I am having some problems with my Eureka SD. It produces so much fines that pour over, french press and other course grind methods are rendered useless. The grinder does great espresso.

Decided to do some particle size analysis with the Coffee Grind app. (I know a proper laser particle size analyzer would be more accurate).

I found out that particle size mostly stays the same with grind settings 20 and above. Grinder burr gap adjusts as it should up to 45 so something else must be going on here. Alignment is also pristine.

Maybe something is wrong or this grinder is only made for espresso regardless of marketing claims.
I have contacted my retailer about this issue.

Thinking about changing the burrs to fellow ode gen 2 burrs or the gorilla gear burrs. Want to know if something else is wrong first though...

Anyhow, here are my findings:

Grounds at setting 10.


Distribution at setting 10.


Grounds at setting 20.


Distribution at setting 20.


Grounds at setting 30.


Distribution at setting 30.


Grounds at setting 40.


Distribution at setting 40.


Grounds at setting 46. Fully loose adjustment.


Distribution at setting 46. Fully loose adjustment.

That burr set will produce lots of fines, but it shouldn't be so much as to make filter brewing impossible.

TL;DR: The declumper is ruining an otherwise superb grinder that does all grind sizes really well!

Fellow ode gen 2 burr is a proven good brew burr. Since the Eureka's is so similar, I figured it must be something wrong with the grinder and not the burrs themselves.


Fellow ode gen 2 burrs.


Eureka burrs.

After watching The Wired Gourmet's videos on the Eureka SD I thought maybe it had to do with burr chatter or the lower burr vibrating up and down. But this is not the problem I later found out!

The CLUMP CRUSHER is what makes the grinder perform so poorly!
Removed it and all of a sudden it grinds seemingly without fines for all coarse grind settings while still making fluffy espresso grind.
Once again I used Coffee Grind to evaluate the particle distribution without clump crusher but found it registered no less fines than before. Suppose it is not good enough to see all small particles properly... Consequently I will not publish the results as I find them inconclusive and I no longer trust the app.

What I can show is some pour overs. Beans: Zoéga Blue Java, dark roast.
First I tried the James Hoffmann technique at grind setting 20. Drawdown way too fast and seemingly no fines.


James Hoffmann technique at grind size 20.

Then I tried at setting 15 with the same technique. Few fines on the sides. Same drawdown time. I can really grind finer now!


James Hoffmann technique at grind size 15.

To evaluate the coarser spectrum I did an Osmotic Flow brew with 15g coffee and 200 g water. Grind 30. Also drew down fast.


Osmotic flow at grind size 30.

As far as taste goes all cups were enjoyable albeit a bit underextracted, first cup a bit sour. I need to get used to grind finer now, which is a good thing, I am happy!

In conclusion, what is the declumper doing in this grinder? Removing it made the grind go from blade grinder to superb in no time!
So my recommendation: for anything coarser than espresso, the declumper has to go!

Hi,

I am thinking of buying Fellow Ode Gen 2 burrs to replace Eureka stock burrs in SD for the same reason you made the post - lot of fines when grinding for pour over. And than I saw your post

Now I will try also removing declumper and see the result. When I am thinking logically, I am not figuring out why would declumper be a problem for fines but anyway I was surprised numerous times on different espresso/pour over conclusions, so I hope I will have same result as you.

Thanks for this post.

Regards,
Filip

I'm still satisfied with the performance without declumper. One thing to note is that retention due to static in the chute got a bit worse. Although it is easily solved with RDT. Not recommended by Eureka though, but so far I've got no issues with it.

I can't believe, NO fines at all. Declumper removed, RDT used, 30g in, with bellows, 30g out.



Thank you very very much for this suggestion!

i recently got the mignon. I used it mostly for espresso since i leave my pour overs to my fiorenzato f4. I have the retention issue due to the anti-static fork. i contacted eureka to ask their opinion but i didn't got an answer. A couple of guys suggested bending the forks a bit but i don't like to perform "intrusive" alterations to a new product. What i tried and it work... a bit is 3d printing a small spacer for between that fork and the exit hole that give the fork a small inclination of 8degrees. It increased static by a bit but up to now i get no retention. It needs work though since i'm not sure how long is going to stay in one place with all the vibrations of a grinder