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5,037
4.1 out of 5 stars

Chefman Coffee Grinder

$19.99
$39.99 50% off Reference Price
Condition: New
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Top positive review
49 people found this helpful
Impressively small, easy to operate, cost-effective
By Jonas4321 on Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2018
After reading through the reviews of MUCH more expensive burr coffee grinders, and owning a comparably-priced Mr Coffee burr grinder for a couple of years, I decided to take a chance with this one from Chefman, a company I had never heard of before.I received it yesterday and put it through some tests. NOTE: This unit appears identical to the Secura branded unit, which is similarly priced.1) It is quite a bit quieter than my Mr. Coffee grinder but still somewhat noisy, as the grinder operates at a high speed, not slow speed like the Capresso and Baratza grinders advertise. Not sure I buy the "slower grinding keeps cooler so it won't overheat your beans as they grind" claim-of-superiority (Baratza and Capresso) since coffee beans are first roasted at much higher temperatures than the grinding could possibly induce, then you immediately pour really hot water over them - so why would essentially warming the beans during grinding make a difference? Logically, it would not. Seems like coffee snobbery to me.2) It does not bounce around the last couple of beans like the Mr. Coffee grinder does (which is frustrating to me) - they all go through the Chefman grinder properly in a short time3) It has about 1/2 the footprint of the Mr. Coffee grinder, and is much shorter - fits in my tiny kitchen well.4) The adjustment for grinding is easy (a dial on the side of the unit) and from what I could see the grounds were fairly uniform (I test-ground medium and dark roast coffee on settings from fine to medium to coarse, and there was a decent range of results). Capresso, Baratza, Quisinart and Mr. Coffee have the upper grinder plate attached to the top hopper and you set the grind with how far "in" you screw (tighten) the hopper. I don't know which is more accurate, but I like the dial adjustment of the Chefman.5) You set the duration of the grinding action via a dial on the front above the "on" button. It would be great if it had a 1-cup setting, as I usually grind just one cup worth of beans at a time (2 cups is the lowest setting for the time it remains on). Not a huge deal, as you can press the Start button again to stop the grinder or just let it run empty for a few more seconds before it automatically shuts off.6) It has a pretty interesting construction for the grinder assembly - you remove the stationary upper half of the grinder plate with a quarter-turn to the right (CW) and it lifts out. You can then use the (somewhat chintzy but reasonably effective) included brush to clean out the lower grinder and the upper half can be washed as needed. To replace it, just set it in and tighten to the left (CCW). Brainless.7) The lid on the top (beans) hopper appears to have a safety interlock to prevent the grinder from starting without the lid securely in place, though I have not tried operating it without the lid in place. Yet.8) The grounds exit into a clear plastic container with a clear lift-off lid, similar to how they exit the Mr. Coffee grinder. There is some static build up that makes the fines cling to the plastic, but I expect ground coffee to cling to plastic. It's easy to wash the catch container and to pour out the ground coffee into your Aeropress, Chemex, whatever you use.While I hope that this thing lasts, as I expect to use it daily for a few cups, it is off to a good start with what I consider a solid design and easy operation. And an attractive price compared to Baratza and Capresso. Unless you need to impress yourself, your family and/or friends with an expensive brand name device, The Chefman is a solid choice.
Top critical review
8 people found this helpful
You get what you pay for
By Roger on Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2023
TLDR; cheapo burrs, only good for drip; not fine enough for espresso, not consistent enough for french press. Messy basket.One of the first things you learn when you get serious about coffee is that uneven grind=uneven extraction=unwanted flavors (usually too bitter). These cheapo flat burr grinders all have an inherent bad burr design with unequal teeth and even have the screws protruduing so much they take part in the grinding process. This means that when the beans hit the large burr teeth, the beans will be rapidly crushed and produce lots of unwanted fines. Just compare the burrs to a Baratza or a Fellow grinder- no idea why they cost so much, sadly.Despite having 17 grind settings, only this smallest and largest are worth noting. The finest setting is more like a medium fine and suitable for drip only, definitely not espresso. The coarsest setting is barely large enough for french press, but like i mentioned earlier, the burrs produce tons of fine particles no matter what setting you use. (you can still use it by sifting it like flour but that's a waste of coffee and precious morning time .)All of the removable parts are high static plastic. The main issue is the chamber where all the grinds are deposited. This is held shut by a plastic lid that is somewhat difficult to remove, and when you finally do, all of those fine stuck to the static on top of the lid go flying all over the floor. For comparison, the glass chamber on my manual grinder has no static issues and can simply be wiped with a paper towel for light cleaning.I dont really use the timer on the front of the device. The device goes so fast (not sure if this is a good thing) that I can just stand there wait for beans to stop grinding in 5-10 seconds, then hit the button to shut off.Overall I regret this purchase, I wanted to be wrong about my suspicion about the burrs but I was unfortunately right. My old manual grinder, a modified Hario Skerton, is way better than this but is cumbersome to use even with a drill attachment. I tried to think of a reason to keep it but its frankly a waste of space.

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