I keep checking as well. I WANT to buy this grinder, but I've waited so long I want to order directly once it's clear the issues have been sorted. I am moving from an upgraded Baratza encore but being that the experience with the baratza has been set it and forget it, I don't want to spend 2x the price for an upgrade and be frustrated with manufacturer inconsistency and the burrs not being adequate for lighter pourover sizes.

I just got my Ode directly from Fellow yesterday. I had saved about 8lbs of beans to run through it to season it a bit. I've read through about the first half of this thread and then I eventually went cross eyed and had stop.

My first physical impressions are:

1) The build quality is great. It feels like a nicely built product with good heft. It isn't cheap tin can metal like someone mentioned early on.
2) My lid fits perfectly.
3) My burrs chirp out of the box at 1.2. The manual notes to not use 1 setting until 10lbs have run through it so I still have a bit to go.
4) Static is an issue but not too bad. I'll start RDT once I get a little spray bottle.
5) I've run 25 grind cycles and it has never languished on the auto shutoff.
6) I hear no noise coming from the unit even with my ear pressed against it.
7) My daughter stole the little included brush to do her makeup...
8 ) The knocker, while interesting, seems a little cheesy. Better than tapping on the side.
9) The dial is plastic but doesn't feel loose. I'm not sure I'd notice it as being inferior unless someone had mentioned it. A metal/aluminum dial would be a nice upgrade.
10) The dose cup is decent. It slides and attaches to the grinder smoothly. The lid to the dose cup isn't ideal. I would like it to snap in place better than simply smush on top.

My grind impressions are:

1) I came from a temporary Capresso after my other grinder died. Temporary ended up being a year or so... Much fewer fines than the Capresso.
2) Grind time is short but not like a rocket ship as was my understanding after reading the first part of this thread. Still very fast.
3) I had whole beans jam in the chute only once. A little nudge had them going again. I haven't had any singles stuck so maybe they upgraded the funnel.
4) Again, very few fines. I didn't notice a lot of "boulders." Night and day vs the Capresso, but that isn't saying much...
5) I'm dearly hoping that it will grind fine enough for Aeropress, but I'm thinking not. I tried it on 2 and it needed more. I'll try 1 once it is seasoned a bit more.

Taste impressions:

Moccamaster: Grind setting 3. 30g of coffee to 500ml. Much more clarity. My normal Sumatran I've not run through my Moccamaster in awhile because it tasted woody. No more woody taste which I assume came from the fines. My wife commented that her coffee tasted exceptional this morning. I will take it down into the 2's next time.

Aeropress: Grind setting 2. 13g to 200ml. 200F pour. 2:30 brew time. Sumatran, Medium/Dark (just before second crack). While the cup had a lot of clarity, it was underextracted. I may go higher on my brew temp, but like to stay away from boiling with higher roast levels. I feel that I need to get a finer grind. I'll try 1 setting once I run more beans through.

Moka pot: Sady it will not grind fine enough for my normal process for this. I'll probably use my espresso grinder for this from now on.

Final thoughts on initial impressions:

I'm satisfied so far. The build is nice. The design is pleasing to look at. It's footprint is small. The grind speed is more than adequate for home use. Retention is a bit less of an issue for brew in my opinion so even without RDT I would be okay with it. I'm only losing around 0.2g in there without RDT. I was able to get 10% off through Fellow with free shipping so the price was great. I may end up with SSP burrs if I can't get my Aeropress dialed in. That would be a pretty big bummer for a grinder in this price range to not have the range to do Aeropress. We will see...

Milligan wrote:I just got my Ode directly from Fellow yesterday. I had saved about 8lbs of beans to run through it to season it a bit. I've read through about the first half of this thread and then I eventually went cross eyed and had stop.

Glad you are enjoying your Ode. I am about to order one from Fellow soon. What color did you end up getting? Also do you mind if I ask how long it took to get you from Fellow?

Not OP but I ordered one in late May from Fellow and had it in under a week.

That is great to hear. Seeing that you are also in the Northeast US as I am that is a great reference.

alarsen77 wrote:Glad you are enjoying your Ode. I am about to order one from Fellow soon. What color did you end up getting? Also do you mind if I ask how long it took to get you from Fellow?

I went with black since most of my appliances are stainless with black accents. It matches the Moccamaster nicely. I ordered the Stagg electric kettle and grinder at the same time. I placed my order on 6/11 and it was out for delivery on 6/16. So just as fast as ordering from Amazon for me.

Be sure to get your 10% off coupon. They are also offering great bundle discounts right now that I missed out on...

I am torn between white and black. Most of my stuff is black but the white looks so good. I am going to use the 10% off coupon. Sounds like it would get here quickly. Amazon would be a bit quicker for me but I like the idea of going direct through Fellow for the support.

I try to avoid Amazon as much as possible. I've been sent obvious open box items as "new." I agree with you, especially in coffee, to try to directly support the people making the stuff instead of a distributor getting a sizable cut.

Milligan wrote: 5) I'm dearly hoping that it will grind fine enough for Aeropress, but I'm thinking not. I tried it on 2 and it needed more.

Mine just barely worked for Aeropress, but then I started grinding frozen beans for other reasons and it works fine that way. Frozen beans usually need a coarser grind. I gained a click or two which was enough.

Had a bit more time with the Fellow. Unfortunately, it doesn't grind fine enough for Aeropress for my taste. Some coffees do well especially medium/dark but my lighter roasts want a finer grind. I had my staple Ethiopian natural with a medium/light roast. The flavor was great as always and the cup had clarity but lacked body. My fix for this was to go finer in the past, but I was already at the burr's limit. I swapped over to my Capresso grinder and went finer. Sure enough the body came back but it started to get that slight bitterness from the very small fines produced by this grinder. Makes me wish the Ode went a number or two finer because that would be perfect.

Drip coffee was great at the 2 mark from the Moccamaster. My wife is definitely enjoying the new grinder. Coffee has been better than ever for her preferred brew type.

I also tried my Moka Pot last night at the finest setting and it needed finer as well. Bummer!

I'm guessing I need the SSP brew burrs to get what I want out of this unit. Funny enough, I thought I had ordered it with the burr upgrade but didn't notice that I forgot to check that option until the unit came.

For fun, I have a set of stock super jolly burrs that I may throw in the Ode to see if I can get Moka and Aeropress grinds out of it.

EDIT: Stock super jolly burrs do not fit the carrier.