I have an Elizabeth, and for the life of me I’m trying to understand what the problem is here? My wand does a perfectly good job of texturing 10 oz of milk in a 16 oz standard frothing jug. I pull it up to its full travel pulling it forward when I use it. And when I am done I put the nozzle over the drip tray since it like to leak a bit later unless I give it another little twist after it cools…

I think it is a pretty standard shape. Yes, the Elizabeth is a compact machine, and some larger machines have the wands out front with better access. But hmm. In any event, as stated above, perhaps there is another nozzle from another company that will fit the ball joint in a shape you may prefer!

Steams very well, not a problem. Just not that happy with its compact shape, accepting that it has been designed to operate within the constraints of the drip tray sizewise. Guess that i’ll swap the Lizzy out. Had it about a month and, like the Marax previously have decided to ‘move on up’ soon. That Bianca is looking attractive, and it has a longer more accessible steam wand 😉, except its on the wrong side of the machine it appears. Anyone interested in a one month old Elizabeth?

    Looks very similar to the Elizabeth in size and ‘curvature’ so, price aside, that’s a definite no.

    The Bianca would appear to be a suitable upgrade but why oh why have they located the steam wand on the LEFT hand side of the machine! Time to start going down another rabbit hole i suppose in a search for my next machine.

      skylark - the majority of E61 machines have the steam wand on the left - ECM, Profitec, Rocket, Bezzera, Izzo to name a few.
      Seems that ring group style machines have the steam wand on the right: Gaggia Classic, Rancilio Silvia, Elizabeth, Victoria, Profitec Go, LM Mini/Micra etc. The exception seems to be the Profitec 300.

        skylark Looks very similar to the Elizabeth in size and ‘curvature’

        I don’t think so. It’s a lot more curved and smaller. Totally different and very awkward. 😉

        Anyway, a moot point.

          skylark The Bianca would appear to be a suitable upgrade but why oh why have they located the steam wand on the LEFT hand side of the machine!

          After many years with a steam wand on the right I was worried about getting a machine with the wand on the left. It turned out to make no difference for me.

            5 days later

            Lizzy was great. I had no challenges with the steam wand length or angle. You just need to have a number of milk frothing tricks up your sleeve. Hint - keep a 750 M L Motta jug in the freezer. Mind you, I tended to make cappuccino foam. I was always able to produce gobs of thick microfoam without challenge. I’m not so good at latte foam. We’ll see how we do when my Decent arrives.

            That’s not my issue with the LE. It’s the cheap steam knob and badly designed steam closure valve. I know how that fitting works and how to ever so gently close and then reclose it, to extend its life, but you really should not have to do that. It’s just bad design. I also encountered steam leaks in other areas of the valve. Their quality control over that valve and also the OPV valve (which had to be swapped out) is not good.

            It’s an ingeniously designed machine. I suppose every machine has its quirks. Hindsight being 20/20, I would have bought a Bianca. However if is steam valve is the same, maybe not…

            Now I get to experience the quirks of the Decent, at 3X the LE cost (well 2X as I bought a gently pre-owned one).

              JHCCoffee Hindsight being 20/20, I would have bought a Bianca. However if is steam valve is the same, maybe not…

              It’s nothing like it. Totally different.

                  MediumRoastSteam It’s nothing like it. Totally different.

                  Thanks MRS. Just curious.

                  How did they improve the steam valve, relative to the LE?

                  Did they solve the steam leak issue?

                    I understand that the Bianca has a spring driven non-compression valve. Sounds like a substantial improvement over the compression valve, particularly if Bianca users are not experiencing any steam leakage.

                    I’m curious why Lelit went for a compression valve in the Elizabeth vs non-compression in the Bianca. Was it design or cost related?

                    And I’m wondering whether Elizabeth owners experiencing steam leak issues can replace the Elizabeth’s compression valve with a non-compression one, such as the one used for the Bianca. This may or may not be feasible or mighty be too costly.

                      JHCCoffee I’m curious why Lelit went for a compression valve in the Elizabeth vs non-compression in the Bianca. Was it design or cost related

                      Non-compression valves, rotary or joysticks are used on higher end machines. In case of Lelit, Bianca and MaraX are at Lelit’s top range. Victoria and Elizabeth are one level below.

                        Just returning to this and wondering whether Lelit are missing a trick in not making simple cosmetic changes to the Elizabeth, which after all, IS a dual boiler and the little bro/sister to the Bianca in that respect. Obviously its is not up to that standard but maybe from an appearance pov they could incorporate a white/black/silver casing alongwith a similar small (in the scale of things) upgrade or addon to the steam knob and compression valves which appear regularly as small ‘issues’ her on the forum. Oh, and i nearly forgot, a redesign of that itty bitty wand would be nice, just for me it seems 😉