Thought that this would be fun and informative: Based upon all that you have learned and tried to date, what would be your “end game” (no need for further change) kit? This would be a setup that you can realistically aspire to, as distinct from an “I won the lotto and money is no object” kit. PS Some of us do not know the name, model or acronym of some pieces of kit, or what it's use or purpose is. So it would be great if you could be specific (eg Niche Zero 64mm burr grinder, rather than NZ). Grinder(s), espresso machine(s), basket(s), tamper(S), other key accessories? And yes, you can have 2 grinders and a pump and a lever machine. :) What (of that) end game set up do you have now? What are you planning to acquire next?

Evo, Duo, V60 and Clever Dripper > @"JHCCoffee"#p52869 What are you planning to acquire next? On the contrary! Always wondered if I should have kept it simple - just filter. I do think some time I should sell the Evo. 😁

@"LMSC"#p52876 - Believe me... I've done that once in the past... Not because I wanted to, but I was getting a lot of grief from the one who doesn't drink coffee in the household... I regretted ever since! LOL

@"MediumRoastSteam"#p52878 My family happily drinks the coffee from the Evo and the filter. I don’t see them using the machine (Evo) as they do not as of now. I won’t be surprised if the Evo would mostly be a machine for the week end and when guests / friends are at home. Apart from these, I do not want to, as you say, regret after selling it off. It will cost me at least £3.5K to get a like-for-like replacement. 😊 Thx, though!

Having had various machines/grinders over the yrs what I have now seriously gets the job done for exactly what I like/expect and no doubt will last the rest of my usable lifetime. -Rancilio Silvia Pro (will replace water lines as I do that with pretty much any machine after 3 yrs or so use and will swap out the stock brew pump for an Ulka heavy duty 2/1 duty cycle so I can push extractions upwards of 90 seconds... -Cimbali Jr. electric beast with 'traditional' 64 mm burrs it simply does a great job and has been in use for 17 yrs now without a flinch... use it when I need to crank out espresso back to back in a short period of time... -Helor 106 as I consider it to be as good as a grinder can/needs to be and use it the majority of the time... will replace the ceramic shaft bearings with sealed hybrid ceramics just to minimize cleaning as often... -Basket is an old school Rancilio 40-100-103 as it's the best overall basket of any I've used on any machine. Of course they don't make them anymore and nearly impossible to find that exact basket. Hope it will last as long as I do... -Tamper/station is a Joe Frex palm/level tamp with adjustable depth and weighs 2.5 lbs... setup with matching tamp station, both are simply superb... -Ohaus STX Scout very high quality digital scale -Cafelat Classic knockbox (round) and seriously built to last -Hand built roasting setup that never lets me down and prevents me from ever having to buy ANY commercial roasted garbage floating around for ridiculous prices... This setup has long paid for itself and aside from typical cleaning/preventive maintenance should be the last bit of 'kit' I'll ever need to buy. For several yrs now my main focus is green selection and dialing each batch in to match my setup to give me the taste/texture I seek. Chasing equipment and all the FOMO items constantly discussed is a waste of time/money from my perspective, but to each their own. Some tend to think something better can be had year after year, but IMBHO once you get to a decent point with equipment you're not really gonna find better, just different. Some will clearly chase that magic dragon indefinitely and most end up chasing their tail in the process and never totally satisfied with the end result. Maybe they should work more on their skill/technique than simply spending for little to nothing gained.

Money no issues I'd love a keeps can der western leva. Only a dual lever but a show piece. Grinder wise I'm very happy with what I have but would also love a kafatec flat, they do seem to be very well built, I'm not into the bling that is the Titus chrome stuff.

I look at owners of exotic cars, and far from it making me want one, I just presume he is a \*\*\*\*\*\* with a little willie

@"dfk41"#p52895 Glad we have the word filter!

If by end game, is meant kit that one can be happy for keeps with within ones reasonable budget estimates, then i already have my end game kit except I would like to have a good 98mm grinder for light roasts like the monolith flat Max with prebreaker or a Titus nautilus or as a cheaper option maybe the new option o 102mm grinder. I cannot stomach currently the astronomical cost of auch a grinder though and so am hoping for a df98 to eventually come along at a far lower price point. For the office machine, I wouldnt mind a replacement for the e61 but again the cost of a replacement machine and grinder combo are too much for the moment. Sometimes especially for cars, people will say if I had no limit as to funds my dream car would be a mclaren etc but really, even uf we were to be gifted such a car, it wouldn't fit our actual day to day needs or we won't be able to afford to run and maintain it anyway. So any end game discussions has to still take into account our actual economic level as well as real life needs and preferences, and the same applies for coffee gear as well.

@"dfk41"#p52895 I look at exotic and collectable cars and think "I am thankful that there are some folks with enough money and taste for these beautiful things to be built". To be sure, there are a lot of people driving them who don't impress but the beauty of the engineering and styling should not be associated with them.

@"Amberale"#p52926 Ha! Luckily, there are always two sides to a coin!

What's Your End Game Kit

MediumRoastSteam

@delta76 - I’m sure the mythos is a really nice grinder. But for home use, as DavecUK says, the bird has flown 7 years ago. Single dosing is the way forwards.

https://coffeetime.freeflarum.com/d/2051-new-mazzer-grinders/4

Loonster

Would single dosing be so popular if beans didn’t go stale in the hopper?

JonWoo187

Loonster Great question… I think single dosing appeals to many for a few simple reasons… one being some enthusiasts like to change up coffees quite often and doing individual doses can help maximize what a particular coffee has to offer. Another reason is some seem deterred by how most hopper fed grinders will change a bit in grind fineness as the load on the burrs fades. When I use my old skool cool electric I simply dial the last dose of the morning finer for the last 4-5 grams to offset the burr load diminishing and it works quite good every time. I personally like hand grinding and of course that’s single dosing in the simplest form, but for an electric I wouldn’t bother with single dosing. Just load the hopper with the intended amount to be used per session and let it rip. I never leave anything in the hopper use to use and it gets vacuumed out after a daily session, so no retention, etc.

delta76

Loonster you forgot about retention. I think a day or two inside hopper with good air seal is fine for beans. But ground staying overnight is not

DavecUK

Loonster Would single dosing be so popular if beans didn’t go stale in the hopper?

IO think so for many of the reasons mentioned above, but to summarise, with a “good” single doser the advantages are:

Fresh beans not staling in a hopper with huge air holes in the bottom
grind variance minimised over time as no diminishing weight in hopper
burr gap reduced, resulting in more grinding being done by the burrs not the beans
No worries about output weight and having to weigh/adjust it. Much easier to weigh going in
less grinder complexity, e.g. grind by time or weight. This can lead to better reliability and reduced costs for the end consumer. Ask those whi have had to replace Ceado touchscreens, or weber control units etc..
grind by weight won’t be hugely accurate and people claim to taste 0.1g, I can’t (tongue in cheek comment)
No grinds left in throat and burrs to follow the next dose out

So a lot of advantages for the user and manufacturer.

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