Owner experience with Orphan Espresso's Fixie manual coffee grinder - Page 4

Grinders are one of the keys to exceptional espresso. Discuss them here.
Stevebcoffee
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#31: Post by Stevebcoffee »

What's the diameter of the shims/ spacers, both outer and for the hole. Thinking of sourcing one that would get me to the start of espresso range for my machine.

jbviau (original poster)
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#32: Post by jbviau (original poster) »

I don't have precision measuring tools here at the moment, but the disks/shims look to be ~32 mm wide, and the holes are ~8 mm wide.

Source: my ruler. :wink:

p.s. The Fixie might come with all you need in terms of grinding that fine! For example, the advanced manual mentions Turkish: https://www.oehandgrinders.com/Fixie-Gr ... _60-1.html
"It's not anecdotal evidence, it's artisanal data." -Matt Yglesias

jpender
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#33: Post by jpender »

Thanks for that link. I was also wondering about the range and resolution attainable with the provided shims. Doug explains what is kind of a backwards sort of thing to understand very well. He makes it clear you can get anywhere, roughly, in the full range with what's provided. And if you're willing to make your own thinner shims you can achieve precise sizes. So dialing in for espresso would be possible. I don't know why one would pair an ultralight, slow-to-adjust grinder with an espresso machine but you could.

Stevebcoffee
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#34: Post by Stevebcoffee »

I was thinking Cafelat Robot

jpender
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#35: Post by jpender »

The Robot weighs about 2.6kg, give or take. The portafilter+basket alone weighs more than the Fixe.

At home I've been using a grinder that weighs 710g. It can be micro-adjusted in less than ten seconds. It works well, costs about the same as the Fixe. But it does weigh an extra 380g.

My travel kit is Aeropress based and weighs 532g (including a padded case). That's with a Porlex, a crappy grinder, which is barely acceptable only because the Aeropress is so forgiving. With a Fixe my kit would weigh 628g. That seems like an acceptable increase for what I am sure is a vastly improved grind. I won't need to futz with the grind.

I think my espresso grinder is too heavy for my travel kit. But if I were going to tote the Robot around I'd be fine with that extra 10% of weight.

My overinflated opinion.

nameisjoey
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#36: Post by nameisjoey »

For those with the Fixie:

For a dedicated grinder to keep at work - would you rather have a Knock Aerspeed or a OE Fixie? Brew method being purely aeropress.

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baldheadracing
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#37: Post by baldheadracing »

jpender wrote:So some way to couple it directly to the Aeropress cylinder for grinding would be a nice thing. Maybe a wide ring of thin silicone sheeting would make for a friction fit.
I tried the bands from a Porlex Mini and an Aergrind and both fit the Fixie body snugly on the lip of an Aeropress Go cylinder. However, the bands are too thick to nest in the cylinder proper, so, if I were grinding, I would have wrapped my baby finger around the Aeropress as insurance. A silicone IKEA Sockerkaka baking cup has about the right thickness, and makes a great fit - albeit in pink ...

Another option: The i.d. of the Fixie's catch cup and the i.d. of the Aeropress Go plunger are both 51.7x mm; so one could grind into the plunger and then pour the grinds into the Aeropress cylinder.

As an aside, the Fixie's catch cup holds a half-cup (4oz.) to the brim - it might make a nice backwoods/cycling shot glass. I like the finish on the Titanium.
-"Good quality brings happiness as you use it" - Nobuho Miya, Kamasada

jpender
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#38: Post by jpender »

baldheadracing wrote:I tried the bands from a Porlex Mini and an Aergrind and both fit the Fixie body snugly on the lip of an Aeropress Go cylinder. However, the bands are too thick to nest in the cylinder proper...

The OE website says the maximum diameter is 54mm, which would be the catch cup. The far end of the grinder would have to be ever so slightly less. An Aeropress, by my rough measurement, is 56-57mm. So I was hoping that a 1mm thick band would fit. I haven't measured the band on my Porlex Mini but it seems like it's about that thin.

Oh well... Maybe it's easier to just carry the cup.

Stevebcoffee
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Joined: 9 years ago

#39: Post by Stevebcoffee »

Looks like I'll have to find out about the Fixie via this forum rather than first for the time being. Ordered one to be delivered to London. Orphan Espresso shipped same day, very impressive, got as far as San Francisco where it hasn't moved since. I know there are bigger issues with this Covid thing (I am in London) but .....
Keep safe and keep smiling

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baldheadracing
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#40: Post by baldheadracing »

jpender wrote: The OE website says the maximum diameter is 54mm, which would be the catch cup. The far end of the grinder would have to be ever so slightly less. An Aeropress, by my rough measurement, is 56-57mm. So I was hoping that a 1mm thick band would fit. I haven't measured the band on my Porlex Mini but it seems like it's about that thin.

Oh well... Maybe it's easier to just carry the cup.
The 54mm o.d. of the lip at the top of the catch cup is the same as the lower burr carrier. (I put the bands over the burr carrier.)

The IKEA baking cup that I referred to is 1mm thick. The Porlex Mini band that I used is 1.2mm thick.
-"Good quality brings happiness as you use it" - Nobuho Miya, Kamasada