[dutchy101]

Interestingly there is an all in one distributor and tamper jobby on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Yebobo-Double-Head-Portafilter-Adjustable-Professional/dp/B08B3Z9SZ2/ref=asc_df_B08B3Z9SZ2/?tag=cfukweb-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=430958692724&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5874716235612812438&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9046084&hvtargid=pla-922919592188&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=97419447062&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=430958692724&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5874716235612812438&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9046084&hvtargid=pla-922919592188

 

[Longmanh]

Looks identical. Another good option for Sage users.

I use mine everyday, set to 5mm. After a couple of months use I find it gives better consistency. Will always use a levelling tool going forward.

I've got a palm tamper now too. I'm going to stop buying accessories for a while now 😁

Question: how do you set the depth of it? Do you just unscrew it slightly so it's kind of loose?

 

[24774]

Question: how do you set the depth of it? Do you just unscrew it slightly so it's kind of loose?

With mine I unscrewed the top ( so it comes off), then screwed the bottom as tight as it would go, then screwed the top back on.

 

[Longmanh]

Hmmm, interesting, I'll have to try that.

Thanks for the tip.

 

[dutchy101]

So still no sign of mine so I've cancelled the order and been given a refund.

Ordered this instead with Prime. Cost £10 more but has a flat palm tamp side plus comes with a silicone matt

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0896Q41R9/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ZDqlFbQ072AHS

 

[24774]

So still no sign of mine so I've cancelled the order and been given a refund.

Ordered this instead with Prime. Cost £10 more but has a flat palm tamp side plus comes with a silicone matt

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0896Q41R9/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ZDqlFbQ072AHS

That's a new option (the company/product, not the style), didn't have that when I was looking. Looks like the Crema one you get on import. Looks good quality. Hope you get that one soon after your bad luck with the other one!

The company I got the tool from in the original link do one like that, part of me wishes I got that style in the first place. I now have a PUSH palm tamper that I got for a great price considering how much they are usually, but still, it was a lot to spend on a tool. Having said that it takes the guesswork out of tamping, I do like it.

 

[dutchy101]

Yeah - if I had seen this when I ordered the other one, I would have gone for this in the first place due to the tamping side. Despite waiting for 7 weeks for the other distribution tool I am actually glad it hasn't turned up now as I prefer the idea of an all in one jobby. It's set for delivery tomorrow so I'll let you know what it's like.

 

[Scwheeler]

I own the Motta tool and find it has subjectively improved my shots, the thing I can't quite get my head around are the tampers like linked above. I thought tamping as a variable should be kept consistent regardless of pressure to aid dialling in and then consistency. Over the course of using a bag of beans I will grind finer and finer as the beans get old to maintain shot time. By doing this a 19g dose will get shallower and shallower as the grind is finer, so my thinking is at this point if you are tamping to a set depth that worked when dialling in, you're going to end up with quite a light tamp???

How are people finding tamping to depth rather than pressure? Is it a non-event?

 

[24774]

I own the Motta tool and find it has subjectively improved my shots, the thing I can't quite get my head around are the tampers like linked above. I thought tamping as a variable should be kept consistent regardless of pressure to aid dialling in and then consistency. Over the course of using a bag of beans I will grind finer and finer as the beans get old to maintain shot time. By doing this a 19g dose will get shallower and shallower as the grind is finer, so my thinking is at this point if you are tamping to a set depth that worked when dialling in, you're going to end up with quite a light tamp???

How are people finding tamping to depth rather than pressure? Is it a non-event?

I've only had the palm ('to depth') tamper for two different coffees. I single dose and have Airscapes, I can't say the coffee is much different first cup to last (done within a week). However, the tamper was set to 5mm with my first coffee, had to adjust it to 6.5mm for the second. I know single origin and different blends have different grind densities but I'm not knowledable to enough to know what's what with that. I just saw 18g of the second coffee was a mountain in the pf. Reduced the amount a bit, was OK, changed up the tamp depth, was better.

 

[dutchy101]

It's arrived and it's brilliant. Great build quality and weight

 

[facboy]

that's not how you spell Xanadu 😹

 

[dutchy101]

It is if you're dyslexic

 

[24774]

It's arrived and it's brilliant. Great build quality and weight

Ooh nice, looks pretty sweet.

 

[8144]

So as we know, us Sage owners don't have that many options with regard to portafilters, baskets, distribution tools, tampers etc. I bought the Motta 54mm distribution tool, which while being very well made, did not go low enough I found. The minimum was between 7mm and 8mm. For me to get this to sit/spin on the portafilter rim with 19g of coffee (a common amount for me with the coffees I have been using), I had to crush the coffee down so hard I couldn't pull a shot. It just choked. Some people have had my experience, others have used the tool just fine. It's nice kit, just didn't work for me.

So I sold the tool and looked about for one that went to 5mm or below as I still wanted to see if this kind of product would have an effect on my shots. If you have had my experience but still want a tool, I can recommend this cheap alternative on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B087WXBZQX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I know buying from China can be a risk, but £16.99 and with Amazon protection I thought give it a go. At least it's a little something to look forward to during lockdown right! Anyway, I got it yesterday, exactly 2 weeks after I ordered it. It seems well made, feels heavy enough, 419g, (that's heavier than the Motta according to Amazon, but can anyone verify what the Motta tool weighs?).

I have it set at 5mm, use it, then tamp. Shot today was definitely better. Will need to use for a week or so to see if it was luck. Anyway, point of this is to say, if you didn't get on with the Motta tool, this is a cheap, legit, Chinese alternative that worked out well for me.

EDIT: Delivery is actually £2.48, forgot about that. Seems the price has gone up in 2 weeks. Mine was £18.49 all in. So it's now £19.47 all in. Still a very good deal.

View attachment 39985

View attachment 39986

This looks exactly the same as the one I bought and it seems to work really well. Just out of curiosity, do you still tamp after using this?

 

[24774]

This looks exactly the same as the one I bought and it seems to work really well. Just out of curiosity, do you still tamp after using this?

Good isn't it. Very pleased with mine. Yes I still tamp. I have the distributor/leveller set to it's shallowest setting and my palm tamper set to 6.5mm. After some cocktail stick WDT, I use these two accessories and think it gives me nice consistency in my pours. I've gone through a 500g bag of coffee over the last 12 days and I've been really pleased with how 'samey' the pours have come out now I've settled on a set method.

Tamping depth may need to be adjusted on the next coffee, but I will still be using my distributor. Distributor alone isn't enough I find.

 

[8144]

Good isn't it. Very pleased with mine. Yes I still tamp. I have the distributor/leveller set to it's shallowest setting and my palm tamper set to 6.5mm. After some cocktail stick WDT, I use these two accessories and think it gives me nice consistency in my pours. I've gone through a 500g bag of coffee over the last 12 days and I've been really pleased with how 'samey' the pours have come out now I've settled on a set method.

Tamping depth may need to be adjusted on the next coffee, but I will still be using my distributor. Distributor alone isn't enough I find.

Yeah I really think it's an excellent tool, especially given the cost. Do you find it collects ground coffee on the edges? Not really an issue but I just give mine a clean after each use. Likewise, I use a large paperclip to WDT (dosing funnel too so as to not lose grounds). I've set mine to mirror the depth of the Sage DTP tamper. I occasionally just give a very light tamp to just see if there is any movement. So far I'd say (from my own experience) that this tool has made a difference to my shots, they seem to me a lot more consistent. I may have to buy a 1kg bag and do some further experimentation but so far so good.

 

[24774]

Do you find it collects ground coffee on the edges?

It does a bit yeah. But it depends on the coffee (how much I use, 18g fine doesn't for instance). The Sage basket is quite small I think, if you use 19g a little gets trapped. Some might say 'oh you're only using 18.95g then' but I haven't noticed the difference in taste between <0.1g or so in the basket.

I was using paperclips (I used 3 in a make shift 'prong') but then read on here from someone more experienced, that a wooden cocktail stick was better as it wouldn't promote static. Hard to tell which variables make the most difference, but my shots have been better once I switched to the single wooden WDT. Maybe give that a go, see if you see any improvement in flow and consistency if you think you can eek out a bit more.

 

[facboy]

funny, these things, i get my best consistency if i don't WDT.

grind straight into basket (with aluminium funnel), distribute (no tamp), pull shot.

though oddly enough, one of my baskets seems to channel more than the other. i've had some funky old beans recently so not entirely sure it wasn't down to that, but atm i'm using only the 'lucky' basket lol.

 

[24774]

funny, these things, i get my best consistency if i don't WDT.

grind straight into basket (with aluminium funnel), distribute (no tamp), pull shot.

Lots of variance isn't there. Some people swear by things, others find they don't work. I've found there's things you have to get right like grind size, water temp etc, then things like distribution that vary a lot between users. There's a difference between knowing the path and walking the path I'm learning.