi Twist V2 and the Kyocera CM45-CF grinder and I have found it relatively easy to choke the machine with too fine grind where the espresso will just drip, drip, drip out. Coarsen up the grind, for me it's like a full revolution counter-clockwise from full tight, but this will vary based on the burr and the wear on the adjustment nut. You can try a second, and even dare I say it a third pull of the trigger to try and save the shot but you'll probably end up with a really strong, thick shot.

If I lose count and pull a double on an almost empty cartridge, I'll quickly swap in a new one and pull the trigger again... the shots seem fine, adds more pre-infusion really. I like to fill the bowel with hot water and flush the Twist with an empty basket to clean out the shower head and basket after I've pulled a shot and done a preliminary clean-up. You'll also want to remove the shower head occasionally and really clean the flapper valve in there but the cleaning flush will help reduce this need. Also, note how the Aeropress funnel fits over the Kyocera to make pouring and weighing coffee a snap. It also fills canning jars and even the Pharos grinder as well.

I think it's time for a shot now. (Spitfire Espresso)

Thanks for the help, I'll try a more coarse grind. I hardly have any experience with these hand grinders nor how fine to go for espresso so it's all experimentation right now. Glad to hear from a fellow TWIST user as well...I would have thought a half turn from full tight would be coarse enough, but I suppose not. I will try to go a little further- do you by chance know how many turns per grams you do for your grind? I love how perfectly the CM45 container fits into the espresso basket.

I never pulled that shot of Spitfire today... just got too busy at work. Beans are locked and loaded in the Kyocera ready to be ground.

I don't remember how many turns per gram I do on the Kyocera. When I first got the grinder I believe that I was grinding at about 1/2 turn from full tight but as the nubs wore down on the nut that moved. I dropped the burrs in a sink in Kauai and broke one of them so I've changed out the burrs (and a handle and the nut) and now I use about a full revolution from tight for my starting point on grind setting. Be careful with the burrs and the pentagon cut-out in the handle will last longer if you make sure it's fully seated.

When I first got the Kyocera, it was my dedicated espresso grinder used with my La Peppina because my original electric coffee grinder wasn't cutting it for espresso. The La Peppina has a 45 mm basket and I could put the basket over the grind container and then just flip it over to load the basket. Nice and easy.

keep in mind, pulls from the Twist (doubles) are generally a bit longer than the 28-30s people state

if you get a 45s+ pull and it passes your taste test then that's OK

I was pulling about 6 shots a day from the Twist for quite a while...go bottomless and watch it to be sure you are good...it should start a real nice mouse tail with tiger striping after drips in the beginning (of course your coffee has to be good too)

arover wrote:Thanks for the help, I'll try a more coarse grind. I hardly have any experience with these hand grinders nor how fine to go for espresso so it's all experimentation right now. Glad to hear from a fellow TWIST user as well...I would have thought a half turn from full tight would be coarse enough, but I suppose not. I will try to go a little further- do you by chance know how many turns per grams you do for your grind? I love how perfectly the CM45 container fits into the espresso basket.

Mine would grind 21 grams in 200 turns, so thats about 10 turns a gram. Its a great little grinder for espresso, until you want to pull multiple shots in a row. Then it becomes a pain.

Thanks again to all of you, I appreciate the help! A few miscellaneous questions. One: What is Spitfire? A common coffee around these forums? I've been trying a lot of local roasters (Verve & Blue Bottle from where I used to live, Calabria from where I am now in San Diego) but am open to any suggestions. Also...Is the handle and nut replacement on the CM45 CF easy enough? I feel like I'm going to strip it down quickly.

Lastly: What should I look for specifically when watching bottomless extractions? What is "mouse tail with tiger striping"? My pulls currently start off a little brown then go a slight blonde/light brown color not long after, and spend the majority of the time in a slight brown/blonde striping pattern.

go to about :38


pretty nice looking pull as well


also, be sure to preheat...some people preheat 2-3 times but I found that preheating just once once while sitting in the handle works just fine