The tricky thing about how to grind coffee is that it must be ground specific to your preferred brewing method.

Coarse, Medium, and Fine "grinds" are used for various brewing methods to get the best flavor possible. The trick is explaining each of these grinds.... so here it goes

* Coarse - Chunky, distinct particles, reminds me of potting soil.

* Medium - More the texture of coarse sand.

* Fine - Smoother yet. More like sugar or salt when you rub it between your fingers.

* Super Fine - Not as fine as flour or powdered sugar, but definitely in that ball park. You can still feel some grit.

* Turkish Grind - Like flour, very powdery.

One thing to note here is that a super fine or Turkish grind is not possible with a blade grinder and can only be obtained with the most expensive burr grinder ... sorry

Now that you know what the grind should look like the next question is what grind goes with what brewing method.  The following chart should help to answer that question.

A Coarse Grind is generally used for the following:

French Press (press or plunger pot)
Toddy Makers (cold brew method)
Vacuum Coffee Maker
Percolator (perish the thought!)

A Medium Grind: Auto Drip Makers (with flat bottom filters)

A Medium/Fine Grind: Drip Makers (with cone shaped filters)

A Fine Grind: Stove Top Espresso Pots, Some Drip Makers (with cone shaped filters)

A Super Fine Grind: Espresso Machines

A Turkish Grind: Well, obivously this is forTurkish Style Coffee

How To Grind Coffee With A Blade Grinder
(Also known as a coffee mill )

This type of grinder usually has a clear plastic top that covers a coffee bean reservoir. The blade looks (and works) like a propeller and is seated in the center of the reservoir. The beans are poured into the reservoir and the top is replaced.

Putting some pressure on the top or in some cases holding pressure on a button causes the blade to spin, pulverizing the coffee beans. Blade grinders are handled manually so they have no settings.

That's why, with this grinder, you need to be familiar with the different grinds because this little operation is done by a combination of timing and uh... well, your basically gonna eyeball the darn thing!

The longer you grind, the finer the grind will be. Not to worry. This is actually much easier than it may sound.

O.K. HERE'S THE SECRET:
How to Grind Coffee with a Blade Grinder...

First question: How much coffee do you use? A good rule of thumb for most people though, is to start with two tablespoons of coffee beans for every six to eight ounces of water and adjust to your taste (in other words, approximately two tablespoons of coffee beans per cup).

Now, once the grinder is loaded, don't just hold the button down and let it rip... use short bursts of a few seconds each so the coffee doesn't overheat.

Make sure you have a hold on the top of the unit and give it a shake during bursts so that the grounds get well mixed while grinding. This will make the grind much smoother and consistent.

For a coarse grind, 8-10 seconds, a few seconds at a time should do. For a medium grind, try short bursts that add to 10-15 seconds, and a fine grind would be a few seconds or more longer. Experiment and have fun.

After a short learning curve, you will get it just right and getting it right, my friends, will lead you to "The Perfect Cup"... I promise.

Next Step -- the Water

Coffee is 98% water, and 2% coffee so you're not likely to experience the perfect cup with chemical laden tap water. Bottled or filtered is best, the latter with some type of reverse-osmosis or carbon filter will best do the trick.  NOTE:  water from a water softener won't have a lively snap that you would expect from coffee.  Do yourself a favor and switch to bottled or filter water -- you'll find it worth the effort.

Acutally Brewing the Coffee

The most common method of brewing in America is some type of filtration system, where hot water is poured over the freshly ground coffee, filtered through the coffee grinds and then captured in a container below.  First, the ideal temperature is 195-197F which is considered "just off boil" unless you live at elevation in which case 195F is boiling. 

Most home brewers only heat the coffee to 175F, which is the major fault of most home brewing equipment.  The best way to tell if the brewer heats water to the proper temperature is usually seen in the price tag.  Over $100 -- you can bet it is over 195F, under $50 you can be it is under the 195F.  For a standard 12 cup pot the contact time of the water with the coffee is approximately 4 minutes.  If your brew cycle is longer the coffee will be "bitter" ... shorter brew times will lead to "weak" coffee.

Next most common question is paper filter, gold filter, non-bleached filter???? so many choices.  First, paper versus gold.  This truely is a matter of personal preferance.  Paper filters will remove some of the oils from coffee which are often associated with a fine grit in the coffee.  A good rule of thumb is if you like press pot coffee -- get a gold filter, otherwise use paper.  If you are using paper filters for brewing coffee the question is bleached or unbleached.  Here I recommend bleached .. I know, I know "it is bad for the environment".  However, unbleached is bad for the coffee -- these filters often give up flavors in the brewing process which can damage the flavor of the coffee.  I recommend using oxygen bleached filters -- good for the environment and the coffee (nice!!)