Decided to start a little thread, documenting my journey and the vertical learning curve i seam to have been on. Like most, i got furloughed when covid kicked off and got bored so decided to get more into coffee. One thing after another with lots of reading on various forums, YouTube tutorials and what not,i bought a gaggia classic. [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/ATQnfMS.jpeg] Along with that i decided to get a 1zpresso for my grinding as i have a wilfa svart for all my pour overs etc. Well after wasting a good 500g of beans on the gaggia, i decided it wasn't for me, and promptly sold it. Decided on the sage duo temp pro which i was initially going to buy in the first place,quick look and £249 later john lewis delivered my shiney new machine [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/TWUem7I.jpeg] Now as much as i loved the 1zpresso, my shoulder didin't so, that got sold in favour of an eureka mignon from [@Black Cat Coffee](https://www.coffeeforums.co.uk/members/16888/) Next up the upgraditus got a hold of me as i wanted a fancy looking machine, and i got a bit of a dark horse off ebay A la macatec elba one, e61 grouphead. [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/Pg6PmPa.jpeg] I had long lusted over a dual boiler, mainly the lelit Elizabeth, with its pre infusion, quick heat up times it really is a fantastic machine, but id also noted the acs minima, another machine along the more traditional looks, and the looks along with the bigger boilers swayed it for me. [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/uxgb5uM.jpeg] So in the never ending revolving door of grinders with me, after having a eureak zenith 65, a niche and another mignon i saw a lightly used 2019 mazzer major on ebay, i added a Daniel wong doserless kit at the time, since gone to a funnel, even added ssp redspeed burrs [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/4P2ynGd.jpeg] I was going to used bottled water, either ashbeck or longhill, but then i spoke to a few in the know and did a bit of digging and settled on using ro water, remineralised with potassium bicarbonate, this will never scale the machine and makes for a tastey espresso to. After only having the minima for a short while a lever machine caught my eye, a 2014 londinium l1 - that was it i was in love, i sold the minima to fund the l1 and that was me set, the londinium moved home with me. [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/NF46adN.jpeg] i had a stunning set of handles turned by nick, they really sent the machine to another level, and i was happy in my own little coffee world, id been toying with med/lighter stuff but always found then too bright, to acidic to my taste, then one day the pressure relief valve blew on the l1, scared me to death, and that set about a refurb of the machine, but id lost all confidence, and decided now we had a bit of equity, that i would buy my first propper new machine, i lusted over the top spec londiniums but at £3500 ish they were just too much. the next machine came from bella barista, a crem one profiler, very capable machine, but arrived faulty, so had to go back, i have an amazing wife who said just get the machine you want, so i did, an lr24 stunner it was too, but sadly again came with issues and i returned the machine, :( after a little search i settled upon the lelit bianca- id always fancied a vesuvius profilong machine, but they too were expensive, so the lelit was the machine of choice, (2months later the ves dropped in price!!) [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/xOGfGUS.jpeg] and there a sat, happy as a pig in mud, the lelit a fabulos machine, quiet rotary pump, flow control, great heat stability, tbh it was almost boring as it just did its job, i still longed for another lever machine, once there in your blood they stick, they just look amazing. and what should pop up but an acs leva…a machine id been quite skeptical about, any lever seems to be quite polarising, just seems to be that way. id heard rumors read stuff saying how the machine was a miss match of parts, no good etc. but they still looked amazing, id followed the machine for a while and at the price it came up, prompted by a life even i thought stuff it! we're here once, get it! and that leads me to now. [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/ErMqxfw.jpeg] its been an up and down journey, ive jumped on fads bought stuff that i totally didnt need, learnt less is definately more, when it comes to coffee, ive noticed that each step ive taken up the ladder, ive inproved my coffee, each machine has been better than the last, starting would i imagined id of spent so much for a coffee - hell no, am i glad i did - yes jake

@"Cuprajake"#p12617 That’s quite a quite a journey Jake! It’s amazing how much you persevered. A classic example for some one to learn and understand what it takes to keep the passion for coffee alive. The best part is your wife firmly supporting so that you get what you desire. Enjoy making coffee with Evo. She offers plenty of possibilities to keep you busy. Hope she stays with you for ever!

Unlike Jake, we mostly stayed pour overs - mainly the Indian filter for a good part of our life with occasional £100-£150 machines. When the last machine died on us in late 2020, we kept moving the goal post from Gaggia to Minima to Evo. The 150 quids to £2500 is indeed a massive upgrade. Sure, she is our end game machine.

Jake’s corner was great reading during the pandemic

Fabulous post @"Cuprajake"#144 most interesting. It's terrific to have that pictorial guide to your journey. Thanks for taking the time to share.

@"Cuprajake"#p12617 Great post, shows the journey for many of us. Some go there in one big jump, others take the longer road, which is probably more fun..

id of saved a small fortune going big first, but i dont think id of learnt or appreciated the subtle changes. ive had some fabulous products half not pictured haha

So with a great machine comes great responsibility 🤣 i mean gadgets and we all love new stuff True to form ive ordered a funnel, doesn't fit, ive ordered a ims basket, and a normcore 58.5mm push tamper, with a plan to machine it down to fit the basket, for a mrs safe tamp🤣 Few internal pic [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/8Yb02jB.jpeg] Then an arty one [upl-image-preview url=//i.imgur.com/E2J62vo.jpeg]

Great journey to finally end up where you are today. Best way to learn what you do a don’t like regarding machines and your coffee.

Really enjoyed reading about the journey! That’s quite a few machines! Some very nice looking machines too! I love the turned handles on the first lever machine.

nick didnt, they were a very hard thing to make, had to design and make special mandrels due to the way the londinium handles are made,

My Coffee Journey

DavecUK

CoyoteOldMan Yup happy birthday.

Giphy - Birthday 40S GIF

Amberale

Yeh, sorry Bloke.
Happy Birthday.
Forty eh?
I used to get birthday sxe in my forties.
I mean I had to put on a short frock and lippy and go down the docks but still….

Cuprajake

well the seller of the cup responded with :

unfortuntely i cant replace as we dont have another in stock, it is in the nature of hand made ceramis to have small flaws, and i did test this one with boiling water before i sent it out,

im happy to send a fresh set out if you will cover the postage.

cheers.

kinda happy kinda annoyed, its nice they offer to replace, but annoying as it should never have gone out, had i have been in a shop and picked it up, id of put it back down,

now need to find a black 54mm funnel that fits

Dusk

You usually see that sort of flaw in a 2nds bin, it functions correctly but has a rather obvious cosmetic defect.

Cuprajake

so its not me £25 plus post

Cuprajake

So decided to give the group a quick clean,

4×10mm boltsz group slides out

Easy to service, quick clean and wipe down inside the bore, and then all put back together.

And this is the box of tricks that came with it

DavecUK

Nice Job. I asked Paolo about the group seal and he said that they last ages in the commercial environment and he thought it should last easily 2 years in the domestic environment…basically until age/heat hardening does for it.. Part of the reason there is no early death of the seal.

It never passes the inlet ports (no nibling)
No water washes out the lubrication (as it fills from the bottom, unlike the Firoenzato 58mm style which fills from above the pressure seal).

I do think the seal life is much longer with less issues of grabbing, judder and variable bite point over time than the Fiorenzato 58mm variants. Part of the reason I always liked the LSM style group. It’s also super easy to change the pressure seal as well as very cheap!

Cuprajake

So I’m coming up to 10months with the Evo now and have really settled into routine

I did away with the WiFi plug, the speed it heats up is so quick that you don’t have to wait more than 15 minutes

Few of the things I like:

Heat up time

Temperature adjustment

Repeatability and consistent shots,

Group pressure gauge

Things I’m not fond of

Side door and side water filling

The 4hole steam tip design, I much preferred the bulb shape on the Bianca over the chiseled Evo tip.

It really is a very good machine, totally over kill for my 4-5 drinks a day, it does come into it’s own for family gathering though

tompoland

Cuprajake totally over kill for my 4-5 drinks a day,

To paraphrase Crocodile Dundee:

That’s not overkill, this is overkill:

A Decent, A Strietman and a Nurri for 3 espressos/day 😀

(Feel better now?)

LMSC

tompoland That’s not overkill, this is overkill:

A Decent, A Strietman and a Nurri for 3 espressos/day 😀

You have not included the usual army of grinders Tom! 😂

Amberale

tompoland

Yep, middle aged men.
CT1, Bianca, (on order) Vostok, Argos.
A couple of grinders.
2 cups a day. :o

tompoland

Amberale middle aged men.

I wish.

CoyoteOldMan

You are making me feel as if I haven’t overspent at all. 😁😂🤣

tompoland

CoyoteOldMan

That’s why we do it. 😀 … here to serve.

Amberale

I have too many contemporaries who’s company I will soon lose to worry about spending a bit of money.
I am spending more on visiting some of them than I could ever spend on coffee.

CoyoteOldMan

Amberale You could always look on it as spending money on having a coffee with your contemporaries in faraway places?

(Sorry - I know yours was a serious point, but in the middle of British winter talking of death needs a bit of levity, otherwise suicide beckons)

Cuprajake

so ive decided this month to give dog and hat a try, purely as i feel stagnant in my choices, plus they had a discount code,

im working my way through the @CrownandCanvas beans but finding they need a very fine grind, and a bit of temp manipulation

CoyoteOldMan

Cuprajake im working my way through the @CrownandCanvas beans but finding they need a very fine grind, and a bit of temp manipulation

Which ones are you trying? I have so far tried the Brazil Castanhas and now about to finish the House Blend. Both seem happier (or my palate is happier) being brewed at relatively high 92-93 C (group), but I’m having no trouble with the grind; in fact I had to loosen it for the House Blend vs. my ‘normal’ Mahogany Roasts from Coffee Compass.

Cuprajake

these

LMSC

Cuprajake I have ordered the same ones plus Brazil. They are all resting

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