Multiple Brands - DF54 V1/V2

The OP on this thread has probably made their decision a long time ago. I got the DF54 V2 a week and a half ago. Super easy to dial in and use with my Breville Bambino. The zero point is off but since I am using it for espresso only it doesn´t make any real difference as my adjustments are slight. I clean out the chute every few days with the provided brush. I am getting vitually 0 retention. Occaisionally .1 or .2 grams and often none. It is the rainy season here in Oaxaca, Mexico. So, I´m sure that is a factor. When the dry season comes and the humidity drops I may experience a little more but I will just spritz the beans then. I am hot starting and pouring the beans in gradually over 10 seconds or so. It came with the burr alignment perfect. I am super happy with the purchase and performance and am pulling fabulous shots of espresso using this grinder and the Breville Bambino!

Yes, I did the marker test. I am 2 months in now. I have put through about 5kg. 0 retention even though we have moved from our rainy season to our dry season. But the humidity in the morning when I am making shots is usually around 40%. But I notice very little static and lately when I pull a shot, it is dead on. 18 grams in, 18 grams out. Mid winter the humidity with get into the teens mid day and lower in the morning. So, maybe then I will see some static. I have a sprayer that I have yet to use. My only complaint would be the power button could be a little more sensitive. Other than that, I am 100% satisfied with how easy to use and how consistent the grinder is. I typically pull 3 double shots per day. Sometimes 2 more at night if my wife and I want an after dinner decaf coffee drink. I clean it with the provided brush about 1x per week and get less than 1 gram residual.

My experience as to quality has been excellent and my burrs were perfectly aligned. I was prepared to adjust them if necessary but it wasn´t. Mine has fuctioned perfectly. I couldn´t be happier as a home barrista (former pro) who pulls 3 to 5 double shots per day.

I recently bought a F54 after having used the Kingrinder K6 for 15 or so months. I have read good stuff about the DF54 for its price and it seems to be a good all-rounder, or some say it's more espresso oriented). Check out the "sub 250 grinders" video of James Hoffmann. The K6 was around 125 EUR when I bought it (local currency made it a bit more expensive than what you otherwise can get out there). I got the DF54 for 200 EUR, during a flash-sale. I put 900 g beans through it for it to settle a bit and now it makes much less fines. Out of the box it made much more fines for my V60 than what I was used to with my K6, even at the coarsest setting of 90. My drip-down time went from 3:30 to around 5 minutes as the fines were clogging, stopping the flow. After the "seasoning" the 0-point went down from around -3 to -8 on the scale, so I guess the burred edges are a bit smoother now on a microscopic level. I have only tried filter until now, but it now seems to be doing a great job at 75. I have read about the clogging and static issue, but I haven't noticed clogging, and the static is manageable, I don't (yet) do RDT spraying but have switched the plastic cup for the catch-cup of the K6 (as a temporary measure). I think that most of the complaints are about the DF54 V1, as there seems to be a V2 now? At least that's what I have gathered. If that's true, I think I got the V2. I don't have any issues with the step-less dial, I can easily turn it with one hand, it's smooth. I don't have filter-coffee particles sticking and flying all over the counter as some people have said. I did see some minor balling up of ground coffee but after switching to metal catch-cup and dumping the whole 30 g of coffee into the machine (instead of slow-feeding), the clumping seemed to get much better. I have been hot starting it, so first turning it on, and then putting in the beans. Some people have recommended that. TL;DR: I think the DF54 is a good all-rounder, especially at the price-point of €200. I haven't had too many cups (maybe around 5-6) but even now it is doing a good job already. I don't have much experience, other than 15 months of daily Kingrinder K6 for espresso (Dedica) and V60. So keep that in mind.

This is what I was thinking. I also have a DF54 for espresso and am considering a hand grinder for the very occasional pour over.

I actually haven’t taken my df54 apart or recalibrated it. I haven’t necessarily needed to. It’s been doing fantastic for pour over and my espresso needs. Of course when it starts to chirp or needs cleaning I will adjust as needed but for now I haven’t made any changes since it’s arrived.

If you typically buy fresh roasted small batch coffee, especially single origin, I think you should look for something with more clarity like the DF54. It will deliver a more uniform grind size which helps flesh out the flavor profile. If you want something easy to dial in with a wider sweet spot for grind setting then the Encore ESP is a great choice, especially for a beginner. Maybe even step up to the ESP Pro which has a digital display and a more upscale look and feel. Personally I think it’s worth the extra cost over the regular ESP. If you think you’ll be into espresso as a hobby, you’ll probably end up with both a conical and flat burr grinder anyway as they each have their pros and cons.

A little two-cents as someone who picked up an Opus a few months ago. Price was keeping me in that $200 range, so I was looking at the Opus, the Encore, and the DF54. Had an 1zpresso JX break and needed a replacement quickly that could multipurpose and was electric (was hoping to pick up a Flair for espresso at Christmas and was tired of years of hand grinding). I would say I’m on the higher end of intermediate rather than a beginner. I think the DF54 is, from the sounds of it, the best of those three grinders, but I’d read that there was some skepticism about customer support. I also wasn’t sure if I wanted to fall down the rabbit hole of changing out burr sets for espresso and filter. Lance Hedrick actually has a video on the Opus where he blind tastes coffees against the Encore and is surprised to find he prefers the coffee from the Opus. That was probably what swayed me toward the Opus. I’ve also been happy with Fellow products—Stagg, Prismo, Carter mug—and their stuff was on sale when I needed to put in an order. The retention is unfortunate but not deal breaking for me. I take it apart and clean it once a week (it seems to want to hold on to around .5g of coffee no matter what). As others have mentioned it definitely doesn’t feel as high end, but that’s okay with me. I brew pour over, aeropress, and, most days, steep and release with a Clever and I’ve been getting very enjoyable cups of coffee.

I have a feeling they’re going to hate the DF54 if they had issues with the Ode’s build quality.

That's fair. From what I remember about briefly using a DF54, it was a nice grinder but the Ode 2 felt better to use. I also got my Ode 2 for $280 which probably made it seem like a much better value.

I had the same question and ordered a DF54! (Yesterday). I had local vendor offering the Mignon Zero 55s, for 250€, but after many people here and on discord and other sources suggested that the DF54 is just the better grinder and is cheaper I decided to get the Df54, (from the same vendor, I paid a little more (compared to https://df64coffee.com/ ), but now I got local support and supported a local business.

Df54 should fit that budget.... Or go hand grinder and get a j-Ultra or commandante

Interesting, I think it's quite beautiful it's slim and sleek but that's subjective Also I don't understand why that would push your budget? I tried a random Amsterdam adress and it came to 202€, so quite below your budget. And at that price point it absolutely outperforms, everything. https://df64coffee.com/ A different option, would be a Mignon Eureka singledose like the zero 55, but I have been told it's not as good as the DF54. But I have no experience with mignon and they make really good grinders like the smart or the Specialita.

DF54 kung flat burr. Pero kung gusto mo conical at madalas mag-sale, SK40/itop40s, eto gamit ko before.

I currently use hand for pourover (K6) and electric for espresso (DF54) and I enjoy the flow of it a lot. Helps my twice-daily pourover feel more like an enjoyable ritual whereas with espresso I want as little fuss as possible.