Should my HG-1 require this much force to grind?

#1: Post by **jessechapman1** » May 22nd, 2019, 4:42 pm

Here's a YouTube video of me grinding.

Should it require this much force to grind? Only ground two pounds, should I continue my workout with a few more pounds or is something wrong. Thanks yall

#2: Post by **seeds** » May 22nd, 2019, 6:54 pm

how fine are you grinding and what are you grinding? I stay away from lighter roasts with smaller beans. It's not that difficult, but the grinder is hard to hold down and too much of a workout for me using beans like that.

#3: Post by **njtnjt** » May 22nd, 2019, 7:06 pm

Those could be some very lightly roasted beans and/or the burrs are well out of alignment. On the later point, my HG1 came with burrs noticeably out of concentric alignment. Once I aligned them it was a good 50% easier to grind with. Grinding lightly roasted beans is no fun with it and that's sort of what it looks like from your video.

May 22nd, 2019, 10:37 pm

njtnjt wrote:. On the later point, my HG1 came with burrs noticeably out of concentric alignment. Once I aligned them it was a good 50% easier to grind with. .

How did you check for alignment, that sounds interesting? Also is it normal for there to be slight play between the flywheel and main axle mechanism?

Edit: got some different beans and it is significantly easier, also ground another pound.

May 22nd, 2019, 10:41 pm

seeds wrote:how fine are you grinding and what are you grinding? I stay away from lighter roasts with smaller beans. It's not that difficult, but the grinder is hard to hold down and too much of a workout for me using beans like that.

Setting is 4.5. I also got some darker roasted beans and it is easier, I'm going to continue to season em' (no rice)

#6: Post by **Feuros** » May 23rd, 2019, 5:58 am

It also gets a lot easier if you secure it to the surface.

#7: Post by **njtnjt** » May 23rd, 2019, 9:41 am

jessechapman1 wrote:How did you check for alignment, that sounds interesting? Also is it normal for there to be slight play between the flywheel and main axle mechanism?

Edit: got some different beans and it is significantly easier, also ground another pound.

There is a very good YouTube video put out by Lynn Weber studio that shows how to align the HG1. Make sure you have some space so that you can be relaxed and take your time. If you can't find the video I will dig in my history and post a link for you. I was sort of shocked at how far out my burrs were.

#8: Post by **baristainzmking** » May 23rd, 2019, 10:18 am

Is this the video?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BkPYedHXE0

#9: Post by **Kafa74** » May 23rd, 2019, 10:21 am

I posted a similar question when I got mine in 2016. Prior to that I used small Turkish grinders and they were so effortless, I thought, bigger burrs = less effort. Looking at your video, for uncoated burrs that seems like a normal resistance for lighter roasts, at least it was in my case. The only time it gets easy is when you grind Italian roasted coffee (Kimbo, Danesi, etc), the rest is a struggle but hey it's not too bad considering there is basically no retention. If you fix it to the table at least you don't need to worry about the thing moving around. I think HG-1 is manageable if you're a sole drinker, making 3-4 shots a day.

#10: Post by **njtnjt** » May 23rd, 2019, 10:32 am

baristainzmking wrote:Is this the video?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BkPYedHXE0

Yes, that's the video. I had to watch it a few times and make my own notes as it moves along quickly, but it told me everything I needed to know to align the burrs. Advise that you have a quiet hour to do this in, and to trust what your finger tips and eyes tell you about gap widths.

Best wishes and tell us how you do!