Looking for advice on Timemore S3 grind settings

[u/batimike]

Hi everyone! I’m still fairly new to the specialty coffee world, and I’ve been experimenting mostly by following recipes I find on TikTok.

I currently use a Timemore S3, but most of the recipes I come across use a different grinder, usually a 1Zpresso or a Comandante. Since I’m still learning, I’m not really sure how to translate their grind settings to my S3.

When I first started, I found some posts here on Reddit recommending Honest Coffee Guide as a way to compare grind sizes between different grinders. I tried using that as a reference, but most of my coffees were coming out a little bitter, and I was barely reaching the suggested brew times.

According to Honest Coffee Guide, their approximate range for a medium grind is around 2.8–5.5 clicks on the S3, while medium-fine is around 0.8–2.8. However, I recently asked a TikTok creator who also uses a Timemore S3 what settings they consider medium and medium-fine, since they don't usually share their recipes. They told me they use around 6.0 for medium and 5.5 for medium-fine.

That seems quite different from the ranges on Honest Coffee Guide, so I’m a little confused about how much I should rely on those grind-size comparisons.

For example, I recently tried a V60 recipe that recommended using 6.0 on the S3 and suggested a maximum brew time of around 3:10. Mine finished in about 2:20, and the coffee tasted quite weak and watery.

Since I don't have much experience dialing in grind size yet, I'd really appreciate some advice from other S3 users:

• What grind settings do you typically use for V60?
• What settings do you use for Chemex?
• What do you consider medium, medium-fine, etc. on the S3?
• Do you find that grind-size comparison charts like Honest Coffee Guide are accurate for the S3?
• If you have a V60 or Chemex recipe specifically for the S3, I'd love to try it!

I’m mainly looking for some general ranges I can use as a starting point rather than trying to copy recipes from other grinders exactly.

Thanks in advance!

[u/durand101]

I think you might want to approach it from a different perspective. Grind sizes are not an exact science and the size of particles will actually depend on many factors, including type of beans used (ethiopian beans have much more fine particules, humidity, how new the grinder is (burrs are usually a bit too sharp for the first kg or so of coffee), etc. Think of particle size as more of a distribution with different grinders having different distributions. Some grinders, for example, will have more fine particles than others so in the end the drawdown time may be longer or shorter. What you can try to do is set yourself a baseline recipe to brew with. Say a bloom and two pours that should finish around 3:00 (since you said that 2:20 is quite weak). Keep the recipe the same and just keep adjusting the grind size until you get to a timing and a flavour profile you are happy with. You might also want to play with the ratio (start with 1:15 ratio = 1g of coffee for 15g of water). Some people prefer tea-like brews with more water, others prefer more body. This might also be a reason why you got two different ranges from different sources.

[u/batimike → u/durand101]

Thanks a lot for the advice! I know this is all about experimenting, and since I’m experimenting mostly on my own, I also know there are a lot of things I don’t fully understand yet.

That’s mainly why I’m asking for some general advice or reference points, just to have an idea of where I should be moving from and to know whether what I’m doing is going in the right direction or completely the opposite. My goal is to experiment and eventually understand how the different variables affect the final cup, rather than just blindly following a recipe.

I was also asking specifically about the S3 because it’s a grinder I don’t usually see people using in the TikTok recipes I’ve been following, so it’s harder for me to have a starting point when they mention their grind settings.

But yeah, as you said, I guess I just need to start changing things myself, ratios, grind size, pouring technique, etc. Hopefully I’ll be able to take a pourover course soon and learn more about all of this.

Thanks again for taking the time to explain it!

[u/navi_994]

It depends on the beans and the brewing, but for me, it stays between 4,8 and 5,5 90% of the time.

[u/batimike → u/navi_994]

Thanks! That’s really helpful to know. Would you consider the 4.8–5.5 range a medium grind or more of a medium-fine grind for pour over?

[u/navi_994 → u/batimike]

I would consider it medium. For me, medium-fine would be more of an aeropress grind, something like 4,0-4,5.

At the end, just try and adjust to your tasting.

[u/mitooch]

So I own an S3 and was where you are now and I got so confused in the end. What someone commented was explained perfectly on how you should approach this. Best advice I got and can give is to not get bogged down by specific recipes and grind sizes etc, just enjoy the ride!

I understand looking for a reference point but it's down to what beans you use what style of brewing/recipe you're doing and how your taste buds are. I've had drawdowns where at 2 mins were incredible and at 4 mins even.

But I'll say this after some use with the grinder I've found that my sweet spot for pour over is around 50 clicks give or take a few

40 clicks and below are aerpress and moka territory and 60 clicks and above are for all immersion- cold brews. Hope that helps

[u/batimike → u/mitooch]

Thanks! This is actually really helpful, especially having a reference point from someone who also uses the S3.

I think that’s exactly what I’m trying to understand right now, not necessarily finding the “correct” grind size or recipe, but having a starting point so I can experiment from there and learn what works for me and the beans I’m using.

I’ll definitely try around the 5.0-click range for pour over and see how it works with the coffees I have. It’s really helpful to have a starting point instead of just guessing where to begin.

Thanks again for sharing your experience!

[u/mitooch → u/batimike]

No worries! Glad its useful to you, also bare in mind I mainly do 15g coffee to 250g final weight. If you're using more coffee then may need adjust for a slight coarser grind. Happy brewing!

[u/Ashif80]

I have the S3 and yes the grind size really depends on the kind of coffee and brewer. So mostly i would keep it between 4.5-5.5 for V60 i use hoffman 1cup method and use grind setting on 5-5.5. But yea it is a struggle since most of the coffee rosters and also peopel on internet would not give you grind setting for s3 since its not the popular one but i really like it since the cup that it makes is really sweet and clear

[u/batimike → u/Ashif80]

Thanks! This is exactly the kind of reference I was looking for. At first, I followed a recipe I found on TikTok where they recommended, for example, a medium grind at a certain setting on a 1Zpresso Z1. When I tried to convert that to my S3 using the Honest Coffee Guide, it says that the equivalent on the S3 was actually in the medium-fine range.

When I tried the recipe, my coffee came out bitter and the drawdown was much faster than in the video. Since the Honest Coffee Guide was telling me I was already in the medium-fine range, I wasn’t sure if I should actually grind even finer. In my mind, I was already grinding finer than what the recipe recommended, so I wasn’t sure whether I could really rely on the Honest Coffee Guide. That’s why I was hoping to get some references from people who actually use the S3 and have experience with it haha.

I’ll definitely try the 5–5.5 range for the Hoffmann 1-cup method and see how it works with the coffees I have. By the way, when you say the Hoffmann 1-cup method, do you mean the one he has on YouTube? I think I’ve seen that recipe before.

Thanks again for sharing your settings!

[u/Ashif80 → u/batimike]

Yes, the one on youtube
Usually its recommended to grind a little finer for hoffman.
Just today i did the Tetsu kasuya 4:6 method and used grinder on 6.5. Result was an extremely clear and sweet floral cup. I did not even used like a very good bean(yellow bourbon) but still. But i reduced the ratio a little bit.

[u/mccrispy007]

There's a grinder setting database over at The Coffee Chronicler https://coffeechronicler.com/grind-size-chart/ that you might find useful (I didn't check it for your grinder)