Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

yimpster said:
It get's stuck when the basket is empty and the machine is cold. I guess it's the metal contracting as it cools. I leave the PF locked in position all the time whether it is on or off.

I don't have a VST basket - they are around £22. I bought a generic non pressurised double basket from happy donkey, which i thought would be ok. Is it worth the investment?

I always preheat my machine for an hour in the morning before i get up (it's on a timer for a few hours). I did upgrade the wand http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/hdr0001.html
but getting really crappy results. I keep the jugs in the fridge or freezer clean and cold. I do have a thermometer also to guide me temperature wise. :( I end up with hot milk and a frothy top. which is not microfoam at all.

Get the feeling i've got a duff machine or absolutely NO idea what i'm doing
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The basket is much of a muchness. I wanted something with slightly more headroom than a standard 14g basket. I'm very happy with my shots right now, whether that is down to the basket, I would say it has helped, but I couldn't say whether that's down to the technological improvements in the basket. As I say, I simply wanted larger doses and more headroom, beyond a nice pour anything else is difficult to discern.

As for your foam, It sounds like your technique. It sounds as if you are over stretching the milk, then putting the wand too deep (ooo-errr). I would recommend less is more. I barely move the steam tip when steaming. Get a roll, stretch a little then return the nozzle to just below the surface to texture. Less is more! You can practice with water and some (a very small amount) of fairy. I noticed the vimeo video on the previous page, that's where I got my technique from. It is possible to get very decent milk with the rancillio wand and gaggia, so chin up. If it's making steam, I cannot see it being a defective unit!

I don't personally keep my portafilter locked in, it's only in when i'm extracting coffee.
 
your basket wants to be on when the unit is warming up so the portafilter is warm, dont tighten it just twist enough so it is held in place without the risk of falling out.

the coffee sticking is too much coffee in your portafilter, a lot of places show leveling off the portafilter then tamping, if this is what you are doing try removing half a tea spoon at a time prior to tamping as if you are twisting the portafilter in against the coffee its making the tamp pointless as you are distubing the grounds and putting more pressure on them, as you remove coffee then you need to start reducing your grind size (very slightlyeach time) to keep at the correct extraction time for the coffee.

the problem you have with the classic is that its a single boiler meaning if you have just poured as espresso it will need time to recover and be ready to steam milk, its an excellent machine for espresso but isnt great at steaming and espresso instantly.

the fairy liquid testing is a great way to try but it really is the smallest drop you can get out the bottle.

if you are overstreching and not rolling your milk it will look grainy and dull at the end. its very tempting at first to get as much air into your milk as possible but you want around 1/4 - 1/3 increase in volume (seems to work for me anyway) then get rolling, plain water is good to get the hang of the angles to get it rolling and a lot easier to understand the depth you need to be at.
 
i think i'm done with grinder/classic. i've got a back problem and all I'm doing is tidying up. i don't think i'll ever be happy with it and quite frankly just fed up.

My mrs has had enough of me spending time trying to get it right and making a mess.

i've remove the wand upgrade and reinstalled the original - will try to return the classic to amazon. i've emailed happy donkey to see if they will accept the wand & grinder back.

can anyone recommend a bean to cup. i don't want to spend a fortune. now i know i want simplicity and want to spend £350 or less.
 
I'm not sure what you are doing wrong and how you get that blow back.

If nothing comes out then you either pressed it down too hard, too fine a grind or too much.

If it's gushes out then it's too corse, not enough grind or not pressed down hard enough.

You want it somewhere in between and just play with the 3 areas, once the grinder is dialled in, and you get to know how hard you normally need to tamper, it's pretty easy to get a consistent pull.

I use the stock double shot basket, never had a problem.
 
i'm just fed up and so is the mr's. spent almost a month trying to get it right. and an hour with her watching me this afternoon just taking the pi$$
 
What are you doing wrong? You doing anything different to online videos?

You had the steam buttons turned on?

I'm confused how you can be so far off.
 
just lost all interest now. fed up getting the pull timing right but ending up with bits in my drink. even tried different tamping pressures. tested on my home scales.

forget the fact about the milk frothing. maybe I've got a duff machine or basket.

just want something easy to use now.
 
As above, Nespresso is a good shout for convenient coffee. Bean to cup machines are a bit complicated, not sure you'd get a decent one in budget.

Random thought but if you wanted to share your rough location there might be a ocuk member local that could pop round and have a go on your kit.
 
i'm in hendon nw4. just made a cappuccino for my MIL. used the original turbo frother which was fine and easy (swapped it back this morning from the rancillo). pulled a double in just under 30 secs. using a store bought starbucks - quite strong and dark - though took a while to dial in on the grinder.

she said was quite happy but when i checked there was grounds in the bottom of the cup. pretty sure she just doesn't care as long as it's hot and coffee flavoured. :)
 
Have you tried pre ground? Just for a comparison to be sure you're dialled in. Tinned Illy stuff is reasonable but doesn't last once open.
 
Not sure how you get ground at the bottom of your drink, it should be a tight seal. Are you over packing the coffee into the basket?

Fill one up like you do normally, and take a picture?
 
Participant said:
I far prefer the taste of a filter coffee to an Americano - am I a heathen?
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I am a massive fan of decent filter coffee, I can appreciate a good espresso but for every day drinking give me a filter coffee!

Also I'm not a huge fan of cafetiere/french-press made filter coffee... Would take a cheapo drip-brew every time. Am I a heathen?
 
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this morning was a mess the basket got stuck again and I got burned trying to release it.

the same settings on my grind and tamp ended up with a pull duration of 45 seconds. which tasted nasty. tried again after winding back the grinder and ended up closer to 17seconds. I gave up and drank it with milk.

it's been approved to be returned to amazon as faulty as the baskets keep sticking. I really have had enough and very much appreciate the advice from this forum until now.

I now need a bargain on a bean to cup. Jura seems to be the premium brand to go for but they are mega expensive. Any thoughts as the delonghi whilst cheaper and more popular seem to have questionable reliability.
 
Okay, I've got a job interview next week and i think if I get the job I'm going to treat myself to a La Spaziale S1 Mini Vivaldi II :D

In which case, i'll be flogging my Gaggia Classic if anyone's interested!
 
Sounds like you have a faulty valve, creating a vacuum when pulling a shot, FYI, this is how much grind mine is after tamper.

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