I think it is all depends on what the person prefer, I'm not an aeropress user most of my filter brew are V60 and maybe I got used to unimodel flat from ssp, which might other hate. But when it comes to uniformity of ground at v60 setting it is very clear that Mazzer burrs has higher fine can be seen by naked eye and the dripper looks muddy at the end. I have checked the burr movement and it looks good to my eyes. Mazzer grinders with conical burrs are originally used for espresso, even when you look at kafatech mc4 it specify it is for espresso only but some users like it for filter. I really like the key for espresso and my thoughts about filter might be personal so if you like it just enjoy it

My Onyx Key arrived safely a week ago. No finish issues that I can see. It did take a few days to get used to the new workflow but I'm getting the hang of it. Even with WDT I am getting channeling which others have reported should resolve itself after several pounds of beans have been ground. RDT is a must otherwise grounds stick terribly but that was also an issue with my Sette 270w. The 270w was much messier and my counter is now very clean using the Key. Cleaning quickly after use is an absolute breeze, just a few strokes of the brush a it's ready for next use. I opted not to install the wiper yet. Is anyone using a puck screen with their key? Do you think it will help with channeling at least while the key is breaking in?

flyguyjake wrote:My Onyx Key arrived safely a week ago. No finish issues that I can see. It did take a few days to get used to the new workflow but I'm getting the hang of it. Even with WDT I am getting channeling which others have reported should resolve itself after several pounds of beans have been ground. RDT is a must otherwise grounds stick terribly but that was also an issue with my Sette 270w. The 270w was much messier and my counter is now very clean using the Key. Cleaning quickly after use is an absolute breeze, just a few strokes of the brush a it's ready for next use. I opted not to install the wiper yet. Is anyone using a puck screen with their key? Do you think it will help with channeling at least while the key is breaking in?

My Key arrived out-of-alignment but that was almost certainly due to a drop in shipping - the cardboard corner pieces holding the inner box were collapsed/crushed so any drop would have been transmitted to the grinder. A few dozen "friendly taps" brought everything back into form, i.e., the shipping had moved the outer burr assembly out of alignment. Fortunately, the axle is fine. However, I can't say anything about how well the grinder was aligned from the factory. (The grinder is now very well aligned.)

It's pretty humid here now, so no RDT is needed. I haven't installed the wiper as I am used to doing WDT. I sometimes use a thin (single-layer) puck screen with the machines that the Key is being used with at the moment - Europiccola and Micro Casa a Leva. The puck screen only makes clean-up a little easier - no grounds get to the group gasket. Never any channeling. Took about 75g of coffee for the grinder to settle down, but taste continues to improve (light/medium filter roasts). I'm at about 300g total.

I don't use the brush - I use an air blower (like a Rocket Blower) towards the end of grinding - with the anti-popcorn lid on.

I got my Key a few weeks ago and I'm quite happy with it as a conical complement to my Versalab M4.

I definitely don't get the same clarity or separation of flavours with the Key, and some of the wilder coffees I've tried with it were muddled and muted. But it works great with medium-and-darker roasts and anything with richer chocolate/caramel/brown sugar/graham/nutty flavours.

The syrupy body, which I'm getting especially at lower RPMs, is excellent. Could just be new toy bias, but I find myself going to the Key most times making a straight shot or a drink with little milk. While I wish the RPM range was much broader, I look forward to experimenting more with this feature.

Workflow with the Magic Tumbler is better than I expected after reading reviews, but of course nothing tops the M4 in that regard. My workflow is grind, pull and twirl the "mushroom" (which is just an XL game piece from the board game Sorry - I see you, Weber) around the inside of the tumbler, OCD, self-leveling tamper. Even without RDT, I haven't had static issues other than a thin, patchy film of grinds in the tumbler with one type of bean. I installed the wiper but I don't think it's doing much.

I haven't experienced any of the manufacturing issues others mentioned. No loose magnets, no finish problems, and the shaft seems true - visually, at least. I have had two instances of very brief stalling (think milliseconds) on some medium-light roasts when grinding at 30 RPMs, but my M4 occasionally does the same thing at 550 RPMs. As annoyed as I was to wait a full year for my Key, I'm glad it was a bit further down the production pipeline and all the kinks were worked out.

I think this is a good grinder and would recommend it to friends upgrading from Baratza, Eureka, etc. who still want a well-rounded grinder. I'm not experienced enough with the Niche to know whether the Key delivers value in comparison. It's certainly a lot prettier.

I'd have to try a nice flat burr one day with a light roast that's perfectly dialled in, or maybe not.. for my wallet haha I'm very happy with the KEY and in comparison to my old setter 270 the clarity is obviously there but then to compare the same beans on a KEY vs Flat burr, I have no idea what that'd be like

I'll chime in on my user experience with the Key as I've been using it daily for a few months now. It sits next to my EG-1 and I go back and forth between them. Overall the Key has been excellent and it does what I was hoping it would do, very well. I wanted it to give me a fuller, more rounded profile on certain types of beans than the EG-1. It does this really well for both espresso and V60. It has more clarity and separation of flavors than other conicals I've used but not as much as the EG-1. IMHO - I would classify this as a hybrid conical. As an example: about a month ago I started using some medium/ light beans. With the EG-1 the shots lacked a richness that I knew I could get. The shots tasted like a medium/ light roast. Same beans done with the Key and all of the sudden the base notes kicked in and high notes were a bit muted. It was a better shot overall from the Key and now it's what I use exclusively for this particular roast. There are other beans in my freezer that I will only use the EG-1 to grind them. I feel pretty blessed to own and use both grinders as I feel that the Key is an excellent compliment to the EG-1. That said, if I didn't know about the EG and what it offers and could only have one grinder, the Key would be an excellent choice for me.

Jessipoo wrote:I'd have to try a nice flat burr one day with a light roast that's perfectly dialled in, or maybe not.. for my wallet haha I'm very happy with the KEY and in comparison to my old setter 270 the clarity is obviously there but then to compare the same beans on a KEY vs Flat burr, I have no idea what that'd be like

All the more reason for a GTA H-B meetup! I'm sure there are a few more of us here....

uxdinosaur wrote:Has anyone had issues with a weird noise developing while grinding? Sounds like a rattle in the top gear. I'm hoping it just needs some grease but worried there is some manufacturer defect or just poor build quality. It's more pronounced at higher speeds. I emailed Weber with a video but no word yet.

Have you heard anything back from them?

DIY Shaft alignment?

Hey mates, long time lurker on this thread. I received my long awaited Weber Key in Onyx a couple weeks ago and have been enjoying it so far. I only brew for filter currently, as I'm still on the hunt for an Olympia Cremina. That being said, I've found the filter brews on my Kalita to be enjoyable once I finally dialed in the grind setting.

Minimal mess. Minimal static even without using RDT. Finishing appears without any blemishes. Very quiet. My wife actually likes how it looks on the counter. Perhaps the most important factor.

I'm using it with the standard tumbler and standard wiper which I installed before using the grinder. I felt like I had to torque the bolt with the Allan wrench a fair amount, but not too bad.

Lots of positives.

However...

There is a subtle, but noticeable wobble in the shaft. I've included a video. Option one: carry on without messing with the grinder. I am enjoying the in-the-cup results after all.

Option two: try some DIY fix to make the shaft more true. The wobble is, of course, more noticeable at the distal end of the shaft. I've heard some folks say that visually noticeable wobble could perhaps be due to irregularities of the finishing on the shaft alone, and that the actual inner burr may not be wobbling. Its hard to tell. But when I look at the inner burr while grinding, it may be moving a smidge?

Anyone have any luck with some kind of DIY alignment?

I did not email weber right away (I was just trying to ignore it...) but did end up emailing them yesterday. As its the weekend, I'm not expecting a response for a few days.

Thanks for the read and any suggestions.