LIDO ET fines in grinds

Grinders are one of the keys to exceptional espresso. Discuss them here.
Unrooted
Posts: 279
Joined: 8 years ago

#1: Post by Unrooted »

I received my Orphan Espresso Lido ET Friday because I am getting a La Pavoni machine tomorrow. I used the grinder Saturday, Sunday and this morning for my chemex, approximately 50grams times six plus around 100 grams of some really dark & old espresso beans I had in the back of my cupboard. I had to go 3 full revolutions from zero to get a slightly decent time on my chemex brew due to the large number of fines. Will the amount of fines reduce as the burrs are "seasoned", or does this type of conical grinder always produce a lot of fines?

randyh
Posts: 267
Joined: 8 years ago

#2: Post by randyh »

I had a LIDO E for a while, and it produced remarkably few fines when I used it for pour over, specifically Chemex. In fact, I marveled at how consistent the grind was in that medium-coarse range. I also noticed that the brew time was much faster than I anticipated for the grind size, due to the lack of fines. When compared to the Baratza Virtuoso, which I also owned for a short time, the LIDO E produced less fines and I thought also produced a more consistent grind size. This was after about 2 12 oz bags of stale beans that I ground through to season the burrs. I eventually returned the LIDO E for a Pharos because I was getting significant burr rub in the espresso range, but in retrospect, I probably should have just kept the LIDO for its superior non-espresso grinding capabilities and got the Pharos to dedicate to espresso. I will probably get the LIDO 2 or Hausgrind/feldgrind at some point to dedicate to non-espresso coffee.
My suggestion would be to make sure the burrs are well-aligned, grind at least another full bag or two of coffee, and see how it goes after that. Hopefully you don't have any trouble with burr rubbing while grinding for espresso, as I did as well as several others have mentioned here.

TheCastanza
Posts: 50
Joined: 8 years ago

#3: Post by TheCastanza »

In the pour over range, my Lido E produces a lot less fines than other pour over grinders I have used (Bodum Bistro; Virtuoso). The chemex range is where I'm impressed the most by the grind size consistency. Are there visibly a lot of fines or are you just doing by pour times. Maybe post a picture of grinds?

Unrooted (original poster)
Posts: 279
Joined: 8 years ago

#4: Post by Unrooted (original poster) »

I dropped the grinds into a sieve I have and put my hand under it and there was a lot that came through, while most of the grinds stayed in the sieve, what fell into my hand was very fine, like a slightly course espresso grind. This was at 3 full rotations, so most of the grinds were quite large. I can get pics at lunch.