Not all blade grinders suck, apparently...

Joined Feb 2005
254 Posts | 0+
Texas
I just purchased a Hamilton Beach Custom Grind blade grinder from Target for twenty bucks. Frankly, I have been blown away by the quality of this little grinder. I am a big fan of the Bodum or even more expensive burr grinders, but was lazy and saw this little machine among the other non-burr or cheap burr grinders. While the pre-set amounts can be a little annoyong, they do help remind me to stop grinding sooner rather than later. Have any of y'all used one of these before? And if so, how long did it last for yuh?
 
That's actually very interesting. Although I did dabble in a blade grinder almost 14 years ago when I discovered real coffee, I quickly switched to hand grinding. I have often wondered what various experiences people had with long term use of blade grinders. I'm not surprised that Hamilton Beach makes a good product. It's one of those perennial names I think of when electric kitchen utensils come to mind.
 
Frankly, my experience with blades has actually been good. Before this one, I had an old Krups grinder my parents gave me. After they purchased a Bodum Antigua burr ginder... Worked like a charm if I watched what I was doing. And if I was making more than three "cups" of coffee. However, I was trained by Starbucks on how to grind and pour a shot and so on, so my experience is prolly not typical.

All that being said, I still want a nice burr grinder once I find one for a good price!
 
What the good burr grinders bring to the pot is the ability to deliver a consistant grind that is made up of the same size bean shards time after time. The blade grinders will have a mix of shard and fine powder. Coffee taste, in part, has to do with how long the 200 degree water is in contact with the bean. This really is not a problem for most users who use automatic drip coffee makers with a good filter, and, will want a fine grind. Press users will, for the most part, enjoy a consistant even coarse grind to control sediment (except for Blooth who loves the last glup). Regards