“I own the Kalita Wave 185 steel version. I've had good brews and bad with it. Definitely has a slow drain rate. I came across a YouTube video that talked more about it and ended up drilling the holes in it slightly larger. That helped.
I later purchased the ceramic Kalite Wave 185. That worked a good bit better but I still, occasionally, had stall issues. I'm sure it was due to too many fines, grinding too fine, or the filter being used. I purchased a 45.5mm espresso puck screen (compatible with Flair Pro) and use that on the bottom of the brewer before putting the filter in. That helped with the brew / drain rate significantly.
So now, I've purchased the Kalita Mino and I don't need anything special to produce great cups of coffee. The "new" pattern in the bottom of the brewer appears more effective at keeping the wetted filter off the bottom and keeps it from clogging the drain holes. I love the look and feel of this brewer as well. A great purchase. I highly recommend this to anyone that's already a fan of the Kalita brewers. For those that are not, this Mino version is worthwhile trying out.”
