thetravdog AS a recent Elizabeth convert, I have to agree with the steam knob. It really lets the side down on what otherwise is a competent little machine. The good news though is you can source wood ones as I did on Etsy. They are not cheap of course but are much better!
When I decided to move my Evo on, to keep on the good side of my wife mainly, I decided that for the next couple of years I needed to scale back a bit after shelling out on the Kafatek. I am 67 and retired 6 years ago so when I was working I bought whatever I wanted, I try and be more practical now. I narrowed my choice down to 2. A Sage DB and the Elizabeth. I enjoy doing research (beyond asking folks for their opinions) and I learned that back in 2022 Sage sorted out a lot of the problems the DB had by ditching ‘O’ rings on joints and going for compression fittings. But, I was also aware that our own @MediumRoastSteam whose opinion on coffee matters I have always respected had had an Elizabeth for 5 years or so and was quite happy with it.
This made me read around on them. Coming from an Evo Leva the small footprint was appealling meaning if I had to send it back to BB at any point for a repair then I could courier it since Newcastle seems to have no domestic coffee engineers. Sage offer a repair service though Coffee Classics so honours even there. Both are dual boilers. The Lelit group is not an E61 though a clone but does not use a solenoid saving you time on not needing maintenance when back flushing. The Lelit is brushed steel meaning no need to polish which appeals to me. The Sage is not stainless either. The deciding factors though for the Lelit, were the ability to draw hot water through the tap without the need to have the steam boiler on (I am drinking mainly Americano’s these days), the programable capabilities of the 2 shot buttons (button 1 puts 3 seconds of water onto the puck, then pre-infuses for 6 seconds, button 2 puts 3 seconds of wanter onto the puck then blooms for 10 seconds I think but you can adjust either). These might be small things. I have had several Sage DB’s before and like the flexibility in the advanced menu system. I have never had a Lelit machine before, so took a leap of faith and bought it.
Bearing in mind my coffee motto for years has been bigger equals better I had to re-learn how to make coffee on a pump machine. One feature that I glossed over was the quietness of the vibe pump. I do not know how they do it but boy it is quiet. Neither machine would be suitable for making 5 back to back coffees but these days that never happens.
So, to sum up, coming from a background of owning multiple machines including a GS3 auto, Profitecs, Londiniums, Elektras and the list goes on and on, right now at this stage of life I am glad I made the choice that I did and did not go down the Bianca, or GS3 route again. The new style of machines like Decent and Wendougee scare the pants off me but I genuinely understand their appeal. These days I have issues remembering the sequence of buttons to press to perform a small flush of the group and there are only 3 buttons to choose from. Ownership is about being happy with the choice you made. If you have not owned high end kit, before, then you ought to! If you have owned high end kit before, then it allows your mind to move in directions that perhaps others do not get!
Sorry to derail the thread!
