[quiff]

Disclaimer – I’m well aware this is both a first world problem, and highly unlikely to affect the quality of my coffee, I’m just interested in principle, particularly views from anyone in metrology / engineering / science fields. 

I was recently given some coffee scales, which are supposedly accurate to 0.1g. (For context, to make an espresso you use just e.g. 18g of beans, so in theory being able to tell the difference between 18g and 18.9g of beans could make a difference to flavour (see disclaimer). The scales are not hugely expensive, but are from a reputable kitchenware brand. 

I usually ‘pour’ beans in, then slow down as I close in on 18g. I noticed that if I poured to 17.Xg and then added beans slowly as I closed in on the magic number, it seemed impossible to get the scles to move in 0.1g increments – I could add say 3 beans before they changed, and then they would jump by 0.2 – 0.3g.

As a test, I then saw how many beans I could add to an empty scale before it registered anything. If I added the beans one, two, three etc at a time, I found it was possible to weigh (what turned out to be) 20+g of beans without the scales registering anything at all. I found that the scales wouldn’t register anything unless I added 7 or more beans at a time. I appreciate it’s variable, but 7 beans seems to weigh about 1g, putting each bean at more than 0.1g.

Are the scales faulty? Or am I misunderstanding what accurate to 0.1g means?      

 

           

Topic

[ravenbait]

3ml? For 400ml tea you need a
3ml? For 400ml tea you need a good heaped tea spoon of whole leaf tea, probably at least 10ml, allowing for voidspace. 3ml is not enough tea at all. Unless you’re using dust, which isn’t worth discussing.

[andystow]

Actually no, but hair

Actually no, but hair coverings, gowns, and shoe coverings are. Fortunately the woman who does most of the weighing has no beard, and I’m hardly ever required to go in there.

[ktache]

Are beard snoods mandatory?

Are beard snoods mandatory?

[hawkinspeter]

OldRidgeback wrote:

Spray WD40 all over the components. that’ll get rid of any stiction.

Hope this helps 🙂

Micronised carbon is a better lubricant for scales as it won’t gum it up after a time.

[chrisonabike]

OldRidgeback wrote:

OldRidgeback wrote:

Spray WD40 all over the components. that’ll get rid of any stiction.

Are you starting a sub-discussion about WD40 vs. lube vs. wax for one’s balances?

[OldRidgeback]

Spray WD40 all over the

Spray WD40 all over the components. that’ll get rid of any stiction.

Hope this helps 🙂

[Hirsute]

Have they say that there is
Have they say that there is so much shit posted in so many other sites that it is heartwarming to read a thread like this.
This is what forums should be like.

[chrisonabike]

wtjs wrote:

wtjs wrote:

Never liked anything like lapsang, or kippers

More for me then!

[quiff]

You inspired me to brew some

You inspired me to brew some loose lapsang for the afternoon.

The bag has been in my house for a year, and I just guessed how much to use. Double standards! 

[ktache]

I’d forgotten about the magic

I’d forgotten about the magic spoon the Fisher rep gave me that does 0.1g and is almost compact enough to fit in a lab coat pocket. I use it for yeast and salt when breadmaking.

I always wanted one of those glass cased balances that would move tiny weights on and off levers when you moved dials. But whenever they were being got rid off I had nothing to transport it with and have never had the space to display or even store it. Even if I had a bike trailer I wouldn’t have risked it.

[ktache]

My Sage teamaker has been

My Sage teamaker has been going strong for almost a decade. Eva Solo before that, and a Bodum Assam at work. All proper teapots but just not proper. Loose leaf Yorkshire gold, easy to get at the moment, but has often required tea quests over the years.

[hawkinspeter]

mdavidford wrote:

The tea should be brewed before it ever gets to the cup anyway – in a Proper Teapot.

Quite. I must confess that I only occasionally drink tea and so I usually brew in the cup itself with one of these devices:

I like the way it allows more space for the leaves to move around – most steepers that I’ve seen are too small.

[perce]

With an extra pot of hot

With an extra pot of hot water.

[mdavidford]

hawkinspeter wrote:

it’s clearly a mistake to put milk in before the tea as it lowers the brewing temperature.

The tea should be brewed before it ever gets to the cup anyway – in a Proper Teapot.

 

[hawkinspeter]

Mr Blackbird wrote:

Mr Blackbird wrote:

This discussion is an example of roadcc at its finest. I have gained some useful knowledge about coffee beans, loose teas and weighscales today. I tend to drink coffee am and tea pm. I have tried various teas, such as Darleeling, Earl Grey, Assam, Kenyan, Chai and like them all, but am ashamed to say that I find PG Tips is very hard to beat (as long as it isn’t made too strong). The best ever coffee I can remember having was at a coffee shop in Peterborough run by a Latvian family. The most disappointing (excluding Starbucks and Costa) was some ground Jamaican Blue Mountain – the flavour was weak, but maybe it had been in store a long time because of it’s price! The parallel of Tubeless = Beans and Loose is an excellent piece of work. Could pre or post lactarianism be analogous to disc/rim brakes or maybe tyre width / pressure?

Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee can be over-rated. It’s a great coffee with a relatively mild but well balanced flavour (i.e. very little bitterness), but it got over-hyped, probably due to its scarcity. There’s only a small area that it comes from and 80% of the production goes straight to Japan (there’s a strong link between Japan and Jamaica), so the rest of the world fights over the remaining 20%. It’s better to try less well known coffees as there can be some real gems from the small independent producers.

As to lactarianism, it’s clearly a mistake to put milk in before the tea as it lowers the brewing temperature. (Good coffee shouldn’t require milk to reduce the bitterness)

[Author]

Replies