Coffee Forums banner

Flat burr grinders are far far better than conical ones

3.7K views 55 replies 21 participants last post by  Rhys  
#1 ·
Should folks, in this case @Thecatlinux be able to make such a bold claim in his signature without justification. He invited me to start a new thread on the topic, and without causing controversy, I would ask members if they think a signature should be relevant or should we be allowed to quote any old waffle, which after all is just opinion and better elected to T shirt slogans
 
#6 · (Edited by Moderator)
This is the great debate that always appeared to cause conflict

from an engineering point of flat burrs are better for grind consistency as it easier to achieve a parallel plane than it is to align a set of conical burrs

which in result will be easier to achieve better grind consistency

to keep it a balanced argument conical has the advantages of its cheaper to produce and doesn't need as much power from the motor to operate .

Flat burrs can suffer from overheating but in a home environment this wouldn't be an issue and commercially this issue is mitigated by running at lower speed or increasing the size of the burrs .
 
#12 ·
This is the great debate that always appeared to cause conflict

from an engineering point of flat burrs are better for grind consistency as it easier to achieve a parallel plane than it is to align a set of conical burrs

which in result will achieve better grind consistency

to keep it a balanced argument conical has the advantages of its cheaper to produce and doesn't need as much power from the motor to operate .

Flat burrs can suffer from overheating but in a home environment this wouldn't be an issue and commercially this issue is mitigated by running at lower speed or increasing the size of the burrs .
There's more in favour of conicals than you've described. The taste is preferred by some aside from anything.

While it is technically easier to achieve alignment with a parallel plane it seems manufacturers routinely fail to achieve it aside from a few. So yeah, perfect alignment will give better grind consistency but most grinders don't have perfect or stable alignment. Conicals may be technically harder to align perfectly but they also may not be so affected by being out of alignment.

Having both I can happily say the best one depends how you use it.
 
#10 ·
The real issue is not whether one burrset type is better than another TBH. It's about whether people will buy it, how it is when using it and the results delivered for the money paid. I used to think reliability was a key purchasing decision but over the years have learned that sadly...it isn't for most people.

The other issue whether we like it or not is size.....

As for the technicals of flat or conical grinder design from an engineering point of view...that's quite a big subject and not something that can be summarised in a few words on a forum thread.
 
#14 ·
We have been here before , and again and again , I didn't start the thread I was just replying to DFK who bought up the subject of my signature and wanted me justify the statement I had made .

i personally don't care I actually done it to make some people think about people we have can have differences of opinions , and hopefully we can discuss things if I have offended anyone or knocked the coffee world off it's axis then I am quite happy to amend it .

i do not protest to be a coffee Jedi a guru or in any shape or form an expert , but if my signature has stimulated conversation about coffee and it's pros and cons then good .
 
#20 ·
We have been here before , and again and again , I didn't start the thread I was just replying to DFK who bought up the subject of my signature and wanted me justify the statement I had made .

i personally don't care I actually done it to make some people think about people we have can have differences of opinions , and hopefully we can discuss things if I have offended anyone or knocked the coffee world off it's axis then I am quite happy to amend it .

i do not protest to be a coffee Jedi a guru or in any shape or form an expert , but if my signature has stimulated conversation about coffee and it's pros and cons then good .
I can't see why anyone would take offence, or why offence would be perceived.

It's just that if an engineer makes a tangible claim, they must know the basis of the claim & it's affect in the real world. Otherwise, how do they engineer effectively?
 
#15 ·
I would ask members if they think a signature should be relevant or should we be allowed to quote any old waffle
Waffle is a forum's stock in trade.

Fact checking & citations would kill a forum overnight.

Forums are for fun & interaction of like minded folk.
 
#34 ·
My opinion, expressed in layman's words as I'm not a mechanical engineer.

First grinder I had was Mignon, then Feldgrind, Kinu M68, Aergrind and now Niche. From working experience it were of course flats, such as Fiorenzato 64evo or Eureka Olympus.

What I think I see is that the conicals are more forgiving regarding grind setting and the output espresso. I can use the same settings for more different beans than with flats. Also a miniscule change in setting of a flat grinder can mean huge changes in extraction, less so with the conicals - just my opinion.
 
#35 ·
My opinion, expressed in layman's words as I'm not a mechanical engineer.

First grinder I had was Mignon, then Feldgrind, Kinu M68, Aergrind and now Niche. From working experience it were of course flats, such as Fiorenzato 64evo or Eureka Olympus.

What I think I see is that the conicals are more forgiving regarding grind setting and the output espresso. I can use the same settings for more different beans than with flats. Also a miniscule change in setting of a flat grinder can mean huge changes in extraction, less so with the conicals - just my opinion.
Don't get me wrong , I had a mazzer KONy which I thought was a great bit of kit albeit for the retention and I love the hausgrind for the brew coffee I'm not against conical grinder it's just I've always seen better results in the cup from a flat burr grinder , probably the type of coffee I enjoy may play a part in it .

now got to think up another provocative signature now 🙄