Hiku Production Update 13

Dear Backers,

Backer Surveys

Thanks to all of you who filled out the surveys promptly, it helps us plan each batch for shipment by region. If you haven’t yet completed the survey, please take a moment to do so so that we can ensure your Hiku arrives as soon as possible.

Production Status

The burrset arrived last week with its beautiful Titanium Nitride coating and we couldn’t be happier. That kicked off the final stage of assembly and calibration, as all previous cell assembly had been completed and was waiting.

In a previous update, we had spoken of grind scale calibration. After off-tool parts were sampled, we had some of the tooling adjusted based on test results to ensure that the grind scale markings could provide as much useful range as possible. That means the burr fully closes as the scale approaches 0, and the burrs move very little at the low end of the scale for maximum espresso grind tuning. Nearing the middle of the grind scale, the burr opens up quicker to provide a wide useful range for pourover lovers.

Ready to Use

We have a specific assembly process that maintains consistency across Hikus. It is designed to work optimally right out of the box. Should the burr need cleaning, most of the time just removing the inner burr with a single screw will suffice. As users become more familiar with their Hiku, they might feel comfortable performing a full disassembly and cleaning. As we complete the initial production run and shipments, we will then be able to turn some focus to spare parts availability and assembly / disassembly instructions. Best for the moment just to use and enjoy your Hiku as it comes in the box.

Shipments

Hiku begins shipping in quantity this week!

Backers in Asia and Europe will see their Hikus first, although a few units trickled out to a few lucky backers and strategic partners last week.

Closing Remarks

Hiku has come so far in the last twelve months. At this time last year, it was in prototype form, undergoing intense development and iterative improvement. We started planning the campaign in the early Fall of 2017 and crowdfunding started in December. We wrote our “Thank You, Backers” Update #7 early in 2018 and seven months later we’re shipping. We’d like to thank everyone involved with the wonderful discussion, encouragement and enthusiasm. There is much to do in the next several days so we’ll get back to work. Talk to you soon!

Sincerely,

Amanda and team