TIMEMORE - Sculptor 078SSP

TLDR: tried a bunch of grinders/burrs, settled on 078 and ode with SSP mp v1 (brew). Might move on from my zp6. I recently went down the grinder rabbit hole. I've had a zp6 for about two years. Regarding 64mm burrs, I sourced 2 fellow odes and swapped through: SSP mp v1(brew), SSP MP v2, ode gen 2, and 64mm sculptor turbo burrs doing side by sides. I brew via v60 and mainly brew ultralight/light washed and natural coffees. Looking for clarity, gen 2 burrs are too blendy for me. The 64mm turbos are a bit more clear but still not enough. MP v2 are good with vibrant acidity and clarity but definitely more astringent from the extra fines. I settled on the mp v1 (brew) burrs. They have the highest clarity, lowest body, but tend to be easier to brew to reduce astringency. In parallel I also sourced a timemore 078 and timemore 078ssp. The 078 SSP for brew has higher clarity but the intensity is dialed back compared to the 64 SSP mps. It's a different presentation. I really enjoyed the 078 turbo. Brews are high in clarity while retaining good body with added juiciness and sweetness. Noticably sweeter than the 078ssp. The build quality on the 078 is definitely superior to the ode. I don't think it's a fair comparison as price points are different. I'm keeping the 078 for naturals and funkier coffees in addition to washed. The ode with brew burrs will be focused for washed coffees. While yes you could jump straight to 80mm or 98mm recommendations, I think it makes sense to dabble in entry level flat burr grinders first so you can appreciate the difference. When you move into 80mm or 98mm there will be many types of burrs to help you achieve a certain brew, but the price point goes up substantially so it's hard to cycle through them all. You may very well find yourself needing two types of grinders to maximize coffees that are processed differently. For me I'm not a fan of Weber or zerno. I think the cost markup is a bit high for what it is. In addition to the p80, bookoo is rolling out an 80mm grinder also called the motto 80. Maybe worth looking into. Timemore m01 is another great hand grinder I've had the pleasure to use. Good clarity, body, juiciness, intensity and flavor progression. For me zp6 is clear but flavors and cup progression is not very cohesive. It leaves something to be desired. Another good guide for burr comparisons can be found here: https://www.robertasami.com/burrtopia

Hello! I have a steel burred vario that I did basic burr alignment (tin foil and dry erase marker EK43 style) on and recently purchased an 078! I immediately noticed my cups taste cleaner with the 078, but am not totally confident in the 078 yet. I am still going back and forth right now on preference as I have been cursed with a bag of coffee I am not really enjoying right now. My overall impression is that the 078 makes a clearer cup with less body, not tasting quite as full and juicy at times, but let me get back to you once I have some coffees I enjoy more and dial in properly. I typically drink light-medium coffees. Subtext, September, Luna, etc. The coffee I am struggling with is from AMOC and is quite overdeveloped, which is why I can’t give good thoughts on the grinder yet it is smokey and astringent no matter what I do. Feel free to send me a message or I can try to remember to come back to this thread when I get into some better coffees

Fair enough! I can sympathize with that. I just brewed some Luna Layo Teraga which is a fairly light washed ethiopian. It is quite old now but at least it isnt burdened with an overdeveloped profile. I brewed it on both the Vario and the 078 side by side, booth are dialed in nicely and resulted in the same brew time +/- 5 seconds. I can say for sure that the Vario has a more upfront acidity and fuller body. Tastes jucier. As it cools, it is not as clear and structured, and some brown notes start to come up. More astringent/tannic feeling. Timemore is maybe a little less exciting upon the first few sips. Isn't as juicy and doesn't have the same upfront acidity. As it cools, it is noticably more clear and lower astringency. I reckon this is simply by nature of being a highly unimodal grinder. This said, I do sometimes feel like cups from the 078 don't bring the same punch and excitement than the Vario. I know this isnt very empirical by any means -- it is largely just my conjecture from accumulated experience with these grinders. That said, I do notice a pronounced difference between the two grinders, though I can not say which is better. I am definitely of the mind that the Vario and Forte (worked with a forte professionally for a few years) are extremely capable even when compared to an EK43 (worked with an EK professionally for a few years as well). I haven't been 100% satisfied with my Timemore yet but again, I just think I need to crack into some coffees I enjoy more as the timing of my 078 purchase fell perfectly in line with me running out of a few amazing coffees and being stuck with this super mid coffee from AMOC.

Honestly, if you’re brewing medium and dark roasts for espresso, it’s hard to beat the Niche Zero for UX. If you want a flavor upgrade from your Ode for filter, I absolutely love my 078. The two of those together would still be well within your price range, especially if you can find a 078 secondhand ($600-650 is reasonable). A secondhand niche can be found for $500 or less very easily these days. You could probably find a nice 83 mm grinder and put some lab sweet SSP burrs in there and get a pretty good compromise, but if you’re changing grind sizes between espresso and filter constantly, it’s not going to be the most delightful experience. I have two grinders myself now, and I think it’s the way to go.

Yes, depending on how “light” and “medium” the actual specific roasters you’re buying from are - I drink very very light roasts for filter, and I think the 078 is amazing. Whether you’ll like the Niche or another espresso grinder best is more of a preference question; there are so many options these days (Lagom Casa, DF54/64/83, Eureka Mignon series…) that are all pretty good that you can kinda pick your favorite based on price, workflow, and aesthetics. My espresso grinder is a DF83 with SSP HU burrs, and if I were buying today at the $1000-and-under price point, I’d probably stick with that, except upgrade to the DF83V for a quieter motor and better feeding mechanism. Love the HUs though.

I used to own the Niche, replaced it with the 078 and now I don't feel like I will be buying a new grinder any time soon. It's fantastic for pour overs, and I stopped drinking espressos

Get the Pietro with Brew burrs, I have an 078 and the Pietro… both are great but the Pietro is king. The Pietro with Pro Brew burrs and 078 work extremely well together.

I think the Timemore 078 is a good choice. I personally use an Ode Gen 2 alongside my ZP6. If I could go back in time and had a slightly higher budget, I'd get the 078. However, if you get a good deal on the Ode Gen 2, it's definitely also a good grinder. I use the stock burrs btw. I like it as a combo with the ZP6 because they can give you quite a different cup with the same coffee. For some coffees I actually prefer the Ode. I have had serious RSI issues due to my day job. Having an electric grinder helped me a lot! I have basically no pain now thanks to that. I'd definitely switch to an electric, I think it'll really help you

HI gang...I have the 078 that I got for a deal off of kickstarter last yr (US$500)....am thinking complimenting it with a handgrinder that is flexible across the spectrum of light to med dark (I only do pourover/french/aeropress)..thinking of the pietro or k ultra...sure i like to pick out flavours (but am still a newbie at this) but sometimes a well integrated cup with medium body is equally enjoyable without getting overly analytical. FYI: I had the ZP6 and sold it for the Timemore 078

Another 078 owner here. It is just really really good. Not just performance but the user experience is really nice as well. Quiet, clean, not fussy. I don't see myself needing to upgrade for a very long time.

Definitely 078. I got mine recently and the experience with drinking naturals and more processed coffees is excellent. Incredibly juicy 

Timemore 078 is an absolute unit compared to the Ode Gen 2. The tolerances alone are worth the upgrade. That plus bigger burrs, burr geometry and lower rpm make it a noticeable improvement. 

That Timemore will be my next grinder for pour over for sure