The end

Well for here at least, I am giving it another go here at http://letsseewhatsticks.blogspot.com/

Dreamfarm Grindenstein Knock box

Dreamfarm Grindenstein Knock box, “what?” Ok let me explain what a knock box is; basically its used to remove spent pucks from the portafilter, of your espresso machine. If you don’t have an espresso machine you don’t know how much of a pain it is to get the puck out of the portafilter, its not fun, and most methods don’t work. Well why do you need a knock box, Just try swashing it out at the sink or trying to shake it out either way it’s a big mess, a knock box is an easy way to remove it, just give it a good bang and out it comes. The main problem with knock boxes is they just don’t last, they cant take the constant abuse dished out to them, though you would think the designers would know better. Most are made of medal with a rubber coated plastic or medal bar that you bang the portafilter on, sounds ok right? Nope often after a couple of months the rubber tears off leaving only a medal bar which will only destroy the portafilter and the rivets/grommets that hold the bar in place give-up, leaving you having to rig it so you can use it, or in some cases the medal will began to rust, though only if it is not stainless steel. Now there are others that will stand the test but they are pricy like those from Rattleware your looking at 35+ the Grindenstein Knock box is 23 and can be found for 19.99.

How long will it last? Well I have had mine for about 9 months with daily use of 3+ espressos a day. Capacity? About 6 58mm pucks. What about cleaning it? It cleans easily just toss it in the dish washer. Will it slide around my counter? Not if your counter is dry it has non slide ring on the bottom that covers the circumference. Any negatives? Yes. Time for a bullet list:

1. Its kind of small, it does hold 6 58mm pucks but that means I have to empty it once daily
2. Its short, if a puck is wet and if you hit it hard it will splash out
3. It will slide around if your counter is wet.

Over all, its a great tool to have and at a great price.

If you plan to buy one please use one of my links below:

For the Chocolate Brown :Dreamfarm Chocolate Brown Grindenstein

For the Marine Blue :Dreamfarm Marine Blue Grindenstein

For the Ivory White :Dreamfarm Ivory White Grindenstein

For the Fire Truck Red :Dreamfarm Fire Truck Red Grindenstein

For the Steel Wool Silver :Dreamfarm Steel Wool Silver Grindenstein

For the Charcoal Black :Dreamfarm Charcoal Black Grindenstein

To look at all: http://www.astore.amazon.com/proshotreview-20

John Adams HBO Miniseries

John Adams HBO Miniseries

The John Adams Miniseries is a well made account of John Adams’ life. Starting with events of the Boston Massacre and the trial of the solders and their captain, who John Adams was called on to represent by James Forest. The Miniseries concludes with John Adams’ death on July 4 1826.

The role of john Adams is played by Paul Giamatti, who does a spectacular job of re-capturing the feeling of such trying times, with the strife in the Colonies and the unwillingness of the British to hear grievances of her subjects, and the impending chance of a war with the British empire a world superpower and his personal struggles through his life .

The visual quality of the miniseries is outstanding, as well as the audio quality and there are some good bonus features included. The historical accuracy of the miniseries is maintained throughout. If you're interested in a good TV show about the American revolution and john Adams' life you can't go wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this miniseries the hope you will too.

If you plan on buying this DVD set please use this link: John Adams (HBO Miniseries)


Thank you.

Aerolatte

Aerolatte is a little battery powered milk frothier. It gives the promise of frothed milk like that from the coffee house, well maybe like coffees from “charbux“. You will never get that silky-smooth microfoam as if you were to steam the milk properly. If you don’t have an espresso machine and want something a little nicer than just pouring milk in your cup of java it’s a good choice. I think its best use is for stirring things like hot cocoa which in my opinion is impossible to stir in completely with a spoon . It’s a nice gadget to have. I have the one with Satin Finish, there is also one with a Stainless-Steel finish available . If you plan to buy this Aerolatte please use these links:

This link is for the Satin Finish:Aerolatte Milk Frother, Satin Finish


This link is for the Stainless-Steel finish:Aerolatte Stainless-Steel Deluxe Edition Frother with Stand, Chrome


Thank you.

Lens pen

I hate to start a review with the words “WOW” I feel like one those high pressure commercials. But, WOW! this is a great little device, that no Photographer should be without. Lens pen will clean your lenses with ease and you will not have to worry about it leaving scratches in its wake. The brush end is fantastic at removing dust and other loose junk on the lens. The little cleaning pad at the tip is better than a cleaning cloth, because, it can get along the very edge of the lens were you cant get a cloth to go. It will get off finger prints, stuck on dirt and any thing that cant be brushed away. You can also use the Lens pen on binoculars, and other optical gear you have. If you’ve ever had a great photo ruined by some lousy dust or dirt, do your self a favor and get one. I have the Hakuba Lens Pen, but you could get the Nikon 7072 Lens Pen its identical to the Hakuba just easer to find. If you plan to buy a Lens Pen please use these links:

This Link is for the Hakuba:Hakuba USA Inc KALP1 Lens Pen

This Link is for the Nikon 7072:Nikon 7072 Lens Pen Cleaning System


Thank you.

Surfing with the Alien Legacy Edition (CD + DVD) [EXTRA TRACKS]

Surfing with the Alien

If you are buying this CD, and already have surfing with the alien, you're only getting a DVD if for some reason you don't have surfing with the alien already(shame on you) its an even better deal, either way its well worth your cash if your a JS fan.

The DVD is in Dolby Digital it sounds great considering, it was recorded in 1988. On the visual side its ok but a little grainy and i could spot a few lines ,its an old recording and i expected worse. On the feature side it has two music vids and a short interview with nigel tufnel its only about 5-7 min long, its kinda funny. If you plan to buy this CD please use this link Surfing with the Alien Legacy Edition (CD + DVD)
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Tiffen 4 Pocket Filter pouch

Tiffen Filter pouch

This filter pouch/wallet is great, it keeps your filters safe from dirt and scratches and it will keep every thing organized in your camera bag. The pockets are about 4 1/2 in wide and 3 in deep you can keep a 62mm with room to spear. You could buy a pouch that holds 6 filters but they are just to bulky to me. If you plan to buy this Filter pouch please use this link Tiffen 4 Pocket Filter pouch
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A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Original Sound Track

A Charlie Brown Christmas:


What great Christmas music, you can play this CD over and over again without being burned out. Vince Guaraldi is great, a note on Vince Guaraldi he does not play smooth jazz. I really like the sound of Vince Guaraldi, The music is relaxing its the kind of CD that is not intrusive when played it sort of slips into the background. If you like jazz or the music from A Charlie Brown Christmas you should like it. It is the perfect choice if you just want to add some new music to your Christmas CD collection, you cant go wrong.

If you plan to buy this CD please use link A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Original Sound Track Recording Of The CBS Television Special

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Macap MC4 Doserless Espresso Coffee Grinder w/ Stepless Adjustment

MACAP MC4 Doserless Grinder

pros:It's heavy and doesn't easily move around when it's on. The cord placement is very good. It creates a very consistent grind. With the worm gear you can dial in on the perfect grind size.

Cons:A few problems this grinder has is the shoot it tends to hold onto a little of the coffee. The been hopper can be easily cracked by the tightening screw if you're not careful. The worm gear can be hard to transition from an espresso grind to a French Press grind on the fly.

After having MACAP MC4 dosserles grinder for over Seven months I can happily say it was a great purchase. The Shoot does hold onto a little coffee about 6 g At a time for this can be easily overcome by taping the machine or by using a spoon or something to reach inside the shoot to pull out the coffee. The worm gear is great for dialing in on the grind size but can be a hindrance when trying Transition from espresso to French Press and back again it's kind of a double edged sword. Cleaning the burrs is fairly easy just by removing a couple of screws and a bolt to remove the entire assembly I only do this once a month or less. Of course you could always use a product like grinds or I have heard that rice is also a way to clean the burrs though I have never use rice myself. The burrs themselves look pretty indestructible of course this is considering normal use the only way I can see that you could cause damage is by dropping a metal bolt or something inside and trying to grind it. Some people have complained about the plastic sheet over the on off switch that it gets in the way or makes it hard to use I disagree it keeps errant grounds of coffee out of the on off switch and protects it from water splashing into it, I have no problem using the switch with the sheath. The little tray that is supposed to catch grounds is a nice idea but fails to deliver, most of the grounds end up blowing away, maybe if the tray had some sides to it but it doesn't all that aside i do leave it on. The been hopper has a little trap door to keep the coffee from spilling out when removing the hopper which makes it easier to switch coffees .

You might ask yourself is $500 for a coffee grinder worth it, if you have to ask, then no. The grinder is the most important part of good espresso, and a high quality grinder will last nearly forever and they generally hold a good resale value. If you're like me and are trying to achieve the perfect cup of espresso this will help you get a little bit closer. And if you're asking me if I am suggesting this grinder to you the answer is yes. There are lot of good grinders on the market but from my experience you can't go wrong with the MACAP MC4 grinder.

One last word on this grinder. I would never suggest getting it with the doser unless you own a coffeehouse, restaurant, or have a lot of friends over all the time a doser only proves itself viable if you plan on making 10 are more shots consecutively otherwise you're just wasting good coffee because it just sits in the doser and go stale on you. If you just plan on making 1 or even 4 espressos at a time the doserless is the way to go. If you plan to buy this Grinder Please use this link Macap MC4 Doserless Espresso Coffee Grinder w/ Stepless Adjustment - Black
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Sony Alpha PCK-LH3AM LCD Protective Cover

Sony Alpha PCK-LH3AM LCD Protective Cover

Nice idea but poorly executed. The lcd proctor works in the way of preventing scratches and the possible Puncture, but it often falls off and reduces the quality of the screen and dust can slip between the Protector and the lcd. If you are hiking or plan being very rough on the screen and want to prevent Punctures buy it. But if you just want to prevent scratches buy a Reusable LCD Screen Protector like the iKross 3-Pack Premium Reusable LCD Screen Protector with Lint Cleaning Cloth for iPod touch (Clear)
just cut to fit. If you plan to buy this cover pleas use this link Sony Alpha PCK-LH3AM LCD Protective Cover (Clear)
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