Alright, give it to me straight. I need all the pros and cons of this grinder – mostly cons that I should look forward to.
This is my endgame beginner set up for at least 2-3 years until one or the other craps out, or I’m just ready to upgrade. I am still keeping my Kingrinder as a backup.
I single dose all my shots so I think it’s perfect for that regard. I’m only ever making 2-3 drinks a day or at a time anyway.
I am already aware and slightly annoyed by the retention issue, but I think that’s a minor annoyance compared to all the other cool features it offers. Plastic feels durable and not cheap- couple cosmetic issues that may arise later with scratches but not really worried about that either.
I’ve read reviews, watched countless videos from Lance Hedrick, Tom’s Corner and even a stepless mod video from Emile Bryant (won’t be voiding my warranty doing that LOL but it was pretty cool to watch). Anything else that hasn’t been mentioned in articles or videos? Any good tips or tricks? AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.. can someone please properly explain the micro and macro adjustment like I’m 5 years old? I know what to do but I kinda want the entire math/science behind it.
Please keep the “this grinder is shit, you need to spend more money” sentiments to a minimum – I’m obviously a beginner and I’m on a budget. I just want a clear picture of what I’m working with so I can make the most out of it and make some great milk drinks 🙂
by indicaj_
31 Comments
Just realized like 3 other people made a post like this lmfaoooo, let me go comment browsing.
If you decide to return it due to the retention issues, there’s other quality electric grinders in this price range like the Starseeker E55 Pro, Mokkom 64mm, etc. I’m not going to price shame anyone. I wish you the best of luck getting a grinder that you’re happy with.
I’ve used one for about 2 years now. Give the lid a good smack and then lift the lid up and down and it sort of acts like a bellow. Once every couple months use a shop vac to get any serious buildup that might be accumulating in there.
Just take care of it and it’s a totally fine grinder. Tbh I wouldn’t use the micro adjustments for now. Later on when you have a better taste for dialing in you can refine a bit more with them.
If you want to be able to visualize the effect of the inner/outer adjustment dials, get the Beanie app and play around with it. It’ll make sense eventually.
Don’t forget to clean out the burrs to get your bonus dose at the end of the month.
Make sure to clean the static pins monthly or depending on usage… you’ll know when it’s dirty by the mess and retention issues you will start having.
Really try to get in there and leave them clean too btw
How is the Breville steaming wand working for you? Mine hardly steams the milk and I’m wondering if there’s a work around?
I’ve had Opus for a year, it looks good, not too tall for under cabinet, is quieter than many, the magnetic cup is nice touch. It does clog. This is gonna not be a popular take, but I actually remove the burr and clean the inside each day. It’s so automatic it just takes seconds. I have the perfect long bristle, thinly spaced brush that just goes right down through, leftover grinds drop right into the bin. I will say that extra grinds collect on the underside of the holes that let the coffee enter the catch cup. That’s kind of weird.
I had the exact same setup for 3 weeks, but didn’t like the dialing system on the opus and as you already know, the retention is horrible. I ended up returning it and getting a Turin SD40S which has been great for single dosing and is stepless. So if you do decide to return, I’d recommend looking into one, it’s less than 200$ so comparable price to the opus.
it’s a more than serviceable grinder and fantastic bang for buck in my opinion. Especially if you do anything filter. The biggest cons are the following:
1) retention. However, this is actually easy to deal with once you learn. You just have to clean it regularly, as you should any grinder, and smack the crap out of the lid about three times after it’s done grinding to get all the retention through. if you smack it enough, you’ll end up with 0.1g retention at most
2) grind size adjustment. This is the bigger issues. I have no idea why the designer decided to use a dual-ring combination system. It’s quite cumbersome. I find it very difficult to turn the inner ring just a single click in any direction. Always wants to go 2 clicks. The beanie app is really helpful in terms of doing the math for you, but physically adjusting two rings, one of which is hard to adjust, is pretty annoying.
all that being said, I think it is well worth the Black Friday price and a rather aesthetic grinder
I have the same setup. I’d look for a bellows attachment for the opus. I practice grinder hygiene. That plus the bellows and some tappy tappies and I’m fine. My needs are simple. Dark roasts, 17 in 35-40 out, keep everybody clean and happy. My first batch o’ beans was ridiculously oily and I learned.
I suffer with one now. You’re already aware of the main issue…retention. Assuming you have a place where you can handle lots of dust, you can use compressed air (like the ones used to blow out gunk from keyboards) to clean the anti-static pins and the burrs.
However, I’ve taken to twisting off the dial, removing the burr, and using a chopstick to knock out the retained grounds from the three ledges where they accumulate. It’s a pain, but it’s the most reliable way I’ve found to get back what I put in.
I have the Opus and retention is definitely an issue. Ive found that a water spray of the beans pre grind, and some aforementioned “bellowing” with the top cap and some gentle taps with the grind canister pretty much solves issue.
I found the macro adjustments SO painful to make.
I modded it following this video:[Making the fellow Opus BETTER(Stepless MOD)](https://youtu.be/zIW74h49-NQ?si=4VeAwCCBCp9eAIMY)
It’s not hard at all to do if you’re Handy.. mind my Frankenstein Creation, just got her together and waiting on some printed parts from a buddy of mine.
https://preview.redd.it/h5s493i47y2g1.jpeg?width=4080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6fbcf9116e63a8b45979d3eef0624aa7dd9af674
If you’re having retention issues, don’t be afraid to smack it around a bit. Despite being mostly made of plastic, it’s pretty sturdy. A few hard taps on the taps on the lid seem get most of the grinds out for me.
The anti-static pins work pretty well if you keep them clean. I try to clean around the cute with a brush every couple weeks and do a deeper clean by flipping it upside down every couple months.
I bought it. Got rid of it due to the extremely confusing micro adjustments. I used beanie app and really tried to learn it and I could not. Simply could not. For pour over or other grinds not espresso, it’s great. But I couldn’t dial in any shots with it. Got DF54 instead and haven’t looked back. I’m definitely not trying to rag on you since I made the same initial decision. But if you decide to sell it used, I recommend checking out DF54.
That’s a clean setup! The Opus and the Breville look like they’re plotting to level up your espresso game together. Enjoy the dial-in adventure! ☕🚀
My condolences 😪
The only thing the Opus is really good at is taking punches, it’s surprisingly resilient.
Same setup and no problems. Just good shots. Ok some mess but whatever. A few smacks on the top and you’re good.
I’ve had this setup for 2 years. Excellent value for money on a budget, just requires quite a bit of maintenance. I make 1-2 espressos a day and only clean it once a month and max retention is 0.1g. I give it a couple of light taps while it’s grinding to give it a helping hand! 😂
It’s fine. I still use it for the moka pot and aeropress. Also, you won’t really need to use the micro adjustments at all even for espresso if you can manage playing around with your brew ratios a little.
The weird ux issues (slap the lid 3x??, dual adjustment rings on a modern grinder) are endemic to fellow products.
Their products leave a bad taste in my mouth as overpriced, and poorly designed in odd ways.
They also make opinionated design language choices sometimes that botch functionality – like the Aiden and its ridiculous circular screen that cuts off 1/3 of the text and goofy click wheel. They could’ve made the screen square and legible for less but the design lead think he’s Jonathan Ives.
Like a few have said, there are way better grinders in this price range that do their job and get outta the way. Return it while you can and get something else instead of biting your tongue in the early stages of bullshit.
I had it for couple years, really can’t complain besides REAL need to clean it every month and strange dialing dane you gotta play every time you change your beans. Since that I upgraded to sette 270wi, but still keep my opus as backup 🙂
sat wallahi you bought it?
ALSO BUY BELLOWS THEY COST LIKE £10 BUT THEY IMPROVE THE RETENTION also there is an app (i forgot the name of it sry) that helps with tracking grind size for the fellow opus
Honestly if you wet the grounds before I have very little retention issues with it
Do NOT under any circumstances take out the *lower* burr, since this is how I got *two* replacement units since once you take it out the lower inner pin falls out and there is *no way to put it back in*.
Both of those units stated in the instructions that I could take out the lower burr for a deep clean but never mentioned you should only do this while it’s on its side with a special tool jammed on the other side to keep the pin from falling out (this tool doesn’t come with the machine, only with other burr sets that they offered very briefly once).
After I got my second replacement I straight up sold it without opening the box to try to recoup as much money as I could.
I’ve since moved on to a Baratza Encore ESP Pro which itself I’ve had to get a replacement twice for alignment issues but their support has outright admitted they’re working hard to adjust these gremlins from a brand new product. I don’t think Fellow ever mentioned anything around trying to fix the retention issues (or even changing the design to be able to clean the inner burr properly).
It all comes down to the coffee you use. Some create more fines than others and things just need to be cleaned very regularly. I think this grinder is perfectly acceptable I think maybe watching some videos on deep puck shot and turbo shots may give you more ways to explore it and find something new you may like
Sorry to hear that.
I’m a fellow opus owner for about 2-3 years now. It’s been almost entirely disappointing.
The retention on the machine is abhorrent. It will straight up retain as much as 5g of coffee when I grind. In order to get it all out, I literally have to repeatedly karate chop the machine hard about 5-10 times. What’s more is that it creates a giant mess all around it. Grounds splatter in like a halo effect all around the counter. They’ll even stick to the machine all around it. The anti-static device in it does absolutely nothing.
I’ve tried adding bellows, water sprtiz, etc. Nothing really helps much at all. I find though that the problem is worst with dark oily beans. Medium roast is a bit better though it still will retain at least 1-2 grams on its best day.
It gets the job done ultimately but the way it does that job it’s very messy and frustrating. I’d recommend returning it if you can. I’m looking forward to the day I replace it.
The one pro is that, when it’s clean, it looks great and minimal on the counter when most grinders are heinous at this price range. Problem is that it’s never clean.
Here’s a video describing a way to work around the retention issues.
https://youtu.be/BqBQkhJmnCg?si=qpe9ihqJ_JojDIrF
The grinder works it’s just frustrating to get the right dose and you end up wasting a lot of time and beans. Clean the chute regularly, maybe after every grind and you will have less issues. Good luck!
Surprised by the comments. I’ve had it for 2 years and, most importantly, consistently pull great shots from my La Pavoni with it. Never clogged once. Have to light clean the thing pretty regularly but it’s quite easy to do so, and the light smack does eliminate quite a bit of the retention. If having to do a 15 second clean with a narrow brush occasionally is a huge deal to you—which it seems to be to some—then yeah, take it back. It’s not in the least to me and being able to pull the quality of shots I get at this price point is exceedingly outweighs it. I’m assuming coffee lovers who change beans frequently and want to get really clean flavor profiles would be cleaning their grinder fairly regularly anyways regardless of the grinder…