Sorry Chinese version only. Please try google translation for more information.

http://www.mobile01.com/topicdetail.php?f=640&t=4458565

and

http://www.mobile01.com/topicdetail.php?f=640&t=4462700

This seems to be the website for the Helor 101:


http://helor.com/portfolio-items/helor1 ... ioID=10047

Considering that bakafish (author of the main post in that thread linked above) is a member here, maybe he'll chime in with more detail...

An Australian roaster and coffee blogger has posted about Helor's grinder, which is now available for pre-order: http://www.brewingisforeveryone.com/blo ... ee-grinder

Socratic will be testing it out (source: Instagram), possibly in comparison to Comandante's C40 and other hand grinders.

I'm skeptical but open-minded. Any feedback is welcome!

I am less skeptical since two different burr sets are proposed for different coffees rather than the usual claims of others about how their grinders can perform equally fantastic over the entire continuum of all coffee grinds for every brewing method.

I would like a more detailed and magnified breakdown of its individual parts as well as a video on assembly and disassembly. For their asking price I expect proper alignment and durability to be far above and beyond most hand grinders.

The burr size looks small. Are they proprietary if not who makes them and what is their original intended purpose for example are they made for electric grinders that spin at high RPM or low RPM, does it matter (I am not sure of that one myself.) Are the burrs truly designed for the different modes of drip or espresso or are have they been adapted. Does it matter, believe it or not that is a good question.

Can you get the same, better, or good enough for considerably less money ? Lets face it the competition for hand grinders is pretty stiff with the availability of other top notch hand grinders from our well known friend who originally reintroduced high quality hand grinders that are even better than most high quality ones made in the past back into the market.

I have to give it points for compactness and looks. It does look small from the pictures what are the specs. They are not the only high quality compacts either there is our well known classy looking english hand grinders that they have to contend with. Do the different burr sets produce a profound enough difference in the cup to warrant it's consideration over the other grinders available ? Are there any in the cup reviews ?


I just looked at the schematics on the Heller 101 sight and it looks kind of like a high quality beefed up and I am assuming more precise version of a Perlox grinder with steel burrs. I am guessing this is not a stepless grinder if that is the case then kudos for convenience but adjustment range would be limited by steps.

I looks to me like everything I wish the perlox would be. Can it be offered at the same price of a perlox, I can answer that, with those materials and methods of labor and construction, not in todays world. I would give it a big plus for convenience if that is ones priority.

Hmmm from the Chinese website it seems that the burrs may be bigger than the perlox but smaller than the Roscoe but I am not sure what it the burr size on this.

opother wrote: I would like a more detailed and magnified breakdown of its individual parts as well as a video on assembly and disassembly. For their asking price I expect proper alignment and durability to be far above and beyond most hand grinders.

They're incredibly forthcoming with their grinder's design. The detailed breakdown is available on their website. Video on complete assembly (disassembly is just by reversing the step) is available. Alignment, let's say its way above most hand grinders I've seen and is fantastic.

The 'modern' (their terminology) burrs are 38mm Italian-OEM made burrs - Similar to what was used in many other hand grinders (Lido 1 and Rosco mini that I know for sure). The conventional burrs are burrs made locally (in China) and are made of stainless teel or some non-rust material. Suitability for drip/brew is as good as Lido is suitable for drip/brew.

The 'conventional' burrs have a softer hardness rating so it may wear faster and thus is recommended for brew. The most compelling reason to choose the stainless steel burrs (in my view anyway) is simply because you will have a water-washable grinder or for wet grinding. With the conventional burrs, the components of the grinder will either be stainless steel (axle, and some components), ceramic (bearings) or anodized aluminium (catch up and casing).

opother wrote: Can you get the same, better, or good enough for considerably less money ?

Same/better for considerably less money - definitely no. And it depends what is your definition of 'good enough' . If you get up to Lido level and above, the results should be pretty good for most purposes.

opother wrote: I just looked at the schematics on the Heller 101 sight and it looks kind of like a high quality beefed up and I am assuming more precise version of a Perlox grinder with steel burrs.

It has nothing in resemblance to a Porlex, except only for the silver look and the form factor. It has probably the smallest step I've seen in hand grinders (0.5mm thread, instead of 1mm or 2mm thread used in others). Grind adjustment is hold by a spring (similar to Comandante), the grind setting has never slipped even with hard light roasted beans.

opother wrote: I looks to me like everything I wish the perlox would be. Can it be offered at the same price of a perlox,

A more accurate description would be - it is what the Lido Comandante et al wish to be, but to do it in a Porlex form factor without all the alignment issue. So the ability to produce it at a price range similar to porlex is out of the question. The manufacturing process involves machining multiple components to desired precision and then anodized to produce the finish desired. The only potential downfall is the anodization process may remove some microns thick of material (during the acid wash step) and thus reducing some of the precision achieved in machining process. I am not too familar about the process, but maybe the effect can be controlled or predicted. As an end user, I don't see that affects the grinder's precision.

The build design on this Helor grinder is overkill in many ways and in a good way. The axle support is a one-piece component machined from a solid aluminium block (probably is one of the few hand grinders that does it this way, the Rosco grinders may have done the same, I can't recall the details). So the trueness (of top and bottom bearing) can be controlled well in the manufacturing process and you don't have to fiddle with it post-assembly. The catch cup is one-piece machined from an aluminium block as well (crazy overkill if you ask me).The ceramic bearings are not only water-washable but they should wear much less over the long term, compared to metal bearings used in other grinders (these components do wear but only after many years). Tolerance fit of the ceramic bearings to the stainless steel shaft is excellent. They're tight but just loose enough to be fitted by hand. No wobbles at all from any direction. Overall it is a precision-made grinder and would almost be an insult to compare it to a Porlex.

The only other grinder that I see competing directly to the Helor grinder would be a Feldgrind. But I suppose each has their own pros/cons. Also, it is more suitable for single portion grinding rather than large batch grinding like in a Lido.

p/s: I just happened to have purchased and used one for a few months (not as main daily grinder though), and that I can read Chinese so I could understand some of the discussion in the Taiwan forum.

Sorry but the design and type of mechanism looks just like the same type used in the Kyocera and perlox grinders right down to the spring loaded adjustment and removable cap.

It is not an insult to compare it.

The differences are that the whole body with spindle shaft support and bottom (outer) burr support) is milled from a piece of solid aluminum which is very good and should be trouble free as well as sturdy, and if precise, realignment should never be a problem unless damaged. The principle system for holding the spindle and outer burr in place is however the same as the perlox type of grinders.

The addition of bearings in this case high quality (I guess) ceramic bearings make a lot of difference and is one of the many things that make this grinder a much higher grade grinder than the perlox by fathoms, but dude the overall idea behind the design, yes the framework is that of the perlox type grinders.

Don't be upset it's not a bad thing since this product appears to disposed of all the negative features of the perlox while retaining most of it's hard to beat, even among high end grinders, features such as a long shaft support that is a part of the body itself.

Ceramic bearings vs steel ok I looked at them I will concede for this application they may not wear out in your lifetime if they don't crack, I am guessing they probably won't but ceramic ys steel vs bronze bearings is not anywhere near a deal breaker for me.

Are these bearing secure in their ring or will they fall out if handled without care. This is not clear to me.

Bottom burr support is also part of the body and lined up with the spindle support in a similar manner the my Kyocera hand grinder uses. This by the way is good.

The burr set is obviously better quality.

The adjustment appears to have many more steps (note the dots just like the perlox but more) but the principle is the same.

Even the shape of the adjustment knob is the same as my Kyocera. It is a great ergonomic shape and that is not bad at all.

A nice touch is the hand crank is attached to the cap where in the Kyocera I own it is held on by friction and pops off followed by the cap but the same spindle remains in the grinder.

I certainly didn't mean the insult comment seriously (so please don't take it seriously). I guess it was more to make the point that, it is whole another level compared to the Porlex.

But yes, there're some similarities to Porlex, at least from the appearance and concept. It's the execution and details that differ. I believe the spring holding burr concept was first observed in vintage hand grinders (the wooden box grinders). In fact, I think most modern hand grinders have drawn their inspiration from vintage hand grinders in some ways and they are all principally similar to each other in many ways.

If you look closely, the cap and spring mechanism is more similar to Comandante grinder than it is to Porlex (but we could also say that the Comandante gets their inspiration from Porlex).

The way the outer burr is mounted/fixed is definitely different from Porlex.

The one-piece axle support was inspired by studying the Rosco grinders.

The catch cup mechanism was derived/devised from Hausgrind/Feldgrind.

I think all in all, the Helor is not a new product idea. It's just the same old hand grinder concept executed better.

I think all in all, the Helor is not a new product idea. It's just the same old hand grinder concept executed better.

Good execution is all it takes to make a good hand grinder. Not to say that it's easy - glad to see another group taking the steps to do it right.

According to their web site the hopper can only hold 25g. That seems like a bit of a design oversight reminiscent of dinky little grinders like the Porlex. The Feldgrind happily holds 36g when I brew for two, which is just about right for a small hand grinder IMO.