Ditting says two to three weeks before I get my Vario KE 640 and shorter hopper from the KR 805; I'll let you know how it works out, but at least it will fit under my standard kitchen cabinet.

I've been making espressos for about 27 years, by taste, sometimes good, sometimes not so good. It seems the more I know, the less I know.

oltimer wrote:It seems the more I know, the less I know.

How true! Please post a pic when you get the new hopper . . .

oltimer wrote:Ditting says two to three weeks before I get my Vario KE 640 and shorter hopper from the KR 805; I'll let you know how it works out, but at least it will fit under my standard kitchen cabinet.

I've been making espressos for about 27 years, by taste, sometimes good, sometimes not so good. It seems the more I know, the less I know.

This kinda sucks. I liked being ignorantly happy...

oltimer wrote:Ditting says two to three weeks before I get my Vario KE 640 and shorter hopper from the KR 805;

Sheerly for my amusement, why a Vario when you have the M3? Is there something you're looking for in a Vario that the M3 doesn't offer?

networkcrasher wrote:Sheerly for my amusement, why a Vario when you have the M3? Is there something you're looking for in a Vario that the M3 doesn't offer?

Customer support?

Networkcrasher :

I find my M3 noisy, particularly at 6AM with my three and a half year old is sleeping fairly close by.
It's messy, spitting of bean particles over the kitchen counter.
It's very difficult to remove the portafilter with a 7g basket and not spill some of the ground coffee which piles up on the perimeter of the basket — there is only about 2mm clearance between the spout and the base of the grinder.

Lockman:

Customer support indeed! I sent 21 emails (and a few faxes) between February last year when I placed the order and its arrival in November (over 9 months of frustration and any number of unanswered emails and/or excuses). Plus I was overcharged to the tune of over $1000 by mistake (theirs of course) and I've yet to see a penny and fear I have become the owner of the most expensive M3 ever.

oltimer wrote:Networkcrasher :

Lockman:

Customer support indeed! I sent 21 emails (and a few faxes) between February last year when I placed the order and its arrival in November (over 9 months of frustration and any number of unanswered emails and/or excuses). Plus I was overcharged to the tune of over $1000 by mistake (theirs of course) and I've yet to see a penny and fear I have become the owner of the most expensive M3 ever.

That really sucks! It is one thing to try create the best grinder known to the espresso world and quite another to fall so short on the QC and CR. Can we boil them in 3.5% steamed milk? Do I hear a Fargo vote here?

Very convenient Mark; especially in your case with those cabinet doors. See through might have been prettier though or is it the picture.

Just as a matter of information from someone using the ES, are the "steps" on the ES version of the grinder small enough to make it viable?

tribe3 wrote:Very convenient Mark; especially in your case with those cabinet doors. See through might have been prettier though or is it the picture.

It's slightly transparent, but I'd prefer it to be this way as less light gets to the beans. I wish it was about 1/2" shorter!

hperry wrote:Just as a matter of information from someone using the ES, are the "steps" on the ES version of the grinder small enough to make it viable?

I originally had an ES, and converted to a Vario if that means anything. The steps on the ES aren't bad, they're just limiting at times.

Thanks, Mark. for the feedback.

networkcrasher wrote:It's slightly transparent, but I'd prefer it to be this way as less light gets to the beans. I wish it was about 1/2" shorter!

Yeah, that would have been perfect. What is the actual height with your new hopper from counter to top?


Anyone having any clumping problems?

I saw a YT video and it was extremely clumpy .

Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't . . .

Lockman wrote:Yeah, that would have been perfect. What is the actual height with your new hopper from counter to top?


Anyone having any clumping problems?

I saw a YT video and it was extremely clumpy .

Smidge over 17.5"

Mine clumps depending on the day of the week. Never have noticed a difference with the clumps. I do a basic chicago chop.

zin1953 wrote:How true! Please post a pic when you get the new hopper . . .

Well, it just arrived. So far, I've only had time to dial it in for my usual +/- 7g single at 1.8"
I find that it clumps fairly seriously and doesn't have the M3's flavor, but it's new, and tastes like it, so take these criticisms with the proverbial grain of salt, or coffee , in this case. I'll update flavor impressions and comparisons in due course (after grinding plenty of older beans).

height is 44.7cm which makes it fit comfortably under the cabinet (48.2cm),
but I have to slide it out to open the hopper lid, which doesn't bother me.

Any of you folks with a K30 hear about this?

networkcrasher wrote:Any of you folks with a K30 hear about this?

If Mahlkönig in Germany (where they engineer and build this thing) hasn't heard of it then who has?

I'd be interested in knowing more, but the clumpiness of the grinds I've experienced isn't boulder-like at all, they fall apart so easily that it doesn't seem to be affecting my extractions adversely. I would think that the downside to most types "anti-clumping" features would be greater tendency for grounds retention but what do I know? Those German engineers certainly seem to know their business pretty well

JonR10 wrote:If Mahlkönig in Germany (where they engineer and build this thing) hasn't heard of it then who has?

That's what I was thinking! I was assuming the anti-clumping technology was a better ejection point out of the grinder, or having the little bridge between the output of the grinding chamber and the snout on the front more angled. Mine is 90° for about 1.5" from the output to the snout.