3 ms·

Well, the explanation that people are getting exactly the dirt-cheap shoddy crap they demand is correct. You can buy a nice burr grinder from a company that no

by x0x0 3y ago

Well, the explanation that people are getting exactly the dirt-cheap shoddy crap they demand is correct. You can buy a nice burr grinder from a company that not only sells spare parts for at least 5 years after they stop selling the model, but who also shares youtube videos on how to disassemble and repair the grinder. Mine is 11.5 years old and I replaced the central gear when it stripped around year 7 or 8, after grinding 2-3 coffees a day, probably 150+ kg of coffee, for that time. However, it wasn't cheap, and people appear not to care. Baratza, btw.

pixl97 3y ago
I mean for myself buying a cheap burr grinder is probably all I'd ever need, that said I've never chased quality coffee and don't care about it much. For myself I do the 'harbor freight' tool buying method. I buy a cheap whatever first, and if it's something I find useful and demand higher quality then I more research into what quality is with at least some experience. This said, I've also had a lot of cheap tools that have effectively lasted far longer than expected so crap doesn't always fail fast.
- 10729287 3y ago
  Lidl/Parkside here in Europe seems to be the perfect example. Never been disapointed by one of their cheap products. They're always performing and seems built to last. My little Parkside vacuum cleaner is still doing strong 10 years after I bought it while my 5yo expensive as hell Dyson operates intermittently now and is just screaming for a new battery every time I launch it. More expensive products are also prone to software tricks and planned obsolescence... and unfortunately sometimes just plain crap that capitalize on their good reputation from the past.
  - Freak_NL 3y ago
    Well… It depends. Lidl launched a range of good quality cordless tools under the Parkside Performance moniker last year. The 20V screwdriver and drill seem like solid pieces of work, and are holding up well in my tiny shop. Those are good, and I recommend these to anyone. But many of the plain Parkside branded tools are utter crap. The oscillating sander with exchangeable triangular, rectangular, and circular attachments I got was made of way to little material to be useful. The plastic struts for the attachments (the process of swapping those being horribly inefficient) partly melted with use. The Parkside drill press I have isn't too bad, but I had to fix a mechanical failure where the part which connects the manual up-down thingy to its gear just sheared off because it was a tiny rolled piece of metal sheet instead of a solid piece of 4mm diameter steel. I fixed that (replacing that bit with part of a bolt tapped into the axle) and it is doing fine now, but still.
Staple_Diet 3y ago
Baratza owner here echoing your sentiment. There's still plenty of manufacturers out there today offering quality products, but in almost every market there are clones and cheap imitations. The poor man pays twice is a motto I often recall as I grit my teeth and hand over my credit card for appliances.

by x0x0 3y ago

pixl97 3y ago

I mean for myself buying a cheap burr grinder is probably all I'd ever need, that said I've never chased quality coffee and don't care about it much. For myself I do the 'harbor freight' tool buying method. I buy a cheap whatever first, and if it's something I find useful and demand higher quality then I more research into what quality is with at least some experience. This said, I've also had a lot of cheap tools that have effectively lasted far longer than expected so crap doesn't always fail fast.

10729287 3y ago
Lidl/Parkside here in Europe seems to be the perfect example. Never been disapointed by one of their cheap products. They're always performing and seems built to last. My little Parkside vacuum cleaner is still doing strong 10 years after I bought it while my 5yo expensive as hell Dyson operates intermittently now and is just screaming for a new battery every time I launch it. More expensive products are also prone to software tricks and planned obsolescence... and unfortunately sometimes just plain crap that capitalize on their good reputation from the past.
- Freak_NL 3y ago
  Well… It depends. Lidl launched a range of good quality cordless tools under the Parkside Performance moniker last year. The 20V screwdriver and drill seem like solid pieces of work, and are holding up well in my tiny shop. Those are good, and I recommend these to anyone. But many of the plain Parkside branded tools are utter crap. The oscillating sander with exchangeable triangular, rectangular, and circular attachments I got was made of way to little material to be useful. The plastic struts for the attachments (the process of swapping those being horribly inefficient) partly melted with use. The Parkside drill press I have isn't too bad, but I had to fix a mechanical failure where the part which connects the manual up-down thingy to its gear just sheared off because it was a tiny rolled piece of metal sheet instead of a solid piece of 4mm diameter steel. I fixed that (replacing that bit with part of a bolt tapped into the axle) and it is doing fine now, but still.

Staple_Diet 3y ago

Baratza owner here echoing your sentiment. There's still plenty of manufacturers out there today offering quality products, but in almost every market there are clones and cheap imitations. The poor man pays twice is a motto I often recall as I grit my teeth and hand over my credit card for appliances.