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Reviews & Guides · Kitchen & Dining

TIMEMORE C5: I liked the grind, but struggled with the lid

Reviewed: TIMEMORE C5Regional reference: TIMEMORE Chestnut C5 Pro / C5 Esp Pro (US)

An owner likes the TIMEMORE C5’s grounds and numbered dial but struggles to remove its lid. The original photos and three short LIVE clips show the grinder.

Coffee grounds form a small mound in the grinder’s metal catch cup, with loose grounds around the dark inner wall.
A hand holds a black Timemore coffee grinder adjustment dial with a silver center and numbered grind-setting ring. The dial is marked COARSE and FINE, with arrows showing adjustment directions.
A hand holds the open grinder, showing its central metal shaft, crossbar and burr assembly inside the black hopper.
A hand holds a black, ridged manual coffee grinder with a metal crank and black knob above a tabletop. Its instruction booklet, showing a line drawing of the grinder, lies behind it.

Before buying, I saw a blogger say, “For home use, choose a manual grinder; electric grinders are a hassle to clean and are better suited to making dozens of cups a day.”

So I got carried away and bought a manual grinder.

In practice,

the grounds came out quite fine and even.

I don’t know how it will hold up after longer use...

But for me, the biggest problem is—

the lid on top is so hard to knock open! Every time feels like opening a can, and I have to use a screwdriver. If you’re a woman with less strength, think carefully before choosing it!

I bought the TIMEMORE C5, for around 300 yuan. The new version’s adjustment markings don’t need to be counted one by one; you can just turn it to the setting you want.

Honestly, freshly ground coffee tastes so much better than drip-bag coffee to me.

Source: 伊月 · Xiaohongshu · 2025-12-20 · 女生慎选手摇磨豆机！. Search this Chinese title in Xiaohongshu to find the original post.

Before You Buy

Models in your region

The source names a TIMEMORE C5. For US readers, TIMEMORE’s current C5-series options are the C5 Pro and C5 Esp Pro, related variants with folding handles and different adjustment scales. The owner’s tight-lid experience belongs to the C5 in this post; an identical fit on the Pro versions is not established.

Model in this review Related regional model What to know
TIMEMORE C5 TIMEMORE Chestnut C5 Pro / C5 Esp Pro (US) Both US variants have 42 mm burrs and folding handles. The C5 Pro offers 0.031 mm steps, while the C5 Esp Pro offers 0.015 mm steps. They are useful C5-family references; the post does not establish identical lid fit or configuration.
Model in this review
TIMEMORE C5
Related regional model
TIMEMORE Chestnut C5 Pro / C5 Esp Pro (US)
What to know
Both US variants have 42 mm burrs and folding handles. The C5 Pro offers 0.031 mm steps, while the C5 Esp Pro offers 0.015 mm steps. They are useful C5-family references; the post does not establish identical lid fit or configuration.

Choose the adjustment scale for your brewing

TIMEMORE positions the C5 Pro for pour-over and occasional espresso, and the C5 Esp Pro for finer espresso adjustment. Both use the listed 42 mm burr set; the difference relevant to dialing in is the adjustment scale.

The US C5 Pro is specified at 0.031 mm per click and the Esp Pro at 0.015 mm per click. Both are stepped mechanisms. The owner’s comment about turning to a marked number describes easier setting reference, rather than stepless adjustment.

The current US variants are listed at 53 mm body diameter and about 640 g. For a manual grinder, try the grip and lid removal as well as the crank: this owner’s strongest complaint concerns opening the lid, not a measured test of grinding effort.

TIMEMORE C5 Series US store · US

The lid is the owner’s main practical concern

The author found the lid so difficult to remove that a screwdriver was used. The cause and frequency beyond this unit are unknown, and the clips do not demonstrate a repair. If a lid requires prying, ask TIMEMORE for the appropriate opening method rather than treating this account as a repair instruction.

Promising first impressions, not a long-term test

The author liked the apparently fine, even grounds and preferred the resulting coffee to drip bags. Brewing details and particle-size measurements are not supplied, and the author explicitly leaves longer-term performance open.

The numbered dial was another positive in this early account. Alongside checking the exact C5 variant, decide whether the daily loading and adjustment workflow feels comfortable; a favorable first cup does not answer those handling questions.

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