First ever machine, just getting into coffee, really. Top tips, necessary upgrades, grinder recommendations please?
Also, at the coffee roasters near me, you can ask them to grind up a bag of beans for you. Is this okay to do for this machine/in general, or does every pour require a fresh grind there and then?
by guzusan
13 Comments
Badevilbunny
Re the machine, the best I can give you is learn how to dial in your beans – watch some YT videos and manually time your extraction.
If you are not grinding your own and are using pre-ground, use the pressurized basket until you get a grinder and then use the un-pressurised basket (which is the better way.
Re grinders, there is sooooo much in this and some of the other coffee subs, it is worth doing some searches.
A lot depends on your budget, what type/style of coffee you like and availability where you live.
The_GEP_Gun_Takedown
What kind of grinder budget do you have? Do you want to make filter coffee too.
You’ll also probably want some accessories too.
Vitalgori
Got the same machine.
I’m using: – Timemore C2 grinder, with an electric drill jugged to it via a 3d printed funnel – A no-name, self leveling spring tamper – An IMS basket (took me a while to figure out that IMS is an actual brand) – A 3D printed dosing collar
jgeorge2k
I would consider a puck screen.
Just remember Sage use a 54mm portafilter rather than the “normal” 58mm.
You will want a set of coffee scales, very cheap from Amazon…try to get one that is 0.00g for consistency with your shots.
I tried a bottomless filter…a cheap one from Amazon admittedly…but found that it was more difficult to so stopped using it.
I have a 1zpresso JX Pro manual grinder, I paid £115 but they appear to have gone up since I purchased it.
I have seen people suggest the kingrinder k6 but I have no experience.
Mexi89
I have the same machine with: – Sage Smart grinder pro – Coffee crema 54mm bottomless + puck screen + dosing funnel – WDT tool from amazon – Normcore V4 – Acaia Lunar
A bit overkill? YES But i don’t care, i’m happy with it
No-Bake9618
First thing I’d get would be: good handgrinder for espresso, WDT (you can also make one yourself), exact scale, spring based tamper (normcore V4). in that order and watch some videos on how to dial in Coffebeans.
Welcome to the Club! If you like what you are doing, you just went down a rabbit hole, but you’ll like it here 🙂
zirkon006
Loved your mug where did you get it
michi214
I would recommend you a handgrinder at the beginning, specifically some with the capability to adjust it fine enough to dial in your espresso. For me personally they are quite a lot easier to adjust than electric grinders such as the breville/ sage smart grinder pro
KINGrinder K2, K4 or K6 are all working pretty well, the timemore chestnuts are in my opinion to big adjustment steps for espresso (even the dedicated espresso edition with “esp” in the name) and are more expensive on top
Use the bigger single wall basket (the one with many holes on the bottom and not 1) and have some kind of scale to keep the amount of beans you use constant, something between 15-18g should do, try to keep that value always the same and dial in the espresso just with the grind size..
A dosing ring is a big quality of life improvement for cheap to not make a huge mess every single time
Like that it works pretty well for me
MikermanS
Start saving for a grinder–it really is that important. The well-regarded KinGrinder K6 hand-grinder comes in at ~US$99; good electrics at the lower $ end at ~US$200 (note the newly- issued DF54 at US$229, getting good comments here; and I’ve enjoyed my Barataza Encore ESP, and there are others as well).
A slim, .1g resolution scale, to weigh your beans/coffee grounds and to put under your catch cup to stop your shot manually at your desired weight (the Bambino’s volumetric shot buttons can be lesser-consistent), is a must. A WDT tool has been shown to be able to improve shots from freshly-ground beans. A dosing funnel made all the difference for me to prevent frustration and mess (and a clever contributor here calculated that it pays for itself over time, from grounds savings). And a tamp mat or something similar will protect your countertop.
Parking-Ingenuity-87
Others have already given you great suggestions and I’ll throw mine in the ring too.
Must have:
Good beans. Seems obvious but can’t be understated how important this is.
Cheap digital scale precise enough to 0.1g. Key component to making a good send consistent espresso is input and output weight and the ratio between the two. The scale will help you immensely with this.
Maybe have:
A grinder. Technically a must have if you want to get the best flavour from your beans though, you can get by using pre ground coffee and a double wall basket. Recommendation is Timemore C3ESP. The C2 model is also nice if you’re really tight on your budget however the ESP version will make dialling in your beans an easier process. A more expensive grinder but well worth the investment is DF54 once supply is fixed.
Puck screen. Helps with water distribution and personally the biggest benefit for me is keeping the group head clean. Very cheap and has given me great results.
Nice to have:
WDT tool. Bunch of acupuncture needles to break up clumps and help with distribution. However, efficacy is in question atm.
Self leveling tamper. Going back to consistency, you’ll realise puck prep is crucial. A tamper with a collar will distribute force evenly across the puck resulting in a flat bed.
Btw, AliExpress or Temu is your friend when it comes to cheap yet effective coffee tools. Can be a bit overwhelming at first from decision paralysis.
Left_Line_171
Df54
Ldefeu
I would recommend a grinder as the main upgrade, budget permitting. Hand grinders are better quality for the money
The best advice I was given for upgrades is to wait until you have a problem that needs fixing. As a beginner though its obviously hard to know what problems you have, so some common ones are:
Inconsistency – use a scale to measure input/out, after this could try wdt
Bland/flavorless – after trying to dial in dose, buy a grinder and grind fresh
There’s a lot of people buying toys to feed a hobby, which fine and fun to tinker, but it starts to be diminishing returns very quickly.
throwITallaway4ever1
Krups Precise Stainless Steel Flat Burr Grinder 8oz, 32cups bean hopper 12 Grind from Fine to Coarse 110 Watts Removable Container, Drip, Press, Espresso, Cold Brew, 2,12 cups ground coffee Black
13 Comments
Re the machine, the best I can give you is learn how to dial in your beans – watch some YT videos and manually time your extraction.
If you are not grinding your own and are using pre-ground, use the pressurized basket until you get a grinder and then use the un-pressurised basket (which is the better way.
Re grinders, there is sooooo much in this and some of the other coffee subs, it is worth doing some searches.
A lot depends on your budget, what type/style of coffee you like and availability where you live.
What kind of grinder budget do you have? Do you want to make filter coffee too.
You’ll also probably want some accessories too.
Got the same machine.
I’m using:
– Timemore C2 grinder, with an electric drill jugged to it via a 3d printed funnel
– A no-name, self leveling spring tamper
– An IMS basket (took me a while to figure out that IMS is an actual brand)
– A 3D printed dosing collar
I would consider a puck screen.
Just remember Sage use a 54mm portafilter rather than the “normal” 58mm.
You will want a set of coffee scales, very cheap from Amazon…try to get one that is 0.00g for consistency with your shots.
I tried a bottomless filter…a cheap one from Amazon admittedly…but found that it was more difficult to so stopped using it.
I have a 1zpresso JX Pro manual grinder, I paid £115 but they appear to have gone up since I purchased it.
I have seen people suggest the kingrinder k6 but I have no experience.
I have the same machine with:
– Sage Smart grinder pro
– Coffee crema 54mm bottomless + puck screen + dosing funnel
– WDT tool from amazon
– Normcore V4
– Acaia Lunar
A bit overkill? YES
But i don’t care, i’m happy with it
First thing I’d get would be: good handgrinder for espresso, WDT (you can also make one yourself), exact scale, spring based tamper (normcore V4). in that order and watch some videos on how to dial in Coffebeans.
Welcome to the Club! If you like what you are doing, you just went down a rabbit hole, but you’ll like it here 🙂
Loved your mug where did you get it
I would recommend you a handgrinder at the beginning, specifically some with the capability to adjust it fine enough to dial in your espresso. For me personally they are quite a lot easier to adjust than electric grinders such as the breville/ sage smart grinder pro
KINGrinder K2, K4 or K6 are all working pretty well, the timemore chestnuts are in my opinion to big adjustment steps for espresso (even the dedicated espresso edition with “esp” in the name) and are more expensive on top
Use the bigger single wall basket (the one with many holes on the bottom and not 1) and have some kind of scale to keep the amount of beans you use constant, something between 15-18g should do, try to keep that value always the same and dial in the espresso just with the grind size..
A dosing ring is a big quality of life improvement for cheap to not make a huge mess every single time
Like that it works pretty well for me
Start saving for a grinder–it really is that important. The well-regarded KinGrinder K6 hand-grinder comes in at ~US$99; good electrics at the lower $ end at ~US$200 (note the newly- issued DF54 at US$229, getting good comments here; and I’ve enjoyed my Barataza Encore ESP, and there are others as well).
A slim, .1g resolution scale, to weigh your beans/coffee grounds and to put under your catch cup to stop your shot manually at your desired weight (the Bambino’s volumetric shot buttons can be lesser-consistent), is a must. A WDT tool has been shown to be able to improve shots from freshly-ground beans. A dosing funnel made all the difference for me to prevent frustration and mess (and a clever contributor here calculated that it pays for itself over time, from grounds savings). And a tamp mat or something similar will protect your countertop.
Others have already given you great suggestions and I’ll throw mine in the ring too.
Must have:
Good beans. Seems obvious but can’t be understated how important this is.
Cheap digital scale precise enough to 0.1g. Key component to making a good send consistent espresso is input and output weight and the ratio between the two. The scale will help you immensely with this.
Maybe have:
A grinder. Technically a must have if you want to get the best flavour from your beans though, you can get by using pre ground coffee and a double wall basket. Recommendation is Timemore C3ESP. The C2 model is also nice if you’re really tight on your budget however the ESP version will make dialling in your beans an easier process. A more expensive grinder but well worth the investment is DF54 once supply is fixed.
Puck screen. Helps with water distribution and personally the biggest benefit for me is keeping the group head clean. Very cheap and has given me great results.
Nice to have:
WDT tool. Bunch of acupuncture needles to break up clumps and help with distribution. However, efficacy is in question atm.
Self leveling tamper. Going back to consistency, you’ll realise puck prep is crucial. A tamper with a collar will distribute force evenly across the puck resulting in a flat bed.
Btw, AliExpress or Temu is your friend when it comes to cheap yet effective coffee tools. Can be a bit overwhelming at first from decision paralysis.
Df54
I would recommend a grinder as the main upgrade, budget permitting. Hand grinders are better quality for the money
The best advice I was given for upgrades is to wait until you have a problem that needs fixing. As a beginner though its obviously hard to know what problems you have, so some common ones are:
Inconsistency – use a scale to measure input/out, after this could try wdt
Bland/flavorless – after trying to dial in dose, buy a grinder and grind fresh
There’s a lot of people buying toys to feed a hobby, which fine and fun to tinker, but it starts to be diminishing returns very quickly.
Krups Precise Stainless Steel Flat Burr Grinder 8oz, 32cups bean hopper 12 Grind from Fine to Coarse 110 Watts Removable Container, Drip, Press, Espresso, Cold Brew, 2,12 cups ground coffee Black