This little grinder works better than I expected! It does take a bit of effort to grind enough coffee for my big morning cup. However, in the time it takes to get the kettle up to temperature I've had a tiny workout and have enough ground coffee to make a strong large cup of delicious coffee. The quality of the grind from the burr mechanism is superb. I use an AeroPress and use an almost expresso level of grind. It does a much better job than my previous electric blade grinder. And I can even take it camping!

Best of the budget hand grinders

This hand grinder replaced an electric coffee bean 'grinder' which had a little rotor. I wrote 'grinder' because it doesn't grind but simply smashes the beans up, so you get anything from fine dust to quite large pieces. It's also seriously noisy, which risks waking my wife. As I get up at seven days a week this is a real problem. An uneven 'grind' results in a poorer brew and not such a good cup of coffee. Having looked at loads of reviews this Hario came up as the best of the sensibly priced coffee grinders. I use it daily and like it. You can adjust the grind size easily. Another, cheaper, one I bought since for use when travelling isn't a patch on this one and even at a lower cost I regret buying it. I would, and probably will at some point, buy another of these ... MoreThis hand grinder replaced an electric coffee bean 'grinder' which had a little rotor. I wrote 'grinder' because it doesn't grind but simply smashes the beans up, so you get anything from fine dust to quite large pieces. It's also seriously noisy, which risks waking my wife. As I get up at seven days a week this is a real problem. An uneven 'grind' results in a poorer brew and not such a good cup of coffee. Having looked at loads of reviews this Hario came up as the best of the sensibly priced coffee grinders. I use it daily and like it. You can adjust the grind size easily. Another, cheaper, one I bought since for use when travelling isn't a patch on this one and even at a lower cost I regret buying it. I would, and probably will at some point, buy another of these without hesitation. Be aware, of course, that if you want coffee for four people it will be quite hard work. I use the grinder each morning for my single mug of coffee and by the time the kettle has boiled the coffee is ground. Highly recommended.

Decent

You get what you pay for. It grinds well, and there is minimum retention if you slap it bunch, bit I noticed some issues. First issue is the outer burr (the thing that's not the cone) sits ever so slightly loose. A quick fix is to wrap tape around it to cushion it in place. The second is the unevenness of the conical burr (blade part? the cone itself) leads to uneven grinding, and I'm left with some SUPER fine parts and other SUPER large bits. To fix this I ended up taping around the shaft connecting to the cone part of the burr set, so it sits in place in the housing. It's a bit hard to explain what I did, but I'm sure there are tutorials to fix these issues online. After these fixes my grind became more consistent and I haven't noticed anymore of the big chunks in ... MoreYou get what you pay for. It grinds well, and there is minimum retention if you slap it bunch, bit I noticed some issues. First issue is the outer burr (the thing that's not the cone) sits ever so slightly loose. A quick fix is to wrap tape around it to cushion it in place. The second is the unevenness of the conical burr (blade part? the cone itself) leads to uneven grinding, and I'm left with some SUPER fine parts and other SUPER large bits. To fix this I ended up taping around the shaft connecting to the cone part of the burr set, so it sits in place in the housing. It's a bit hard to explain what I did, but I'm sure there are tutorials to fix these issues online. After these fixes my grind became more consistent and I haven't noticed anymore of the big chunks in my coffee bed.TLDR: Some fixable issues persist, but good value for dollar imo.Good for filter/cold brewing, would not recommend for espresso.

Evenness of grind is consistent and excellent

Received this 2/3 days ago and so fa have used it 3 times, all on the fine setting to prepare my regular espresso (which is why I bought this item). I also use an electric coffee grinder, aminly for use in a drip filter or large and small cafetieres, but it is not so good for espresso, so have until now bought ready-ground espresso coffee, so once my current stock is reduced I will probably mainly use the manual grinder instead. It was easy to set up and pretty easy to use - the minor exercise when turning the handle is probably good for me anyway. The espresso grind is very consistent and produces excellent espresso grind coffee which works well in my small moka espesso pot, I also have a larger espresso moka pot for occasional use when guests call and will ... MoreReceived this 2/3 days ago and so fa have used it 3 times, all on the fine setting to prepare my regular espresso (which is why I bought this item). I also use an electric coffee grinder, aminly for use in a drip filter or large and small cafetieres, but it is not so good for espresso, so have until now bought ready-ground espresso coffee, so once my current stock is reduced I will probably mainly use the manual grinder instead. It was easy to set up and pretty easy to use - the minor exercise when turning the handle is probably good for me anyway. The espresso grind is very consistent and produces excellent espresso grind coffee which works well in my small moka espesso pot, I also have a larger espresso moka pot for occasional use when guests call and will probably continue to use ready-ground for that, but for individual use the manual grinder is excellent. It seems pretty sturdily built so am very hopeful it will last quite a long time.

Good entry level grinder

This is the first manual coffee grinder I've purchased, so I didn't want to put a big investment on it. After 2 months of use I can say it does the job quite well. It can get stuck while grinding which is a bit annoying, and the grinds are never 100% even, so this is definitely not ideal for pourover and espresso coffee. But for someone like me who uses an immersion brewing method with an aeropress, this product works great. Would recommend if you are also interested in filter coffee and immersion brewing, otherwise you should probably get something more high-end.

Grinds coffee

I honestly don't understand the praise this model gets. Maybe I just got a bad unit, but it takes me several gruelling minutes to grind 30 grams and the result is very inconsistent with lots of fines and big chunks. I thought I just didn't like hand grinders, and then I got a Timemore C2 and it was a game changer. Takes less than a minute and gives a practically cafe-quality grind, with a smooth, easy cranking action that doesn't tire me out. I still use my Hario occasionally (I have it as a backup for when I forget to bring the Timemore back and forth, because it's still marginally better than a $20 electric grinder), but I'm here to replace it with a second Timemore and I'll be so happy to be rid of it.

Grinds finely, but is a workout

I bought this coffee grinder because I needed something portable to use with my Aeropress when travelling. I typically like to make cold brew, and needed something that could grind finely. Overall, it is "good" for this purpose. At its finest setting, this can grind beans into a fine flour-consistency, which is more than what I need for cold brew. Adjusting the grind setting is easy and intuitive, and the setting has never slipped on me (which is an issue I've had on my home electric grinder). For other people that use multiple different grind settings, it would be nice if ranges of settings were labeled as fine-medium-coarse, but since I only use one setting, I was able to set-it-and-forget-it after some experimentation. The downsides 1) entirely plastic build - it ... MoreI bought this coffee grinder because I needed something portable to use with my Aeropress when travelling. I typically like to make cold brew, and needed something that could grind finely. Overall, it is "good" for this purpose. At its finest setting, this can grind beans into a fine flour-consistency, which is more than what I need for cold brew. Adjusting the grind setting is easy and intuitive, and the setting has never slipped on me (which is an issue I've had on my home electric grinder). For other people that use multiple different grind settings, it would be nice if ranges of settings were labeled as fine-medium-coarse, but since I only use one setting, I was able to set-it-and-forget-it after some experimentation. The downsides 1) entirely plastic build - it does not feel premium, but the price is low so this is to be expected. 2) short grinding arm. The low torque from this means that it's a workout, and a long one. I would not be able to use this to make multiple cups of coffee if I had a guest over. On my slower mornings, I really do not look forward to using this grinder. 3) it is not as portable as it could be. The bottom of the grinder is flared outward, but it doesn't actually contribute to the amount of coffee grounds that can be held there. It simply feels like a waste of plastic. Maybe it helps with gripping it during the workout of grinding, but still, this could have at least contributed to a larger chamber for holding more grounds. I would be able to give this grinder 5 stars if there was an option of a longer grinding arm so that grinding would be easier and not a "workout".

Not worth it with many options

I bought this a couple years ago and at that time, there weren't many options. There almost no aluminum body grinder with steel burr like today. I bought it because I wanted fresh ground coffee at work so it's ok, the adjustment is too coarse and I can see big and small after brewing with pour over. After 2-3 years, there are too many new grinders from China with very impressive built for a little more money. That doesn't directly translate to better coffee but there are many other factors you want to have from a fast grinding, consistency, build quality and adjustment. FYI, I still have the hario and now I just got the 1zespresso K-Max and Timemore C3 (for only $63) from amazon.

Perfect for me

I’ve gone pour over, and didn’t want an electric device. Bought myself a cast iron, wall mounted, Spanish, antique grinder which I was ecstatic about and started using as soon as I received it. FYI- there’s a reason why antiques become obsolete antiques. Broke that baby, and now I have a gorgeous $120 piece of antique art on my kitchen wall which has been replaced by this super efficient guy. I only make 1-2 cups at a time and can crank 1 cup worth in less than 2 mins now, 2 cups is about 3 because my hands fatigue easily. But I am in love with this thing. Super fresh coffee whenever I want it. Takes about 5-6 mins to make a cup and couldn’t be happier with this purchase.

Small footprint, consistent grind size.

This is perfect for traveling or if you have a really small space and want a burr grinder but the electric machines are all too big. Grinds enough for roughly 2 cups of coffee depending on how strong you like it. And the grain size goes from fine enough for an espresso to coarser for a French press. The fine is smooth and consistent for a manual grinder. I've used $20 electric blade grinders that don't come close to this quality result. The actual grinding process is a bit of a workout, but that's the trade off for going manual. My one complaint is the smoothness/shape of the design. It's hard to get a good grip with one hand while turning the wand with the other. My hand tends to slide down. Maybe if there was a textured rubber type material around the middle or ... MoreThis is perfect for traveling or if you have a really small space and want a burr grinder but the electric machines are all too big. Grinds enough for roughly 2 cups of coffee depending on how strong you like it. And the grain size goes from fine enough for an espresso to coarser for a French press. The fine is smooth and consistent for a manual grinder. I've used $20 electric blade grinders that don't come close to this quality result. The actual grinding process is a bit of a workout, but that's the trade off for going manual. My one complaint is the smoothness/shape of the design. It's hard to get a good grip with one hand while turning the wand with the other. My hand tends to slide down. Maybe if there was a textured rubber type material around the middle or something my hand would stay in place.