I am on a mission to find the best coffee grinders in existence. That doesn’t just mean your traditional high-RPM electric grinders that operate at the same volume as a motorcycle. It also means hand-crank coffee grinders, because sometimes going back to basics is the best way to get delicious coffee.
Speaking of hand-crank grinders — the 1ZPresso K-Ultra is one of the best I’ve ever used, hands-down. Unlike other hand grinders I’ve used, it didn’t make me feel like I was doing the world’s worst bicep workout, even when I was grinding superfine.
And the best part of all? The K-Ultra has a foldable handle and comes with a hard-shell carry case, making it perfect for traveling. There’s nothing as convenient as the K-Ultra, and I’ll tell you why. Find out everything in this 1ZPresso K-Ultra grinder review.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Cheat sheet
- Who is it for? Coffee lovers who need a hand-grinder that won’t let them down
- What does it do well? The grinding experience is top-tier
- What does it cost? $249 / £232
- What are its weaknesses? Static after grinding
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Specs
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Price & availability
The 1ZPresso K-Ultra hand grinder is $249 on Amazon U.S. ($289 on 1ZPresso’s website) and £232 on Amazon U.K.. This is objectively a lot of money, but it’s a little cheaper than competitor Comandante C40 MK2, which is a huge $277.
1ZPresso makes some cheaper grinders: the J-Ultra is $199, but isn’t as versatile as the K-Ultra, so can’t be used for a range of brewing methods. The cheapest option is the 1ZPresso Q Air, which is just $69 due to its compact size. The $109 1ZPresso Q is a decent midway option for pour-over with a 20g capacity.
In general, $249 is pricey for a hand grinder, but this is 1ZPresso’s top-of-the-range option, and it’s worth the splurge should you need the best of the best.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Design
If you’re familiar with hand coffee grinders, then it’s safe to say that the K-Ultra looks like pretty much every other hand grinder. It’s a 7-inch cylindrical shape with two chambers. The top chamber is where you put the whole beans, and the bottom chamber is the catch chamber, where ground coffee falls into.
Like the Comandante C40, the hand crank is quite long and heavy. The K-Ultra fell over on a few occasions during testing, so make sure its weight is evenly distributed before placing it down. However, unlike the C40, the hand crank is foldable for easy storage. You have to press the crank in to fold it, which was quite stiff at first but eased up after a few uses.
Considering the K-Ultra is a hefty $249, you’ll be relieved to hear that the grinder is constructed incredibly well. The grind adjustment dial is tactile and easy to control, and the magnetic catch chamber is a stroke of genius. Unlike the C40, the catch chamber doesn’t have a threaded screw-in, which makes it easier to use with one hand.
Given that it’s made of metal, it almost goes without saying that the K-Ultra is quite heavy; 1.5 pounds, to be exact. It’s 3 ounces heavier than the Comandante C40, but I didn’t find this to negatively affect my user experience.
The K-Ultra comes with a couple of accessories: a brush, a little squeezy bellow, and a band. I used the bellow to clean out the inside of the burrs (which ended up covering the bellow in coffee) and the brush to clean the whole grinder.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Grind adjustment
There’s a huge range of grind adjustments ‘clicks’. Each rotation of the adjustment dial has 100 clicks, and there are further adjustments you can make after that. I tested the grind adjustment using one rotation to analyze uniformity, retention, and it provided enough variation for espresso, AeroPress, pour-over, and French press usage.
Adjusting the grind is easier than the Comandante C40 MK4. I had to turn the external dial to move the burrs coarser or finer, so I could always see what grind size I was at before adjusting. With the Comandante, you have to adjust the burrs from the burrs themselves, above the catch chamber.
You can adjust the grind even further by removing the internal ring and turning the external dial. I found this a little fiddly and time-consuming, so I wouldn’t recommend doing this for everyday brewing. However, it’s good that the option is there. I simply wouldn’t bother for day-to-day usage, as the default setting is enough to go from fine to coarse.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Performance
To analyze the K-Ultra’s overall performance, I take four main things into consideration. They are: ease of use, static and clumping, uniformity, and retention.
Ease of use
This parameter encompasses the general use of the grinder. I found the K-Ultra very easy to use on a day-to-day basis. There’s also the option to get super in the weeds with grind settings and minute adjustments if you so desire.
The K-Ultra has a maximum capacity of around 40g of coffee beans, depending on coffee bean size. This means you’d be able to grind enough for two double shots of espresso or a Chemex for around two cups (taking a ratio of 1:16).
Static & clumping
Obviously the very nature of crushing solids into smaller solids will create static. It’s physically impossible for a coffee grinder to completely defeat static. This isn’t necessarily a huge con, but there was a considerable amount of static on the exterior of the burrs after grinding.
Thankfully, 1ZPresso provides a little brush to clean off this static, but it’s worth noting that I had to knock the grinder onto the catch chamber after grinding to get the biggest clumps of static off.
Remarkably, though, this static didn’t generate huge clumps of static coffee grounds. If I was a true clumping evangelist, I would distribute the coffee with a WDT (a needle-like tool for distributing coffee for espresso), but I didn’t need to for usage with my Moccamaster Cup-One.
I’d say the clumping was better than the Sage/Breville Dose Control Pro and about even with the Comandante C40 MK4.
Uniformity
To test grind uniformity, I used my Kruve coffee sieves. Each sieve corresponds to a different particle size.
I’m looking for big jumps from one size to another: for example 0% 500μm to 100% 800μm. Turkish coffee uses the smallest grind size (around 200 microns) and cold brew can use grinds as coarse as 1600μm. So, if a grinder can grind both 200μm and all the way up to 1600μm, it’s a really versatile option.
As you can see from the results above, the K-Ultra can grind fine enough for Turkish coffee. The Dose Control Pro was physically incapable of grinding that fine, so that’s already a big win for the K-Ultra.
On top of its ability to grind superfine, the K-Ultra was also very uniform. Check out the results above; almost all grind sizes have huge jumps from 0% to 90%. This shows the burrs are capable of crushing the coffee beans to consistent sizes.
In general, this is a very reliable coffee grinder that performs exceptionally well for a huge variety of brewing methods. I’d recommend this wholeheartedly for people looking for a grinder that can tackle both espresso and cold brew.
Retention
To test retention, I weighed out the same amount of coffee, ground it medium, and weight the grinder’s output using my Wacaco Exagram Pro scale, one of the best coffee scales around. After each grind I cleaned out the inside of the burrs, the catch chamber, and the top chamber.
Here are my results.
As you can see, the retention is really low at just 1.8%. In comparison, the Breville/Sage Dose Control Pro had an average retention of 2.15%, the Baratza Encore ESP was 1.55%, and the Comandante C40 was 2.75%.
I would recommend knocking the grinder after each use due to the static, but in terms of actual retention in the burrs, the K-Ultra had very little. In general, I’m thoroughly impressed with this performance — it rivals the best coffee grinders, 100%.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Storage & maintenance
Given that this is a hand grinder, it’s compact enough to fit inside most kitchen cupboards. It’s small enough to fit inside the little tray I keep next to my espresso machine, so you could even do that.
The K-Ultra is perfect for people who travel often but don’t want to sacrifice delicious specialty coffee while away from home, as it’s completely hand-powered and small enough to slot nicely inside luggage.
Even better — the K-Ultra ships in a lovely weighty carry case for easy transportation, and the handle folds down to make it even more compact. It appears 1ZPresso has designed this grinder specifically for those who need great coffee even while traveling. If you need a smaller carry case, 1ZPresso also sells a $20 cylinder case.
You can disassemble the majority of the grinder, which 1ZPresso has outlined fully in the manual. However, 1ZPresso specifically warns against cleaning it with water. If the grinder breaks, 1ZPresso offers a 1-year warranty, which is the same as Comandante’s.
1ZPresso K-Ultra review: Verdict
The 1ZPresso K-Ultra grinder is one of the most uniform coffee grinders I’ve ever used, without a doubt. It had huge jumps from 0% to 90% for multiple grind sizes, which proves it’s super consistent.
While, yes, it had a decent amount of static, I’ve yet to find a grinder that can overcome the very fabric of reality and defeat static completely. I’ll have to keep looking for my rainbow grinder — if I find it, I’ll let you know.
Not only is the K-Ultra super uniform with minimal retention, it also feels wonderful in the hand and can also fold down to fit in its hard-shell carry case. I’d recommend this grinder for people who travel a lot and can’t hack not having freshly brewed coffee in hotels or camping. If that sounds like you, then there’s really nothing better than the K-Ultra.
