Review on ⚙️ Breville BCG820BSS Smart Grinder Pro - Stainless Steel Coffee Bean Grinder by Cary Clemons

There are many bad reviews here about the coffee grinder getting stuck or stopping and some even mentioning a burning smell. This problem is easy to work around. In summary, this is a really excellent entry-level coffee grinder with one major drawback that's easy to overcome. I'm going to talk about what makes this grinder great in a moment, but first one thing you MUST KNOW if you're going to buy this grinder. If the grinder slows down or stops grinding before the cycle is complete, STOP THE MACHINE. You do this by clicking the button on the right. Then remove the funnel (see the manual - this is easy to do). Remove the top ridge (this is also easy to do - read the instructions). Empty any beans from the grinder (just take the machine and turn it upside down - I'll empty the beans back into the hopper). Clean the underside of the burr (Breville supplies a small brush for this). Connect the upper millstone and the hopper together. Restart the grinder (press the right button). It will complete the rest of the suspended loop. You might want to hand grind some more to make up for the lost land. Why is this happening? The motor in this model is a little underpowered. May get stuck when sanding. Rarely, but there is. I had this once a month in daily use. In that case, follow the steps above and you shouldn't have any problems. I did this and the grinder immediately started working properly again as if it never happened. Why is this coffee grinder still great? It's pretty simple - the ONLY thing that matters about a grinder, besides reliability/durability, is how even the grind is (how even the size of the individual grains of ground coffee is). The higher the consistency, the better your coffee will be, period. This model is **absolutely superior** in consistency. Undoubtedly, independent testing has shown that every grinder in this price range has more than twice the "optimal" grind size of the next best make and model. You can spend 2x or 3x that amount and still not get a smoother grind than with this guy. Wherever it's needed this grinder is king unless you want to spend a lot more on a true pro model. Some additional nice features: --- With a little experimentation, you can dial in the exact amount of coffee you need. Grind per cup (for drip irrigation) or per portion (for espresso) and easily program the amount so you never have to think about it again. Once that's done you can just tell it the 1 or 2 cups or number of drip cups (up to 12) you want to make and then you can ALWAYS grind EXACTLY the amount of coffee you need. This means you can always brew coffee using only freshly ground beans without wasting a single bean. It's pretty cool. ---You can experiment with 60 grind levels to choose exactly what you want. Personally for espresso, 15.8 seconds with a grind size of 14 gives a perfectly timed double shot on my Breville espresso machine. For Drops, I like the mid-40s, but haven't decided where yet. The difference from one setting to the next is really hardly noticeable when using filter coffee. --- If you don't want a very fine espresso grind, but want a coarser grind, you can use the setting 60 (to get a french press that way) for the top grind (it's easy to do - read the instructions ). There are 4 other positions that adjust all 60 settings and make them rougher. Conversely, if you want an even finer espresso but don't need the coarsest of settings, there are 5 other positions on this top grinder that make the entire range of the machine finer. A video review I've seen says this makes 600 grind settings, but I'm pretty sure most of those 600 overlap. After all, at least 69 different degrees of grinding are possible. --- Large bunker. Not as big as a professional grinder hopper, but you can fit a full pound of beans into this grinder, leaving some room. --- Gently detachable funnel. To remove the funnel, twist the handle to "lock" it. This will cover the openings at the bottom so the beans don't fall out when you remove the hopper. If you want to go crazy, you can buy a second hopper (or more) and easily switch between espresso and regular coffee (although the first beans come from the previous hopper and remain in the burrs unless you empty them). . when switching). The detachable funnel also makes cleaning easier if oil builds up in it (which can cause the machine to jam). ---Magnetic detachable drip tray. The grist spills all over the place and this makes cleaning up (most of) loose grist very easy. --- Magnetic portafilter holders. You get two, one for the standard 58mm PF size and one for the smaller PF size found on Breville automatic espresso machines. You can easily place the portafilter in the holder and grind directly into it. There's even a button that allows you to install the portafilter and then activate the grinder by simply pressing the portafilter. Some things that could be improved: --- More powerful motor. that would make this coffee grinder almost perfect. --- Could be a little quieter. It's not particularly loud like Grinder, but it's also not the quietest I've owned. But a more powerful motor would probably be louder, so maybe they were trying to find a balance between performance and smoothness. --- Includes "cup" latch. It seals tight, which is good, but the mouth doesn't line up with the grinder port when fully inserted. Push it back too far and the metal cover will stick to the magnet holding the portafilter adapter, but if you line it up precisely with the grinder port, the grinder's vibration can cause it to slip during grinding. . The solution is to simply grind the coffee straight into the filter, or remove the lid from the "cup" and place it all the way down to catch all the coffee grounds. / or espresso, you can't beat this grinder if you can't afford a true professional model. Watch out for sticking (again, this is rare but potentially dangerous for the engine). But if you take good care of this grinder and spend some time adjusting the settings, you'll get the perfect grind, exactly the amount you need, every time. then there is probably a better choice out there for you.