13 ms·

CT scans of coffee-making equipment

725 points by eucalyptuseye 3y ago

fabian2k 3y ago
Nice images. It's probably too much effort, but for the grinder it would have been interesting to compare the now rather old Porlex grinder with the much heavier steel burr grinders you'd get recommended today. Those are very noticeably heavier and more massive compared to the Porlex, could be interesting to compare.
bowmessage 3y ago
Incredible scans! > Removing used coffee immediately after brewing and storing the AeroPress with the seal pushed all the way through the chamber (as shown) can help minimize wear by reducing compression to extend the gasket’s life. But, that's not what's shown. Pushing the gasket all the way through isn't possible unless the filter head is removed.
- amatecha 3y ago
  Yeah I personally store mine with the filter head on, and the plunger/gasket inner cylinder separate. Also other protip (which may actually be in the instructions), I pour the hot water onto the gasket before pushing it into the AeroPress, so the material expands and will have a tighter seal.
- angst_ridden 3y ago
  Proper storage is just pulling the plunger out entirely. Every few years, soaking the rubber seal in mineral oil overnight then cleaning will restore flexibility (otherwise it shrinks over time, reducing the quality of the seal). Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee.
  - bowmessage 3y ago
    Why is pulling the plunger out entirely necessary for proper storage? I always just push mine all the way through so the rubber isn't under any tension. Disagreed on the paper filters, I personally enjoy using a metal filter to ensure the oils from the coffee beans are not filtered out. I suppose it is all subjective.
    - angst_ridden 3y ago
      That works too. I call it "proper" because it removes one step before I have coffee, which, no matter how trivial, is a big deal for me in the morning. Interesting about the filter. I prefer super dark roast, Italian espresso-grind coffees. The paper filters give me a much smoother brew. Of course, as you say, taste is entirely subjective! I'm envious, because I'd rather have just one reusable filter rather than go through a stack of paper discs each year.
    - joezydeco 3y ago
      When the plunger is at the end of travel and out of tension, the cap won't fit on. I just tried screwing on my cap and it forces the plunger back into the shaft, compressing it.
      - pavon 3y ago
        Yeah, so you just set it down cap up, not screwed in. Takes up less space than keeping the plunger separate, and is just as good on the plunger.
  - semi-extrinsic 3y ago
    I've never maintained or replaced the seal on mine in over ten years, and it still seals just fine. It's made from silicone rubber, which is extreme durability even when continuously exposed to temperatures above boiling or strong acids/bases. As used in the AeroPress where it's just sitting at room temperature indoors for 99% of the time, durability is at least 20 years. I also use a metal filter, but just for the taste and convenience of not having to buy paper filters. The eco-responsibility argument against filters I don't get. Unless you drink extreme amounts of coffee, you use significantly more paper in a day just going to the bathroom. I hope people aren't using metal foil for that as well. <insert seashell joke here>
    - pavon 3y ago
      My first one had to replaced after about 6 or 7 years. The plunger rubber had gotten worn down, and the internal wall of the brewing compartment had become blistered from hot water (I used 170-185F water). The new one with different materials seems to be holding up better.
  - eastof 3y ago
    On the eco-responsibility bit, just curious do you actually have a source that logging uses more carbon than mining? I'm not sure but my gut would say the opposite since rocks are heavier but idk.
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
  - arp242 3y ago
    > Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee. You can use the paper filters more than once too; typically I need about one or two a week (depending on which coffee and how lucky I am), meaning that one €4 350-pack filters will last for years (I just bought my first refill after 4 years, but I didn't re-use the filters for the first few months and I gave a bunch of them to a friend when he ran out). Re-use isn't necessarily more eco-friendly by the way, because cleaning takes energy too and cost of production can be much much higher. But realistically, the eco-impact and differences are so small it's not really something to worry about.
  - SamBam 3y ago
    A year's supply of paper aeropress filters weighs about 1.4 oz. This is significantly less paper than a single Monday New York Times, so if you've ever read a paper newspaper, you've eco-sinned more than drinking a year of aeropress. Indeed, the paper is so little that I'd be really surprised if the ecological impact of mining and making that metal filter will ever be recouped. It's a little how cotton groceries bags are so resource-intensive that you'd need to use them hundreds and hundreds of times before they're better than daily plastic bags. (Litter aside, which isn't an issue with paper filters.)
    - dublinben 3y ago
      >It's a little how cotton groceries bags are so resource-intensive that you'd need to use them hundreds and hundreds of times before they're better than daily plastic bags. (Litter aside, which isn't an issue with paper filters.) It doesn't seem unreasonable to use a cotton grocery bag hundreds of times. That's only a few years of weekly shopping trips. Regardless, litter from improperly discarded plastic bags was the primary motivator of their regulation. It was not intended to be about resource use or carbon emissions or whatever people are focused on today.
  - astrange 3y ago
    > Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee. It's also healthier, because metal filters make for oily coffee.
    - shitlord 3y ago
      I switched to paper filters after using a metal one for years. Maybe the metal filter degraded over time, but it produces a thin layer of "mud" at the bottom of the cup. It's unfortunate because it leaves a bad ending to an otherwise good cup of coffee.
totoglazer 3y ago
Such a cool idea, and attractive images. However I’m kind of disappointed they mostly picked things that are fairly simple, transparent or openable, and look exactly the way you’d expect them to inside. I assume some combination of cost & size drove this. A vintage espresso machine with 1 group head would be more novel, for example.
- lostlogin 3y ago
  E-61! Second choice, Atomic stovetop espresso machine. With clinical equipment you can image all sorts of things beautifully, but a hunk of brass won’t generate any useful images.
- jacobwilliamroy 3y ago
  You just reminded me there's a video on youtube of a guy literally tearing a Juicero apart and it's hilarious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cp-BGQfpHQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cp-BGQfpHQ
  - switchbak 3y ago
    Probably one of AvE's best videos. I was just chatting about the peak Silicon Valley insanity that was Juicero yesterday. That thing was built like a Bugatti. And he's like "why not use a roller instead of a press??".
    - mtreis86 3y ago
      It really is, he is equally impressed and disgusted with this one, a rare combination. Most impressively built stuff isn't so wasteful. And most useless junk isn't nearly so well made.
    - etrautmann 3y ago
      Even when first announced, it became a meme among friends Juicero (and Ubeam) were peak Silicon Valley.
    - jacobwilliamroy 3y ago
exabrial 3y ago
[flagged]
tpl 3y ago
They picked boring things to look at unfortunately. Not a lot going on in Moka pot that you can't grok just by looking at and taking it apart. Throwing a whole all-in-one countertop machine might be cooler.
- hex4def6 3y ago
  Agree, although it was interesting seeing the porosity in the casting in the new design.
  - hammock 3y ago
    And the aluminum shavings inside the chamber...
murermader 3y ago
The images on mobile behind the text lead to pretty low contrast between foreground and background, making the text hard to read.
gaudat 3y ago
I thought X-rays do not pass through metal? Like it shows up opaque in clinical images. Suprised that they got a scan of the moka pot. Truly amazing stuff.
- mcpackieh 3y ago
  Metal blocks some x-rays but not all. The more x-rays you have, the more pass through. When doctors are xraying people, they use as little xrays as they need to get a good image of the fleshy bits, so metal objects appear opaque relative to that.
- ceejayoz 3y ago
  You can use a much higher dose on inanimate objects than you could on a human patient. (See, for example, airport security's ability to see inside your Macbook...)
- chongli 3y ago
  X-rays are used a lot in non-destructive testing for welding and also in civil engineering to look inside concrete and rebar!
- exabrial 3y ago
  Entire aircraft engines and rocket engines can in fact be x-rayed (google image search awaits you). Granted if you stuck your hand in there it would definitely get cooked. The power levels are much higher. If you really want to dive down a rabbit hole, look up how they image welds on pipelines... literally inject radioactive gas between two cardboard/clay plugs and tape an xray film on the outside of the weld for an hour or two.
kwhitefoot 3y ago
Interesting images and a very well put together page. But a little off topic, I was struck by this: > With the powerful 1200 W heating element A typical European kettle is at least 1800 W, comfortably less than the power deliverable from a 10 A, 230 V circuit. A typical UK kettle would be more like 3000 W, such as this one (it seems that all the kettles on that website are 3 kW): https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9363195?clickPR=plp:1:72 https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9363195?clickPR=plp:1:72
- cjrp 3y ago
  > …the kettle reaches optimal temperature very quickly — in under three minutes That’s too long to wait for a brew.
  - blamazon 3y ago
    Any amount of time feels like too long to wait for a brew ever since I got one of these: https://www.zojirushi.com/app/category/water-boilers-warmers https://www.zojirushi.com/app/category/water-boilers-warmers (To answer the question an inquisitive reader may ask: the keep-warm setting of the model I have uses about 25-60 watts average at room temp 73degF/23degC depending on volume and selected water temp) [1, pg5] [1]: https://www.zojirushi.com/servicesupport/manuals/manual_pdf/cd_lfc_eng.pdf https://www.zojirushi.com/servicesupport/manuals/manual_pdf/...
  - exabrial 3y ago
    Reduce the pressure! :)
  - p1mrx 3y ago
    If you fill to the minimum line (0.5L) instead of the maximum (1.7L), it will boil in under 1 minute. When buying a kettle, the most important specs are the minimum fill and wattage (ideally 1500W in the US.)
  - c_o_n_v_e_x 3y ago
    I once met the guy who owned Zip in Australia. Sold out for big $$$ apparently. https://www.zipwater.com/for-home https://www.zipwater.com/for-home
tomasGiden 3y ago
Related, but not as fancily presented, the startup I’m at just scanned a coffee bean in our micro-CT that we developed. It’s especially good for low-Z (like carbon and silicon) based samples in contrast to normal X-Rays that see right through it (think x-ray images of a broken arm where the tissue is invisible). https://exciscope.com/applications/food-and-packaging/ https://exciscope.com/applications/food-and-packaging/
- jval43 3y ago
  Awesome. I would be curious to see what the difference is between monsooned malabar and some more regularly stored beans.
GoofballJones 3y ago
Just reading the headline I was like "why X-ray them? Couldn't they just take them apart to see what's inside". But clicking on the article made me go "Oh, I get it now. This is damn interesting and very informative." Well done!
bragr 3y ago
This site is probably one of the most clever bits of advertising since the Will It Blend folks at Blendtec
- supportengineer 3y ago
  Another company that made an indestructible product!
- culi 3y ago
  Afaict Lumafield (the company behind this) sells b2b. Seems like a very non-egregious form of advertising. I think most likely the engineers that work on this are hobbiests. Perhaps they managed to convince C-suite to let them use part of the marketing budget but I find it hard to believe a company would pay $4.5k/month for their tech because of hype and a pretty website alone https://www.scanofthemonth.com/scans https://www.scanofthemonth.com/scans
- Cthulhu_ 3y ago
  Or the slo-mo channels on youtube for that matter.
mlsu 3y ago
This has to be a marketing exercise by the CT machine maker, right? "We spotted casting issues with the new pot" "We can see the density difference in the plastic" "We found aluminum shavings" For the right audience, this would definitely sell one of those big fancy CT machines. Not that I'm complaining -- visuals, presentation, content is all thoroughly interesting, speaking as someone with an Aeropress, a Moka. Pretty awesome piece.
- rx_tx 3y ago
  Correct, it's produced as a cool nerdy promo by a CT scan machine company (https://www.scanofthemonth.com/about https://www.scanofthemonth.com/about) Every article from them does pretty well on HN, understandably so.
- advisedwang 3y ago
  Yes, in the about us page they say it is "powered by" Lumafield.
  - frakkingcylons 3y ago
    Finally, a use for the $700K burning a hole in my pocket.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
trebligdivad 3y ago
The 'nature' page on there is just lovely; including Romanesco broccoli and pomegranate - just lovely.
- munchler 3y ago
  I liked that page too, but did a double-take when they said that the skin of a pomegranate protects it from "predators".
blamazon 3y ago
I got a kick out of this passage: > At times, Fourth Wave innovations verge into the realm of obsession, making you wonder how much real difference all of this precision makes to a cup of coffee. At the end (or beginning) of the day, coffee is a ritual. More than mere caffeine delivery, these technologies enable a multi-faceted sensory experience. Exploring the complexity of its flavors and aromas has transformed coffee from an article of consumption into an open-ended object of scientific and aesthetic experimentation.
- notamy 3y ago
  I love that way of thinking about it. I wish I thought about more things as more than just the bland day-to-day they seem to be on the surface.
- fabian2k 3y ago
  There are certainly diminishing returns on many of the aspects coffee enthusiasts care about. But when I started experimenting with an Aeropress and some better coffee I found it interesting that there were many fundamental aspects I could easily taste. Temperature and grind settings can get very obvious quickly. And also the difference between roast levels or some kinds of coffee beans/preparation are not difficult to taste. And I don't trust myself to distinguish any of the more subtle tastes coffee enthusiasts talk about. But once you e.g get into arguments on whether high-end grinders with conical or flat burrs are better you're far into the diminishing returns that might not survive a blind test.
for1nner 3y ago
> Compared to flat burrs, conical burrs also create a more uniform particle size distribution, reducing the potential for clogs and jams Well this is just...not true. Porlex musta sold them pretty hard on Conicals.
- exabrial 3y ago
  I've always thought that about conical burrs, but I guess I've never seen anyone actually look at them under a microscope either
quickthrower2 3y ago
Those 4 items are a good coffee setup!
- EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 3y ago
  Nah, its all toys for lazy impatient kids. Real coffee needs slow and thoughtful preparation in a cezve.
  - quickthrower2 3y ago
    Them is the fighting words considering a moka pot is there!
    - aidenn0 3y ago
      Maybe I'm doing it wrong, but I've never gotten anything I would consider drinkable from a moka pot.
    - EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 3y ago
      moka pot is a type of espresso machine - a device to save time for lazy impatient kids
C-x_C-f 3y ago
Very cool as always! If I may be pedantic about the lede: > The history of coffee provides a rich index of global economic and cultural exchange going back thousands of years. The history of coffee is less than 600 years old.
- culi 3y ago
  If I may be pedantic in return > The history of coffee is less than 600 years old. The history of coffee being traded internationally is around 600 years old. Coffee began being "domesticated" (more in the Graeber "play-farming" sense of the word) at least 7k years ago Likely even longer before that given the dominance of the plant in parts of Ethiopia. Today the few "coffee forests" remaining are protected ecosystems by UNESCO
felipc 3y ago
The point about the newer Bialettis being cheaper is absolutely true. My mother has an old (>10 years) Moka that feels heavy and sturdy. A couple of years ago, after accidentally leaving it on the stove for too long, the bottom chamber and the filter basket got a permanent burnt coffee taste, and we bought a new one to replace it. That one was lighter and came with a significant thinner filter basket, which I also attributed to either being counterfeit or just they shipping cheaper versions of the product to Brazil. Then, a couple of months ago, I was on vacation in Italy and decided to get a brand new one as a gift, directly from an official Bialetti store. To my surprise, the Mokas in the store felt exactly like the lower-quality one we had bought in Brazil. I didn't even buy the gift.
- C-x_C-f 3y ago
  Bialetti has been on its last leg since 2015. They're drowning in debt and (in the best case scenario) are headed toward restructuring soon; in any case their future's not looking bright.
  - tdullien 3y ago
    Any insights into what went wrong?
    - C-x_C-f 3y ago
      I'm not sure about the details. IMHO a contributing factor is that they're a company historically centered around manufacturing nearly indestructible appliances (even the newer mokas, however flimsier, don't break easily); once the market was saturated with the flagship product, there's only so much profit they could squeeze out of selling accessories and the like.
      - whatshisface 3y ago
        That hypothesis implies that they would wipe out the whole industry long before themselves, so it's probably not correct.
void-pointer 3y ago
It drives me crazy how V60 and Chemex are regarded as “modern” when the Chemex is from the 40s and the V60 is a knock-off of the Melitta 102 conical filter system, which was invented in 1936!
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- tokai 3y ago
  Isn't that modern in the sense of the modern movement in design, and not modern as contemporary?
- dagw 3y ago
  The V60 isn't a knock-off of the Melitta, it's much more of rethinking and redesign of the basic concept Melitta introduced. They might look superficially similar, but if you actually use both products side by side they work quite differently.
billsmithaustin 3y ago
Moka pot rubber gaskets are replaceable.
canadianfella 3y ago
[dead]
seatac76 3y ago
I know they say Aeropress switched to a better thermoplastic but I always worry about micro plastics with mine, but it is so damn easy to use though.
- criddell 3y ago
  Aeropress announced a glass version earlier this year. Still has a rubber plunger, but no other plastics. No idea when they plan on shipping it though.
sytelus 3y ago
The website is beautiful expect that stupid cookie popup. Has anyone ever got any fines for not putting up cookie popup in their website? Also, if you are into this, you might like the book: Cut in Half: The Hidden World Inside Everyday Objects https://www.amazon.com/Cut-Half-Hidden-Everyday-Objects/dp/1452168628 https://www.amazon.com/Cut-Half-Hidden-Everyday-Objects/dp/1...
- davidmurdoch 3y ago
  Brave browser does some annoying things, but automatically blocking cookie popups is worth it.
  - Technetium 3y ago
    There are a lot of solutions to those annoying popups, but changing your browser shouldn't be one. https://www.i-dont-care-about-cookies.eu https://www.i-dont-care-about-cookies.eu & https://hellogoodbye.app https://hellogoodbye.app & https://privacybadger.org https://privacybadger.org
    - davidmurdoch 3y ago
      Shouldn't be the only solution one, sure. But it's still a great thing to have built in to the browser itself... and it should be built in; extensions are inherently dangerous as bad actors are known to offer to buy popular extensions in order to insert malware, sell adspace, or collect browsing data.
samcheng 3y ago
>There’s also a hidden game in the Stagg EKG and Corvo EKG kettles. If you remove your kettle from the base and toggle the F/C switch back and forth, you’ll unlock a snake-like game called Wormy that you can play using the dial. It was fun to walk over to the kitchen and discover something new from a two-year-old appliance!
msds 3y ago
CT is the wrong imaging tech for Moka pots at least - they're much cooler looking if you're doing neutron imaging and can see the water: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VESMU7JfVHU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VESMU7JfVHU
- s0rce 3y ago
  Very cool, if you don't care about seeing the condensed steam this could be done with X-rays by adding Sodium metatungstate or very toxic thallium formate/malonate to the water. You could also probably replace the water with bormoform or if you don't care about destroying everything, elemental bromine.
- sbierwagen 3y ago
  Comment from the author on that video: >The aluminum is easily activated and directly after the experiment it often has something in the order of 300-400uSv/h. This decays to 4-5uSv/h in about 15-20min, some hours are needed to reach inactive status <0.1uSv/h. The coffee does not become active to a degree that is worth mentioning. However, due to the risk of contamination in the controlled zone it is not allowed to eat or drink things that have been in the beam. Yow, toasty.
kristofferR 3y ago
Slight sidenote, but today I've reading about Dual-energy CT tech in airports [1], which will finally force airports to unban liquids above 100ml. Some call the 2006 liquid explosive terror plot a failure, but it's been one of the most effective ever IMO. The economic and environmental effects [2] of the ban have been massive, likely resulting in thousands of lives lost. [1] ECAC EDS C3 [2] At London's Heathrow Airport alone, approximately 2.2 tons of liquids, aerosols, and gels were confiscated every day in 2017.
LorenDB 3y ago
I'd be interested in seeing a show of hands - who else generally dislikes webpages like this that use the scroll wheel to manipulate the zoom, rotation, or displayed content of an object (like a CAT scan or 3D phone model) or otherwise makes scroll behave unusually (e.g. the Opera GX website has a point where scrolling down makes a list of cards move sideways instead of actually scrolling down)? To be clear, I like the content displayed here; it's just that the way they chose to move between views of the CAT scan are a little annoying to me.
- jefftk 3y ago
  It can be done badly, and is more often than not, but in this case I liked it.
nurple 3y ago
[flagged]
tw1984 3y ago
when those poors will never be able to afford a CT scan when they are sick... well done.
amirathi 3y ago
Is anyone here worried about pouring hot water into Aeropress plastic? I know it's polypropylene, which is BPA-Free but could there be things that we haven't properly researched yet?
- budgi4 3y ago
  Heating plastics can release not just BPA but also phthalates, dioxins, and other harmful compounds which are linked to lots of nasty heath issues like hormone disruption, cancer and reproductive problems. Polypropylene is generally considered one of the safer plastics with it's high heat tolerance meaning doesn't leach harmful chemicals. While pure polypropylene may be considered safe, additives used in the manufacturing such as colourants or fillers could have their own health risks. Personally avoid mixing food or drinks with any heated plastics, including my coffee. I use French press for my coffee but if Aeropress is your thing and want to avoid plastic I've heard good things about the Cafelat Robot which is made almost entirely out of aluminium and stainless steel.
- luag 3y ago
  If you want to avoid plastic, Hario Switch is a great alternative. It allows you to steep and release, kinda similar to AeroPress (pressure only comes from gravity though). Cone is made of glass, stopper is from stainless steel, but the base is made of silicone. I imagine the hot water contact with the silicone will be a lot less compared to AeroPress. If you get the size 03, you can more easily brew enough coffee for 2 people.
ulrischa 3y ago
Reminds me of my cancer scans
vlowrian 3y ago
> There’s also a hidden game in the Stagg EKG and Corvo EKG kettles. If you remove your kettle from the base and toggle the F/C switch back and forth, you’ll unlock a snake-like game called Wormy that you can play using the dial. Funny, how I’m finding out about that from a CT scan of my kettle :)
tasnimreza 3y ago
can someone explain what library they use to render scan images?
- endeavour 3y ago
  The technique is called volume rendering. I'm not sure what library they specifically use but a popular one is VTK.
ggm 3y ago
Wish they'd done a commercial segafreddo or like unit.
calpaterson 3y ago
Are there any advantages to the aluminium version of a moka pot aside from tradition/aesthetics? I switched to one of the (Bialetti-made) stainless steel ones ("Venus" shape) because at one point I lived somewhere with an induction hob. I immaculately saw that the stainless version was considerably easier to clean. Cleaning, afterall, is half the job of using one of these. Visually, I prefer the aluminium shape of course, but they are a real nightmare to keep clean and presumably you're drinking a lot of that aluminium oxide.
- rjsw 3y ago
  Not answering your question but Bialetti make an adaptor plate that lets you use an aluminium moka pot on an induction hob, I have one, it works well.
riobard 3y ago
A few days ago I accidentally put wife's beloved Bialetti Brikka pot in the dishwasher. The aluminium lost its anodized coating due to chemical reaction with the detergent (alkaline I think), and the pot turned dull/dark gray. Scrubbing the surface left some gray mark on fingers, which got me wonder if aluminium is actually safe for making coffee? Bialetti also sells stainless steel pots, and I wonder if they're safer to use.
- MrBuddyCasino 3y ago
  Generally, acidic foods shouldn’t be used in conjunction with aluminum. I suspect the patina protects against this, but I wouldn’t drink the coffee until it has been re-established. Stainless steel is always preferable from a safety POV.
- jdthedisciple 3y ago
  Oh Lord, I hope you were forgiven..
Reason077 3y ago
> "With the powerful 1200 W heating element (the thin coil wire), the kettle reaches optimal temperature very quickly — in under three minutes." Europeans (and other countries with ~230V household sockets) would consider this quite poor performance for a kettle. 3000 W kettles are not uncommon here in the UK!
- rollcat 3y ago
  I have this kettle, and its selling points are: temperature control, ergonomics, and the steady, controllable flow rate. Using it is pure joy! It reaches the desired temperature before I'm done preparing everything else (throw the beans in the grinder, pre-heat the V60, etc), so it does not matter that it can't draw 3kW.
  - Reason077 3y ago
    I have a great temperature control kettle (Sage Smart Kettle) which is both fast (3kW) and reasonably precise, to within a couple of deg C. I’ll give the Stagg EKG some credit for looking very cool, however.
- everybodyknows 3y ago
  Reads like the product of a co-marketing deal: > ... Fellow is at the top of the gooseneck game with their Stagg EKG electric kettle line. Let’s see how they manage to achieve unmatched precision in temperature control ... FWIW, I owned a Fellow, until it failed. Now happily replaced with an OXO kettle: 1500W; much better ergonomics, at least for those with larger hands; fewer steam burns; more readable temperature display.
  - shitlord 3y ago
    I'm on my second oxo kettle. The handle fell off the first one right after the warranty expired. The second one has a different handle design, but neither has a good weld. This handle will eventually fall off as well. It's a shame that Oxo doesn't sell replacement parts like Baratza does.
klausa 3y ago
For how much love went into the imaging and description of everything, the actual coffee knowledge is maddening. You want your water in your Aeropress to be as close to boiling as possible if using lightly roasted beans (which I'd wager is most of Aeropress usage)! None of that 80-85 degree celsius nonsense. Similarly, their description of ceramic burrs is bizarre. Ceramic burrs are not considered "better" than stainless steel ones! If you look into high-end grinders sold for hundreds and thousands of dollars (both commercial and "enthusiast" ones), they will all have stainless steel burrs! And don't get me started on their description of conical vs flat burrs...
vilunov 3y ago
Does anyone else get 406 Not Acceptable openresty error on this website?
- vilunov 3y ago
  Seems to me that a bunch of websites block IP addresses with tor relays (not exits), and they all send a `x-cluster-name: eu-west-1-prod-hosting-red` header.
rad4day 3y ago
Okay pretty cool but I have to give my two cents for the text. A patina does not enhance flavour, that's basically rancid left-over coffee. Also the plunger in the aeropress isn't pushed through and STILL compressed in the picture (as shown here). To push it all the way through the cap has to be loosened. The scans are fascinating though :D

725 points by eucalyptuseye 3y ago

Nice images. It's probably too much effort, but for the grinder it would have been interesting to compare the now rather old Porlex grinder with the much heavier steel burr grinders you'd get recommended today. Those are very noticeably heavier and more massive compared to the Porlex, could be interesting to compare.

bowmessage 3y ago

Incredible scans! > Removing used coffee immediately after brewing and storing the AeroPress with the seal pushed all the way through the chamber (as shown) can help minimize wear by reducing compression to extend the gasket’s life. But, that's not what's shown. Pushing the gasket all the way through isn't possible unless the filter head is removed.

amatecha 3y ago
Yeah I personally store mine with the filter head on, and the plunger/gasket inner cylinder separate. Also other protip (which may actually be in the instructions), I pour the hot water onto the gasket before pushing it into the AeroPress, so the material expands and will have a tighter seal.
angst_ridden 3y ago
Proper storage is just pulling the plunger out entirely. Every few years, soaking the rubber seal in mineral oil overnight then cleaning will restore flexibility (otherwise it shrinks over time, reducing the quality of the seal). Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee.
- bowmessage 3y ago
  Why is pulling the plunger out entirely necessary for proper storage? I always just push mine all the way through so the rubber isn't under any tension. Disagreed on the paper filters, I personally enjoy using a metal filter to ensure the oils from the coffee beans are not filtered out. I suppose it is all subjective.
  - angst_ridden 3y ago
    That works too. I call it "proper" because it removes one step before I have coffee, which, no matter how trivial, is a big deal for me in the morning. Interesting about the filter. I prefer super dark roast, Italian espresso-grind coffees. The paper filters give me a much smoother brew. Of course, as you say, taste is entirely subjective! I'm envious, because I'd rather have just one reusable filter rather than go through a stack of paper discs each year.
  - joezydeco 3y ago
    When the plunger is at the end of travel and out of tension, the cap won't fit on. I just tried screwing on my cap and it forces the plunger back into the shaft, compressing it.
    - pavon 3y ago
      Yeah, so you just set it down cap up, not screwed in. Takes up less space than keeping the plunger separate, and is just as good on the plunger.
- semi-extrinsic 3y ago
  I've never maintained or replaced the seal on mine in over ten years, and it still seals just fine. It's made from silicone rubber, which is extreme durability even when continuously exposed to temperatures above boiling or strong acids/bases. As used in the AeroPress where it's just sitting at room temperature indoors for 99% of the time, durability is at least 20 years. I also use a metal filter, but just for the taste and convenience of not having to buy paper filters. The eco-responsibility argument against filters I don't get. Unless you drink extreme amounts of coffee, you use significantly more paper in a day just going to the bathroom. I hope people aren't using metal foil for that as well. <insert seashell joke here>
  - pavon 3y ago
    My first one had to replaced after about 6 or 7 years. The plunger rubber had gotten worn down, and the internal wall of the brewing compartment had become blistered from hot water (I used 170-185F water). The new one with different materials seems to be holding up better.
- eastof 3y ago
  On the eco-responsibility bit, just curious do you actually have a source that logging uses more carbon than mining? I'm not sure but my gut would say the opposite since rocks are heavier but idk.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- arp242 3y ago
  > Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee. You can use the paper filters more than once too; typically I need about one or two a week (depending on which coffee and how lucky I am), meaning that one €4 350-pack filters will last for years (I just bought my first refill after 4 years, but I didn't re-use the filters for the first few months and I gave a bunch of them to a friend when he ran out). Re-use isn't necessarily more eco-friendly by the way, because cleaning takes energy too and cost of production can be much much higher. But realistically, the eco-impact and differences are so small it's not really something to worry about.
- SamBam 3y ago
  A year's supply of paper aeropress filters weighs about 1.4 oz. This is significantly less paper than a single Monday New York Times, so if you've ever read a paper newspaper, you've eco-sinned more than drinking a year of aeropress. Indeed, the paper is so little that I'd be really surprised if the ecological impact of mining and making that metal filter will ever be recouped. It's a little how cotton groceries bags are so resource-intensive that you'd need to use them hundreds and hundreds of times before they're better than daily plastic bags. (Litter aside, which isn't an issue with paper filters.)
  - dublinben 3y ago
    >It's a little how cotton groceries bags are so resource-intensive that you'd need to use them hundreds and hundreds of times before they're better than daily plastic bags. (Litter aside, which isn't an issue with paper filters.) It doesn't seem unreasonable to use a cotton grocery bag hundreds of times. That's only a few years of weekly shopping trips. Regardless, litter from improperly discarded plastic bags was the primary motivator of their regulation. It was not intended to be about resource use or carbon emissions or whatever people are focused on today.
- astrange 3y ago
  > Unrelated: using paper filters is less eco-responsible than the gold foil filter, but makes for better coffee. It's also healthier, because metal filters make for oily coffee.
  - shitlord 3y ago
    I switched to paper filters after using a metal one for years. Maybe the metal filter degraded over time, but it produces a thin layer of "mud" at the bottom of the cup. It's unfortunate because it leaves a bad ending to an otherwise good cup of coffee.

totoglazer 3y ago

Such a cool idea, and attractive images. However I’m kind of disappointed they mostly picked things that are fairly simple, transparent or openable, and look exactly the way you’d expect them to inside. I assume some combination of cost & size drove this. A vintage espresso machine with 1 group head would be more novel, for example.

lostlogin 3y ago
E-61! Second choice, Atomic stovetop espresso machine. With clinical equipment you can image all sorts of things beautifully, but a hunk of brass won’t generate any useful images.
jacobwilliamroy 3y ago
You just reminded me there's a video on youtube of a guy literally tearing a Juicero apart and it's hilarious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cp-BGQfpHQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cp-BGQfpHQ
- switchbak 3y ago
  Probably one of AvE's best videos. I was just chatting about the peak Silicon Valley insanity that was Juicero yesterday. That thing was built like a Bugatti. And he's like "why not use a roller instead of a press??".
  - mtreis86 3y ago
    It really is, he is equally impressed and disgusted with this one, a rare combination. Most impressively built stuff isn't so wasteful. And most useless junk isn't nearly so well made.
  - etrautmann 3y ago
    Even when first announced, it became a meme among friends Juicero (and Ubeam) were peak Silicon Valley.
  - jacobwilliamroy 3y ago

exabrial 3y ago

[flagged]

tpl 3y ago

They picked boring things to look at unfortunately. Not a lot going on in Moka pot that you can't grok just by looking at and taking it apart. Throwing a whole all-in-one countertop machine might be cooler.

hex4def6 3y ago
Agree, although it was interesting seeing the porosity in the casting in the new design.
- hammock 3y ago
  And the aluminum shavings inside the chamber...

murermader 3y ago

The images on mobile behind the text lead to pretty low contrast between foreground and background, making the text hard to read.

gaudat 3y ago

I thought X-rays do not pass through metal? Like it shows up opaque in clinical images. Suprised that they got a scan of the moka pot. Truly amazing stuff.

mcpackieh 3y ago
Metal blocks some x-rays but not all. The more x-rays you have, the more pass through. When doctors are xraying people, they use as little xrays as they need to get a good image of the fleshy bits, so metal objects appear opaque relative to that.
ceejayoz 3y ago
You can use a much higher dose on inanimate objects than you could on a human patient. (See, for example, airport security's ability to see inside your Macbook...)
chongli 3y ago
X-rays are used a lot in non-destructive testing for welding and also in civil engineering to look inside concrete and rebar!
exabrial 3y ago
Entire aircraft engines and rocket engines can in fact be x-rayed (google image search awaits you). Granted if you stuck your hand in there it would definitely get cooked. The power levels are much higher. If you really want to dive down a rabbit hole, look up how they image welds on pipelines... literally inject radioactive gas between two cardboard/clay plugs and tape an xray film on the outside of the weld for an hour or two.

kwhitefoot 3y ago

Interesting images and a very well put together page. But a little off topic, I was struck by this: > With the powerful 1200 W heating element A typical European kettle is at least 1800 W, comfortably less than the power deliverable from a 10 A, 230 V circuit. A typical UK kettle would be more like 3000 W, such as this one (it seems that all the kettles on that website are 3 kW): https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9363195?clickPR=plp:1:72 https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9363195?clickPR=plp:1:72

cjrp 3y ago
> …the kettle reaches optimal temperature very quickly — in under three minutes That’s too long to wait for a brew.
- blamazon 3y ago
  Any amount of time feels like too long to wait for a brew ever since I got one of these: https://www.zojirushi.com/app/category/water-boilers-warmers https://www.zojirushi.com/app/category/water-boilers-warmers (To answer the question an inquisitive reader may ask: the keep-warm setting of the model I have uses about 25-60 watts average at room temp 73degF/23degC depending on volume and selected water temp) [1, pg5] [1]: https://www.zojirushi.com/servicesupport/manuals/manual_pdf/cd_lfc_eng.pdf https://www.zojirushi.com/servicesupport/manuals/manual_pdf/...
- exabrial 3y ago
  Reduce the pressure! :)
- p1mrx 3y ago
  If you fill to the minimum line (0.5L) instead of the maximum (1.7L), it will boil in under 1 minute. When buying a kettle, the most important specs are the minimum fill and wattage (ideally 1500W in the US.)
- c_o_n_v_e_x 3y ago
  I once met the guy who owned Zip in Australia. Sold out for big $$$ apparently. https://www.zipwater.com/for-home https://www.zipwater.com/for-home

tomasGiden 3y ago

Related, but not as fancily presented, the startup I’m at just scanned a coffee bean in our micro-CT that we developed. It’s especially good for low-Z (like carbon and silicon) based samples in contrast to normal X-Rays that see right through it (think x-ray images of a broken arm where the tissue is invisible). https://exciscope.com/applications/food-and-packaging/ https://exciscope.com/applications/food-and-packaging/

jval43 3y ago
Awesome. I would be curious to see what the difference is between monsooned malabar and some more regularly stored beans.

GoofballJones 3y ago

Just reading the headline I was like "why X-ray them? Couldn't they just take them apart to see what's inside". But clicking on the article made me go "Oh, I get it now. This is damn interesting and very informative." Well done!

bragr 3y ago

This site is probably one of the most clever bits of advertising since the Will It Blend folks at Blendtec

supportengineer 3y ago
Another company that made an indestructible product!
culi 3y ago
Afaict Lumafield (the company behind this) sells b2b. Seems like a very non-egregious form of advertising. I think most likely the engineers that work on this are hobbiests. Perhaps they managed to convince C-suite to let them use part of the marketing budget but I find it hard to believe a company would pay $4.5k/month for their tech because of hype and a pretty website alone https://www.scanofthemonth.com/scans https://www.scanofthemonth.com/scans
Cthulhu_ 3y ago
Or the slo-mo channels on youtube for that matter.

mlsu 3y ago

This has to be a marketing exercise by the CT machine maker, right? "We spotted casting issues with the new pot" "We can see the density difference in the plastic" "We found aluminum shavings" For the right audience, this would definitely sell one of those big fancy CT machines. Not that I'm complaining -- visuals, presentation, content is all thoroughly interesting, speaking as someone with an Aeropress, a Moka. Pretty awesome piece.

rx_tx 3y ago
Correct, it's produced as a cool nerdy promo by a CT scan machine company (https://www.scanofthemonth.com/about https://www.scanofthemonth.com/about) Every article from them does pretty well on HN, understandably so.
advisedwang 3y ago
Yes, in the about us page they say it is "powered by" Lumafield.
- frakkingcylons 3y ago
  Finally, a use for the $700K burning a hole in my pocket.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

trebligdivad 3y ago

The 'nature' page on there is just lovely; including Romanesco broccoli and pomegranate - just lovely.

munchler 3y ago
I liked that page too, but did a double-take when they said that the skin of a pomegranate protects it from "predators".

blamazon 3y ago

I got a kick out of this passage: > At times, Fourth Wave innovations verge into the realm of obsession, making you wonder how much real difference all of this precision makes to a cup of coffee. At the end (or beginning) of the day, coffee is a ritual. More than mere caffeine delivery, these technologies enable a multi-faceted sensory experience. Exploring the complexity of its flavors and aromas has transformed coffee from an article of consumption into an open-ended object of scientific and aesthetic experimentation.

notamy 3y ago
I love that way of thinking about it. I wish I thought about more things as more than just the bland day-to-day they seem to be on the surface.
fabian2k 3y ago
There are certainly diminishing returns on many of the aspects coffee enthusiasts care about. But when I started experimenting with an Aeropress and some better coffee I found it interesting that there were many fundamental aspects I could easily taste. Temperature and grind settings can get very obvious quickly. And also the difference between roast levels or some kinds of coffee beans/preparation are not difficult to taste. And I don't trust myself to distinguish any of the more subtle tastes coffee enthusiasts talk about. But once you e.g get into arguments on whether high-end grinders with conical or flat burrs are better you're far into the diminishing returns that might not survive a blind test.

for1nner 3y ago

> Compared to flat burrs, conical burrs also create a more uniform particle size distribution, reducing the potential for clogs and jams Well this is just...not true. Porlex musta sold them pretty hard on Conicals.

exabrial 3y ago
I've always thought that about conical burrs, but I guess I've never seen anyone actually look at them under a microscope either

quickthrower2 3y ago

Those 4 items are a good coffee setup!

EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 3y ago
Nah, its all toys for lazy impatient kids. Real coffee needs slow and thoughtful preparation in a cezve.
- quickthrower2 3y ago
  Them is the fighting words considering a moka pot is there!
  - aidenn0 3y ago
    Maybe I'm doing it wrong, but I've never gotten anything I would consider drinkable from a moka pot.
  - EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK 3y ago
    moka pot is a type of espresso machine - a device to save time for lazy impatient kids

C-x_C-f 3y ago

Very cool as always! If I may be pedantic about the lede: > The history of coffee provides a rich index of global economic and cultural exchange going back thousands of years. The history of coffee is less than 600 years old.

culi 3y ago
If I may be pedantic in return > The history of coffee is less than 600 years old. The history of coffee being traded internationally is around 600 years old. Coffee began being "domesticated" (more in the Graeber "play-farming" sense of the word) at least 7k years ago Likely even longer before that given the dominance of the plant in parts of Ethiopia. Today the few "coffee forests" remaining are protected ecosystems by UNESCO

felipc 3y ago

The point about the newer Bialettis being cheaper is absolutely true. My mother has an old (>10 years) Moka that feels heavy and sturdy. A couple of years ago, after accidentally leaving it on the stove for too long, the bottom chamber and the filter basket got a permanent burnt coffee taste, and we bought a new one to replace it. That one was lighter and came with a significant thinner filter basket, which I also attributed to either being counterfeit or just they shipping cheaper versions of the product to Brazil. Then, a couple of months ago, I was on vacation in Italy and decided to get a brand new one as a gift, directly from an official Bialetti store. To my surprise, the Mokas in the store felt exactly like the lower-quality one we had bought in Brazil. I didn't even buy the gift.

C-x_C-f 3y ago
Bialetti has been on its last leg since 2015. They're drowning in debt and (in the best case scenario) are headed toward restructuring soon; in any case their future's not looking bright.
- tdullien 3y ago
  Any insights into what went wrong?
  - C-x_C-f 3y ago
    I'm not sure about the details. IMHO a contributing factor is that they're a company historically centered around manufacturing nearly indestructible appliances (even the newer mokas, however flimsier, don't break easily); once the market was saturated with the flagship product, there's only so much profit they could squeeze out of selling accessories and the like.
    - whatshisface 3y ago
      That hypothesis implies that they would wipe out the whole industry long before themselves, so it's probably not correct.

void-pointer 3y ago

It drives me crazy how V60 and Chemex are regarded as “modern” when the Chemex is from the 40s and the V60 is a knock-off of the Melitta 102 conical filter system, which was invented in 1936!

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
tokai 3y ago
Isn't that modern in the sense of the modern movement in design, and not modern as contemporary?
dagw 3y ago
The V60 isn't a knock-off of the Melitta, it's much more of rethinking and redesign of the basic concept Melitta introduced. They might look superficially similar, but if you actually use both products side by side they work quite differently.

billsmithaustin 3y ago

Moka pot rubber gaskets are replaceable.

canadianfella 3y ago

[dead]

seatac76 3y ago

I know they say Aeropress switched to a better thermoplastic but I always worry about micro plastics with mine, but it is so damn easy to use though.

criddell 3y ago
Aeropress announced a glass version earlier this year. Still has a rubber plunger, but no other plastics. No idea when they plan on shipping it though.

sytelus 3y ago

The website is beautiful expect that stupid cookie popup. Has anyone ever got any fines for not putting up cookie popup in their website? Also, if you are into this, you might like the book: Cut in Half: The Hidden World Inside Everyday Objects https://www.amazon.com/Cut-Half-Hidden-Everyday-Objects/dp/1452168628 https://www.amazon.com/Cut-Half-Hidden-Everyday-Objects/dp/1...

davidmurdoch 3y ago
Brave browser does some annoying things, but automatically blocking cookie popups is worth it.
- Technetium 3y ago
  There are a lot of solutions to those annoying popups, but changing your browser shouldn't be one. https://www.i-dont-care-about-cookies.eu https://www.i-dont-care-about-cookies.eu & https://hellogoodbye.app https://hellogoodbye.app & https://privacybadger.org https://privacybadger.org
  - davidmurdoch 3y ago
    Shouldn't be the only solution one, sure. But it's still a great thing to have built in to the browser itself... and it should be built in; extensions are inherently dangerous as bad actors are known to offer to buy popular extensions in order to insert malware, sell adspace, or collect browsing data.

samcheng 3y ago

>There’s also a hidden game in the Stagg EKG and Corvo EKG kettles. If you remove your kettle from the base and toggle the F/C switch back and forth, you’ll unlock a snake-like game called Wormy that you can play using the dial. It was fun to walk over to the kitchen and discover something new from a two-year-old appliance!

msds 3y ago

CT is the wrong imaging tech for Moka pots at least - they're much cooler looking if you're doing neutron imaging and can see the water: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VESMU7JfVHU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VESMU7JfVHU

s0rce 3y ago
Very cool, if you don't care about seeing the condensed steam this could be done with X-rays by adding Sodium metatungstate or very toxic thallium formate/malonate to the water. You could also probably replace the water with bormoform or if you don't care about destroying everything, elemental bromine.
sbierwagen 3y ago
Comment from the author on that video: >The aluminum is easily activated and directly after the experiment it often has something in the order of 300-400uSv/h. This decays to 4-5uSv/h in about 15-20min, some hours are needed to reach inactive status <0.1uSv/h. The coffee does not become active to a degree that is worth mentioning. However, due to the risk of contamination in the controlled zone it is not allowed to eat or drink things that have been in the beam. Yow, toasty.

kristofferR 3y ago

Slight sidenote, but today I've reading about Dual-energy CT tech in airports [1], which will finally force airports to unban liquids above 100ml. Some call the 2006 liquid explosive terror plot a failure, but it's been one of the most effective ever IMO. The economic and environmental effects [2] of the ban have been massive, likely resulting in thousands of lives lost. [1] ECAC EDS C3 [2] At London's Heathrow Airport alone, approximately 2.2 tons of liquids, aerosols, and gels were confiscated every day in 2017.

LorenDB 3y ago

I'd be interested in seeing a show of hands - who else generally dislikes webpages like this that use the scroll wheel to manipulate the zoom, rotation, or displayed content of an object (like a CAT scan or 3D phone model) or otherwise makes scroll behave unusually (e.g. the Opera GX website has a point where scrolling down makes a list of cards move sideways instead of actually scrolling down)? To be clear, I like the content displayed here; it's just that the way they chose to move between views of the CAT scan are a little annoying to me.

jefftk 3y ago
It can be done badly, and is more often than not, but in this case I liked it.

nurple 3y ago

[flagged]

tw1984 3y ago

when those poors will never be able to afford a CT scan when they are sick... well done.

amirathi 3y ago

Is anyone here worried about pouring hot water into Aeropress plastic? I know it's polypropylene, which is BPA-Free but could there be things that we haven't properly researched yet?

budgi4 3y ago
Heating plastics can release not just BPA but also phthalates, dioxins, and other harmful compounds which are linked to lots of nasty heath issues like hormone disruption, cancer and reproductive problems. Polypropylene is generally considered one of the safer plastics with it's high heat tolerance meaning doesn't leach harmful chemicals. While pure polypropylene may be considered safe, additives used in the manufacturing such as colourants or fillers could have their own health risks. Personally avoid mixing food or drinks with any heated plastics, including my coffee. I use French press for my coffee but if Aeropress is your thing and want to avoid plastic I've heard good things about the Cafelat Robot which is made almost entirely out of aluminium and stainless steel.
luag 3y ago
If you want to avoid plastic, Hario Switch is a great alternative. It allows you to steep and release, kinda similar to AeroPress (pressure only comes from gravity though). Cone is made of glass, stopper is from stainless steel, but the base is made of silicone. I imagine the hot water contact with the silicone will be a lot less compared to AeroPress. If you get the size 03, you can more easily brew enough coffee for 2 people.

ulrischa 3y ago

Reminds me of my cancer scans

vlowrian 3y ago

> There’s also a hidden game in the Stagg EKG and Corvo EKG kettles. If you remove your kettle from the base and toggle the F/C switch back and forth, you’ll unlock a snake-like game called Wormy that you can play using the dial. Funny, how I’m finding out about that from a CT scan of my kettle :)

tasnimreza 3y ago

can someone explain what library they use to render scan images?

endeavour 3y ago
The technique is called volume rendering. I'm not sure what library they specifically use but a popular one is VTK.

ggm 3y ago

Wish they'd done a commercial segafreddo or like unit.

calpaterson 3y ago

Are there any advantages to the aluminium version of a moka pot aside from tradition/aesthetics? I switched to one of the (Bialetti-made) stainless steel ones ("Venus" shape) because at one point I lived somewhere with an induction hob. I immaculately saw that the stainless version was considerably easier to clean. Cleaning, afterall, is half the job of using one of these. Visually, I prefer the aluminium shape of course, but they are a real nightmare to keep clean and presumably you're drinking a lot of that aluminium oxide.

rjsw 3y ago
Not answering your question but Bialetti make an adaptor plate that lets you use an aluminium moka pot on an induction hob, I have one, it works well.

riobard 3y ago

A few days ago I accidentally put wife's beloved Bialetti Brikka pot in the dishwasher. The aluminium lost its anodized coating due to chemical reaction with the detergent (alkaline I think), and the pot turned dull/dark gray. Scrubbing the surface left some gray mark on fingers, which got me wonder if aluminium is actually safe for making coffee? Bialetti also sells stainless steel pots, and I wonder if they're safer to use.

MrBuddyCasino 3y ago
Generally, acidic foods shouldn’t be used in conjunction with aluminum. I suspect the patina protects against this, but I wouldn’t drink the coffee until it has been re-established. Stainless steel is always preferable from a safety POV.
jdthedisciple 3y ago
Oh Lord, I hope you were forgiven..

Reason077 3y ago

> "With the powerful 1200 W heating element (the thin coil wire), the kettle reaches optimal temperature very quickly — in under three minutes." Europeans (and other countries with ~230V household sockets) would consider this quite poor performance for a kettle. 3000 W kettles are not uncommon here in the UK!

rollcat 3y ago
I have this kettle, and its selling points are: temperature control, ergonomics, and the steady, controllable flow rate. Using it is pure joy! It reaches the desired temperature before I'm done preparing everything else (throw the beans in the grinder, pre-heat the V60, etc), so it does not matter that it can't draw 3kW.
- Reason077 3y ago
  I have a great temperature control kettle (Sage Smart Kettle) which is both fast (3kW) and reasonably precise, to within a couple of deg C. I’ll give the Stagg EKG some credit for looking very cool, however.
everybodyknows 3y ago
Reads like the product of a co-marketing deal: > ... Fellow is at the top of the gooseneck game with their Stagg EKG electric kettle line. Let’s see how they manage to achieve unmatched precision in temperature control ... FWIW, I owned a Fellow, until it failed. Now happily replaced with an OXO kettle: 1500W; much better ergonomics, at least for those with larger hands; fewer steam burns; more readable temperature display.
- shitlord 3y ago
  I'm on my second oxo kettle. The handle fell off the first one right after the warranty expired. The second one has a different handle design, but neither has a good weld. This handle will eventually fall off as well. It's a shame that Oxo doesn't sell replacement parts like Baratza does.

klausa 3y ago

For how much love went into the imaging and description of everything, the actual coffee knowledge is maddening. You want your water in your Aeropress to be as close to boiling as possible if using lightly roasted beans (which I'd wager is most of Aeropress usage)! None of that 80-85 degree celsius nonsense. Similarly, their description of ceramic burrs is bizarre. Ceramic burrs are not considered "better" than stainless steel ones! If you look into high-end grinders sold for hundreds and thousands of dollars (both commercial and "enthusiast" ones), they will all have stainless steel burrs! And don't get me started on their description of conical vs flat burrs...

vilunov 3y ago

Does anyone else get 406 Not Acceptable openresty error on this website?

vilunov 3y ago
Seems to me that a bunch of websites block IP addresses with tor relays (not exits), and they all send a `x-cluster-name: eu-west-1-prod-hosting-red` header.

rad4day 3y ago

Okay pretty cool but I have to give my two cents for the text. A patina does not enhance flavour, that's basically rancid left-over coffee. Also the plunger in the aeropress isn't pushed through and STILL compressed in the picture (as shown here). To push it all the way through the cap has to be loosened. The scans are fascinating though :D