coffee by weight

[michael]

i know i have seen this before, but when measuring coffee beans by weight, how many grams do you use for a double

what is the advantage of weighing the beans as compared to filling up the basket to the correct height with ground coffee

[Niko]

Try 14-15 grams for a double. Be consistent, down to the 1/10th of a gram if possible (with the right scale) and your shots will improve with nice repeatability. Dosing by weight rather than volume is the way to go for most beans, you may need to downdose even further for some - Monsooned coffee gives you huge volume but very light weight.
Definitely get a scale and you'll see immediate improvement in consistency and you'll find that the advantage of weighing vs. volume is important since not all beans are created equal. Some beans are better at 14 grams and some at 15 on the Spaz, it may look like the same volume in your basket but the weight can be far off. A scale will help you determine what works best for you for any particular bean.

[Mizspresso]

So, how do I create a nice level basket when using 14 grams? I can only fill a double basket when I use at least 17 grams.

When I try to use less, I just end up tapping the basket trying to get it reasonably even.

Any tips?

[Niko]

It gets a little tricky but it can be done.
You can use a finger to carefully start sweeping grinds around in a circular motion kind of like a windshield wiper blade - bend your finger against the basket rim like you're sweeping moisture off a windshield (from the inside). I know it sounds weird but it works, try doing this by sweeping around an even distribution of the grinds several times around. Do this without tapping in order to keep the cake undisturbed, then tamp straight down without tapping the sides of the PF and you'll find that the puck works great when it's not banged around too much.

[Mizspresso]

That does sound tricky. Do you mean like this?



I don't get the windshield motion. Move my knuckle against the inside rim with the point of my finger towards the center? Or, as I re-read this it sounds more like I use the tip of my finger against the rim with the knuckle resting on the rim?

[Niko]

Rest the finger tip on the basket rim and push the rest of the finger down into the basket and turn both PF and finger in opposite direction, the bent finger representing a bent wiper blade against a windshield. Sorry, I'm not so good at describing these sort of things clearly...
I got it!
I'll post a video, just got to find someone to man the camera so I can illustrate what I'm trying to describe.

[woodchuck]

I use a naked pf and a M4 stepless doser. I find I can get a pretty even dose just by moving the pf around during dosing. Same thing if I'm just dosing into a basket. A slight tap to gently even out the dose, tamp and voila. As Niko points out keeping the dose between 14 and 15 grams is good. My weights have a tendancy to creep up over time so I measure fairly often.
Cheers
Ian

[Mizspresso]

So far my results are hopeless with 14 gram doses. I tried one this weekend and got a real squirter. Yuck! I also have the M4 doserless, but I grind into the pf with a yogurt container and then use the WDT to break up clumps. So, this sheds a different light on methodology.

18 grams, on the other hand, I get a nice thick slow pour.

[coffeeowl]

Try leveling the grinds by stirring them with a needle, on H-B they call it wdt. While stirring, don't put the neddle deeper then from 1/3 to half the coffee depth in the basket.

[Niko]

Mizspresso, I noticed you have the MACAP, same one parked next to my Mazzer.
A chopstick seems to do the trick for me, only thing the WDT would manage to do for me is compress the grinds so they aren't as fluffy when they fill the basket.
Have you seen the video clip of the MACAP & chopstick action? It doesn't require any extra stuff like yogurt containers & needles - just a chopstick with a skilled hand is all.

[Mizspresso]

Ah, no, I have not seen that video. I use a slim bamboo skewer to encourage all the grounds to come out.

I have also been using the WDT. Maybe that is a problem. The doserless clumps more than my Rocky (doser) so I thought the stirring would improve things. The yogurt container is nice because I can get it right up to the spout, but maybe I am mis-directed with this method.

I had an idea to use a small flour sifter to de-clump my grounds, but maybe I am trying to solve a problem that is not that big a deal.

I will check out the video to see what I can see.

Thx

[Niko]

Here's the vid: http://youtube.com/watch?v=vgEsWqG3Zqw

From what I recall, it was about a 14.5 - 15 grams dose in that clip. I've down-dosed to 14 (or less) with great results from that grinder. In fact, the MACAP is easier than the Mazzer for distributing because the grinds stay fluffier.