What is the Ollygrin Conical Burr Grinder?
40mm burrs and a slow motor, at a price where you normally get neither.
Ollygrin publishes 40mm stainless steel conical burrs, 30 precise grind settings from ultra-fine espresso to coarse French press, a 2 to 12 cup selector, a gear reduction motor that produces a slow grinding action and less friction heat, a hopper holding 10oz of beans, an auto-locking system, and dimensions of 137 by 178 by 305mm at 2kg.
Why a slow motor is the interesting claim
Speed is what cheap grinders advertise, and it is the wrong thing to want.
Grinding generates heat through friction, and heat drives off the volatile aromatics that make coffee smell like coffee. A fast motor produces more heat, and it also produces more fines, because beans get hit rather than cut cleanly.
Gear reduction trades motor speed for torque: the motor spins fast, the gearing turns the burr slowly with more force. That is how commercial grinders work and it is not something you usually find at this price, where direct-drive motors are the norm. It is the same reasoning behind the low rpm figure on a Baratza Virtuoso+.
40mm burrs, which is the other reason to look
Same burr diameter as the OXO, at less money.
40mm stainless conical is the size that makes a grinder genuinely good for filter coffee rather than merely better than a blade. Ollygrin publishes it, which several better-known grinders here do not.
Thirty settings across that range is also generous. The caveat is that settings are cheap to print and hard to verify: what a maker calls thirty distinct positions may be thirty detents across a range another maker would call fifteen. Burr size is the harder fact and it is the one to weigh.
Ollygrin vs OXO Brew Conical Burr
Identical burr diameter, and the difference is everything around it.
The OXO publishes the same 40mm stainless conical burrs, a larger 12oz hopper with a UV tint, and a brand with a returns and support operation behind it.
Ollygrin answers with more settings on paper, the gear reduction motor and a lower price. On the specification we can score, they are close. On the things a spec sheet cannot show, such as whether the company exists in three years, OXO is the safer purchase.
Is the Ollygrin worth it?
On paper it is one of the strongest value propositions in the category.
40mm burrs, gear reduction and 30 settings for budget money is a lot of grinder, and Ollygrin publishes more about itself than several rivals costing more.
The reservations are the ones you would expect: no motor wattage, no rpm figure, no retention number and no warranty term, and a brand with no track record. You are buying the specification and not much else.
Who should buy the Ollygrin (and who should not)
Buy it if you want real burrs on a tight budget and can live without a safety net.
It suits somebody replacing a blade grinder who wants the biggest jump in cup quality per pound spent, and households brewing drip or French press for several people.
Do not buy it if you want support and spares in five years, which is what Baratza sells and this does not. And at 2kg with a 305mm height it is not a small machine, so measure the cupboard.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a gear reduction motor?
Gearing that trades motor speed for torque, so the burr turns slowly with more force. Slow grinding generates less friction heat and fewer fines than a fast direct-drive motor.
How big are the Ollygrin burrs?
40mm stainless steel conical, the same diameter as the OXO Brew grinder.
Can the Ollygrin grind espresso?
The maker publishes a range down to an ultra-fine espresso grind, though as with any stepped grinder the resolution at the fine end is what limits espresso dialling.
How much does the hopper hold?
10oz, about 283g of beans, with an auto-locking system on the assembly.
