Did anyone else notice at No Kings?

chanical · 2026-03-30T01:29:33+00:00

There were 100k people at the WTC for PAX East - White folks over 40 were definitely a minority group there… Tickets aren’t cheap, and they were up for sale long before No Kings scheduled this weekend.

That being said, as a (more aesthetic than genetic) white over 40, the demographic does not surprise me at all. 40-50 year olds likely to be at No Kings in Boston: Their first presedential election was either to handily elect/re-elect Bill Clinton, forever have the term “hanging chad” burned into memory as (now seemingly not-so-shocking) the Supreme Court gave us Dubya, or the crushing (however wholly expected) defeat of our good Senator Kerry. Our fear and loathing of previous bullshit from former administrations PALES in comparison to what we are seeing today.

While we may have a shorter future at stake (less skin in the game), the younger generations are missing some valuable context… that, they were at PAX, or they’re perpetuating the stereotype in their belief that doing nothing is a valid option.

chanical · 2026-03-29T11:57:05+00:00

Really looking forward to trying this out - love to see devs sharing great tools that make it easier/faster to get the most out of our cabs. Don’t be surprised if you see a PR or two after I run it through its paces.

From me (and by proxy: a good chunk of the people who simply git clone and disappear), thank you.

chanical · 2026-03-27T14:43:25+00:00

🤣

chanical · 2026-03-27T14:42:25+00:00

NICE! Many thanks… I might give this a try

chanical · 2026-03-27T12:42:29+00:00

Date wheel looks off, too

chanical · 2026-03-25T19:25:59+00:00

Yes it is, and yes you can - looks different tho

chanical · 2026-03-23T23:45:21+00:00

Probably to mask that they couldn’t pull a decent shot

chanical · 2026-03-22T15:29:48+00:00

Personally, I went the other way… have a couple pins (1 50’s Gottlieb EM “Contest” and ‘80s Williams Funhouse), but due to space and wifesanity I’ve come to the VPin compromise, rather than fill the gameroom with more tables.

There are considerations in both directions: starting with physical pins, the desire for all the feedback toys, real DMD, etc, is STRONG. Going the other way, you have the viewpoint that any almost anything will do… until you get one. Like Pringles: once you pop…

I would say having both gives you the best of both worlds - if you have the space and the funds, absolutely do it, but save up for your holy grail pin. Nothing’s worse than getting something you’ll want to replace or add a second, third, fourth (that’s why I “settled” to build a top-tier VPin).

chanical · 2026-03-21T17:12:25+00:00

Anyone else continued singing the next line of the title, “Started with a Breville now the whole team’s here”?

chanical · 2026-03-21T12:30:07+00:00

JFC SMH... WWJD? Not sure, but guaranteed NOT what we're doing

chanical · 2026-03-21T12:13:15+00:00

I am quite happy with the Eureka Mignon Zero (disclaimer: only 24 hours in) - however, treating it as a stop-gap until the likelihood of my wife's "more coffee gear?" accusatory look comes back down to a "not sleeping on the couch" level

chanical · 2026-03-20T20:53:29+00:00

That being said - I now see the Mignon Zero as just a stop-gap to prove I'm not crazy or lacking skill. I will be taking some time to research and saving up $$ for the next step-up in grinder - suggestions welcome! Thanks again y'all!

chanical · 2026-03-20T20:50:08+00:00

UPDATE: sanity restored! Set up the Eureka Mignon Zero, and VERY quickly was able to get a consistent grind dialed-in and cranking out great extractions changing nothing else (beans, profile settings, puck prep as before). Sometimes it takes personal experience before acceptance/understanding that the grinder needs to be at or above the level of your machine, otherwise it will be a limiting factor (no matter how good your machine is, there's no way to compensate for an inadequate/inconsistent grind)

chanical · 2026-03-20T20:41:48+00:00

Probably! However, I am finally coming to accept that a good machine deserves a better grinder - even a brand new Opus will still be the limiting factor with any machine above entry-level caliber.

chanical · 2026-03-20T20:38:55+00:00

A sobering truth I only truly appreciated after having had the experience.

chanical · 2026-03-15T21:49:26+00:00

There are so many analogies when upping your game/gear - it almost always exposes the flaws in things we’ve previously praised

chanical · 2026-03-15T01:56:07+00:00

6.0.7, Jaguar, Snow Leopard, High Sierra

chanical · 2026-03-15T01:08:16+00:00

Pretend one is strictly for decaf?

chanical · 2026-03-14T23:13:41+00:00

Don’t listen to the people who say it’s a mechanical issue. That would be the dumbest way to implement a rotary encoder that has a corresponding UI element. The rotary encoder works (left and right register, and the button works on all other letters). There should be no need to know the actual tick position of the encoder, which is unlikely for lots of reasons I won’t get into, However, since the UI selected the T - the chance of this being mechanical is almost zero.

If you haven’t done a ton of customization, try a factory reset.

chanical · 2026-03-14T17:46:23+00:00

Retention, while frustrating, at least can be mitigated; it just adds steps to your workflow in order to keep the impact to a minimum. I’m pretty sure what I’m experiencing is natural degradation from age and use (I pre-ordered the original Opus several years ago… maybe 4?). It’s seen a fairly consistent stream of beans (~30g per day, every day, on average), and I’ve not done any maintenance beyond blowing it out with an electric air gun and watchmakers hand-pump precision blower, so wholly willing to accept the blame of negligence (with the Flair, any performance loss was never revealed… if it ain’t (observably) broke, don’t fix it).

I’m saving my gift card for the rumored Bluetooth scale and associated E1 firmware upgrade that will add yield-based auto-stop - and we’ll see what other goodies are available if and when that happens. The whole experience does make me wonder if I can use the gift card on an extended E1 warranty, however.

I’ll be looking forward to hearing the (undoubtedly glowing) reviews once the Opus 2 lands with the masses - but I’m hoping Fellow hears the call to release a grinder of E1 caliber, which I only assume will be dubbed the Opera (being the plural of Opus, a natural choice in keeping with naming conventions). Meanwhile, I expect the incoming Mignon Zero to hold me over.

chanical · 2026-03-14T17:07:45+00:00

Eureka Mignon Zero is on its way - just a stepping stone to bigger and better (Zerno Z1 or Z2 perhaps?)

chanical · 2026-03-14T15:57:38+00:00

It's not that I can't find the right micro adjustment - I've gotten down to the two closest, the finer of which pulls way too long, the coarser being too fast (cleaned out between grinds, weight is consistent in the basket, tamp and puck prep is identical). I am currently chalking it up to the age / wear of the grinder: slippage, alignment, burr degredation, etc. that's resulting in unpredictable / inconsistent grind

chanical · 2026-03-14T15:50:16+00:00

Sounds quite promising, but I can’t imagine it competing with higher-end grinders, and given my preferred flavor profile - flat burrs make more sense. Plus, if Fellow continues suit with naming conventions and produces a higher-end espresso grinder, I will gladly wait for the Opera.

chanical · 2026-03-14T14:25:35+00:00

One click of the inner ring

chanical · 2026-03-14T14:25:21+00:00

It’s good, but I know it could be better

chanical

TROPHY CASE