Blade VS Burr Coffee Grinder – Which one has the upper hand over the other?
Introduction
When it comes to grinding mills, there are several types available in the market. Possibly, when people are looking for the best coffee grinder maker, there are always two choices – blade coffee grinder and burr coffee grinder.
Now, the first question that comes to mind is, which one should I pick? A lot of people like to think that it’s the price that makes the difference. But they can’t be any more wrong than that. It’s not the price that makes a huge gap between the two types of coffee grinders.
So, today we are comparing the two coffee grinder machines so that you can understand the technical difference between the two. After reading the whole comparison content, you can decide which best choice is for you.
What we should know about a blade grinder?
Well, the difference between the two types of burr mill is always going to be the grinding wheels. Now, if you have used a blender, you can tell what a blade is. But the grinding wheel is something quite complicated.
So, here the whole grinding process is not up to the mark. A lot of cappuccino geek thinks blade grinding machine nothing but a nuisance. Probably, the reason is that the blade model cannot provide an even and matched grind.
A big question here is, how the whole machine works. Well, that’s quite easy as there are one or two blades inside the machine that will chop the beans. Most blades are made of metal or any other durable materials.
There is a switch or button outside the mill, and after turning the switch, the blade starts to spin. So, here’s the thing – mainly blade grinders are not the right way for grinding the beans. Certainly, you won’t get the best grind for coffee but it can do the job for you.
Well, the physics behind the blade grinder espresso is not working here. When you put the beans inside the hopper, the blade starts to cut down the beans into pieces. So, the blade is always moving at high speed, and the cuts or grind size is not evenly matched.
First of all, the bigger beans are getting blasted away around the hopper and getting into small portions. If you understand the whole structure of a coffee bean, you can tell which part of the bean will dissolve first.
Anyway, first the beans get a rough cut and the bigger parts are always reaching the blade. For this, the blade can cut them down into smaller particles. However, it’s not the right process because every bean is not getting the same grind size.
So, if you are looking for the best coffee grinder for espresso, blade models are not the perfect choice. Not to mention, the good parts of your coffee are getting separated from the rough parts. So, after one grind, you may not find the perfect flavors in the whole powder.
What we should know about a burr grinder?
The coffee grinder burr is the best device for grinding the cappuccino beans. Mostly because burr mills offer the best grinding size and flavors. There are more benefits to the whole device, but we are just talking about the mechanism.
Earlier, we said that the difference is in the grinding wheel. In the case of burr mills, there is a burr grinding wheel. But what is a burr grinding wheel anyway? A burr means a simple grinding wheel where there is a moving surface and an abrasive surface.
Whenever you put the beans inside, both the surface will pulverize the beans into smaller and smaller particles. In terms of a blade coffee maker that grinds beans, there is too much extraction. That’s why often the coffee tastes bitter. But burr mills can mix all the bean parts with a consistent grind. So, the flavor and aroma stay intact in the coarse grind coffee.
Mainly, the precision adjustment of the burr mills makes it easy for anybody to get better control over the grind size. Usually, burr coffee makers with bean grinders grinding wheels are made of ceramic or metal. Not to mention the operation is quite easy as you can use burr coffee grinder hand or machine operated burr mills.
There are two types of burr wheels available in the market. Both of them are known as conical burr coffee grinder machines, and flat burr, models. In the case of performance, conical burrs offer good support. But the flat burrs will have the upper hand.
Comparison between burr coffee grinders and blade coffee grinders
Here is the part where we get back into the business. All this time, we were saying that a blade french press grinder is not the best way to pulverize the cappuccino beans. But we need to compare it with the burr mills to get a clear picture.
Yes, we are not including a manual coffee grinder in this part because they don’t count. You can always find a manual burr grinder or manual blade mills if you want. But the difference here is between the grinding wheels. So, there are some major differences in work.
Now, we are going to find out the major differences between the two.
Coarse grind coffee:
The first thing that we need to think about is the coffee grind coarse of each grinding mill. We did discuss how both the mills operate using their own grinding wheels. When you are using a blade coffee grinder for pour-over, you cannot expect to get a better taste and flavors from the beans.
Moreover, sometimes the taste of the cappuccino becomes bitter. But the burr mills can give you proper control over your grind.
Grind Consistency:
Another huge thing to compare between the two is the grind consistency. You can get the job done using your blade mills. However, burr mills offer the best grind consistency because of the grinding wheels. In the case of blade models, the blade is always spinning very fast. But the coffee beans are just getting chopped. So, the good parts are not getting dissolved with the bitter parts.
Yes, there will be bigger chunks and smaller chunks of the bean in a blade mill. So, your bed bath and beyond coffee grinder is not getting you the best coffee roast grind. But burr mills offer the best grind consistency whenever you want. Even if you use a coffee grinder manual, it can still give you better grind consistency.
Price:
Burr mills are very expensive for many people. So, they are always trying to find a proper alternative. So, they latch onto blade mills for change. Yes, blade models offer cheap options. Not to mention, blade coffee grinder commercials can lure a lot of customers.
Yes, burr models are very expensive but they offer the best grind. On the other hand, using a blade grinder is quite difficult. Why do we say that? Because blade mills can do your job fine if you can align the whole device perfectly.
Earlier we said there are two types o burr mills available in the market. Among the two, conical burr grinders come at a cheaper rate. Not to mention, it can also be a great alternative for your blade mill.
The price difference is not too much. But a lot of people just try to get blade mills without considering the other things. All they want is to get different types of coffee grinds. Most of the time, they are not satisfied with the purchase.
Performance:
In terms of performance, burr mills will always have a huge advantage over blade mills. Grinding beans inside the blade mills are not the best of things. Also, it takes a lot of time to make your coffee course.
You have to separate the already ground beans and again start the grinding. Most of the time, this separates the good arts from the bad ones. This means blade mills can’t dissolve the overall beans and provide the best coarse.
However, burr mills can provide the best grind for coffee. In the performance section, the burr mill clearly outclasses the blade mills.
The durability of the grinding wheel
The durability of the grinding wheels is another huge comparison issue. If you already own a blender, you can tell what type of problem a blade can create. First of all, there is a problem with the blade’s sharpness. Keeping the sharpness of the blade is quite tough for blade mills.
Also, how long can the blades last is a big concern? Mainly, blade mills are not durable enough for grinding beans regularly. On the other hand, burr mills come with two different surfaces inside. This makes the grinding wheel quite versatile on its own.
When it comes to durability, burr mills have a huge advantage over blade mills. Most of the time, the blade breaks or bents lower. But burr models don’t have problems like these.
Amount of mess:
Blade mills operate by using a blade inside the machine. The blade spins very fast and cuts the beans into rough chops. While chopping the beans, there is always going to a huge mess inside the bean hopper. Not to mention, the grind coarse will also be stuck with the blade. So, blade mills create a lot of mess and waste.
On the other hand, burr models create less waste. When you bought fine-quality beans, waste can always ruin your experience. When there is a lot of mess, there is sure to be waste. Burr mills create less mess and waste so you can always get full satisfaction from the grinding coarse.
Heating and grinding process:
To find the best grind out of the blade mills, the blade needs to rotate faster. And while doing so, blade models create a lot of heat. Heat can always interact with the good course of the coffee. It means, the heat can dissolve the good parts of the beans, and most of the time the bean oil will stay with the blade. So, it will create a lot of mess and also reduce the flavors.
However, the burr coffee grinder marker comes with fewer heating issues. Well, the burr mills work slowly. The slower, the better grind one can get out of the beans. As it creates less heat, there will be less flavor reduction.
Cleaning and maintenance:
Maintaining blade mills can be a rough or pretty daunting job. Well, you can use them according to your choice. But the problem lies within the assembly of the whole device. Without getting the proper alignment of the whole product, you can’t expect to get the best performance.
On the other hand, maintaining burr mills is not very tough. But you have to be very careful about using and operating to be safe. Cleaning can a little pain as a lot of parts of the burr mills are not friendly with water.
So, who wins the fight?
Surely, this comparison is not a fight. And if you compare the two, burr grinding machines will always get the better of blade mills. Yes, bade models are cheaper and sometimes offer inexpensive options. A lot of people want them just to get the job complete.
But professionals know blade mills are pretty worse. On the other hand, burr models are pretty hard to maintain and the price is always on the higher side. If anyone needs a cheap motor-operated grinding device, they can get blade mills.
But if they want a quality outcome, getting a manual burr grinder is also another inexpensive option. However, that choice depends on the user as to which one he or she might like. In our comparison, burr models are always the better of the two.
Final Verdict:
The world of cappuccino is quite expensive and luxurious. Finding a proper coffee grinding machine can always reduce the expense and increase luxury. However, blade grinders or burr grinders – which one should be the perfect choice for coffee grinder kitchen aid?
We don’t think blade mills are worth your money if you love to enjoy the best cup of coffee. Yes, they do get your coarse grind done. However, that’s not the ideal way to get the job done. Today, we tried to make a comparison between the two, and in our point of view, burr mills stand tall.
