Hello everyone!

I am wondering if you kind folks can give me some feedback.

I sold my Giotto P to a gentleman who is in the process of buying a grinder to go with the machine. He is on a very tight budget. A local vendor has recommended the Lelit PL43. I don't know much about this grinder or its capabilities.

Has anyone used this grinder with a heat exchanger machine? Will it grind adequately, fine enough for the Giotto? The grinder usually sells for $349.00 but is on for $249.00.

Personally I'm thinking that he would probably be better of trying to find a used Rocky for that price or pick up a used Mazzer mini for another additional $100.00. I have a feeling either of those grinders would do a better job. You can read up on the grinder at this link:

http://www.lelitespresso.com/Grinder43.html

I think it has a 38mm conical burrs set.

Thoughts?

You're correct on all accounts. The recommended grinder uses trespade burrs. It will work, but a mazzer is leaps and bounds ahead of it. Skip the rocky altogether, trespade grinders are as good or better. I'd advise to get the lelit if there are no used mazzers in his price range.

If he's going to get a Le'Lit grinder, the PL53 is very adjustable and is for espresso only. It retails for $269 at 1st-Line Equipment. The shortcomings are grind retention in the chute, slow speed, loudness. But it works well for espresso. If your friend can stand hand grinding an Orphan Espresso Pharos has gold standard grind quality and costs $245. I've owned the Le'Lit PL53 and still have the Pharos. I only sold the Le'Lit because I closed the office where I used it.

Do not have experience with this brand

Have many years with major brands of commercial brands, models machines & coffees
When trying to make the proper purchase of a grinder
With out experience

Put it against the other brand grind same coffee with same machine and see, taste the coffee

If not able to put side by side to compare

See and taste a good grinder product
Take some of your ground coffee with you check to see the variation of size of grind
Buy your grinder based on the cut of the coffee and how it reflects in the body and taste of the coffee
Then the dispensing of the coffee and then start adding your preferences and then if it fits buy it
There are many grinders to pick from some with a good reputation some are worth the investment
Some are not

Le'Lit is an entry lever grinder with pretty good build quality being offered by one of the sponsoring vendors for Home-Barista.com, 1st-Line Equipment. In my personal use and with the recommendation of the owner of 1st-Line, the Le'Lit PL53 grinder has grind quality and results in the cup comparable to a Mazzer Super Jolly. In this way it stands out and was a price breakthrough for grind quality at the time it was introduced, somewhat before the Orphan Espresso hand grinders appeared at a similar price point and outstanding quality. I have two Mazzer Super Jolly grinders (one rebranded as Astoria) that I used to compare, so I do have experience with both brands. I did not do blind cupping to compare them. But I found I could fine tune grind size with the Le'Lit PL53 stepless worm screw adjustment to dial in espresso for consistent results, very nice flavor separation and ample crema. The Mazzer grinders are made for commercial use, many servings over many years. They are also larger and more expensive. For someone with a limited budget a Le'Lit PL53 grinder is a very good choice. It won't be good for heavy traffic over many years because some of the parts inside are plastic compared to an industrial strength Mazzer with its internal metal construction. The Le'Lit is a home grinder, with compact size. I used mine for a couple of years with no problems.

Thanks so much guys. I really appreciate it the effort.

+1 to everything drgary said about the PL53. Got mine from 1st-Line for $200 as a demo. I have ground 2-3 doubleshots everyday for over 3 yrs. with no problems. Should be lots of info here using the search function.

I would not recommend the Lelit it's a pos imo I owned one for a month and it was very hard to get a good consistent grind with it, adjusting was hard the build quality was cheap. But I'm comparing the Leilt to a Compak touch which is double the cost. I had a hard time spending 600.00 on a grinder but it's well worth it. I would try any other grinder in that price range over the Leilt I think the Leilt was biggest waste of money I ever spent.

Which Le'Lit was that? Your comment is also following those of two of us who used Le'Lit PL53 grinders for years and found them very consistent and capable. You kept yours for a short time and didn't get it dialed in.