Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

Welcome to the funny side…


Love mine, I’d advise looking at getting a dial with a scale as it’s probably the only weakness of the machine as you can’t move between grind settings easily. I have the ARO Espresso one as the Eureka replacement dials just aren’t precise enough for a machine with stepless adjustment. Then when you occasionally want a different grind it’s difficult to dial back into espresso without wasting coffee, so arguably worth investing in early if you change brew methods.

It can also be improved with a single dose hopper but I’m pretty happy with the standard one personally.

I tend to buy the exact same coffee every time as I only drink decalf so should be hopefully easy enough to dial in and never touch it hah. But I did buy the single dose kit should arrive next week, Happy to look at the dial with scale if you have a link. I was looking at getting the larger dial kit for it as well.
 
Mods have arrived..

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9 bar spring, new shower screen and a bottomless unpressurised portafilter.
Best I get fitting them.
Which bottomless portafilter did you go for? I think that that may be my next unnecessary/exciting purchase.

And how's the Gaggia? You sound happy enough with it!
 
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Very good, I’ll be keeping it.
Nice to get a bit of worktop real estate back with it having a small footprint.

Portafilter..

 
My "Funny coffee scale" arrived today. Thought I'd been sent the wrong product at first but all good. Will give it a go tomorrow.

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Looks nice honestly and if it's the same internals I have no issues with the performance, precision and accuracy. Even the battery life is great. Not sure I could justify the upgrade but if buying again and it fits your aesthetic why not.
 
I think I have the same scale as @maj - previously recommended by @Raymond Lin, although mine is branded 'LYtech', came from Amazon (£15) and the box exactly the same internally, but brown cardboard with some graphics on the top. The scales are fantastic. Very accurate from what I can make out.

I've finally got around to ordering an expresso machine and automatic grinder - will post when it turns up.

However because I've finally exhausted my decaf Nespresso pods (a week, or so still to go on the caffeinated coffee) I've been using my stop gap solution of a 3cup Moka Pot and Kingrinder K6 hand grinder. I bought the former for £24 and the K6 for £84. I know there are better hand grinders out there (1Zpresso etc.) but those tend to be significantly more expensive the K6 reviewed very well. Also for decaf, just starting out I think it might be fine and a useful backup/tool moving forwards.

Have to say a moka pot does produce some quite interesting results, particularly as someone who like milk-based drinks. Relatively consistent results as long as you follow the guidelines and don't leave it to burn etc. At the moment I only have a couple of supermarket wholebeans. The Decaf was a 'Raw Bean Decaf' brand from Waitrose. I imagine there's much better and fresher beans to be had, but this is fine for now and what I could get hold of. My journey through beans can begin proper once I've exhausted the Nespresso and my expresso machine arrives.
 
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I found great coffee (with milk based drinks) is possible with a moka pot and I used a Bialetti Moka Express until it got a bit corroded as it was aluminium. I would like to try one of the stainless steel models to see if they are as good. It’s not espresso but it’s more intense than filter or pour-over.
 
I found great coffee (with milk based drinks) is possible with a moka pot and I used a Bialetti Moka Express until it got a bit corroded as it was aluminium. I would like to try one of the stainless steel models to see if they are as good. It’s not espresso but it’s more intense than filter or pour-over.

I have the same. I went with classic design although there obviously loads of other options. I like you can replace some of the bits.

I'm not sure how durable it would be if used every day, but I've enjoyed using it so far. I think the window I anticipated being between setups is much shorter than I thought, but the Moka pot is going to be a useful tool.

I also bought one because unlike an expresso machine it's pretty cheap to try out.
 
A moka is great for camping/hikes/etc. too - I have a Bialetti Venus which we take with us, far more practical than a massive espresso machine which needs plugging into the mains :p
 
I'm looking for some buying advice and any recommendations on a bean to cup coffee machine please?
I'm coming from a pod machine but want to take the plunge and start using whole coffee beans, I'd like something with a built in milk dispenser/frother and with one-touch drink making.

My budget would be up to £400.00 any recommendations?
 
I'm looking for some buying advice and any recommendations on a bean to cup coffee machine please?
I'm coming from a pod machine but want to take the plunge and start using whole coffee beans, I'd like something with a built in milk dispenser/frother and with one-touch drink making.

My budget would be up to £400.00 any recommendations?
I get the impression that the Ninja Luxe is the one to go for. They often seem to be kicking around at about that price point.
 
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