Nothing here since 2015 I think. Looking to expand immersion batch sizes from the Bonavita. Any Fellow Duo users?

EDIT: I bought one and walk through its use and assembly below

I purchased one very early on, think I've used it twice. Seemed like a much better idea than it turned out to be.

Ira

I bought the Fellow Duo on a half price sale.

My wife used a Bonavita immersion for about six months, and a Yama stovetop siphon for many years before that. The usage was morning coffee making to fill a thermos for her day at work. After the siphon imploded she shifted to the Bonavita but it had a lower yield plus I'm a little concerned about a top heavy ceramic brewer balanced on a thermos early in the morning.

I bought the Duo to extend her immersion yield by 200 or so ml.

After a few weeks, the Duo has performed well. The mesh filter is quite fine. We get a bit of fine sediment in the carafe. You can let it settle and pour carefully to minimize the transfer of it.

The instructions were small grey print on a narrow strip of paper. Unnecessarily hard to read and the diagram was missing key components of silicone rings required to seal parts together and protect the glass carafe from damage.

We needed to brew for 4 minutes (as suggested by instructions anyway) rather than the 3 with the Bonavita. I also tightened up the grind a bit. I suspect that big metal chamber absorbs heat from the brew water.

Pouring isn't a problem... once the coffee goes down into the carafe it felt pretty balanced.

PRO POURING TIP: remove the brewing chamber before pouring to lighten the load and make it easy to see what you're doing

I tried putting a paper filter under the reusable filter but it slowed things way down.

Cleanup... the Bonavita uses a paper filter and needs a rinse. For this unit, I remove the brew chamber. I can hold it over the garbage and tug out the filter and tap its silicone ring end to shake off the coffee. The filter is pretty quick to rinse. The brew chamber benefits from a spatula to scoop out the coffee, then a quick rinse. You can disassemble the whole coffee maker and rinse and reassemble pretty quickly but I'm not sure that's necessary on a daily basis.

Here you can see the assembled coffee maker


The top has a hole and dish shape so if you overfill with water and put on the cap, the blooming coffee water won't be smooshed out and down the sides (a problem with the Bonavita with its solid top)


If you take off the top you see the brew chamber with a reusable and removable mesh filter at the bottom. You put the ground coffee in here and add water up to the ridge line... though with blooming grounds I add more than I should. Stirring helps.


Here you can see the filter removed and its silicone ring around the bottom


The ring comes off for cleaning. Fine coffee particles can get lodged in the ridge of the filter that fits into the silicone so periodic cleaning is good


The brew chamber twists slightly to lock the brew water in, or let it flow out through the filter. You can see the lock and unlock icons in the two shots below. Unlocked, the brew chamber pops up a bit. The flowing coffee makes a pleasant sound quickly going down into the carafe



The brew chamber comes out for cleaning. It has plastic shaped pieces around its sides that lock into pegs in the top of the brewer. This peg and plastic arrangement locks the brewer in or unlocks it with twisting.


The bottom of the brew chamber had a removable silicone ring to seal against the top of the brewer. This prevents coffee from escaping during the locked position.


And here you can see inside the chamber holder/top of the brewer. Look at the pattern of holes... they are outside the smaller circle of the brew chamber exit. This is how the brew chamber seals when it is closed. Also note the metal pegs. These pegs fit into the plastic locking mechanism on the outside of the brew chamber.


This top unscrews from the carafe. It doesn't screw in that much but it is a solid fit. Be careful about this or the brewer may drop its carafe during a pour at the end. You pour with the whole brewer assembled as per the first image. Sounds awkward but it's not.


Here's the bottom view of the top of the brewer. Note the red silicone ring. This is necessary to seal against the carafe and prevent damage from overtightening. This silicone ring was NOT FITTED when I received the brewer. It was loose in the package. Worse, the instructions mention it but do not illustrate it in their detailed diagram. The ring tucks into a ridge and can also be removed for cleaning



A silicone sleeve protects your hand from the hot carafe during pouring. It's removable. It does obscure things when you screw the top onto the carafe. You need to be careful to not crossthread. But it's simple once you get the feel of it.


There is also a removable silicone cap for the base. This is welcome to prevent the carafe from sliding on the counter. However it is a loose fit and can come off if disturbed. Not a big deal.