Hand Grinder Roadshow - Page 2

#11: Post by **drgary** » August 14th, 2012, 4:04 pm

cannonfodder wrote:Having add-on's is good, this is an out of the box user experience. While making mods to the grinder would improve its usability that is outside the scope of this roadshow. What is a here is a "what the first time user should expect" article. By the time I hack the Pharos and bolt on all of the extras I suspect you would be approaching the cost of a good electric grinder. At that point the grinder starts to lose some of it's appeal. A lot is also based on personal preference, I just enjoyed the Lido more and found it much easier to grab grind and go especially in an office environment where I do not have time to fiddle with making coffee.

While I enjoy twiddling with equipment, I also believe a product should just work out of box with no re-engineering needed by the user. While the Pharos works as is, I would be less than honest if I said it was perfect. It is simply not user friendly which plays a big part in my 'how will I feel about it in a month' thought process. Others will certainly have other opinions. One of my co-workers loved the Pharos but I only liked the Lido. Either grinder will do a fine job and if someone was giving me one I would be happy with either and they beat the pants off the older vintage grinders.

Points well taken on features being right there, out of the box. Since many who read this won't be first-time users, I thought I'd respond to whether the Pharos should be only considered in stock configuration.

There are many common mods. In the old Silvias people commonly add a PID. In most espresso machines they'll get bottomless portafilters or add a pressure gauge to levers. Folks routinely add temperature probes to Hottop roasters to measure ET and BT and connect them with a computer. These Pharos mods are admittedly more extreme.

Pricewise with all of those mods done for you the Pharos still costs about $500, still a bargain for large conical burrs. I can only enthusiastically recommend a Pharos with the mods so one doesn't have to bang out the grounds.

BTW I'm happy to use my Lido with no mods. I haven't even tried it for espresso. Working in a cubicle is a different challenge where if it's smaller and works pretty well that's terrific.

#12: Post by **yakster** » August 14th, 2012, 4:32 pm

Working in a cubicle is a different challenge and from that perspective, I agree with Dave's assessment. I tried out both a Pharos and a Lido for a week in a GCBC Traveling Roadshow and I'd prefer a Lido for my office setup to do duties for espresso and my other prep methods I brew with at work (Kalita, Clever, AP).

It would be nice to have a dedicated espresso machine and grinder here at work, I have a Twist and a Kyocera CM-45 CF hand grinder and yesterday it took me about 25 minutes to bang out two shots including all the prep and cleanup. Unfortunately, the grind was off (too tight) and the shots were not perfect, but good enough. With the Lido it was much easier to get back to a grind setting because the last thing you want to do at work is to have to sink a shot and start over dosing and grinding.

Espresso Kit

Klatch Belle and Ethiopia Sidama Deri Kochoha

The Lido is on my wish list for the future, but for me the ergonomics of the Pharos weren't there to make me want to consider replacing my B.Vario with one.

#13: Post by **drgary** » August 14th, 2012, 4:47 pm

Now if you two engineers (Dave and Chris) can figure out how to roast in a cubicle you'll have the complete package!

#14: Post by **peacecup** » August 14th, 2012, 5:42 pm

Just a couple of office pics:

That first one is the old PeDe that went a couple of respectable rounds against the Robur back in 07. Been doin the handjive at the office for a while now...

PC

August 14th, 2012, 10:04 pm

mariobarba wrote:Thanks for the write up and reviews. How would the LIDO compare to an entry level consumer electric grinder (Preciso, tre spade, Ascaso) grinder in the cup? If someone had room for an electric grinder at the office but was on a budget and was looking for the best bang for the buck, which would you recommend?

You would need something along the lines of a Mazzer Super Jolly to match or best the Lido or Pharos in my opinion. For dedicated espresso grinding the Pharos would be a solid choice if you don't mind the ergonomics. The grind adjustment was just a pain for me but one of the benefits of a big conical burr set is not needing to make grind adjustments very often, but the Lido did not need adjusted often either. The large grind handle on Pharos was also much nicer than the small knob on the Lido.

#16: Post by **drgary** » August 14th, 2012, 10:20 pm

mariobarba wrote:Thanks for the write up and reviews. How would the LIDO compare to an entry level consumer electric grinder (Preciso, tre spade, Ascaso) grinder in the cup? If someone had room for an electric grinder at the office but was on a budget and was looking for the best bang for the buck, which would you recommend?

I really like my Le'Lit PL53 for grind quality that seems equal to my Super Jolly grinders. However the Le'Lit has its challenges with grind retention in a right angle chute that screws onto the body. What it lacks in burr size it makes up for in stepless microadjustment and noise. It's pretty compact and heavy. To give you a sense of size here it is in my office next to an Olympia Express Coffex.

Dave:

Is Java running on those servers?

#17: Post by **SlowRain** » August 15th, 2012, 4:59 am

Dave:

I was a little surprised that the Porlex didn't rate higher. Two things surprised me when I received my Pharos: one, it wasn't as hard to get the ground coffee out as I had originally imagined it would be; two, while there was an improvement over my Porlex, it wasn't the day-and-night difference I'd been led to believe it would be.

I realize you didn't do any modifications, and your reasoning is fair. I threw a couple of rubber bands around the outer burr to (I imagine) hold the burr a little more steady against the plastic collar (but, really, at that fine of a setting, the whole thing seems to be moving together with no wobble). Secondly, I took off the factory adjustment nut and replaced it with a plain washer and two regular nuts. That makes it a bit of a pain for on-the-fly adjusting, but no worse than the Pharos without Will's mods.

Gary:

I don't think you're supposed to store your AeroPress with the plunger part-way down the chamber like that. Alan Adler says it can damage the plunger tip.

#18: Post by **peacecup** » August 15th, 2012, 5:31 am

Two things surprised me when I received my Pharos: one, it wasn't as hard to get the ground coffee out as I had originally imagined it would be; two, while there was an improvement over my Porlex, it wasn't the day-and-night difference I'd been led to believe it would be.

It will be nice to see if the Roadshow can incorporate some blind taste testing to better establish the night/day reports of burr size, etc.

#19: Post by **drgary** » August 15th, 2012, 9:22 am

SlowRain wrote:Gary:

I don't think you're supposed to store your AeroPress with the plunger part-way down the chamber like that. Alan Adler says it can damage the plunger tip.

Sharp eyes! Yes I met him since that photo and he taught me exactly what you've suggested. The AeroPress is an essential part of my office coffee setup.

#20: Post by **chang00** » August 15th, 2012, 9:49 am

For those who want to roast in the cubicle to complement the hand grinder, may I suggest a Hario RCR 50? Perhaps a halogen lamp, or those left over small birthday cake candles from office parties, can be used for heat source.

Capacity 50g, hand cranked glass drum......

http://www.greenbeanery.ca/bean/catalog ... 15142.html