That's some killer information thank you! I didn't even think about temp loss just from the gooseneck! I live at a decent altitude above sea level, and supposedly water boils at 209 instead of 212. Does that make a huge difference? The coffee that I ordered was this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LV2PW86?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_image

and they state 372 for blonde roast. The listing is for medium roast as a standard, maybe I should have just went with that. I will eventually give those filters a shot, I've been waiting for the prices to come down because $10 for a pack of 100 seems ridiculous. I will definitely give those brands a look, do you have one you would personally recommend?

I'm using this coffee:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LV2PW86?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_image

I can't believe I didn't add what coffee in the post, I'll fix that now lol. I'm using a metal filter that came with my kit. I haven't tried paper filters yet. I'm always open to suggestions.

I completely forgot to add the coffee I used (derp), it's this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LV2PW86?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_image

372 degree blonde roast. The standard looks like a medium roast at 382.

I currently don't have a French press sadly...

I will definitely try not swirling at all tomorrow, if it's better I'll be thankful since swirling the thing can be awkward lol. Believe it or not, I haven't had a single fine in my cups yet. It maybe the knockoff Chemex filter has more fine holes? Can you point me in the right direction of what thin filters you recommend? Thanks for your help!