Tampers
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TORR Tampers Series
Café Kultur in Germany handcrafts the TORR series of espresso tampers from the finest premium hardwoods and food-safe stainless steel. Café Kultur perfected the design of its espresso tampers over several years to produce a tamper that is simple, functional, well balanced, and fits as many different hands as possible.
Only premium raw materials are used to handcraft an eco-friendly product. Wood for the tamper handles is purchased from a German timber broker that sources its wood from responsibly managed forests and is certified by the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC). The tamper pistons are CNC machined using food-safe stainless steel. Only oils that naturally occur in the wood are used to protect the wood handles (no synthetic stains). Read about Café Kultur's commitment to environmental responsibility here.
Each tamper is handcrafted with attention to detail in numerous manual steps that results in a first-class fit and finish. To feel comfortable in the hand, the wood handles are sanded and polished to produce a smooth, lustrous surface. The steel pistons are finished with a satin, soft brushed surface that resists fingerprints and smudges. The black-lasered TORR logo on the stainless steel piston adds a touch of class.
We are introducing the TORR tampers in five different woods and two sizes (both with straight-walled, convex-bottom pistons) and will expand and grow the line over the coming months. Please check our listing of the most popular commercial and home espresso machines for the recommended tamper size.
Tamper Zebra Wood
Zebrawood (Microberlinia brazzavillensis) has a coarse-textured heartwood that is pale golden yellow, and features narrow streaks of dark brown to black (zebra stripes), often with an interlocked or wavy grain. Zebrawood can also be a pale brown with regular or irregular marks of dark brown in varying widths. The tree can reach heights up to 150 feet and several feet in diameter, but more typically is about 50 feet high, and commonly grows along riverbanks in the West African countries of Gabon, Cameroon and Congo (its Latin name is derived from the Congo city of Brazzaville).
Because of the striking “zebra” effect, the wood is expensive and therefore produced and used as decorative veneer and inlays for furniture and flooring. It can also be used for skis and tool handles because of its hardness and high density (1000 kg per m3). The wood is quartersawn, which enhances the zebra stripes and improves its stability when dry. The coarse texture and interlocking grain make it challenging to obtain a clean, smooth finish with machine or hand planning, and sanding and polishing is required.
| Diameter | 53 mm or 58 mm (convex) |
| Tamper Height | 3 3/4 in. (95 mm) |
| Piston Height | 1/2 in. (13 mm) |
| Weight | 10.25 oz. (290 g) for 53 mm |
| 11.5 oz. (330 g) for 58 mm |
Notice: The tampers are handcrafted from premium hardwoods and stainless steel. Wood is a natural product and each piece is therefore unique and will differ in color, grain and finish. These characteristics enhance the beauty of the finished tamper.
Click above for larger image.
Related Items
Espresso Cups
Cappuccino Cups
Café Kultur Artisans
Turning handle on latheTamper Palisander Wood
Palisander Wood (Dalbergia nigra) ranges from shades of lemon pink or red-scarlet to bright red or redish-brown, with distinctly darker lines or markings. The species occurs both in rainforest as well as savannah vegetation in Madagascar and belongs to the Rosewood family.
Because of its density, hardness and stability, Palisander is suitable for cabinetry, turning and carving. Palisander is primarily produced as veneers and flooring because of its relative scarcity and high price. It is also used in musical instruments manufacturing. The natural oils in the wood enable a lustruous polish.
| Diameter | 53 mm or 58 mm (convex) |
| Tamper Height | 3 3/4 in. (95 mm) |
| Piston Height | 1/2 in. (13 mm) |
| Weight | 10.5 oz. (300 g) for 53 mm |
| 12 oz. (340 g) for 58 mm |
Notice: The tampers are handcrafted from premium hardwoods and stainless steel. Wood is a natural product and each piece is therefore unique and will differ in color, grain and finish. These characteristics enhance the beauty of the finished tamper.
Click above for larger image.
Polishing piston on latheTamper Violet Wood
Violet Wood (Acacia homalophylla) is a rich dark wood with a luxurious straight grain and fine texture. The heartwood has variegated colors with a background of rich violet-brown, shading almost to a black with streaks of violet-brown, dark violet and black, sometimes with golden yellow, presenting an unmistakable appearance. Violet Wood grows as small and slender trees in Brazil and is a member of the Rosewood family.
Because of its relative scarcity and high price, it is used chiefly in veneer form for inlays and marquetry. Violet Wood is a hard, dense (1200 kg per m3) and stable wood, suitable for turning and small accessories. When finished it has a bright luster and high natural polish.
| Diameter | 53 mm or 58 mm (convex) |
| Tamper Height | 3 3/4 in. (95 mm) |
| Piston Height | 1/2 in. (13 mm) |
| Weight | 11 oz. (310 g) for 53 mm |
| 12.5 oz. (350 g) for 58 mm |
Notice: The tampers are handcrafted from premium hardwoods and stainless steel. Wood is a natural product and each piece is therefore unique and will differ in color, grain and finish. These characteristics enhance the beauty of the finished tamper.
Click above for larger image.
Tamper African Blackwood
African Blackwood or Mpingo (Dalbergia melanoxylon) has dense, lustrous heartwood that is usually dark-purple brown to black in color with predominantly black streaks. The trees are small (15 to 20 feet tall) and heavily branched, the trunks are seldom straight, the bark is rough with many fissures, and the branches have small spines. The plant is native to seasonally dry regions of Africa from Senegal east to Eritrea and south to the Transvaal in South Africa. The African Blackwood used for these tampers is harvested in the northern provinces of Mozambique.
The tonal qualities of African Blackwood make it particularly suitable for woodwind instruments. It is also used to make furniture. The heartwood is ideal for turning and carving because of its exceptional density (1400 kg per m3). A lustrous finish can be achieved because it is naturally oily and finely grained. It is highly environmentally stable and does not distort when exposed to heat and humidity, which makes it a perfect choice for a tamper handle.
| Diameter | 53 mm or 58 mm (convex) |
| Tamper Height | 3 3/4 in. (95 mm) |
| Piston Height | 1/2 in. (13 mm) |
| Weight | 11.25 oz. (320 g) for 53 mm |
| 12.75 oz. (360 g) for 58 mm |
Notice: The tampers are handcrafted from premium hardwoods and stainless steel. Wood is a natural product and each piece is therefore unique and will differ in color, grain and finish. These characteristics enhance the beauty of the finished tamper.
Click above for larger image.
Tamper Makassar Ebony
Makassar Ebony (Diospyros celebica) is one of the plants commonly known as ebony. It is variegated streaky brown and black, nearly always wide striped. The tree grows to 20 feet and is native to Indonesia, in particular the island of Sulawesi, and was named after the main exporting seaport Makassar. This is an exquisite and much sought after wood.
Ebony heartwood is one of the most intensely black woods known, which combined with its very high density (1200 kg per m3), fine texture, and ability to polish very smoothly, has made it extremely valuable for turning and fine cabinetry and joinery. The mechanical properties of this wood make it ideal for a tamper handle.
| Diameter | 53 mm or 58 mm (convex) |
| Tamper Height | 3 3/4 in. (95 mm) |
| Piston Height | 1/2 in. (13 mm) |
| Weight | 11.25 oz. (320 g) for 53 mm |
| 12.75 oz. (360 g) for 58 mm |
Notice: The tampers are handcrafted from premium hardwoods and stainless steel. Wood is a natural product and each piece is therefore unique and will differ in color, grain and finish. These characteristics enhance the beauty of the finished tamper.
Click above for larger image.