What's Your End Game Kit

JHCCoffee

Thought that this would be fun and informative:

Based upon all that you have learned and tried to date, what would be your “end game” (no need for further change) kit? This would be a setup that you can realistically aspire to, as distinct from an “I won the lotto and money is no object” kit.

PS Some of us do not know the name, model or acronym of some pieces of kit, or what it’s use or purpose is. So it would be great if you could be specific (eg Niche Zero 64mm burr grinder, rather than NZ).

Grinder(s), espresso machine(s), basket(s), tamper(S), other key accessories? And yes, you can have 2 grinders and a pump and a lever machine. :)

What (of that) end game set up do you have now? What are you planning to acquire next?

LMSC

Evo, Duo, V60 and Clever Dripper

JHCCoffee What are you planning to acquire next?

On the contrary! Always wondered if I should have kept it simple - just filter. I do think some time I should sell the Evo. 😁

MediumRoastSteam

LMSC - Believe me… I’ve done that once in the past… Not because I wanted to, but I was getting a lot of grief from the one who doesn’t drink coffee in the household… I regretted ever since! LOL

LMSC

MediumRoastSteam

My family happily drinks the coffee from the Evo and the filter. I don’t see them using the machine (Evo) as they do not as of now.

I won’t be surprised if the Evo would mostly be a machine for the week end and when guests / friends are at home. Apart from these, I do not want to, as you say, regret after selling it off.

It will cost me at least £3.5K to get a like-for-like replacement. 😊

Thx, though!

JonWoo187

Having had various machines/grinders over the yrs what I have now seriously gets the job done for exactly what I like/expect and no doubt will last the rest of my usable lifetime.
-Rancilio Silvia Pro (will replace water lines as I do that with pretty much any machine after 3 yrs or so use and will swap out the stock brew pump for an Ulka heavy duty 2/1 duty cycle so I can push extractions upwards of 90 seconds…
-Cimbali Jr. electric beast with ‘traditional’ 64 mm burrs it simply does a great job and has been in use for 17 yrs now without a flinch… use it when I need to crank out espresso back to back in a short period of time…
-Helor 106 as I consider it to be as good as a grinder can/needs to be and use it the majority of the time… will replace the ceramic shaft bearings with sealed hybrid ceramics just to minimize cleaning as often…
-Basket is an old school Rancilio 40-100-103 as it’s the best overall basket of any I’ve used on any machine. Of course they don’t make them anymore and nearly impossible to find that exact basket. Hope it will last as long as I do…
-Tamper/station is a Joe Frex palm/level tamp with adjustable depth and weighs 2.5 lbs… setup with matching tamp station, both are simply superb…
-Ohaus STX Scout very high quality digital scale
-Cafelat Classic knockbox (round) and seriously built to last
-Hand built roasting setup that never lets me down and prevents me from ever having to buy ANY commercial roasted garbage floating around for ridiculous prices…

This setup has long paid for itself and aside from typical cleaning/preventive maintenance should be the last bit of ‘kit’ I’ll ever need to buy. For several yrs now my main focus is green selection and dialing each batch in to match my setup to give me the taste/texture I seek. Chasing equipment and all the FOMO items constantly discussed is a waste of time/money from my perspective, but to each their own. Some tend to think something better can be had year after year, but IMBHO once you get to a decent point with equipment you’re not really gonna find better, just different. Some will clearly chase that magic dragon indefinitely and most end up chasing their tail in the process and never totally satisfied with the end result. Maybe they should work more on their skill/technique than simply spending for little to nothing gained.

Cuprajake

Money no issues I’d love a keeps can der western leva.

Only a dual lever but a show piece.

Grinder wise I’m very happy with what I have but would also love a kafatec flat, they do seem to be very well built, I’m not into the bling that is the Titus chrome stuff.

dfk41

I look at owners of exotic cars, and far from it making me want one, I just presume he is a ****** with a little willie

DavecUK

dfk41 Glad we have the word filter!

Amberale

dfk41

I look at exotic and collectable cars and think “I am thankful that there are some folks with enough money and taste for these beautiful things to be built”.
To be sure, there are a lot of people driving them who don’t impress but the beauty of the engineering and styling should not be associated with them.

chlorox

If by end game, is meant kit that one can be happy for keeps with within ones reasonable budget estimates, then i already have my end game kit except I would like to have a good 98mm grinder for light roasts like the monolith flat Max with prebreaker or a Titus nautilus or as a cheaper option maybe the new option o 102mm grinder. I cannot stomach currently the astronomical cost of auch a grinder though and so am hoping for a df98 to eventually come along at a far lower price point. For the office machine, I wouldnt mind a replacement for the e61 but again the cost of a replacement machine and grinder combo are too much for the moment.

Sometimes especially for cars, people will say if I had no limit as to funds my dream car would be a mclaren etc but really, even uf we were to be gifted such a car, it wouldn’t fit our actual day to day needs or we won’t be able to afford to run and maintain it anyway. So any end game discussions has to still take into account our actual economic level as well as real life needs and preferences, and the same applies for coffee gear as well.

dfk41

Amberale Ha! Luckily, there are always two sides to a coin!

tompoland

Amberale love this.

tompoland

Think I’ve got it all, for now. I’d say a Kees Slim Jim but I’d only end up selling it due to non use.

Espresso machine: I’ll keep the DE1XL until the Bengle comes out at which point I’ll likely upgrade.

Grinders: I’ll likely stick to either a 64mm or 83mm flat burr grinder (or both) due to the large range of burr options for each, which significantly mitigates the otherwise magnetic pull of ugraditis.

Given the remarkably diverse and enjoyable options for these burr sets, and having had high priced grinders come and go, I am now bereft of any temptation to dive into the world of Titus or Kafatek or Lagom, impressive brands though they may all be.

The Duos and DF64Vs will likely stay longer than any grinders I’ve had previously, bar the Zero.

For me, the strong manufacturing surge in 2023 towards grinders that offer easy burr swapability has been a massive grinder game-changer. It’s somewhat akin to the difference between closed and open source software in that it spurs competition and accelerates development.

chlorox

tompoland
Thanks for the comment Tom but I was curious about your reference to the Bengle - whats that? Is that a new upcoming machine?

Pompeyexile

Considering I will never be able to afford some of the kit many of you have either tried or owned, my end game kit is one that will enable me to make a coffee that makes me go Ahhhhhh! and not Urrrrrrgh! My Niche Zero and Sage Dual Boiler and plethora of drippers etc get me to that now…mostly.

Whilst I know it is good to have a dream, as I have never experienced some of this high end kit and do not have the ability to taste the nuances in coffee profiles and flavours using them may bring, unless any of it breaks I am happy to stick with what I have got.

Why aim for the stars when I will only ever reach the moon.

Dusk

Pompeyexile

I totally get this, I’ve had gadgets in the past that have far more adjustments than I can ever be bothered to get involved with so never use them. I’m quite happy with something fairly simple and easy to use.

I once had adjustable suspension on a car(stupid idea) and I fiddled with it once before realising I just wanted it as soft as it could go. I replaced it not long after….

MediumRoastSteam

chlorox - it is indeed.

chlorox reference to the Bengle - whats that? Is that a new upcoming machine?

It is indeed.

JHCCoffee

chlorox Bengle - whats that? Is that a new upcoming machine?

John’s long term vision for the Decent. A v2, versus incremental v1.x machines. Now at v1.4, with V1.5 coming up.

tompoland

chlorox indeed, its a Decent but it’s not being offered as a replacement for the DE1 but rather as a more premium option. The idea seems to be that the DE1 will continue to be developed and offered for around the current price point and that the Bengle will be positioned as a commercial machine. New features include a different design including timber side panels, new pump, different water reservoir, samsung tablet, built in scale (in the feet).

Ben Champion has been the main person working on the Bengle plus of course John Buckman (Decent founder) with Scott Rao helping out too.

Its worth noting that John has posted to say that the difference in the cup will be indistinguishable from the DE1.

BrendaninBrooklyn

While I greatly respect and am enthusiastic about the Decent team, and periodically look in on other SOTA machines, whether in production or development, (Dalla Corte Mina, Faema by Faema, La Marzocco Leva X & Linea Micra, Manument, Nurri Leva, Unica Pro, Victoria Arduino E1 Prima, and Carimali Heylo), this is just technology-curiousity on my part. Ditto the grinders I believe really are superior (Kafatek, Lever Craft, Titus, VersaLab, WUG)

I am a home user, making coffee for my wife and I, and occasionally for friends. The limits on my results are bean quality and skill; not gear. So regardless of available budget, I would make these same choices:

Niche Zero
Niche Duo dual-burr
Odyssey Espresso Argos w/ direct and spring assemblies – assuming the final product matches the manufacturer’s stated intentions, which seems extremely likely
a small assortment of brew gear, mainly for fun

Good chefs require good knives; they rarely need a handmade, hammered-finish, multi-layer, carbon-steel Usuba.

Igm45

BrendaninBrooklyn

It’s interesting that you use chefs as an example because I’d argue that kit makes a huge difference to them, whether that be cooking with gas (temperature control), piping bags (flow control). Like coffee food contains so many volatile compounds that kit does make a big impact.