Evo Leva 2 arrived today...
Extremely nice “problem” to have . im down to 1 ACS now. Had 3 this time last year.
As per Dave, pictures please and full spec list!!
Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.
You moving on the minima by any chance?….. :)
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sketchy Might be a few days until I get photos posted. It looks like it shipped without any feet, but they’re on their way now.
They weren’t in the box, normally separate in box???
Michelle will probably get his ass kicked….cos it’s quite an expense to post them later.
DavecUK Nope. I probably spent more time than I’m willing to admit looking for them because I thought surely they were somewhere, and I didn’t want to reach out unless I was 100% certain. Just a tiny bag for the rubber and felt pads, but no feet. No separate box, nor a part of the bag with the hose for plumbing. I even looked up under and in the unit itself.
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
On the upside, the free weekend will give me some time to learn the consensus on what is working for everyone else on the Evo Leva 2. I did order the optional flush lever and safety system, but am seeing mixed feelings on the latter, so perhaps it might be best to change it back? (it will only be me using this). Anyway… morning thoughts prior to heading into the office.
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
I’d be very interested in your thoughts once you’ve had chance to get to grips with it, especially any comparisons you can draw between your ACS machines.
Tal Yes, I am too! Having spent a lot of time with the two other machines (especially the Vesuvius), that is what I’m most looking forward to most in terms of comparison. I hold the Vesuvius in pretty high regard. A proper lever will be a new experience for me, so I’m sure I may be fumbling around a bit at first.
By the way, I did share some thoughts about my experience with the Minima here: https://engineering-espresso.com/2024/12/22/using-the-acs-minima-espresso-machine/
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
sketchy what is working for everyone else on the Evo Leva 2. I did order the optional flush lever and safety system, but am seeing mixed feelings on the latter, so perhaps it might be best to change it back? (it will only be me using this)
My thoughts and my thoughts only.
Not sure what Paolo thinks about what i have done, but, to me it is perfect… it is not an authorised modification to be clear……
I much prefer the shower screen setup of the blind sleeve as opposed to the clip held shower screen of the open sleeve .
I personally do not see a need for the full damping given by the blind sleeve in its supplied form of safety system.
I therefore have 4 × 1mm holes in my sleeve.
This gives near to full flow to the puck, as you’d get with the open sleeve. NO puck drilling.
It gives 10.8 bars unaided start pressure to the puck
It stays clean as a dog whistle.
I cant find any negatives .
The v2 “flush lever” which you will have is perfect when adjusted to turn the pump on when the main lever reaches vertical, pausing briefly at this point and then continue to lower the main lever slowly. When you are new to this, if the pump turns off during lever travel you were a bit too slow!! Soon becomes second nature. My set point is 2.3 bars.
The main accessory you NEED is a smart plug.
“Hey google, turn evo on” is fantastic and means zero waiting time for heat up, ever!!
And finally, mine is fully plumbed via claris ultra filter system. I can’t imagine anyone using it without. (I may have mentioned this previously 🤔🤭)
Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.
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Adrianmsmith And finally, mine is fully plumbed …. I can’t imagine anyone using it without. (I may have mentioned this previously 🤔🤭)
🤣
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A little before and after. While I was intrigued by the trendy color schemes that look amazing, I played it conservative and went with the stainless and walnut combo as it will be the most versatile when I change homes in a few years. The Evo Leva made the Vesuvius feel light in comparison. But anyway, some initial thoughts…
- Fit and finish is top notch as I’d expect.
- Nice to see the water reservoir sensors adjusted to allow for easier cleaning. The setup on the Vesuvius always bugged me a bit.
- I will miss not having the scheduled startup time like the Vesuvius. Doh! Never mind. Found it!
- It is elegant, and quiet. It even got a thumbs up from the wife, so I consider that a victory.
- I still need to learn what will work for the dosing (setting the time and/or pressure), along with how to cut one off that pulls long, but I’ll figure that out. At least starting points for pre-
infusion, cutoff, etc. - I did use ACS basket that looks to be ~25mm deep, and used 16g in that. Although I did pick up an IMS 28mm deep basket if I find I want to experiment with an 18g dose.
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
Doing a bit of math, I’ve estimated my Vesuvius has pulled roughly 5,000 shots. Been a terrific machine, but really looking forward to the Evo Leva.
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
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sketchy I still need to learn what will work for the dosing (setting the time and/or pressure), along with how to cut one off that pulls long, but I’ll figure that out. At least starting points for pre-
infusion, cutoff, etc
Press the middle button any time to dump “early”
Fwiw my settings are pre infusion 2.4
Dump by pressure 7.0 and 4
4?!! ….. Yes. For dialling in.
When dialling in set at 4 and use the middle button to dump, note what you actually dumped at which is recorded on the display.
I find this more convenient than switching to manual and its just one button press!! Remember to swap back after dialling in though 😋☕
I dose 19.5g plus cintered puck screen in acs 32 basket and 54.4 tamper .
Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.
Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.
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sketchy Looks excellent, and it sems you went for the underlighting option, or is it a trick of the light?
Adrianmsmith Ah… thank you. That was a nice surprise to see the screen maintains a recording of the last pull and the associated pressure when dumping early. I just tried that and it works out nicely!
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
DavecUK Thank you, sir! Yep, I ordered the under lighting option. Actually, for years I had used a thin LED strip from Amazon for underlighting on my Vesuvius, which is what you see in the older photo. So I could see why you might be wondering if it was an optical illusion.
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster
Adrianmsmith I told my wife “you see, I would have had to take out the cupboards completely if I had purchased the Vostok, so isn’t this great?!”
As someone wise once told me, “turn a liability into an asset.” :-)
Pete
ACS Vesuvius, Evo Leva, Minima, Cafelot Robot
Qty 2, Femobook A68, Niche Zero
Arc800 RTD Roaster