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With so many coffee grinders out there, it can be hard to choose the right one for your needs. You want something that is reliable and easy to use. That’s where the Comandante C40 review will help you.
This post is your definitive guide on what this product has to offer you as a consumer, helping you make an informed purchase decision that will save time and money!
What we Liked About It
- Remarkably large capacity for a hand coffee grinder
- Great manual grinder with a high quality body
- Very consistent grind size
- Well stabilized burrs attached to a center shaft that are extra sharp
What We Didn’t Like
- I don’t love that the grind catcher is made of glass.
- Also, our grind handle has become a bit squeaky with use. WD 40 fixed it
- It’s a little slow, which is something I don’t particularly enjoy, but it wasn’t a deal-breaker at all
Origin Of Comandante
Commandante is a German-based company that is well-known for producing high-quality hand grinders for Specialty coffee.
The Comandante C4 has gained a significant lot of attention due to the high level of quality and performance that it offers.
The Comandante C40 Manual Coffee Grinder Review
We looked at grinding consistency; we also looked at the machine’s overall build quality, capacity, how it compared to other coffee grinders, and other factors that will help you decide if it is the ideal machine for you. Here’s how we felt about it in general.
Design/Build Quality
The Comandante is a manual coffee grinder that is designed with a minimalistic approach. I positively mean this.
There are a variety of color options available. You can also choose to have it covered with a wood veneer.
The matte black variant that I’m using in my test (in my opinion) is the coolest looking of the bunch.
The grinder’s body is made of steel. However, the stabilizing structure inside the coffee grinder is made of polyethylene.
I do not doubt that it is a durable plastic that will survive for a long time, but it somehow comes across as a little too inexpensive for such an expensive grinder.
One of the most remarkable aspects of Comandante’s ground coffee jar is its glass rather than plastic or metal.
The advantage of using glass is, of course, that it is simple to clean; nevertheless, it is also simple to break. However, if you ever need to replace it, it is relatively inexpensive to do so.
Recently, the company introduced a line of brightly colored plastic catch jars to its product line.
Featuring a stainless steel core that uses geometry to cut through the coffee beans, it produces more uniform grind quality results without particles in your coffee grounds.
Using double-ball bearings to hold the burrs, the central shaft grinds coffee evenly and consistently.
With a capacity of 40 grams of coffee, it is quite adequate. The moniker “C40” comes from the fact that the volume is 40 percent higher than normal.
The handle is quite lovely with a wooden knob that will match the color of the body you pick, with outstanding ergonomics and a pleasant feel in hand. The wooden knob also spins smoothly.
Some people have claimed that the C40’s body is a touch too wide, but my wife and I both felt very comfortable holding it and my hands are much larger than hers.
Now and again, you will encounter a stuck bean because it is smaller or harder than a standard coffee bean.
It is a little more difficult to get the bean out of the grinder than other models, but this is not a reason to avoid purchasing it altogether.
Comandante is successfully reintroducing the old-fashioned hand grinding coffee method into the twenty-first century with style using the combination of detailed manufacturing and hand-made, artistic elements.
Quality Of The Conical Burrs
The burrs on the Comandante are extraordinarily sharp and, unlike other manual coffee grinders, are stable, don’t move, and are designed to last a lifetime.
Nitrogen Hardened stainless steel is used to create the conical burrs on the Comandante’s conical burr holder.
The central shaft of the Comandante coffee grinder is attached to double-axle bearings, which stabilizes the burrs.
In the Comandante, there are no burr floats to be found. There is no wiggle room in this item; it is rock solid.
Due to this, a great degree of edge retention and remarkable sharpness can be achieved. As a result, the burrs slice through the beans with little effort.
The time and money spent on developing and fine-tuning the burrs to perfection are significant to ensure that you have a set of high-quality, long-lasting burrs.
What Is The Capacity
This hand grinder is one of the most compact alternatives available, competing with the Timemore slim in terms of size.
However, even though it is similar in size to both of these competitors, the Comandante outperforms both of them in terms of grinding capability.
The C40 produces 40g of coffee with each use, yielding approximately 4-6 cups.
Even though some people grumble about it, if you need more than 6 cups of coffee every day, you need to use an electric grinder because most manual grinders will not be insufficient.
Is It Easy To Adjust The Grind
It is common for Comandante C40 MKIII users to refer to the grind setting by calling them “clicks.”
It is just like any other stepped grind adjustment system
To count the steps of the grinder, turn it until it can’t be turned any further, then start turning it in the other direction until you reach the necessary amount of clicks (or until it stops turning).
On the other hand, this system might be a little irritating at times. Therefore, it is necessary to return to zero and then back out to the appropriate setting if you are unsure of whatever setting you are currently at.
Because of the discrepancy in grind size shown by each click, it might be difficult to dial in brewing methods that need a fine grind size, such as espresso and Turkish coffee.
As a result, if you aren’t paying attention to your counting, you could make a costly error that would destroy your shot.
It’s not always easy to discover the optimal espresso setting. When the dial is close to zero, the clicks are considerably more difficult to detect and hear, making it more difficult to achieve the desired result. Therefore, you must pay close attention to what is going on here.
- French Presses 30-34
- Pour a total of 20-32 ounces.
- AeroPress 14-24
- 12-15 minutes in a Moka Pot
- Espresso 9-12
Is The Comandante Coffee grinder Consistent
When it comes to grinding consistency, the Comandante hand grinder is nothing short of exceptional.
The image you see above is the comparison I did between the Comandante grinder and the Timemore.
As you can see, the grinds are a lot more consistent from the Comandante, and the drip brew wasn’t under-extracted.
Because of its graduated grind adjustment system can grind coffee fine enough for Turkish coffee while also grinding coarse enough for French press coffee.
Grains are beautifully uniform, and thanks to improvements in this current MKIII, the process of grinding is smoother and more rapid than it was with the previous MKII.
An Expert home barista brewing espresso may prefer a more precise coffee grinder, but the Comandante gives casual coffee consumers more than enough accuracy and variety.
A further outstanding characteristic is that the grind settings remain consistent even after the Comandante coffee grinder has been disassembled and reassembled several times.
This allows you to thoroughly clean your coffee grinder without worrying about losing the perfect grind settings.
Is It Easily Portable
As previously stated, the Comandante coffee grinder is a hand grinder but not necessarily a portable model.
Because of the grinder’s compact nature is a relatively portable tool in general, albeit it does have some restrictions.
The first and most important thing to note is that, while it is not designed to be a portable grinder, it is small enough to fit in a purse, baggage, or backpack and be taken camping.
The Comandante weighs only 740g, making it a lightweight device that can be readily transported in a backpack or luggage.
In addition, the glass grinds catcher is more fragile, so make sure to keep the glass piece well-protected when packaging it, and you should be alright.
How Do I Clean My Comandante C40
Taking care of the Comandante C4 MKIII is effortless. The design is very simplistic, which makes it easy to take apart and put back together.
Watch this video for a visual tutorial.
Is The Comandante Good For Espresso
I’m an espresso addict and was worried that when I began testing the Comandante C40, it wouldn’t be able to grind fine enough consistently to allow me to use it.
After using it for 4 months now, I can say that it performs perfectly for espresso even after you have taken it apart a few times to clean it.
Once you’ve found the sweet spot and gotten a good extraction time, you’ll be rewarded with some delicious shots.
When compared to coffee grinders like Javapresse and Timemore, it was much simpler to detect a difference in this case.
Many conical burr manual coffee grinders, in my opinion, might impart a slight astringency to the shots they produce. But, on the other hand, The Comandante has a wonderful flavor profile that never veers off into that disagreeable territory.
In my testing, the espresso range was primarily down in the 9-12 clicks area, depending on the type of machine and bean I was using, and shots might vary in less than 10 seconds simply by changing the coarseness or fineness of the grind by one click.
Comandante offers an add-on called Red Clix, allowing you to have double the amount of granularity you already have.
Thus far, it has been beneficial for espresso, but I anticipate that it will be inconvenient to filter coffee because you will have to keep track of more clicks.
While an electric grinder is absolutely the way to go if you drink a lot of espresso, the C40 may be just what you’re looking for if you only need a short shot now and then.
Are There Any Accessories That I Can Buy For The Comandante C40
Yes!
They have created a line of cleaning chemicals as well as optional add-ons to assist you in customizing your grinder to your specifications.
Barista Brushes
Our selection of Barista Brushes is constructed entirely of natural materials such as wood and hair. We have a variety of various brushes to choose from to assist you in keeping your coffee bar and related equipment clean. There’s even a beard brush thrown in for good measure.
Wooden Knobs
With our enlarged selection of different knobs, you can now personalize your grinder to your specifications. Every one of them is made entirely of natural wood, and you can easily switch them out whenever you like.
Cloth Travel Bags
Do you want to bring your grinder along with you? That is not an issue; we have several bags for you! There is a wide variety of bags available, ranging from simple cotton drawstring purses to a variety of luxurious leather satchels.
Extra Glass Grind Jars
Every Comandante grinder comes with two Bean Jars, however having a few extras on hand can be really beneficial in case you break one.
Pre-portion your beans at home, in order to take them on the road, to serve them at a bar, or to enter them in contests. The airtight lids will help to keep goods fresher for a longer period of time.
Extra jars are available for purchase individually or in 4-packs.
Red clix
metric precision thread RX35 metric precision thread
This unique mix of RX35 pieces, dubbed the RED CLIX, was created specifically for the professional coffee expert who is competing in a competition setting.
Both the axle and the grind adjustment wheel have been fitted with an ultra-fine precision thread to ensure the highest level of precision and longevity possible.
The most noteworthy difference is the increased click range for the same grind size range and brewing process, which is the same as the previous comparison.
When using RED CLIX, the click steps are significantly finer, but the click mechanism itself is just as robust and solid as when using the standard model.
Using the above example, if you currently utilize 25 clicks for your brewing approach, you will now require 50 clicks using RED CLIX. With the standard version, it takes 5 clicks to move up or down one position; with RED CLIX, it takes 10 clicks.
The RED CLIX inserts an extra step between two conventional clicks, which you can choose to skip entirely. This may be handy if you’re trying to optimize the extraction time for a particular lightly roasted speciality coffee espresso shot that you’re making.
The RX35 axle is only compatible with the special red-colored grind grade dial, which must be used only with it. Because of the exceptionally tiny precise thread on both the axle and the dial, they are extremely fragile and will be damaged if they are utilized with any other parts.
Please be certain that you do not combine Red Clix parts with normal parts. Otherwise, the RX35 components will be destroyed and will no longer be used.
Felt Covers
Natural and high-quality, your felt sleeves are crafted from 100 percent fine merino lambswool, ensuring that they last for years to come. It is dirt resistant due to the lanolin naturally present in wool as well as the dense nature of the material itself.
Who Should Not Buy The Comandante Coffee Grinder
If you or your household drinks a lot of coffee. Even though it has a large capacity for its size, the Comandante falls short of competing with larger coffee grinders such as the Hario Skerton (100G capacity) and the Lido 3 (70g capacity) in terms of performance (70g).
If you’re looking for a low-cost coffee grinder. There is no way around it; this is an expensive model.
The Comandante C40 is a must if you take your barista duties seriously coffee; in my opinion, it is well worth the money.
However, whether or not you can afford the high price tag is entirely up to you to decide.
If you want a nice hand grinder that is less expensive than the Comandante, we recommend the Hario Skerton.
How Many Grind Settings Does The Comandante Have
The C40 has 35 different grind settings.
This provides you with sufficient control to brew any type of coffee you desire.
Comandante recommends certain settings, but this will vary depending on the type of bean you use and your taste preference.
I recommend 9 t0 12 clicks for Espresso
for a Moka pot, I had better success between 14 and 18 clicks
For my automatic pour over I enjoyed the results between 20 and 30 clicks
For French Press, I went very coarse at 26 to 30 clicks
How Long Is The Warranty For The Comandante C40
While the C40 MKIII coffee grinder does not have a fixed-guarantee, all Comandante grinders are built to last a lifetime of hard use.
If you discover that your Comandante grinder is not performing as expected and/or that it cannot withstand the typical wear and tear of regular grinding, contact your local dealer or Comandante immediately for assistance.
The staff can send you replacement parts or a completely new grinder, depending on your unique requirements.
When it comes to branding and packaging, you are provided with a very polished experience overall. However, you also become a part of an ecosystem, where you will most likely be able to discover a simple answer to any problems you have online.
Because Comandante has suppliers worldwide, it should be rather simple to obtain a replacement if something goes wrong.
The customer service is very responsive and takes customer service seriously.
Verdict: Of Our Comandante Review
As one of the diehard coffee lovers out there, I’ve wanted to write a Comandante C40 review for quite some time now, but I was scared that my expectations were too high and that I would be disappointed. Fortunately, this was not the case at all.
Each morning, I look forward to using my Comandante coffee grinder instead of using my electric model for the sheer pleasure of being hands-on while I brew coffee.
We had a lot of fun doing this Comandante grinder review, and some grinders indeed outperform it in specific areas.
Still, in the end, the Comandante is an ideal grinder that will excel where it counts.
Overall, I believe it is a better value than grinders such as the Lido 3, among others.
The ideal user for this grinder is most likely someone who primarily uses a drip coffee maker, pour-over, or french Press coffee and enjoys the occasional espresso shot now and again, as described above.
