The Best Coffee Grinder. Valve seat grinder

08.05.2023 Beanrad best, coffee, valve, гриндер

Винтажная виброшлифовальная машина для седел клапанов BD 55. 12 000 об/мин, производство США, компактная электростанция

Этот винтажный виброцентрический шлифовальный станок для седла клапана BD 55 представляет собой компактную мощную машину, способную справиться с самыми сложными задачами по шлифованию. Сделанная в США, эта шлифовальная машина оснащена мощным двигателем на 12 000 об/мин, который может шлифовать даже самые твердые седла клапанов. Компактный размер и легкая конструкция делают его простым в использовании и маневренным. Данная кофемолка находится в хорошем рабочем состоянии и поставляется со всеми оригинальными аксессуарами. Добавьте этот классический инструмент в свою коллекцию уже сегодня!

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Не покупайте ничего у этих людей. Они рекламировали винтажное радио как находящееся в рабочем состоянии. Пришло целое, но не в рабочем состоянии. Они потратили более двух недель, переводя меня от человека к человеку и, как правило, не реагируя на мою просьбу о частичном возмещении стоимости ремонта.

Don’t buy anything from these people. They advertised a vintage radio as being in working condition. It arrived, undamaged, but NOT in working condition. They’ve spent over two weeks shifting me from person to person and being generally unresponsive to my request for a partial refund to cover the cost of repairs.

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эта базовая станция находится в очень хорошем состоянии, как описано. хорошее время доставки. купил бы снова у этого продавца.

Toyota 1KZ. TE valve refacing. valve grinding machine. Warren & Brown valve grinder.

this base station is in very nice shape, as described. good shipping time. would buy again from this seller.

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Двойной противовес проигрывателя 607 имеет удобную форму, легко и безопасно упакован благодаря небольшому размеру и легкому весу. Работает хорошо и обновляет мой дуал 606. Моя самая первая транзакция на Etsy.

A Beginner’s Guide to Coffee Grinders

The dual 607 turntable counterweight came in nice shape, packaged easily and safely due it’s small size and light weight. Works well and updates my dual 606. My very first transaction on Etsy.

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The Best Coffee Grinder

We tested two new grinders and the updated burr set on the Fellow Ode (but not the Gen 2), and our picks remain the same. We plan to test the Fellow Ode Gen 2 soon.

If you want to make better coffee at home, the most important tool you can buy isn’t an expensive brewer or fancy filters, but a good burr grinder. No matter how you choose to make your coffee, even the best beans won’t be as delicious if they aren’t ground consistently. We’ve been testing grinders (and using our picks daily) since 2015, and we’ve found that the no-frills Baratza Encore delivers high-quality, ultra-consistent grinding. It is also easy to maintain, clean, repair, and even customize, all for a fair price.

The best coffee grinder

This all-around workhorse grinder produces the consistent grind required to brew delicious coffee, and it doesn’t cost a fortune.

Buying Options

At the time of publishing, the price was 135.

The Baratza Encore grinds coffee more evenly, and on a wider range of settings, than any other machine we’ve tested at its price level—and many that cost more. It’s a time-tested, reliable, straightforward tool that takes up a modest square of counter space. It’s easy to clean and maintain, and an investment you can rely on morning after morning. This grinder should be great for anyone who makes drip coffee or uses other methods that require beans ground at medium-fine to coarse settings (like pour-over, Chemex, AeroPress, or French press). It won’t produce the tiny adjustments in fine grinds that thrill serious espresso enthusiasts, but its output is consistent enough to create a decent shot. The Encore is our only pick (besides the hand grinder) that doesn’t have a timer or some automated way to measure out beans, but we’ve found it’s easy enough to measure your beans before you add them to the hopper—and many coffee aficionados already do that. Plus, Baratza also makes a smaller 60-gram hopper, which lets you use its top lid to measure out beans, streamlining that process. You can also add color accents to match your kitchen.

Slightly better grind, more features

For a steeper price, the Virtuoso has everything we like about the Encore in terms of reliability and consistent grind size, plus a few improved features.

Buying Options

The Baratza Virtuoso is a great grinder with a burr set that’s a little faster and more consistent than the Encore’s, and it offers a slightly broader range for both fine and coarse grounds. Unlike the Encore, this grinder has a precise, 60-second digital timer that allows you to grind a set amount of beans from the hopper—meaning you don’t have to measure them each time you make coffee. (You can also add hopper extenders, which would allow your Virtuoso to store a whole bag of beans.) The Virtuoso also has a light for the bin, so you can easily see how much you’ve ground. Even so, this model is not significantly better at grinding than the Encore. You’re paying for incremental improvements that may be important if coffee is a blossoming passion or hobby for you.

A good-enough grinder

This compact grinder is easy to use and has a wider range than most budget grinders, but it’s a bit less consistent than our top picks and less repairable.

Buying Options

The OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder is the best we’ve tried in its price range of about 100. (We’ve found that any electric grinder below that price represents a significant step down in terms of grind consistency and durability.) The Encore offers a more consistent, versatile grind and a long-term maintenance and repair program, but the OXO hits the sweet spot in terms of price, grind quality, and ease of use. If you wanted to fill up the OXO with a bag of beans and just hit a button every morning, you could: It has a 12-ounce hopper and a timer ranging from zero to 30 seconds that lets you automate how much to grind. It’s also easier to clean than the Baratza, as the hopper comes with a shutoff valve so that it can be easily removed with the beans still inside, and the top burr has a little handle that lets you twist out the top half. If you drink mostly drip or French press coffee, the OXO’s relatively even grind, wide range of settings, and more-convenient features make it a good alternative to the pricier Baratza Encore.

Portable, consistent, and easy to use (albeit more labor-intensive)

For those who want an affordable yet high-quality portable hand grinder, the Timemore Chestnut C2 is the best in its class for speed, ease of grinding, and consistency.

Buying Options

If you have a modest budget, a very small kitchen, or a desire for a more portable or off-the-grid burr coffee grinder, we’ve found the Chestnut C2 Manual Coffee Grinder to be the best option under 100. The C2 is the lowest-cost grinder from coffee gear company Timemore, whose manual grinders are well-regarded among coffee experts. To sell the C2 at a lower price, Timemore uses durable, high-quality plastic in the interior shaft rather than the metal in its higher-end models, and gave it a slightly less complex burr and crank arm, which is still easily removable for storage or travel. The C2 has an impressively smooth and speedy grinding action, and is sturdy and well-built. Some options come with a pebbly aluminum surface that’s easy to grip. Like the electric models in this guide, the C2 is not designed for espresso making, and because it is much smaller than an electric grinder, it can make only enough grounds for a cup or two of coffee at a time. But it only takes a couple of minutes—even cranking slowly—to grind through that, and it is easy to refill.

The best coffee grinder

This all-around workhorse grinder produces the consistent grind required to brew delicious coffee, and it doesn’t cost a fortune.

Buying Options

At the time of publishing, the price was 135.

Slightly better grind, more features

For a steeper price, the Virtuoso has everything we like about the Encore in terms of reliability and consistent grind size, plus a few improved features.

A good-enough grinder

This compact grinder is easy to use and has a wider range than most budget grinders, but it’s a bit less consistent than our top picks and less repairable.

Portable, consistent, and easy to use (albeit more labor-intensive)

For those who want an affordable yet high-quality portable hand grinder, the Timemore Chestnut C2 is the best in its class for speed, ease of grinding, and consistency.

Why you should trust us

Wirecutter senior staff writer Rachel Wharton, who worked on the 2021 and 2022 updates of this guide, has decades of experience in breaking down complicated culinary subjects for readers, as well as a good grasp of sensory analysis and coffee-brewing principles. The research and reporting in this version of the guide builds on the work of Cale Guthrie Weissman (who wrote the previous versions of this guide and spent months researching and testing grinders) and coffee writer Liz Clayton.

For even more in-depth expertise, we worked with or spoke to a range of experts, like the folks who ran the New York City training center of Counter Culture Coffee, the founder of the professional education program at Coffee Project NY, and the product manager who evaluates grinders for a large American coffee equipment distributor. We also sought out the wisdom of Kyle Ramage, the 2017 United States Barista Champion and a respected coffee roaster. Ramage, who previously worked for many years at leading international commercial coffee-grinder manufacturer Mahlkönig and has consulted for many other makers, is the ideal kind of source. His insights often go beyond what to buy or what to spend, and get to the heart of why things are important. (Be sure to read his thoughts on just buying pre-ground beans if you don’t want to buy a good quality grinder.)

This guide is based on many years of hands-on testing and research, beginning in 2015. For the 2022 update, we spent two weeks performing testing of two newly available grinders. This was in addition to several months of research and reporting, which had us sorting through newly available grinders, interviewing experts, re-researching all of our old recommendations and dismissals, and combing through a mountain of existing reviews of high- and low-end machines, as well as recommendations and long-term testing notes from Wirecutter staff.

Perhaps most important, we understand that for many people switching from a small, cheap blade grinder (which you can stash in the kitchen cupboard between uses) to a 100 or 200 device that is messier and louder and demands permanent counter space is a big deal. Coffee is a particularly beloved topic at Wirecutter, and many of our staff buy and use these picks daily, and provide detailed feedback. We know how these grinders operate in real-world conditions, and whether they truly improve your daily coffee drinking existence or get in the way of it.

Who this is for

If you’re reading this guide, you’re interested in making better coffee at home, or buying a grinder for someone who is. You may have already read that the most important component of your coffee making setup is a quality burr grinder, one that will grind beans evenly—no matter how coarse or fine you want your grounds. The reason is that unevenly ground beans yield muddy cups of coffee with unpleasant sour or bitter notes—or both.

When you grind coffee beans, coffee writer and researcher Scott Rao told us, “There are going to be dusty little particles we call ‘fines,’ and there are going to be some larger particles we call ‘boulders,’ and a whole bunch of particles in the middle that are going to be the size you want.”

Even the best burr grinders will produce some fines and boulders, but good grinders will yield a lot fewer of them, and the ones at the right size will be more consistently shaped, too. And that makes for better coffee. The short explanation, said Rao, is that fines will brew too quickly and thus too long, giving you the bitter, astringent, tannic flavors of over-extracted coffee. Boulders brew too slowly and thus not long enough, giving you the weak, or even sour, flavors of under-extracted coffee.

If you’re currently using a subpar grinder—especially a budget, blade-style grinder—our testing shows that by switching to a quality burr grinder, you’ll significantly improve the flavor of your coffee. Make your brew with properly ground beans—as in, beans ground to a consistent shape and size—and you’ll easily detect a difference in aromatics and complexity of flavor, in sweetness and acidity, and even in the coffee’s texture and body. A good grinder can have a tremendous positive effect on your brew, whether you brew mail-order single estate beans with a Hario V60 and a precision scale or use your supermarket’s blend with an automatic drip machine.

The consistency of the grind is so important to Kyle Ramage, a coffee roaster and award-winning barista (who has also worked with a professional grinder manufacturer), that he recommends you just buy coffee ground-to-order from a high-quality source rather than use a blade or bad burr grinder. You might lose some complexity and aromatics with pre-ground coffee, he said, but you won’t get bad, off flavors.

“If you use a really bad grinder at home, you’re not going to get the expression of that coffee even close to what you’d get at the café,” he told us. “Grinding it at the café and bringing it home is still better.” (A grinder at a good local café should be ideal, he says, but not those at a supermarket, since just one batch of chemically flavored coffee beans can flavor a grinder for life.)

Our testing shows that by switching to a quality burr grinder, you will significantly improve the flavor of your cup.

A good-quality burr grinder also gives you options. You can bring home one bag of coffee, and then perfectly grind the beans to various sizes for a broad range of brewing devices and styles. Burr grinders can grind coarsely enough for a traditional French press or cold-brew batch, but they can also do a medium grind for drip and a medium-fine grind for pour-over. You can also make finer adjustments in each of these categories, to see exactly which size grind you prefer most for which method. In fact, after many hours of taste-testing, we can’t stress enough how even small variations in grind size can make a huge difference in flavor.

A good grinder will help you graduate to the next level in your coffee routine. Once you know the grind is consistent, you can experiment to find your ideal brewing time or dose weight (aka the ratio of beans to water). And you’ll know for sure whether you prefer Indonesian coffee more than French roast, or French press coffee more than drip.

The one thing the grinders in this guide aren’t great for is making espresso. Our picks will grind your coffee fine enough to make a shot with a pressurized machine or a stovetop brewer. But to make the best espresso, you need to pay more for a machine that’s designed to produce the necessary finer, precise grounds, and to allow for small adjustments at the finer end of your grinding range. We have recommendations in our guide to espresso machines and gear, but they’re really only worth the extra 200 to 300 if you’re serious about making espresso at home.

How we picked

We rated electric burr grinders first and foremost on the quality and consistency of their grind, the number-one thing a good grinder must do well. But there are other features and factors to consider, like how easy the machine is to use and how long it lasts. A good grinder should be simple to operate, maintain, and clean, and it should last for years, with proper maintenance. These and other features are explained in more detail below.

Build quality

The quality of a grinder’s burr set will affect everything from how consistently it grinds to how long it lasts, though ideally you should also be able to replace the burrs when they do wear out. Burr sets—they have two pieces, a top and a bottom, which work a little like teeth—can be made of steel (or sometimes ceramic or plastic, which are not ideal and not currently a part of any machine we considered), and they come in a variety of widths and configurations. Some machines have burrs that are off the shelf, so to speak, while other companies spend the time to design their own, with the hopes that their teeth and grooves more perfectly cut beans into consistent pieces. There are also burr sizes—the wider the burr, the faster it will grind; in this guide, the burrs in most of the best electric machines hover around 40 millimeters in width, while manual burrs are often slightly smaller. Steel burrs, some coated with various other metals, are the most common, and are durable and easy to maintain, and they can be cleaned with a stiff wire brush.

From top left, the top part of the burr set from Zwilling, Smeg, and OXO. They all appear to have the same design, though Zwilling’s was a few millimeters smaller. Photo: Rachel Wharton

The OXO top burr (left) and the Smeg (right) appear to be identical, except for their color and a few markings on the edge. Photo: Rachel Wharton

From top left, the top part of the burr set from Zwilling, Smeg, and OXO. They all appear to have the same design, though Zwilling’s was a few millimeters smaller. Photo: Rachel Wharton

The quality of the machine and the motor is also important. A machine with a smaller or cheaper motor (and often a lower-quality block burr) can add unwanted heat to the beans, and may be at risk of burning out sooner, because it has to work harder to grind. It also has a harder time pulling beans through the burrs. A poorly built machine also grinds less consistently, because the burrs may wobble or slip slightly out of alignment. This shouldn’t be an issue with any of our picks.

Grind settings

Most electric burr grinders have a range of numerical size selections—designed to grind beans anywhere from very fine, for a Moka pot or an espresso machine, to very coarse, for making cold brew or French press coffee.

There are two types of grind settings: stepped and stepless. Most home burr grinders are stepped—you pick a preset number on a dial. With a stepless grinder, there are numbers, but you can also select any point in between those numbers, which means you can tinker endlessly with the size of your grinds. For obsessive coffee drinkers, this is great. But with a stepless grinder, if you change the grind setting at all (for example, if you like to switch between coffee-brewing methods), it’s not easy to repeat the optimal settings for your daily brews. For this guide, we decided the ideal grinder is a stepped model with plenty of range and clear markings between each step, so that it’s easy to go back to your favorite setting.

All grinders include starter guides to grind size in their manuals. But a few offer easy visual clues on the machines themselves as to where on the dial the starting points for various brew methods fall. These clues can be helpful at first (a “medium” or “drip” grind setting is rarely halfway between the finest and the coarsest grind), but they’re not essential. Your grinder’s definition of an ideal Chemex or French press grind may not match up with your own, and even grinders from the same maker vary slightly. As we already mentioned, even small variations in grind size make a big difference: Be sure to experiment with your grinder to find the best-tasting setting, instead of taking the grinder’s recommendations as gospel.

Repairs and maintenance

With proper maintenance, a good grinder should last you many years. To maintain your grinder, it’s essential to be able to easily clean inside the burr chamber. This is especially true if you have a taste for oilier, darker-roast, or even flavored coffees. Those beans leave more of a residue, which you need to remove occasionally (every few weeks, for oily beans) for peak flavor and grinder performance. In our tests we looked for machines that had easily removable parts—particularly around the burr set—to allow for regular cleaning and, if necessary, replacement. (With normal use, a good set of burrs could last for a decade before needing to be replaced.)

We chose grinders with easily accessible, transparent customer service in the United States. Being able to replace all kinds of parts—such as the entire burr set (not just the top), the bins, and even the motor—is also a plus.

Price

After years of testing grinders, we’ve learned that a good electric grinder currently costs at least 100. Even our budget pick doesn’t dip below that price, except during occasional sales. We know that it still may be a tough sell for those who don’t consider themselves major coffee geeks, but we think spending more is well worth it for most coffee drinkers—whether that worth is measured in more cups made at home, fewer dead grinders sent to the landfill, or just added daily pleasure from making your own delicious coffee.

If price is an issue, you can also look online for a used Baratza grinder. Because Baratza grinders are so durable and repairable, used ones are a pretty safe bet, and you may be able to find a good deal (we’ve seen refurbished Encores going for around 100). You might also consider our manual hand grinder pick.

If you don’t want to spend at least 100 for an electric grinder or use a manual grinder, you might also consider getting your coffee ground-to-order from your local roaster or café. As we mentioned previously, barista Kyle Ramage says that you’re better off getting your coffee pre-ground with an excellent burr grinder than using a blade grinder or even a cheaper burr grinder every day. You lose a little complexity, he notes, but you don’t get the bad, off-flavors that come with an inconsistent grind.

Dosage measurements

Some grinders come with features that allow you to easily grind the same amount of coffee—known as the dose—each time, so you don’t have to measure the beans before or after you grind them. (This means you could just store your beans in the grinder’s hopper, even though most experts don’t recommend it, as they’re more exposed to light and air.)

Some machines do this with a timer, so you can set them to grind for, say, 15 or 30 seconds, yielding about the same amount of ground coffee each time, especially if you’re always using the same kind of beans. Some timers are analog, and some are digital, measuring by the tenth of a second, for even greater accuracy. Still other grinders have seemingly fancier methods of measuring preset dosage amounts; these allow you to choose how many cups you’re grinding for or program your own presets. And some grinders come with an integrated scale, so you can weigh out the beans before you grind them.

Machines without these timers, scales, or presets require you to measure the beans yourself. Although it’s nice not to have to take that extra step, it’s also not a huge inconvenience to do so, and many people who invest in a daily coffee routine are already doing this. The most precise way to measure coffee is to weigh it because beans are not all the same shape, size, or density. (If you need a scale, we recommend the American Weigh Scales LB-3000.) Dosage measurement usually adds 100 or more to a machine and has varying degrees of precision or usefulness. It also adds an extra potential point of failure to your grinder.

Messiness

Every electric burr grinder will create some static or mess, and that’s normal. (If this is your number one issue, you might consider a manual grinder; they’re less messy and also easier to use over a sink or a trash can.) This can vary depending on a number of external factors: a room’s humidity, the type and age of the coffee you’re grinding, the grind setting, whether your machine has a flat or conical burr, and even what kind of surface your grinder sits on. Dry environments produce more static, and lighter roasts produce more chaff than darker, oily ones do.

Some grinders do make claims about using special types of glass, magnets or metal to reduce static electricity. (For those who have an ongoing problem with static cling, prevailing wisdom says to wait a few minutes before removing the grounds chamber from the grinder, allowing the dust to settle, as it were.) And some grinders seem to be noticeably messier than others. Their burrs constantly drop grounds—no matter how hard you work to clean the machine. Or it’s hard to get the chaff and fine particles out of the bin or drawer that collects the coffee grounds.

What about hand grinders?

The top-ranked manual grinders, those with the broadest range, best design and most precision, are still more expensive than our budget pick, but there are now at least a few options at the lower end that produce excellent results.

Manual grinders are also great for travel, as a backup if you don’t have electricity, or if you are trying to be extra quiet in the morning. (No motor means no noise! We’ve found them to be less messy in our testing, too.) And they’re a great option for people who have a small, already-cluttered kitchen or those who generally make only a cup or two at a time. With that in mind, for this guide we wanted to recommend a good-quality manual grinder that a) cost less than our electric grinder budget pick, b) was small enough to carry in a purse or backpack, and c) was also comfortable enough, and good enough, to use as your everyday grinder for various brew methods.

Still, for the vast majority of households, manual grinders are probably too small or impractical for everyday use. It’s not impossible to wake up and grind your own beans every morning before work (one of this guide’s writers, Rachel Wharton, uses a manual grinder herself), but it’s important to know that it takes a little more time (and elbow grease) than you would need using an electric grinder, especially if you are making a big pot of coffee. And if you have any issues with upper body mobility, they’re simply not a good option.

With a manual hand grinder, features are also minimal: You can grind only about 18 to 35 grams at a time. And with most of the hand grinders we tested, you adjust the size of the grind by turning a knob connected to the burr set, which opens or tightens it as you click. While more expensive manual grinders usually have numbers on this knob, lower cost manual grinders usually require that you take note of your selected settings, usually something like 14 clicks past zero for a medium grind or 18 clicks above zero for a French press grind. (This sounds complicated at first, but it is not very hard to master, especially if you’re the only one using it every day.)

How we tested

For the 2022 update, we wanted to revisit all our top picks from the previous guide to see what might have changed, test two new electric burr grinders on the market and compare them against our picks, and check back in on the cult favorite Fellow Ode, which had just been released around the time of our last update.

For the two newcomers, we first did a series of initial tests to see how their build and grind quality might perform against our top picks, and whether they needed to move to more advanced testing described below. This included grinding several hundred grams of dark and medium roasted coffee at various settings on each machine, and a visual test of grounds at various grind sizes to look at grind shape and consistency. We also took the machines apart to inspect the burr size and complexity in comparison to our top picks. Then, even though neither machine came close to our picks, we also used a Kruve coffee sifter and guide—-designed to help coffee professionals identify target-size grounds—to confirm this impression. We also used these machines to make several cups of coffee.

This work builds on the extensive research and test plans we created for previous guides. For the 2021 update, we narrowed down a long list of new electric and manual grinders that had hit the market since prior tests, when we first settled on the Baratza and OXO models as our picks. With our 15 test models, we began with a visual evaluation of grounds from each machine to check a grinder’s range and to look at grind shape and consistency. For each machine, we considered the following: Are there obvious large coffee particles (boulders) and small particles (fines)? How fine does the grinder really go? And how well does it handle a coarse grind (something that’s usually inconsistent in lesser-quality machines)? For each machine, we ground coffee at the finest setting, the coarsest setting, and at the recommended setting for a medium grind.

To find the right grind setting on each machine for a taste test, and to test for grind-size consistency, we used the Kruve coffee sifter and guide. The sifter works by separating boulders and fines into separate compartments; grounds at the ideal size are left in between. With each grinder, we used the Kruve tools to calibrate a medium-fine grind for drip coffee, and later to visually quantify which machines had the most grounds in the target range. In other words, with better machines, you should see fewer fines and boulders and more grounds that are in your target range.

Once we separated boulders and fines, we were able to see how many of those boulders were extra-large or odd-shaped, which can also affect the way coffee tastes. (Kyle Ramage said he worries more about there being too many boulders than too many fines, partly because fines are inevitable as brittle beans are jostled or ground, and partly because he thinks boulders are what really muddy the flavor of the coffee.)

Then we twice brewed coffee from each grinder on an 8-cup Bonavita Connoisseur brewer, a pick in our guide to coffee makers that’s known to make great-tasting drip coffee. For all of the above tests, we used the same medium-roasted coffee we’ve used in the past: the Fast Forward blend from Counter Culture.

We also did further testing with La Colombe’s darker Phocea roast (which is no longer available) and the lightly roasted, natural sun-dried Jabanto beans from Counter Culture, to see how our recommended machines handled a range of beans. (This is especially important for some low-cost manual grinders, as certain roasts can be noticeably hard to crank through.)

During the grinding process, we timed how fast each grinder was at different settings, as well as how easy each was to use and clean. We also paid attention to ancillary issues such as whether the machines were especially large (could they fit under upper cabinets?) or noisy (all electric ones are, but some are more elegant about it than others). And we looked at whether they were especially slow or fast or made a bigger mess than others. We also kept an eye out for potential durability issues, weaknesses in workmanship, and excessive messiness.

In original tests of the Baratza and OXO grinders in 2017, we also had access to professionally trained palates and a suite of brewing and analytical equipment at the Counter Culture Coffee lab in New York City. There, we used a refractometer to measure the extraction percentage (essentially, how much coffee you get from the coffee grounds) and total dissolved solids (TDS), based on the light refracted by the particles within the coffee. These measurements told us how much of the coffee was dissolved into the water, and thus how successful the extraction of the grinds was. (A well-extracted cup of coffee should measure between 18% to 22% extraction on a refractometer.)

Because we were able to at the time, we also compared the grinds from a professional-grade Mahlkönig EK43 grinder (3,150 at the time of writing), a model frequently found in specialty cafés. We visually evaluated the EK43’s grinds, and we used the Kruve sifters to see which home machine could best replicate the EK43’s consistency. We also ground coffee with a simple Krups blade grinder to see what the opposite end of the spectrum looked like.

Equally important, the Counter Culture team taught us that no professional tool was as accurate as a trained palate when it comes to determining over- and under-extraction. The last step was to have their professionally trained team taste the coffee made with each grinder.

Coffee ground in the Baratza Encore (on a slightly finer setting than on the Mahlkönig EK43). Photo: Michael Hession

Our pick: Baratza Encore

The best coffee grinder

This all-around workhorse grinder produces the consistent grind required to brew delicious coffee, and it doesn’t cost a fortune.

Buying Options

At the time of publishing, the price was 135.

Year after year in our taste tests, the trim Baratza Encore performs as well as or better than any other home grinder, and it’s priced lower than other machines of a comparable quality. Most reviewers like to refer to the Encore as Baratza’s entry-level grinder, but we think that’s selling it short. It’s the most affordable grinder Baratza sells, but it’s also a workhorse, and it could easily be the only grinder you’ll ever need. The Encore grinds beans quickly and evenly for every application, apart from advanced espresso making, and it’s simple to use and adjust. It’s also easy to clean, maintain, and repair, which means it could last for decades.

Although even the most consistent burr grinder will produce at least some particles that are smaller and larger than you’d like, we found that the Encore performed incredibly well at grinding evenly. When we used a Kruve sifter set to measure the amount of oversize and undersize particles created on a medium grind setting, the two Baratza machines (the Encore and the Virtuoso, our upgrade pick) were the best in their price ranges at hitting the target. In our original coffee lab trials, only the professional-grade Mahlkönig EK43 yielded a more uniform grind than Baratza’s machines.

As expected, the grinders that produced the most consistent grinds also produced the best-tasting coffee, both in our own hands-on testing and with our 2017 professional tasting panel. These results were corroborated by Counter Culture’s coffee refractometer. In our previous tests, the coffee brewed with the Baratza Encore had the best extraction percentage of all grinders we examined—19.53%, right in the middle of the ideal range of 18% to 22%. (The Virtuoso came in a very close second.)

When the Encore was on a medium setting, it took us about 35 to 40 seconds to grind 68 grams of medium-grind coffee appropriate for filter brewing—in other words, it took less than a minute to grind enough for a pot of coffee, on a par with other grinders we tested.

The Encore also fell in the medium range for noise: It wasn’t significantly quieter or louder than most other grinders we’ve tested, but it did have a more pleasant sound, as opposed to a high whine or an ugly chug. In the past, it was just a little louder than the OXO, our budget pick. Baratza had told us they made improvements to the gearbox to bring the noise level in newer machines down, so for this update, we tested the most current version of the Encore side by side with the old version using the CDC-approved NIOSH Sound Level Meter app for the iPhone. We found that the newest version is quieter than the old version by a few decibels when both are running empty, but also that the pitch of the motor is now even lower, and even more pleasant-sounding.

We also tested the most current version of the Encore against the most current version of the OXO using the NIOSH app. We learned that the Encore is now slightly quieter than the OXO when the machines are running empty (by about 5 decibels), but slightly louder than the OXO (by about 2 decibels) when the two machines are actively processing beans. But the sound of the Encore is still more pleasant to our ears by far, even a bit louder.

The Encore doesn’t have the bells and whistles of a lot of other machines—it doesn’t have a scale, a timer, or any other dials other than a push-down pulse button and an on/off switch. But we found this made it supremely easy to produce a great cup of coffee. To adjust grind size, you turn the hopper to the preferred tick mark on the base (measured in numbered intervals from 0 to 40, with 40 being the coarsest), so you can quickly move from setting to setting and remember your preferences. In contrast with many entry-level machines, the Encore and the Virtuoso tend to have a broader grinding range, which is desirable—you want as broad a range as possible, especially if you regularly use different brewing methods. The Encore’s range is more than sufficient for the average home coffee drinker and the budding enthusiast.

Most other machines we tested—like the Breville, the KitchenAid, and the Cuisinart CBM-20—offer more features. But they were confusing to use and took longer to calibrate, with dials and digital settings that were unintuitive, inaccurate or overly detailed for most users. For example, the Breville has 60 grind settings and a timer that measures fractions of seconds; the KitchenAid lets you set the number of cups and type of brewing method, which is confusing if you don’t fully understand your coffee machine’s interpretation of the word cup. What’s more, if you want to adjust your approach to make a better cup of coffee, you have to play around with multiple variables that can actually mask the changes you’re making.

Baratza has a great reputation among customers and coffee professionals for durability and customer service. Almost every part of the Baratza grinder is repairable or replaceable, which is rare among grinders designed for home use, and the company has detailed video guides for many fixes.

None of the coffee veterans we spoke with were very surprised that Baratza’s grinders came out on top over and over again. Baratza is a coffee grinder company—this is the only thing it does.

If your machine does break after the warranty’s up, and MacGyver isn’t your middle name, you can still send the Encore to the company for repairs, which amounts to cleaning, recalibration, testing, replacing all worn or broken parts except for burrs, return shipping, and a six-month warranty. (Repairs used to cost a flat 45, but after the large kitchenware company Breville bought Baratza, the policy changed: You now have to fill out a form for a repair quote. Previously, a Baratza spokesperson had said there would be no changes for the company, service, or warranties—because this does constitute a change, we’ll continue to monitor the repair process and service.)

The Encore—like all Baratza grinders—is covered by a limited one-year warranty, provided that you keep up regular maintenance and cleaning and don’t use the machine to grind rocks. To clean or even repair the machine, you just twist off the hopper and remove the top burr. And when it’s time to replace the burr set (which the manufacturer recommends after you grind 500 to 1,000 pounds of coffee), you can easily order the parts from Baratza’s website.

In recent years, Baratza has also tried to make the Encore even more user-friendly: The company modernized the body shape, and it now sells a single-dose hopper that lets you use the lid to measure out beans with a scale. You can get 6 kits to customize your grinder with color accents, and you can even upgrade to the slightly better burr set in the Virtuoso for just 35 at the time of writing. Or you can add 10 extenders to the hopper so it holds more beans.

This single-dose hopper for the Encore is sold separately, but it’s handy if you like to weigh your beans before grinding them. Photo: Michael Hession

You can weigh beans out into the lid of the single-dose hopper before dumping them into the machine. Photo: Michael Hession

Baratza sells kits that allow you to customize your grinder with a couple of colorful accents. Photo: Michael Hession

This single-dose hopper for the Encore is sold separately, but it’s handy if you like to weigh your beans before grinding them. Photo: Michael Hession

Ultimately, none of the coffee veterans we spoke with were very surprised that Baratza’s Encore and Virtuoso (our current upgrade pick) grinders came out on top over and over again. Baratza is a coffee grinder company—this is the only thing it does, unlike the majority of other companies whose electric grinders we tested.

How the Baratza Encore has held up

Lesley Stockton, Wirecutter senior staff writer, has had her Encore for 10 years and uses it to brew both espresso and drip coffee. She had to replace the plastic holder on the upper burr but says it was a “relatively cheap and easy fix.” She also told us, “The Encore isn’t quite as fast as the Virtuoso that the Wirecutter staff uses in our office kitchen, but having the means to make delicious coffee at home is the most important thing for me, and the Encore definitely delivers that!”

Wirecutter writer James Austin has had his Encore for about five years, and even though he didn’t clean it for more than a year (we don’t recommend this!), he said it still handles “both small daily grinds for my Chemex and really big grinds for when I make a big batch of cold brew” without issue.

Meanwhile, senior staff writer Dave Gershgorn has owned his Encore for four years, and it’s still going strong—and he bought his used.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The Encore doesn’t allow for a timed grind like the Baratza Virtuoso. This means you have to measure the beans before or after grinding in some way—with a scale, a scoop, by eye, or your own preferred method. But considering that many of us do that when we make coffee anyway (and this is considered the most precise way to make coffee), we don’t consider this to be a big deal. A timer would also allow you to turn on the machine and walk away, knowing the machine would stop at a certain point; this is convenient but not essential, since grinding enough coffee for a full pot usually takes less than a minute.

Like many machines, the Encore also takes a long time to grind on a very fine, espresso-like setting. But we don’t recommend this machine for serious espresso makers, because its range on the fine end just isn’t nuanced enough to allow you to really refine a shot, and it wasn’t designed for espresso grinding. (In late 2022, Baratza will release a version of the Encore designed for espresso––it will have more settings for fine grinding, and its gearbox is specifically designed for the slower grinding speeds espresso requires.)

The hopper has no closure at the bottom. So if you store your beans in the hopper, and then want to remove those beans for any reason (to, say, switch to decaf beans or a different roast), you’ll have to invert the entire grinder over a bowl to empty it out, or just grind through what’s left. (Some coffee grinders, like those from OXO, Smeg, and Zwilling, allow you to adjust the hopper before removing it so that you can move it with the beans inside.) If you don’t usually store beans in the hopper or if you always use the same kind of beans, this isn’t a big deal.

You will have to put the burrs and a rubber gasket in place before you use the machine for the first time, as well as take them back out to clean the machine when that time comes. But this task is not terribly difficult, especially once you’ve learned how to do it. The Encore can also be messy—both the Encore and the Virtuoso throw off more chaff and stray grounds than our budget pick, the OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder. Some people suggest workarounds, like gently slapping the hopper’s lid before you remove the bin or even better, placing the machine on a tray. But no method of making coffee is completely mess-free, so this isn’t a dealbreaker.

We also feel duty bound to address the fact that the Encore is not one of the most cutting edge in terms of external design, which is a bit of a bummer. Most of us like the things that live on our counter to look great, and it’s hard to pass up a grinder in a cool pastel color or sleek shape for the humble rectangle and triangle of the Baratza. But we’d rather you have a machine that can make you better tasting coffee for up to a decade instead of one that’s mere eye candy.

Upgrade pick: Baratza Virtuoso

Slightly better grind, more features

For a steeper price, the Virtuoso has everything we like about the Encore in terms of reliability and consistent grind size, plus a few improved features.

Buying Options

If you’re willing to pay more, the Baratza Virtuoso is similar to the Encore in shape and size, yet it has a faster, slightly different burr set, a digital timer, and a heavier, mostly metal base, which gives it a higher-end look and feel. It also has a light that lets you clearly see the level of grounds in the bin, which is a nice addition, especially if you grind a lot of beans at once.

The Virtuoso has a slightly broader grind-size range, can grind a little finer, and has fewer small particles at most grind sizes. These are small enough differences that many coffee drinkers may not notice them. But the added digital timer is accurate to a tenth of a second, and it saves the time you’ve set it to—so you can grind the same amount of coffee each morning with almost no effort or measuring. You can also set the Virtuoso to grind a lot of coffee, and then walk away from the machine, knowing it will stop on its own—very useful for anyone who’s a morning multitasker.

Like with the Encore, you can also add a single-dose hopper that lets you use the lid to measure out beans with a scale or add 10 extenders to the hopper so that it can store a whole bag of beans (the hopper that comes with the grinder holds about 8 ounces, or half a pound/225 grams).

Still, we think this model is worth the extra investment only for more-serious coffee lovers, or those who think the timer will improve their day-to-day experience. And we’d still recommend the Virtuoso rather than other grinders with similar time-saving features for around the same price—the others we tested couldn’t beat the grind consistency, breadth, and ease of use of either Baratza.

LED lighting illuminates the grounds bin, so you can see how much coffee you’ve ground. Photo: Michael Hession

The timer on the Virtuoso does make the grinder a little less straightforward to use than the Encore, especially if you’re not using the timer to grind the same amount every day. Unlike the Encore, the Virtuoso doesn’t have a simple on/off button that you can just hold down to grind manually. Instead, you have to hold down the timer dial button for three seconds to activate the Pulse Mode; to deactivate the Pulse Mode, you spin the dial.

The dial is also a little finicky. It’s designed to increase the timer by whole seconds when you spin it clockwise and to decrease the timer by one-tenth of a second when you spin it counterclockwise. If you spin the timer dial too fast, it will jump around, which can be frustrating. If you pause in the middle of grinding—by hitting the dial button—the dial stays stuck wherever you paused it. You have to either start and stop the machine again manually or wait 30 seconds for it to switch back to the set time, at which point you can adjust accordingly again.

Like all of Baratza’s grinders, almost every part of the machine is repairable or replaceable, which is rare among grinders designed for home use. Just like the Encore, the Virtuoso comes with a limited one-year warranty. And beyond that, you can still send the machine back to Baratza for repairs. To clean or even repair the machine yourself, you just twist off the hopper and remove the top burr. (Repairs used to cost a flat 45, but after Baratza was acquired by the large kitchenware company Breville, the policy changed: You now have to fill out a form for a repair quote. We’re continuing to monitor the repair process and service.)

Budget pick: OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder

A good-enough grinder

This compact grinder is easy to use and has a wider range than most budget grinders, but it’s a bit less consistent than our top picks and less repairable.

Buying Options

For those willing to trade a little consistency and longevity for convenience—or those who simply don’t want to spend more than 100—we recommend the OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder. Though it doesn’t grind as well as the Baratza Encore or the Virtuoso in terms of range or consistency, the OXO is a very capable grinder with very good grind quality and a simple, intuitive design. It’s a great machine for an average person’s daily pot of drip or French press coffee. It also comes with many nice features that can make grinding coffee to order more convenient, like a timer and an extra-large hopper that holds a whole 12-ounce bag of coffee and is easily removable even when filled with beans.

The OXO’s burr sets are also slightly faster (grinding 10 grams more than the Encore in 15 seconds) and just a little bit quieter than those of the Baratza machines when grinding through beans—though the motor sound is a little higher and whinier. While these variations in speed and sound don’t make a huge difference in our testing, they might be very important in your own household.

Grind consistency at medium grind settings was close to—but not on a par with—that of our top picks, especially at the high and low end of its range. The OXO’s coarsest grind was the least consistent and full of boulders. And the machine wasn’t able to grind quite as fine as that of our top picks. That this grinder did well with consistency in our medium-grind tests didn’t surprise coffee expert Kyle Ramage, who told us that OXO had been working to improve and refine its coffee-related equipment in recent years.

The range of grinds, from coarsest (top) to finest (bottom) produced by the Baratza Encore (left), OXO Brew (center), and Capresso Infinity (our former budget pick, right). Photo: Sarah Kobos

The coarsest grind the OXO can produce (far left) is very coarse, though somewhat uneven. The finest grind (far right) is not quite fine enough for espresso. Photo: Sarah Kobos

In comparison to the range of grinds produced by the OXO (previous slide), the Capresso’s range is much narrower. The coarsest grind isn’t wildly different from medium, though the Capresso (our former budget pick) can grind a bit finer than the OXO. Photo: Sarah Kobos

The range of grinds, from coarsest (top) to finest (bottom) produced by the Baratza Encore (left), OXO Brew (center), and Capresso Infinity (our former budget pick, right). Photo: Sarah Kobos

Unlike those on many coffee grinders, the markers on this machine are easy to use—the timer times (more or less) in actual seconds marked, and the grind setting markers offer a wide span of small, easy-to-read increments, making tiny adjustments uncomplicated.

The OXO Brew’s grinds canister is also a huge improvement over the one on OXO’s more expensive grinder with an integrated scale, which we quickly disqualified for spraying coffee all over the counter. The OXO Brew’s canister sits snugly below the exit chute, neatly catching all of the grounds, and the shape makes it super-easy to pour fresh-ground coffee into your filter.

Senior editor Marguerite Preston used the OXO grinder at home for about two years before switching to the Baratza Encore. (She switched because she found a Baratza for free on the street, but otherwise, she would have happily continued using the OXO.) She had only one issue with the OXO, after grinding a lot of oily beans on a very hot and humid day, and after a year of use. “The OXO totally clogged up on me, to the point where it couldn’t grind anything,” she said, but she fixed the problem by taking out the burr and cleaning it and the clogged chute with a stiff brush.

Alejandra Matos, a former deputy audience director with Wirecutter, also had many issues with her chute and grinder clogging after using darker-roasted, oily beans. The clogging occurred despite regular cleanings, and sometimes she found the beans would get stuck in the hopper, too. “The problem is so regular that I now recognize the sound of when the grinder is on but not grinding beans,” she said, “I have to constantly give it a shake, and even that doesn’t work at times.” Since her grinder was still within its two-year warranty when this happened, she called OXO, and the company offered to send a new machine, and she also switched to a lighter roast.

Also great: Timemore Chestnut C2 Manual Coffee Grinder

Portable, consistent, and easy to use (albeit more labor-intensive)

For those who want an affordable yet high-quality portable hand grinder, the Timemore Chestnut C2 is the best in its class for speed, ease of grinding, and consistency.

Buying Options

If you’re looking for a reasonably priced, high-quality and portable hand grinder, we recommend the Timemore Chestnut C2 Manual Coffee Grinder. It was by far the easiest to use of all the manual grinders we tested in this price range, easily beating the Porlex Mini, a small manual grinder that many coffee lovers already travel with. For about the same price, the C2 is easier to use and has a better burr and a more stable design – it also makes better-tasting coffee.

The C2 is a tube-shaped grinder, only slightly wider and taller than the Porlex Mini—it’s 5 ¾ inches tall and weighs 1 pound. The pebbled texture of the model we tested also make this grinder easy to grip. (You can find the C2 in steel, cream, and some primary colors; it also comes in smooth matte white.)

The C2 did well in our grind consistency tests, because it uses a custom-designed steel conical burr, rather than the ceramic burrs common in the Porlex and many other lower-cost manual grinders. Like the Porlex, the C2 has a handle that pops off in a second, making it easy to pack.

An even bigger draw is this manual grinder’s ultra-smooth grinding action. With most coffees, the C2’s handle spins with almost no resistance, making this model almost a pleasure to use, after trying the other manual grinders. To grind about 25 to 30 grams of coffee—the max that fits in the hopper at one time—it took us between 1 and 2 minutes.

Timemore has been making high-end manual grinders for several years, which have earned strong reviews from coffee experts. With the C2, their budget grinder, the company purposefully sought to bring the price well under 100. It did this by using PCTG plastic, rather than steel, in some of the interior pieces that hold the burr mechanism together, by skipping some of the higher-end finishes, and by using a burr set that is less complex than their high end models. The C2 is made of a thick, sturdy aluminum alloy metal, rather than the glass or plastic of many other low-cost manual machines, and it includes a one-year warranty.

Unlike many other low-cost manual grinders, the new Timemore Chestnut C2 makes easy work of grinding a cup or two of great-tasting coffee.

There are many reasons we don’t recommend a hand grinder as an everyday tool for everybody. But there are times when a good, under 100 manual grinder is just the thing: when you aren’t preparing very much coffee every day, when you’re traveling to a coffee-shop-free location, or when you’re on a road trip or spending a few days in the great outdoors, or when you have a small kitchen or lack a lot of outlets on your countertops. (They also are quiet, and much less messy, which might be important factors for many people.)

With the C2, the grind adjustment dial has only dots, not numbers. With most hand grinders, you adjust the size of the grind by turning a knob inside the grinder that is connected to the top or bottom of the burr set. expensive manual grinders usually have numbers on this knob, just like an electric grinder. With dots, you just have to take note of your selected settings—how many dots past zero is the setting you want. (Grinders make an audible click when you hit a dot, so technically this is more like how many clicks past zero.) Since this is common with grinders in this price range, we don’t consider it a dealbreaker, and in our experience it is not that hard to use—if you take notes about which settings work best. And if you’re just making the same kind of coffee every day, you’ll rarely need to adjust it.

As of this update, there is also a slightly larger size of the C2 – the C2 Max – that is an inch taller than the C2 and holds about 5 grams more beans. (It might not sound like much, but given that the average serving of coffee is 10 grams, the C2 Max might give you three cups at a time, instead of two and a half.) The C2 Max is usually about 20 to 40 more than the C2. In testing, we found we still prefer using the C2 and just refilling it if needed, because it was easier to hold. If you have larger hands, the C2 Max might be perfect for you.

If you’re thinking about buying the C2, you should know that Timemore is in the process of phasing out the C2 and C2 Max for the C3 and C3 Max, which will have the same body with a new burr set that is sharper and better designed based on the one in their higher-end models. Today, the price of the C2 models are lower than they were when we originally recommended them in 2021, making them an even better choice for someone who wanted a very good burr grinder for less than 100. That’s one reason we’d still recommend the C2. The other reason is that while C3 models appear to be already available on Amazon from the company, which is based in Shanghai, when we’ve spoken to distributors and retailers based in the United States, they don’t yet have them in stock. These companies can more easily handle returns or requests for spare parts, and usually have the manuals translated into English. For now it’s hard to communicate with the company through their Amazon page if either of those issues arose. As soon as the C3 is more widely available, we will test it and update this guide.

How the Timemore C2 has held up

“I have the C2 Max manual grinder. I believe the only difference between it and the C2 is the capacity. The grinder is easy to use and produces a consistent and uniform grind. I like the diamond pattern on the surface of the body which makes it non-slippery and easy to grip. I like that the grinder has a wide range of grind adjustments. The only complaint I have after more than a year using it is that the grind adjustment dial does not have any numbers on it to help set it up to the desired grind size.” —Carlos Maldonado, Wirecutter senior web producer, tested from 2020 to 2022

Burr grinders vs. blade grinders

Unlike blade grinders, which randomly blitz coffee beans into smaller and smaller pieces, burr grinders cut coffee beans between a set of two grooved burrs, the same way flour is milled. The space between the two burrs determines the final size of the coffee grounds, so the grounds end up being a much more consistent size than anything buzzed in a blade grinder.

importantly, blade grinders have literally no way to set the grind size for a drip pot over a French press, unlike an electric grinder. You usually end up with a lot of fine powder, some bigger chunks, and (hopefully) some grounds that are the desired size.

Over years of testing, we’ve consistently found that even the casual coffee drinker notices the difference in taste between poorly ground and properly ground coffee. And we’ve heard the same thing from Wirecutter staffers who’ve made the switch to a burr grinder. Yes, good burr grinders cost significantly more than a standard 20 blade grinder, but for those who enjoy coffee, the flavor difference makes the upgrade worth it.

By the way, if you own a blade grinder and are curious about the difference more evenly ground coffee could make—but you’re not ready to spend 100 on a burr grinder—you could also try these tips from YouTube coffee expert James Hoffmann on how to get better results from your blade grinder. Or, you could try getting your coffee ground-to-order from a high-quality cafe.

But what if I still want to use a blade grinder?

We know that some people will stand by their blade grinders and dismiss burr grinders as being pretentious or a waste of money. Though some experts may tell them they’re wrong, we believe that if someone likes the coffee they make with a blade grinder, they don’t need to change things.

That said, if you want to buy a blade grinder, there are a few things to consider. While we haven’t conducted hands-on testing of blade grinders (though we hope to one day!) we know that there are differences in blade shape, size, and sharpness at various price points, so think twice before you just buy the absolute cheapest version you find. You can also choose a traditional barrel grinder or one with a removable cup that lets you wash the blade and the grinds cup. If you ever use your blade grinder to grind spices, the removable cup might be the way to go: Ground spices leave behind aromatic oils that are hard to just wipe away.

Conical vs. flat burr grinders: What’s the difference?

Burr sets in a good grinder are either flat or conical: Flat burr sets consist of two flat, ring-shaped burrs lined with grooves that break up the beans as the burrs press together. Conical burrs are more of a V shape, with the center burr fitting into the outer burr, both of them also lined with sharp-edged grooves that cut up the beans as they press together.

These two types of burrs work in slightly different ways, and you’ll find plenty of experts arguing that one type is slightly better than the other for various reasons, from speed to minimizing heat retention. But the main takeaway for our guide is that both types yield extremely consistent results. Until recently, most home grinders used conical burrs. Flat sets were found mainly in commercial machines (flat burr sets often cost more and tend to collect coffee between their burrs; the coffee then drops all over, which is something that’s easier to overlook in a café). But this is beginning to change.

There is also a cheaper kind of flat burr that is better described as a disc or block burr. This is the kind of burr used in the electric burr grinders that sell for way less than 100. These burr grinders cost less in part because their burr sets aren’t as good as a conical or flat set The rings of these burr sets are lined with knobby protrusions that look more like teeth than sharpened grooves, and they act like teeth, too, chewing and breaking beans instead of cutting them. The result: inconsistent grounds, more fines, and a muddier cup of coffee.

“We call those masticating burrs,” coffee expert Kyle Ramage told us. “In the burr world or coffee world, we kind of ignore those, because they are crazy cheap and not worth having.”

Disc or block burrs are often found in machines with cheaper motors, because the teeth can help break apart the beans with less power They’re also often found in machines that you can’t open to inspect the burr set. With electric burr grinders, said Ramage, there simply aren’t many shortcuts: “Almost every single time you go up in price, you go up in quality.”

Grinder care and maintenance

Regularly cleaning your grinder—not just brushing away coffee but taking out the top burr and gently brushing both sides—can help prevent clogs and maintain the machine’s overall performance. It can also keep your coffee from picking up any off tastes from residual oils or coffee grounds. Kaleena Teoh, a co-founder of Coffee Project NY, taught us that cleaning the drawer is easier if you have a clean rag that is barely damp on one side and bone dry on the other. You wipe the particles away with the barely damp side then use the dry side to fully remove the moisture.

How often does “regularly” mean? Baratza, in a blog post, says that “a reasonable regimen to stick to is a thorough scrubbing of your burrs and grind chamber using the brush that came with your grinder every four to six weeks.” The company also suggests doing this biweekly if you frequently grind dark, oilier roasts. However, several Wirecutter staffers who own and use Baratza grinders at home report cleaning at less frequent intervals—say, every two to three months or every six months—without any noticeable ill effects on their machine’s performance—you just don’t want to let it go for years, because coffee oils will go rancid or stale, and those aromas are nearly impossible to get rid of.

In between deep cleanings, most experts recommend running some Grindz cleaning tablets through your machine about once a month, or when you are switching from one type of bean to another. Although this can’t fully replace a thorough manual cleaning, it can be a quick way to refresh your grinder and remove some of the coffee oil buildup. These tablets are made of grain composites and can leave some dusty residue, which may not fully dissipate on the first one or two grinds after use. Urnex, the company that makes Grindz, claims that its tablets are food-safe and gluten-free, so it’s not the end of the world if you get a few flecks in your cup of Joe, and we’ve had a particle or two in our coffees and lived. (Most experts would tell you to just grind about ¼ cup (30 grams) of beans after you use Grindz and throw them away.) But if you have celiac disease or other specific grain sensitivities, we recommend calling the company for a more detailed breakdown of ingredients.

Other good coffee grinders

If you’re looking for another more-affordable model: The Capresso Infinity was our budget pick before the OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder came along, and it was a fine choice for less than 100. (Its price rose to 115, more than the OXO, but has come back down.) The Infinity did well in our tests, but it’s better at grinding coffee into very fine particles than into coarse ones. And we found its usability to be a bit arbitrary; the numbers on its timer switch indicate the number of cups you want to brew, rather than seconds (this is impractical since the amount of coffee ground in a set period depends on how coarse the grind is, and different brewing methods require different amounts of ground coffee per cup). This grinder has a heavier base than the OXO, as well as a pretty small countertop profile, which may appeal to some. But ultimately, we found the OXO to have a better range, as well as a better set of extra features, like an accurate timer and a removable hopper.

If you need a budget option that’s compact: The Bodum Bistro electric burr grinder is an attractive and inexpensive little machine, often on sale for less than 100. It has a small footprint, a range of color options, and a nice design that matches the look and feel of other Bodum equipment. Its steel conical burr did well in our grind tests, and the grinder was fun to use (though it doesn’t quite have the range or the consistency of the OXO, and the Bistro is an even lighter machine). You can replace some of its components, including the outer burr. It is likely too lightweight for heavy users. But given that some color options are often marked down, this grinder could be a solid budget pick for certain people.

If you’re a filter method enthusiast willing to spend a bit more: You might be interested in the Eureka Mignon Filtro Coffee Grinder. It’s a flat burr machine designed for pour-overs, drip, French press, and other brew methods that use a filter. The Mignon is not a machine for someone who’s just getting into coffee or who makes only a giant pot of coffee for their office each morning. But it might be worth the price (around 200 at this writing) for someone who thinks about drawdown time and owns both a Chemex and a Hario V60. The Mignon produces extremely consistent grinds (and great-tasting coffee) very quickly, creating almost no mess. It is heavier, larger, and louder than every machine we tested (though it has a satisfying purr), and it has a stepless dial with unlimited options for grind size. This requires you to take note of where on the dial you land (it’s marked 1 to 5 only) so you know how to go back to that setting. (It also has a funny box-shaped body and hopper, which is either interestingly modern or ugly, depending on your point of view.) This grinder would likely also be harder to repair or service than the Baratza Virtuoso, since it’s imported from Italy.

If you want to experiment with the hottest pour-over gear: If you follow coffee, then you know that the hottest thing to hit the home-brewing scene in the last few years is the Fellow Ode Brew Grinder, which the boutique coffee company revealed on Kickstarter in 2019. We’ve tested the original Ode, and a slightly updated version with a better burr set, but not their newest release, the Ode Gen 2. The Ode (sold for about 300 at the time of writing) is beautiful—from its custom packaging and handsome, pencil-shaped burr brush to the machine itself. It is ultracompact, and has a superfast flat burr and one large, smooth dial for changing the grind size. This grinder looks fantastic, but is it worth the money? The answer is yes, but only if countertop aesthetics are important to you and your main brew method is a pour-over (or something similar). That’s the particular range of grinds the Ode is designed for. Kaleena Teoh, a co-founder of Coffee Project NY, uses it in her shop for pour-overs, and they also sell the machines. (There is a burr upgrade that gets you even more consistency and a broader range of grinds for pour-overs for about 185 more, but that’s really for Ode super fans or those heavily invested in pour-over tinkering.)

For everyone else, the Ode is probably not worth the cost. Like the Mignon, it can produce great-tasting drip, French press, and cold brew coffee, its hopper won’t hold enough coffee to make coffee for more than two people at a time, and it has an even smaller range of grind sizes, especially on the finer half of the dial. Plus, it doesn’t have a timer or other convenience features. This grinder also has many design issues that should be improved, given that design is part of its appeal. Inside the grounds bin, there are built-in metal wings. These wings make measuring and pouring beans into the hopper easy. But they also make it really hard to actually pour the grinds into your coffee maker, and they make the bin hard to clean. Using this grinder in general was noticeably messy, with grinds falling out of the burrs every time we touched the machine, even after we tried to knock them out with a knocker included for that purpose—though we’ve heard this gets better the more you use the machine. (The one we tested was brand new.)

Wirecutter’s head of photo and video has been using this machine at home since 2021 and has grown to prefer it to his Baratza Virtuoso for pour-overs. Photo: Michael Hession

Michael Hession, Wirecutter’s head of photo and video, has been using this machine since 2021 and has grown to prefer it to his Baratza Virtuoso for pour-overs. It’s just much faster and more pleasant to listen to than the Baratzas. I also like the heavy build of it. It definitely has a limited range, which could be a dealbreaker if you’re experimenting with many different methods, but for my own situation it’s just fine. I have heard some coffee people say it doesn’t grind fine enough even for some light roast pour-overs, but I haven’t experienced that at all.”

If you want an affordable hand grinder that fits inside your AeroPress brewer: The Porlex Mini manual grinder was our top pick for a hand grinder before the Timemore Chestnut C2 came along. The Porlex has a smooth hand-cranking action, a sturdy, stainless steel body, and a ceramic burr. Perhaps most important for many readers who love to camp or travel: It has a built-in rubber Band for storing the handle, fits perfectly inside the chamber of an AeroPress brewer, and costs less than 100.

The competition

101 to 300

The Zwilling Enfinigy Coffee Grinder (which comes in black or silver) actually produces a fairly consistent grind in the medium range that most casual coffee drinkers would need for drip or French press, but this machine felt flimsy and lightweight for its price point (140 at the time of writing). It didn’t grind as well as the cheaper OXO, and our tests revealed it has a similar but slightly smaller burr set—it often struggled to get beans from the hopper through the machine unless you slapped it on the sides and top. This was even worse with a dark roast. It also got (and stayed) noticeably hot while grinding, and once shut down on its own while we were grinding several cups worth of coffee at a time.

The OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder with Integrated Scale looks great on the counter, is able to grind by weight, and has a simple and friendly interface—check out that much-hyped backlit dial! But it has a slightly different design than the lower-cost OXO machine we recommend. And this one disqualified itself almost immediately by spewing seemingly endless coffee chaff all over the countertop every time we used it, thanks to a gap between the chute and the opening of the grounds container. What a mess.

The Cuisinart Deluxe Grind CBM-20 at first seemed promising—if rather large—but its lightweight feel and unintuitive interface quickly became off-putting. Its grind size tended to be coarse, and we found the measurements to be inconsistent. Finally, the upper burr’s handle snapped off in our hands when we tried to remove it for routine maintenance.

We tested the Breville Smart Grinder Pro, intrigued by its encyclopedic list of options and features. But the abundance of settings (timed dosing down to 0.2-second increments, and nearly 60 grind sizes) and complicated digital interface made this grinder difficult to use. It took forever for us to dial in. And perhaps more importantly, our tests produced over-extracted batches each time, which means there are likely too many small particles in the results.

Like the Breville, the KitchenAid Burr Coffee Grinder also came with a vast list of options, boasting 70 different settings. Also like the Breville, those options made this grinder more confusing to use and dial in what you want: You set the brewing method on a slider; then there is a digital interface where you can tinker with a numerical grind size, the number of cups you want to make, and the time to grind. The grind consistency was good (not as good as with the Encore, but not that far behind the OXO). One big flaw is that the plastic used in the bin and hopper feels cheap and has an unattractive gloss (though this grinder does come in a range of colors, which is nice). At 15 inches tall, it’s also the largest machine we tested—and one of the messier ones.

300 to 500

The Smeg CGF01 coffee grinder felt like a tank on our counter, which was reassuring, as usually heavy machines indicate an attention to build quality that results in better coffee. But it had a visibly inconsistent grind at fine, medium, and coarse settings, including lots of the odd-shaped, large pieces that experts told us are the worst offenders when it comes to bad flavors. (This was after seasoning the machine with more than a pound of coffee, to account for inconsistencies in brand new machines.) We wanted to love this grinder, given how many lovely colors it comes in and how handsome it was, but can’t currently recommend it given its lackluster performance and high price, which was 330 at the time of writing. That’s even more than the two specialized pour-over grinders we’d recommend only for those who consider themselves true enthusiasts. Its burr set also looks remarkably similar to the one in the OXO, which is a third of the price and easily outperforms the Smeg.

We had also wanted to test the heavy-duty retro burr grinder from KitchenAid, which is shaped like a professional grinder. It came highly recommended by the coffee experts at Abraço in New York City and is still available online in some places, but the company informed us the model has been discontinued.

Over 500

We also considered upper-level Baratza models, like its Sette grinder. But we ultimately decided the price tag and feature sets were well above what most people need. We think they’re best for those who are interested in making espresso, and we’ve covered some of them in our guide to espresso machines.

Manual grinders

For great manual machines under 100 that you might still be able to use every day, we considered the Handground Precision Manual Coffee Grinder, which has an intriguing design: Shaped like an oversize hourglass with a side-mounted crank arm and a numbered slider for changing grind size, it’s made to sit on the countertop. But the grinder is much larger than it appears in photos and doesn’t seem like it matches up to its promise. The grinder wobbles a bit on the table, and it’s hard to hold and to crank (especially with your left hand). And this model is so large it isn’t even that portable.

The Hario Skerton Pro was also promising, since it was designed to counter the flaws in the original Hario Skerton grinders (which required you to take apart the machine to adjust the grind size and also had issues with wobbling burrs, especially with coarser grind sizes). The Skerton Pro grinder was quickly disqualified because the nonslip rubber bottom came off the glass bin far too easily, and our grind selector slipped out of place on more than one occasion. We also easily dismissed the tiny Hario Mini Mill, which simply takes too long to grind a cup of coffee. Both of these grinders also have ceramic burr sets, which don’t perform as well as metal ones.

What to look forward to

The 300 Wilfa Uniform grinder, which gets good reviews in Europe, will soon be available in the United States, and we look forward to seeing how it compares with our upgrade picks. Fellow has also just released an Ode Gen 2 that (according to a representative) has a larger catch cup for grinds, a larger hopper, a burr that allows for a wider range of grinding, and more features to tamp down on the mess. We’ll be testing the new machine to see if these changes fix the related issues we found in our testing (which many users have complained about).

The OXO grinder has also had small tweaks to both its electrical components and the assembly of its chute, and the Baratza Encore has had an update to its gearbox to reduce noise. We’re testing out the new models and seeing how they perform compared to the old ones, especially given that some users report chute clogging issues with the OXO when they use certain types of coffee.

In the manual category, we hope to add recommendations for some of the more expensive models, whose grind consistency and longevity is on a par with (and possibly better than) electric grinders at the same price point. Many of these models also have larger capacity and more intuitive grind adjustment systems, and some claim to accommodate a broader range of brewing methods, including finer grind adjustments for espresso. There’s also some smaller, higher-end manual grinders that claim to fit into an Aeropress for travel, and we’d like to test them to make sure they do.

This article was edited by Marilyn Ong and Marguerite Preston.

Valve Seat Cutters

Neway offers a wide variety of valve seat cutters to suite all applications. If we don’t already have what you need on the shelf, we can run a custom cutter at the required diameter and angle. We have made cutters to machine valve seats on model airplanes (seat diameter of 3/8″, yes, three eighths of one inch seat diameter) and we make cutters that will machine a bit larger than six inches. Chances are your work falls somewhere in between.

Neway valve seat cutters are not application specific. That is, the cutter does not care if it’s a high performance automotive engine, a vintage motorcycle, or an aircraft head. If the cutter fits, and it’s the correct angle, it’s the right cutter. Our unique carbide blades will machine any valve seat material, from the toughest to the softest.

Neway cutters feature adjustable carbide blades. While the angle is fixed in the tool, the blades adjust inward and outward so that each cutter has its own respective operating range. The operating range is not the same as the blade adjustment range. Blade adjustment range tells us how far out and how far in the blades can reach for a given cutter, but there is more to finding the right cutter size than simply looking at the reach of the blades (more below).

Finding the Right Cutter – Longwinded and Detailed

Whether you’re looking for cutters to do just one valve seat, or putting together a set of cutters to do a range of engines, the process is basically the same: use the valve size(s) to figure out the appropriate cutter diameter(s), and then look for the correct angles.

So how do we use the valve size to find the right sized cutter? It’s easy, use the Find A Cutter search feature. It will generate a short list of cutters whose operating ranges include the valve size you enter.

Cutter Operating Range

A cutter’s operating range takes into account the likelihood that a combustion chamber wall or some other obstruction may interfere with the cutter body (the yellow aluminum part).

Understanding what we mean by operating range is key to finding the right cutter size, so let’s walk through it. We start with the cutter body diameter, this is our reference point (with one exception, the Fixed Blade Mini Cutters. Cutter body diameter is not relevant for this special little group of cutters). When the cutter body diameter is 1-1/4″ or bigger, the blades will adjust outward by 1/8″ which enables the cutter to machine to a diameter 1/4″ bigger than the cutter body. So, for example, if the cutter body is 1-1/2″ the blades can extend out to a diameter of 1-3/4″. This is a general rule of thumb, but it’s relatively accurate.

The inner operating range is a bit trickier to determine. The actual inward adjustment diameter of the blades is only meaningful when we know the cutter body will be able to fit on to the valve seat, so the amount of clearance around the valve seat area tends to be a more important factor than the actual reach of the blades. In most cases there will be some surface of the cylinder head. typically a combustion chamber wall or a cylinder head deck. that will limit the cutter size. After all, it doesn’t matter how far inward the blades can extend if it’s not possible to fit the cutter onto the valve seat.

We have found that 1/8″ (3mm) is a pretty safe figure to use when you’re trying to figure out the inner working range for a cutter. By that we mean there is a very good chance (90%) that the cutter will work even when the valve size is 1/8″ smaller than the cutter body diameter. This is the size difference – 1/8” (3mm). that we use in determining the small side of the operating range. If your particular cylinder head happens to have very generous clearance around the valve seats then you should take that into consideration. It’s quite possible that a cutter that is 5mm or 6mm bigger than the valve could fit just fine if you have plenty of clearance around the seat.

We prefer to use valve size as the reference point because valve size is a term that is clearly understood, whereas valve seat size can mean different things (valve seat insert size? OD of seating surface? ID of seating surface?) The cutter’s operating range is always stated with respect to valve size, as in “cutter CU620 (1-1/2″ diameter) will work on seats where valve sizes range from 1-3/8″ to 1-3/4″ ” So there’s our general rule of thumb that tells you what a cutter can do. Take the cutter body diameter, add 1/4″ and subtract 1/8″ and that’s your general operating range.

When the cutter body is bigger than the valve, the chance of success decreases as the size difference increases. Here are the odds of success when the valve is smaller than the cutter body:

Probability that Cutter Will Fit

Valve is 3mm (about 1/8″) smaller than cutter body 90%
Valve is 4mm (about.150″) smaller than cutter body 70%
Valve is 5mm (about.200″) smaller than cutter body 50%
Valve is 6mm (.236″) smaller than cutter body Less than 50%

These probabilities are not absolute in-stone truth, so please don’t drag us into court over them. Every cutter we make has its own page on this website and both the operating range and the actual blade adjustment range are listed on those pages.

The cutter’s stated operating range has another consideration baked into it. This one has to do with the role of the specific angle in our 3-angle seat (contact angle or narrowing angle). The following example illustrates the point.

Let’s say we have an old air-cooled VW engine and we’re going to cut the following three angles; 15 degrees, 45 degrees, 75 degrees. In the case of the 45 degree seating surface the outer diameter (OD) of that surface will be slightly less than the valve diameter, so any cutter that is capable of reaching out to the same size as the valve would be fine. For the 15 degree top narrowing angle the story is different. In this case we will need a cutter that can cut to a diameter that is slightly larger than the valve size, by some amount (we use 2mm (.080″) as a general guideline). This calculation is wired into the cutter’s operating range. That is, if the blades of a 15 degree cutter will actually reach out to 38mm, the operating range for that cutter will state 36mm as the largest valve.

In most cases you will find that there are two or three different cutter diameters that could work for a given valve size. You will narrow your choices down when you consider the angles that you need.

Single-Sided Cutters vs. Doubled-Sided

As you search through our cutters you will see that we offer both single-sided (one angle only) and double-sided (two-angled) cutters. Double-sided cutters offer the convenience of having two angles on one tool while single-angled cutters make it possible for you to purchase just the angle you need without having to pay for a second angle on the opposing side of the cutter (cutter pricing is based on the quantity of carbide blades on the cutter). Since you will need the ability to cut three angles you may wind up with three single-sided cutters, or one double-sided cutter and one single-sided cutter. It really makes no difference either way, the mission here is simply to cover our size range with the three angles we need.

When there are multiple cutters to choose from, other considerations might help us boil it down. For example, we may have the option of choosing between five-bladed cutters and three-bladed cutters.

Five-bladed cutters and Three-bladed cutters

A five-bladed cutter will work faster than a three-bladed cutter and the blades will last longer, but if yours is going to be an “occasional use” situation speed may not be a big factor. Five-bladed cutters cost more than three-bladed, as cutter pricing is based on the number of carbide blades on the cutter. For valve seat work requiring hefty stock removal, such as valve seat oversizing, five blades is definitely the way to go. In terms of accuracy, there is no difference between the two.

Standard Series/Small Series (and Heavy Duty Series)

Neway offers three different series of valve seat cutters and pilots: standard series, small series, and heavy duty series. Standard series cutters work with standard series (.375″ top size) pilots while small series cutters work with small series (.297″ top size) pilots. Heavy duty series cutters and pilots (.572″ top size) are for servicing extra large valve seats, from around 3″ to 6″ in diameter. Standard series cutters/pilots are used on automotive, motorcycle and ATV, marine, aircraft, and diesel applications in general; or specifically, where valve head diameters range from about 1″ (25mm) to about 2-3/4″ (70mm). Small series cutters/pilots are used on power equipment engines, motorcycle and ATV, marine, and on some automotive and diesel engines. In terms of valve head diameter, small series cutters/pilots are used on the smallest valves, 5/8″ (16mm) or even less, up to 1-5/8″ (41mm). Remember, we prefer to use the valve head diameter as the reference point when we describe the operating range of our seat cutters.

There is an “overlap zone” where you could find yourself with a choice between either small series cutters/pilots or standard series cutters/pilots. Your decision will be influenced first and foremost by the type of engine you are servicing. If you’re working on power equipment engines (Briggs, Honda, Kohler, etc.) it’s best to stick with small series cutters and pilots. All of our power equipment kits are made up of small series cutters/pilots. If you’re working on automotive engines, standard series is the way to go, with a few rare exceptions. At the time of this writing (October, 2016) there are only about a half dozen automotive cylinder heads in the U.S. where small series (1″ diameter) cutters are necessary. For the vast majority of small valve seats in automotive heads, the 1-1/8″ diameter or 1-1/4″ diameter standard series cutters will work fine.

With motorcycle/ATV head work, your tooling might be all small series, all standard series, or some of each. Before launching into the whys-hows-ifs, here’s a short lesson in building a cutter kit. When you need to have cutters of varying sizes to cover your range, you should choose cutters in 1/4″ steps by cutter body diameter (for example, 1″, 1-1/4″, 1-1/2″, etc.). This is the most efficient way to build a kit. When you look at the various motorcycle kits that Neway offers, you will see that many of them contain 1″ diameter small series cutters/pilots and 1-1/4″ diameter standard series cutters/pilots, so the break between small series and standard series occurs at the 1-1/4″ diameter (see KM2650 for example). It is also possible, however, to select small series cutters at this same diameter (nearly the same diameter that is). Small series cutters #128 and #102 (1-5/16″ diameters) will pretty much cover the same operating range as the standard series cutters at 1-1/4″ diameter, but there is one small hitch to this approach. When you go with small series cutters at the 1″ and 1-5/16″ diameters there is a very small likelihood of having a valve seat where the 1″ cutter is a bit too small and the 1-5/16″ cutter is a bit too big. This gap can be bridged by using the longer of the two blades (TC250 blade) that are used in the 1″ cutters (see Blade Swapping). The other arguments for going with standard series cutters at the 1-1/4″ diameter look like this: a) standard series offers a greater variety of cutting angles, b) standard series offers a choice between five-bladed and three-bladed cutters, and c) standard series offers a wider range of pilot sizes and some of these sizes are important to motorcycle work. The argument for using small series cutters (1-5/16″ diameter) would simply be to stay within one series and save some money on pilots. When you have both series of cutters in your kit there will be, most likely, some sizes for which you will need both series of pilots for the same size; for example, a 5mm small series pilot and a 5mm standard series pilot. You will see this “duplication” in many of the motorcycle kits because there will be engines with very small seats and 5mm guides where small series cutters will be needed and other engines with 5mm guides where standard series cutter will be required.

Valve to Valve Seat Interference (45° seat vs. 46° seat)

The first thing to understand about the interference fit between a valve and valve seat is its purpose: to prevent reverse interference. It’s just that simple. If the valve face is a steeper angle than that of the valve seat you have reverse interference and this is not good. Reverse interference creates, obviously, the potential for combustion leakage.

The second thing to understand about an interference angle is that even when it is not stated, there will always be some slight amount of interference engineered into the fit. That is, even when the OEM calls for a “non-interference” fit (i.e. 45 degree valve, 45 degree seat) they do so with the knowledge that the tolerances for both the valve face angle and the valve seat angle will contain some small amount of interference fit.

When the valve is manufactured there will be a tolerance for the valve face angle and that tolerance might look like this: 45 degrees, plus zero, minus 30 minutes. So the valve face angle could be anywhere from 44-1/2 degrees to 45 degrees, or cheated slightly toward the “flat” side of 45 degrees. For the seat angle the tolerance would run exactly the opposite: 45 degrees, plus 30 minutes, minus nothing. In this case the seat angle could be anywhere from 45 degrees to 45-1/2 degrees, or cheated toward the “steep” side of 45 degrees. Theoretically, in this case you could have a 45 degree valve face and a 45 degree seat angle (valve on the steep side of the tolerance and the seat on the flat side of the tolerance), but in actual practice manufacturers will run the parts toward the middle of the tolerance so we wind up with valves that are around 44-3/4 degrees and seats that are around 45-1/4 degrees. You will, most likely, only find this level of detail on the drawings for the parts. It will not be stated in service manuals or tech bulletins.

Of course when it comes to checking your work after reconditioning a valve seat, there will be a big difference in visual appearance between a non-interference fit and a one degree interference fit. Using Dychem, Prussian Blue, or some other type of machinist’s layout fluid to check the contact, you will see the full width of the valve seat contacting the valve face when reconditioning with a non-interference fit (45° to 45°). The full width of this surface will appear despite the slight amount of total interference (around ½ of one degree) between the valve face angle and the valve seat angle (as described above). With a full one degree interference angle only a thin line will appear on the valve face. This line shows the contact at the outer edge of the 46 degree surface (OD of seating surface), or the point where the 46 degree seating surface meets the flatter relief angle immediately adjacent to it, usually 31 degrees. It is important to understand that the seating surface will change (“peen in”) as soon as the engine fires so that the full width of the valve seating surface will contact the valve face. It is critical for the full width of the seating surface to contact the valve as the valve needs to transfer heat through this contact.

Some engine manufacturers still call for a full one degree interference angle (45 degree valve, 46 degree seat), but the trend has been toward a “non-interference” fit (or rather, less interference in the fit), for some years now. The reason for this is that valve and valve seat materials are much more sophisticated these days and manufacturers are able to hold much tighter tolerances than before.

While we always defer to the OEM specification for a given application, in most cases there is no down side to cutting a 45 degree seat even though a 46 degree seating surface is called for, or vice versa. If you’re going to stray from the OEM specification make sure to take the valve face angle into account. For example, some Toyota engines call for a 45 degree seating surface with a 44 degree valve. In this case a 46 degree seat would not be such a great idea because would have 2 degrees of interference (44 degree valve, 46 degree seat).

Fixed Blade Mini Cutters

The fixed blade mini cutters are used where valve head diameters are around 22mm (about 7/8″) or less, or in situations where the 1″ diameter cutters are too big. The aluminum cutter body diameter for this subset of cutters is just 3/4″ (19mm) and the carbide blades are glued into place at a set diameter. Of course the blades are not adjustable or replaceable. The diameter listed for each respective cutter represents the outer diameter of the fixed carbide blades, so we use a slightly different approach in figuring out which cutter to use for a given application.

Here’s the “formula” for selecting the appropriate fixed blade cutter: take the valve head diameter and look for a cutter whose listed diameter (the fixed blade OD) is slightly bigger, anywhere from 1.5mm (about.060″) to 2.5mm (about.100″) is ideal. We need the blade to extend out beyond the diameter of the valve head, but not so much bigger that it runs the risk of catching the chamber wall or some other obstruction.

Three-Angle Valve Seats

If you’re new to valve seat work you may not be clear on what is meant by a three-angle valve seat, though it becomes immediately obvious when you do your first valve job. A valve seat needs to be a Band-like surface with a uniform width and sharply defined inner and outer diameters. The only way to create such a surface is to have relief angles above and below the actual seating surface, or contact surface. Yes, of course there is only one angle that the valve seals against, but it is the two relief angles above and below the seating surface that actually define that surface. We refer to these relief angles as “narrowing angles” because cutting these angles will narrow the seating surface, either from above or below. The narrowing angles give you the ability to control the width of the seating surface as well as the location of the seating surface on the valve face, another important component of a valve job.

The narrowing angles also have an impact on the way the cylinder head “breathes” so performance engine builders pay special attention to those surfaces. Getting just the right combination of angles, or adding a fourth or fifth angle, can have a dramatic effect on flow. That’s one of the reasons you will see so many different angles in the cutters we offer.

Methods of Turning the Cutter

There are three different ways to turn your Neway cutters. By hand, using either the simple T-wrench or the Easy Turn Wrench, or the motorized PU-1800 Power Unit. A T-wrench (TW505, TW513, or TW503) is included in most kits and is fine for the occasional user. We think it’s a good idea to have a T-wrench on hand even though you may do most of your turning with some other device. The T-wrench is excellent for very touchy-feely work and for situations where you want to make a very light cut. The downside is that it can be slow going if your work involves a fair amount of stock removal.

The Easy-Turn Wrench (TWEZ) works faster than the T-wrench because you can keep the cutter turning continuously, there’s no stopping and starting to change your grip. The Easy-Turn Wrench is spring loaded so you can apply a uniform down force, or feed rate.

The PU-1800 Power Unit (PU1800A), also called the motor drive, is the fastest and easiest way to turn the cutters. It features a variable speed DC gear motor so you have complete control over the turning speed of the cutter. The unit moves quickly and easily along a track so it takes no time at all to move from one valve seat to the next. A hex slide-assembly (PU1517-AM) hangs off the motor and fits down onto the cutter. The operator only has to apply the down force, just enough to cut.

Sources:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1469253547/vintage-bd-55-vibro-centric-valve-seat
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/the-best-coffee-grinder/
https://www.newaymfg.com/cutters