Adrianmsmith When you are ready to part with it, please PM me with your price.
It’s not mine, I just have it on long term loan, almost 2 years and counting. The Flat Max is the same, but I would love to buy that one!
Lagom P100
Yes i was meaning the flat max 😎🤭
Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.
Adrianmsmith Yes i was meaning the flat max 😎🤭
You will have to get behind me in the Q
I’m going to bowl for the EG-1 here! It is pricey, there is no doubt about that. But it looks and feels so good. The tactile experience of using this grinder is superior to any I’ve used. Odd to say that, but each use is a real pleasure. I think a lot of the price reflects design and materials, and I’m OK with that. For me the Core burrs make fantastic espresso. A great balance between texture and clarity. Is it the best grinder on the world? I don’t think that is an answerable question. For me it makes better coffee than a Vario, Ceado E37s (with SSP HU burrs), Weber Key and a Comandante C40 (all owned at some point).
I’d love to try a P100. From what I’ve read it will beat an EG-1 with Core burrs for clarity. Same goes for the Kafeteks. Super high clarity espresso is an interesting experience but for me espresso needs texture, as well as flavour separation. That’s why I think the EG-1 is so good.
I do love a Dave C long-form article as they are always informative. So I will read a review with real interest. Reading the previous posts here though I think Dave C has laid the smack down on my entire grinder history at some point 😂.
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When Dave reviews an item, he rarely owns it. This means there are no rose tinted specs or justifications as to why he owns it. How often does anyone ever buy an item, then announce it is not as good as hoped for, listing its shortcomings? This is why influencers reviews are invariably not worth a jot!
JimmyP
I believe the ek43 has a very narrow range for espresso unless Turkish burrs are used? The problem.with the ek43 is its dimensions that make it too tall for many kitchen counters as well as its high retention. Still, the ek omnia was very interesting though the same issues still appear to apply for the omnia as well.
axpetts
My understanding on the kafatek max 2 is that many report that its shuriken LM burrs are supposed to bring good clarity with good texture as well.
The eg-1 does look great. It looks like one of those hi tech equipment in high budget science fiction movies. The price however is difficult to countenance especially for a made in Taiwan 80mm grinder where labour and production costs should be lower than. In most western countries.
chlorox The eg-1 does look great. It looks like one of those hi tech equipment in high budget science fiction movies. The price however is difficult to countenance especially for a made in Taiwan 80mm grinder where labour and production costs
It is also no where near as good as the Kafatec Flat Max 2 with shurikens…not even close.
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JimmyP Interested in where the big advantages lie? 🤔
- Size (The P100 is a bit of a lump (very very heavy), looks like two offset catering size baked bean tins, not an aesthetic that thrills me)
- Usability and Pleasant to use
- Better burrs
- Much better made (IMO)
I have a P100 on the bench, but don’t ever feel like I want to use it when I am not testing something else. If I’m not testing I like to Use a Niche Duo, the T64 Solo and the Kafatec FM2
The grinding/taste is fine, the Kafatec with Shuriken burrs is better
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JimmyP Thanks, and interesting that the downsides do not relate to cup quality, but it was the EG-1 reference that particularly interested me? 🤔
Well most people would not agree with me, but most people have not extensively used all 3 grinders (P100, EG1 and FM2). It is what it is… The EG1 ends up being the worst of the 3, by quite a margin and across all criteria.
However, don’t believe me, go buy one and see what you think.
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I agree that the p100 is far superior in its attributes on paper than the eg-1. The eg-1 merely has on its side of the ledger only its looks.
The p100 weight is one of the things I like about it - it really imparts the feeling of stability and solidity and it’s weight means I don’t accidentally jostle the grinder if I accidentally brush my hand against it. Certainly the starting of the motor doesn’t make the grinder jump a little unlike some other grinder designs.
On the p100’s motor, it is certainly much more confidence inspiring than the motor on the eg1 - there are far too many stories of stalling wirh the eg-1 to be dismissed and too many stories too about poor customer support from weber. The eg-1 is the most expensive single dosing grinder on the market despite being only 80mm and made entirely in Taiwan, and so it should not have any stalling issues at all. On the other hand option-o’s customer support is widely praised and the p100 has never been said to stall on any kind of bean before. And the p100 is far cheaper than rhe eg-1.
On the aesthetics of the p100, I suppose this is where one man’s meat is another’s poison! For me, I think the p100 is one of the most beautiful of all the grinder designs. In fact in terms of the purity of design and among Option-O’s entire grinder line of equipment, it is the cleanest and most pure in its design according to the Modernist school. Only the eg-1 looks better to my eye than the p100, but the p100 occupies far less counter space.
The P100 body basically consists of a single cylinder where by the top half of the cylinder is seemingly rotated horizontally outwards so that the top half rests partially on the bottom half. A smaller diameter cylinder sits on the top cylinder. The versa cup forms another cylinder rests underneath the overhang of the top cylinder. 4 cylinders balanced on top of each other in a balanced configuration.
By contrast the 01 design is completely unbalanced to me - the housing containing the burrs is an oversized cylinder but it appears to be joined to a much thinner body behind it. As a result the former dominates the eye so much that the latter barely figures.
On the taste, I think the burrs has a big part to play in this - the ssp HU 98mm burrs that the p100 comes with can be a polarising burr set because it is so clean and transparent that it also has considerably less body than other burrs. If the mizen burrs are swapped in, the result will probably come a lot closer to what one will get from the shuriken LM in the kafatek, and furthermore doesn’t have the stalling issues with the 98mm mizen that some 01 units have been experiencing with the 102mm mizen burrs.
5 days later
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JimmyP What are the reasons you think it inferior to the Kafatek? Beginning to think you’re avoiding the question!
Not at all, probably missed it or forgot, as I have covered the reasons in various posts. i also tried to cover it on HB, but as Weber is an advertiser, they edited the post:
- K burrs, shuriken 98mm are way better than burrs in the EG1
- K more accurately made than the EG1
- K has no long shaft from the bearing as in the EG1, more accurate burr alignment.
- Much better workflow on K
- Beans don’t bounce around inside on the K, can be a PITA for that last bean to grind in the EG1
- EG1 is bigger than the K
- I have heard reports of stalling on EG1 K never stalls
- I have hear reports of failing motor drive units on EG1, I have not hear reports of this for K
- Static is a PITA on the EG1, not so much on the K.
- RDT essential on the EG1, not on the K
Is that enough for you…but if you really want one, go ahead. My money would always go on the Kafatek. The higher cost of the EG1 does not mean better, in fact it’s way worse than the Kafatek.
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JimmyP I would reckon that at least most of the plus points that Dave commented on of the kafatek monolith max vs the eg1 also apply to the p100 especially if you equip it with the 98mm mizen omni burrs in the event u like more body from your coffee vs the ssp hu & since u already own an ek43. If the kafatek costs more than your budget too, you could consider the p100 or the 01 with the 98mm burr carrier option. The eg1 is a triumph of looks and marketing but maybe not as much for substance because it is incredibly overpriced vis a vis its competitors for what u get for a made in taiwan product and even its influencer supporters admit that it stalls on occasion, which is totally unacceptable for a 4k usd plus grinder. On the contrary the lagom p100 and 01 grinders are the cheapest of all the grinders in this segment of the market and give u better bang for buck imho.
An update on my experiences wirh the p100 since I bought it used. I was trying to re-insert the base to the bottom of the grinder and it is very tight fit so it is very difficult to reinsert the base again. Also while grappling with the grinder and moving it about, I forgot the versa cup was still on the forks and it fell off causing a slight barely perceptible mark on the very well polished base. The first scratch is always the most painful! It does point though to the one weakness of the p100 design which is its forks. The versa cup sits on the forks rather than held tightly and securely by it and the cup is very heavy. The latest batch of p100 replaced then versa cup entirely with a much lighter cup that won’t scratch the grinder if it falls and I am unsure if the forks were improved. I do believe the forks will not hold portafilters securely though and there is an after market supplier selling better designed forks that will do the job better.
Apart from these issues, the p100 is performing perfectly and its noise level, speed even at the lower speeds and workflow are pretty much perfect and I cannot imagine how it can be improved to any tangible way without any rdt.
I had difficulty reinserting the base tray into the bottom of the grinder as the fit was very tight and so I asked Option O for help. Now I bought my p100 used but they did not bother with the need to check if I bought it new and they quickly replied. When I didn’t understand their instructions and asked for a video clip to guide me, their staff quickly replied with one which did the trick. Kudos to Option O for great service!