# New to forum, looking to buy first coffee machine. Advice needed!



## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Hi there,

I've been looking at he forum for a few days and thought it was time to register, say hi and ask for some advice.

A friend and I are both looking to get a machine. He's been talking to his local Barista who has recommended the Rancilio Silvia as a good home machine by a commercial manufacturer.

Would you agree that this is a good choice and would you recommend anything else at the £400 level.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers

Dave


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

Excellent machine but be sure to factor in a necessary grinder (possibly secondhand) that could cost as much as the Machine.

Welcome to the Forum, also known as the 'money sink'


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## forzajuve (Feb 2, 2011)

Personally I would buy the cheaper (and some would agree better) Gaggia Classic therefore leaving you money to buy a suitable grinder such as an Iberital MC2. Without the grinder it would be mostly a waste of time.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks.

The budget for a grinder is separate and I was looking at the rocky, doser or doses-less? Or the MC2 jobby. Or is there a good cheaper hand grinder?

Can the sub-£200 gaggia classic really be comparable to the £400+ Rancilio?

We both want a machine that we can learn how to use really well and not need to upgrade.


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## forzajuve (Feb 2, 2011)

Regarding the grinder for espresso I wouldn't really recommend a hand grinder as its hard work at the espresso range although there are grinders that can do it (Porlex for example). I would stick with a hand grinder for brew methods in addition to an electric one for espresso (should you wish to look at that route). Having owned a Rocky I would say that although a good sturdy grinder, as it is a stepped grinder you don't get the fine control required at the espresso range. You can mod it but I just sold mine for a Mignon which I am very happy with.

The Silvia may be better than a Classic but no enough IMO to warrant the price difference (not owned one but used a mates many times). For a significant step up in quality from a Classic you would need to invest around £800 on an E61 type machine. The classic can be easily modified also with just a few (cheap) adaptations that many on here have done.

There are several options and a lot will come down to personal choice within any given budget. For what it is worth I would get the Classic and spend the left over on the best grinder you can afford with the left overs. Until you go for a higher spec espresso machine your budget should be more on the grinder than machine.


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

The man speaks the truth


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Are there things that the Rancilio has/can do that the gaggia doesn't?

The build quality on most of the £200 machines that I've looked at seemed pretty poor, how's the classic compared to the Rancilio?

Thanks for the comments.


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

The Gaggia Classic (or Gaggia Baby Class which has identical internals but a different chasis) and the Silvia are the best machines available under £500. Both machines have a single boiler for both brewing espresso and steaming milk. The Silvia's boiler is brass compared to aluminium on the Gaggias and it is slightly larger at 330ml vs 125ml on the Gaggias. Both machines function very similarly especially when you upgrade the steam wand on the Gaggias.

Generally, bigger boilers tend to be more thermally stable but smaller boilers recover more quickly. Also brass is a better boiler material than aluminium because of better thermal properties.

When you go over £500 you start to get into more functionally advanced machines that use multiple boilers and/or Heat eXchangers to heat the brew water and steam. These designs allow brewing and steaming to happen at the same time. More expensive machines also tend to use better materials with bigger boilers and are generally more thermally stable.

In my opinion, the Silvia is better than the Gaggia but not sufficiently so to justify a price tag double that of the Gaggia's. The next machine up after the Silvia is the Fracino Piccino for just over £500 which has two boilers.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks. So with the single boiler, is there a limit to how many drinks you can produce at one time? If you pull a shot can you then immediately steam?

I had a quick look at the Fracino Piccino but I couldn't see it for less than £640 which is way over budget.

Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it.

Any advice on which grinder to get?


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## BongoSteve (Apr 10, 2012)

You could think about the Eureka Mignon Instantaneous from Bella Barista, don't think it can be too far off the price of a rocky. It got good reviews on their website, and made me decide to buy one over its competitors. I certainly don't have any complaints about it (although it should be noted I don't have a huge amount of experience to compare it with...)


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

For the price difference to performance ratio you'd probably be better saving your pennies and getting the Classic and decent grinder then if you "really" get into this whole coffee thing you can upgrade later. The Classic will not disappoint, just look at how many people own it on this forum.

Disclaimer: I own a Classic.


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## lookseehear (Jul 16, 2010)

Scubadoo said:


> Thanks. So with the single boiler, is there a limit to how many drinks you can produce at one time? If you pull a shot can you then immediately steam?
> 
> I had a quick look at the Fracino Piccino but I couldn't see it for less than £640 which is way over budget.
> 
> ...


Any single boiler dual use machine (classic, Silvia etc) will take time between shots to recover. Also because there is only one boiler you have to wait for it to heat to steaming temperature after pulling a shot, and if you're making multiple milk drinks you may have to re-prime (refill) the boiler part way through to make sure it doesn't run dry.

Whichever way you look at it, the single boiler machines aren't that convenient for making more than one drink at a time or steaming much milk. If you will be wanting to make several lattes at a time you should really look at the cheaper heat exchanger machines. Bella Barista do the expobar office pulsar machine for £650 ish and there is also the fracino cherub to consider.

All of this is pointless without a grinder however. Trying to make espresso without a capable grinder is a very frustrating and unrewarding experience.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Scubadoo said:


> Thanks. So with the single boiler, is there a limit to how many drinks you can produce at one time? If you pull a shot can you then immediately steam?
> 
> I had a quick look at the Fracino Piccino but I couldn't see it for less than £640 which is way over budget.
> 
> ...


No problem and there is some good advice from those that responded above.

As Lookseehear said, Single Boiler Dual Use machines like the Classic and Silvia are very good at producing espresso but if you want to produce lots of milk based drinks, especially when in close succession, these machines may struggle or you may find yourself frequently waiting whilst the machine switches back and forth between brewing and steaming temperatures.

I managed to find the Fracino Piccino a bit cheaper here from a well regarded retailer if you are interested:

http://www.espressounderground.co.uk/domestic.html

I would second the advice of Chimps and others above regarding the grinder. The grinder makes a real difference to the quality of the espresso shot (arguably more so than the espresso machine). Unfortunately, in most cases you get what you pay for with espresso grinders so the grinder to get depends largely upon your budget and whether you are willing to consider buying second hand. I would recommend the Compak K3 Touch or Eureka Mignon Instanteo for around the £250 mark. Both grinders offer excellent value for money and produce results on a par with more expensive grinders. If you would like something a bit cheaper then consider the Iberital MC2 which is highly regarded by many forum users and retails around £150. These grinders are stepless which allows more fine grained control of the grind over a stepped grinder like the Rocky.


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## RobD (May 2, 2012)

Sticky!!

You can always look for second hand, there has been some very good kit for sale on here recently, a very good Brezzera HX machine and a few MC2's all within your budget, and if they have been looked after can give years more service.

I have an Iberital MC2 from what i have seen and having looked at other grinders to find one with such good control on the grind and produce so few clumps you have to spend ovet twice before there is any major improvement.

You can get them for £114 http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/hd0866-iberital-mc2-auto.html


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks everyone, some great advice.

So the Iberital MC2 is cheaper than, but considered a better grinder than the Rocky?

I think I might look for a Eureka Mignon used or on a deal.

I think I've settled on the Silvia, it really does seem well built and a great machine.

I guess I'll also need a tamper and a milk jug? do I need a thermometer? Any thing else?

Where do you guys get all this stuff from?


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

Scubadoo said:


> I think I've settled on the Silvia, it really does seem well built and a great machine.
> 
> I guess I'll also need a tamper and a milk jug? do I need a thermometer? Any thing else?
> 
> Where do you guys get all this stuff from?


You will not regret buying a Silvia. She will force you to learn how to grind, tamp & temp surf. (water flushing to lower brew temp).

There are a number of places where you can buy all the bits & pieces. :

Coffeehit

Hasbean

Bella Barista

Another Coffee

& so many more places, some are on here.

You will require Tamper-Steaming jug-scales-shot glass-knockout box-temptabs/thermometer as the very basic items required. The tamper that comes with Silvia(& most other machines) is rubbish


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Scubadoo said:


> Thanks everyone, some great advice.
> 
> So the Iberital MC2 is cheaper than, but considered a better grinder than the Rocky?
> 
> ...


The Rocky is, by all accounts, a very competent domestic grinder but for a similar price you could buy the Eureka Mignon or Compak K3 which are rated for light commercial use and offer considerably more machine for the money. I cannot comment on how the MC2 and Rocky compare on grind consistency but it is important to note that the MC2, like the Mignon and K3, is stepless. Most people tend to prefer stepless adjustment for espresso grinders because stepped grinders do not always offer fine enough adjustment. For example, whilst dialing in a new coffee you may find that the ideal grind setting is actually somewhere between two of the settings on the adjustment scale (perhaps 3 and 4). On a stepped grinder, you will have to make do with either setting 3 or 4 but on a stepless you could adjust the grinder to anywhere in between the two settings on the scale. On some stepped grinders there can be a massive difference between adjustment steps.

In addition to the retailers already mentioned I would offer HappyDonkey, Espresso Underground, Cream Supplies and Square Mile Roasters. Also make sure you get a set of scales that are accurate to 0.1g and get a digital timer.


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

The Rocky is OK & very often paired with the Silvia but I think you would be looking to upgrade after a short time. Its not the best for espresso.


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## RobD (May 2, 2012)

to be fair to the Rocky it is not an ugly grinder and build quality is very good, where as the MC2 is a bit Fugly and as i have taken mine apart you can tell its built to a price! but i would still prefer it over a rocky.


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## forzajuve (Feb 2, 2011)

I have owned a Rocky in the past but would not recommend for espresso. As has been mentioned (without modding) you are stuck with stepped increments in grind size which are too wide to make the slight adjustments required by espresso. The easiest way to achieve consistency in shot quality is slight adjustments in grind and keeping all other elements the same i.e. dose amount, tamp pressure, temperature. You therefore definitely require stepless. The MC2 is great value, the Mignon if you can afford is superb IMO with grind quality similar to much larger commercial grinders, without the bulk.

As said before I would get the classic and put the saved money on the Silvia towards a better grinder, but you wont be disappointed with a Silvia, you may however when/if you get upgraditis!


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks everyone for all the great advice, really appreciated.

I've settled on the Silvia, the build seems better, I like the bigger boiler and let's face it, I like how it looks.

I just worry that a lot of people that I've watched on YouTube seem to struggle with it, and to be fair, most machines without a pid. I don't want this to be a completely frustrating process! With practice, is it possible to get consistantly good coffee with a Silvia?

cheers

Dave


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Have a look at temperature surfing. The main problem with brew boilers is that, they are usually thermostatically controlled and the thermostat often tends to have quite a large dead band (the temperature range between where the heating element comes on at the bottom end and then goes off at the top end). The dead band can be as much as 10 degrees.

Temperature surfing involves forcing the boiler to return to a known, repeatable temperature immediately prior to brewing.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Just to confuse matters, I 've managed to find a Fracino Piccino for under £500. The dual boiler really appeals but is it as well made as the Silvia?

And I see that the quickmill cassiopeia is £500 as well

Is it worth stretching the budget or are there compromises on the Fracino.

If you had to, which of those 3 would you buy?

See, I'm already upping the budget, I knew this forum would be dangerous!


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

I am not familiar with the Quickmill Cassiopeia and have not used any of these machines personally but, on paper, the Fracino machine is the best. All three seem to use comparable materials and sized brew boilers so, assuming they use similar thermostats and heating elements, should behave very similarly for brewing espresso. However, the way in which they produce steam is very different for all three. The Silvia is a single boiler dual use machine so the boiler must be switched between brewing and steaming mode which may cause delays whilst the boiler changes to the new temperature. The Quickmill appears to use a thermoblock to produce steam which eliminates the need to wait for the boiler to change temperature. Thermoblocks are essentially lumps of plastic or cast aluminum with a narrow channel through them along which the water travels. The block is heated and so the water heats as it travels through it. Thermoblocks are often used in the place of boilers on low end domestic machines. The Fracino machine has two brass boilers - one for heating the brew water and one for producing steam. The steam boiler uses a pressure stat to ensure there is a steady supply of steam pressure maintained.


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## RobD (May 2, 2012)

The Piccino is very well made and i was going to upgrade to one until my bargain came along, the piccino has got insulated twin boilers , the down side is that the Piccino doesn't even have a boiler light so you don't have a point to go to temp surf, or know where it is in its temp cycle but maybe the thermostat in the brew boiler is a tighter band?

The other reason I didn't go for the Piccino is that is got quite a wide footprint. Ask Monkeydevil about the piccino as he had one for a while

If you can stretch your budget a tiny bit further you could look at the Expobar Pulsar, has got really good reviews and is bascily a smaller footprint version of the Leva so you get an HX machine, someone on here brought one recently and was very pleased with it, also if you go to Bella Barista they have done a long review on it.

welcome to the world of upgraditis, it's a cruel mistress that will taunt you even in your quietest moments


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks Rob.

I was actually just looking at Myespresso's own version of the Piccino that they say a sturdier build. It would make the budget including my grinder £800. And I'm a tea drinker! Ha ha!

In all honestly the Silvia should be the top of my budget, so the expobar is probably well out.

The lack of a boiler light does worry me though, especially as I'm new to home espresso.

Thanks for taking the time to give me advice.

Edit - just looked at reviews of Myespresso and I think I may avoid them.


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## coffeebean (Jan 26, 2010)

The Piccino is built to the same standard as Fracinos commercial machines and they are BULLETPROOF!

Andy


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

The boiler light on most machines comes on when the element is heating the water. On some machines, the boiler light is inverted (usually referred to as a brew ready light). The boiler heating element is controlled by a thermostat and comes on when the boiler water cools to a certain temperature and then goes off again once the water in the boiler has been heated up to a certain temperature. The range in between these two temperatures (at which the element comes on and goes off) is called the thermostat dead band. On some thermostats the deadband is quite small but on others it can be 10 degrees or even more.

Temperature surfing is a procedure for returning to a repeatable temperature within the deadband immediately prior to brewing a shot. This procedure relies on having a boiler light or some indication of the state of the heating element.

Providing the deadband is sufficiently narrow, it may not be necessary to temperature surf. I am sure one of the Piccino owners on the forum will be able to comment on the deadband of the Piccino and whether temperature surfing is necessary or possible.

Be wary of MyEspresso. I have never used them myself but there have been some negative experiences from other forum members.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks coffeebean. That's good to know.

I like the look of them. Just wonder if the boiler sizes are ok and if it's true that the Piccino doesn't have a light to tell you when it's up to temp.

Can any owners chime in?


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

I'm just going to re-iterate the point made earlier one last time. If you get a machine that is more than twice the price of a Classic but not twice the machine, then surely in the future you just going to get upgraditis and have wasted your money a bit. Wouldn't you be better cutting your teeth on something a bit cheaper and then save up for a mega machine (Expobar or Rocket or something else £1000+) I have a feeling you've got the impression that the Classic is similar to other crappy machines in that price bracket when it's really not. They're great, reliable machines.

Just sayin


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

I'm just going round in circles now, don't have a clue what to get!

If you had up to £600 give or take, what would you get?

Will I see a better machine than the Silvia with that extra money or do I get more features with a worse build quality?


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Build quality of the machines you are considering should be fine. These are all respected manufacturers and use good materials.

At around £600 you are getting into HX teritory including the Fracino Cherub (which is what I have), the NS Oscar and the Expobar Office Pulsar.

Do make sure you do not scrimp on the grinder though as this will probably have the biggest effect on espresso shot quality.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks Jimbow.

How do you like the Cherub? What made you choose that rather than the Piccino or Heavenly?

The grinder I'm getting is the Eureka Mignon.


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

You are most welcome.

At the time, I was upgrading from a Gaggia Baby Class and wanted something that had better temperature stability and that could steam milk and brew coffee simultaneously or at least without any delay.

I was attracted to Fracino as they are a UK based company, have a great reputation for customer service and their machines offer fantastic value for money. I considered the Piccino, Heavenly and Cherub. The Heavenly and Cherub are essentially the same but I preferred the aesthetics of the Cherub and it's smaller footprint. I also did not really want to pay extra for the hot water tap which is an optional extra on the Heavenly but comes as standard on the Cherub.

I considered the Piccino for a long time but in the end decided that the Cherub was more machine for the money - it is rated for light commercial use. I also wanted to learn about HX machines as that is still the most common design found inside commercial machines.

I have now had the Cherub for almost 10 months and still love it. It is built like a tank and feels seriously solid. Everyone comments on it when they come to the house - it looks stunning on the worktop. The steam power is absurd and actually takes some getting used to. Thermal stability is amazing although a small cooling flush is required if it has been sat idle for a while (this is a feature of HX machines). The only real downsides are that the drip tray is really, really small, the water tank is not removable and it benefits from a good hour of warm-up time because of the massive thermal mass of all that metal.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks Jimbow,

I think I'm probably at the same point that you were, apart from that this will be my first machine.

At the moment it's between the Fracino Cherub and the Expobar Office Pulsar.

The cherub wins hands down on looks but both machines seem to do exactly what I want.


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## RobD (May 2, 2012)

As i have an Expobar Leva i am a bit bias, but the Pulsar would be my first choice, but to be fair to the Cherub it was a close call between the Leva and the Cherub and the Pulsar has the same components as the Leva in a smaller footprint, the Expobar machines are of an equal build quality to the Fracino machines, but have things like a smaller insulated boiler = quicker warm up time around 20-30mins, Hot water tap as standard (not that I use mine) pre infusion chamber in the E61 head and some other little subtleties that I like, but the end decision will be what machine you like the look of, as you wont be disappointed what ever one you chose


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

I agree with RobD that you will not be disappointed with whatever you choose in this range - they are great machines.

When I said the Cherub benefits from an hour of warm-up time, it is in fact ready to brew after 10 minutes or so. However, myself and other users have found that the shots, and the recovery time between shots, benefit from giving the machine time to stabilise at operating temperature.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks rob and Jimbow. It's not a bad decision to have to make is it!

One major advantage of the Cherub is the purple panels - the wife may like it so much that she doesn't even ask how much it cost!

I do worry that the cherub may be a bit big on the worktop, isn't it about 49 cm deep?

Jimbow - I don't suppose you have a photo of it you could post do you?


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

The side panels usually come in black (and possibly now purple too) as standard but can be ordered in any colour or even stainless steel (which is what I have) for £30 extra. Quite useful for convincing significant others that it will suit the kitchen







I know Fatboyslim has one with blue side panels which I think looks stunning.

The Cherub actually looks a lot smaller in person than the dimensions suggest on paper - the depth measurement (48cm but close enough







) includes the drip tray and group head which protrude out the front of the main chassis. Also, the width measurement is taken at the widest point of the machine (the sides slope outwards towards the top of the machine). Here is a photo:










There should be more photos in the albums under my profile but let me know if you have any issues accessing them or if there are any other questions you would like to ask.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

That' really helpful, thanks. It looks great, not too big at all.


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

If it helps, I have just measured and the main chassis is 32cm deep - the drip tray is 16cm at it's deepest point.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks Jimbow, hope you made a brew whilst you were there!


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Most certainly did!









In case you are interested, I ordered my machine through CPS (Catering Project Services) although I have heard lots of good things about Espresso Underground too.


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## coffeebean (Jan 26, 2010)

I sell the Cherub here http://www.thecoffeebean-vanandroaster.co.uk/Heavenly---Cherub.html

If you want the side panels in a different colour or polished it's an extra £30

Give me a shout if you are interested!!

cheers

Andy


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

I must be mad!

Having listened to lots of advice here and ŵatching more videos than is healthy, we've come to a decision.

Rather than buy something that we're going to want to upgrade once or maybe even twice, we've decided to jump in at the expensive end and buy 1 machine that will satisfy us for years to come.

I didn't like the sound of the temperature surfing and we both wanted something that could brew and steam at the same time and make numerous drinks in a row. it also had to be beautiful.

So we've both gone for a Rocket Cellini Plus V2 with a Eureka Mignon. Ordered from Bellabarista, very pleased with them so far and they should be with us on Monday.

Not bad for a first machine!

They're for home offices and we can't wait to get started. I also ordered some cups, jugs and stuff and some coffee from a few different places.

Will post pics when it arrives!


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## Danm (Jan 26, 2012)

he he he

£400. ...snigger


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

Danm said:


> he he he
> 
> £400. ...snigger


I know, I know. And I can't even blame you lot!


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## thomss (May 9, 2011)

Well done what a way to enter the world of coffee!!! Enjoy. Pics Asap please..

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

It's arrived! Un-boxing as we speak!


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## pendragoncs (Feb 14, 2011)

Scubadoo said:


> It's arrived! Un-boxing as we speak!


What the hell you doing on here then.


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## thomss (May 9, 2011)

Telling us it's arrived - you must post pics now!!!


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## RobD (May 2, 2012)

I get the feeling someones sleep pattern is going to be a bit disturbed tonight, nothing worse that dialling in a new machine to leave you buzzing until 2am


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)

I was actually a bit nervous opening it; as a total newcomer it's a bit daunting to have such a lovely shiny toy that I have no idea how to use!

I'd picked up a small bag of the house espresso from Two Day Roasters in Bristol.

I also had a big bag of the Italian beans free from Bella Barista and they threw in a nice shot glass as well. I played about with the grinder with the Italian beans and got close to what i thought was the grind, trying to get it where it was just starting to clump and still had a granular texture but to be honest I'm not sure if I got it right.

I then stupidly moved onto the nice beans and tried pouring some shots. The second one was ok, then I messed about with the grinder and the bag of nice beans, well, let's just say they didn't last long. I'm not sure if the grind was too fine or if I was tamping too hard but half the time nothing was coming out. When i did get it pouring it was either really slow or probably a tad too fast with a wet puck. The shots generally tasted bitter. This is going to be hard!

I'll have another play tomorrow but I'm off on holiday for 2 weeks so will have to wait before I really get stuck in.

Anyway, photos anyone? I'll take some better ones when I'm back but here are a few for now. The new tamper that Rocket include is quite nice but for the money I think they should include the shiny one and the stainless steel cup surround should come as standard.


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## Scubadoo (Sep 3, 2012)




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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

Learning all the intricacies of your new toys will take a long time. Not that it won't be an enjoyable journey. Just cos you dropped £1k on gear doesn't mean it'll do all the work for you. Haha.

Very jealous of your machine. Enjoy getting it right









Maybe you need a tamper like mine (see sig)


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## pendragoncs (Feb 14, 2011)

NICE!!!!!

Couple of things...

If its a big bag of green beans, IIRC some kind of italian charcoal from Naples then i found those to be vile.....so heavily roasted and very oily and quite a hight robusta content. So maybe order some good starter beans for when you get back. I started with some Lusty Glaze from Hand On or some other forgiving beans maybe HasBean Jailbreak might be suitable. You could even order them and ask the roaster to post then shortly before you get back.

Not sure i'd want that knife holder above my shiney new machine, a little slip putting a knife back and you got a nasty scratch on your 'precious'.

And finally, there is a bit of a theory that cups should be stored on top of the machine the other way up, also do you have to lift the top off to fill the water tank (unless plumbed off course) in which case once you start to use itmay find it easier to store only store a few cups on top and the saucers seperate.

But most of all enjoy.


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## chimpsinties (Jun 13, 2011)

I've no idea what all the fuss over Jailbreak is. I found it really hard to dial in and even then it wasn't that nice imho.


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## thomss (May 9, 2011)

Enjoy that lovely machine!!!

She looks lovely - soon time to learn how to use it properly, you'll get there though.

It's so easy to clean the E61 grouphead just because it's brand new doesn't mean that VERY soon you'll need to pop the screen off and give it a nice soak and clean down.

Super easy to do









You could even check out this classic from SGG:





 if you're unsure.


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## forzajuve (Feb 2, 2011)

Nice set up. Is it slightly wrong that I find the picture of the tools in the foam the most exciting picture, I do love some well designed packaging, looks so inviting to just delve into









The Mignon is slightly unique in the way in which it adjusts the burr positioning so the key is not to turn very much at all. Once in the right area you will only be turning half a turn maximum between beans. The beans that come with a worth just firing through to season the burrs, don't bother tasting IMO.


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

Looks lovely!

Try to keep everything as consistent as possible (otherwise it is easy to go insane!). To help with this, weigh the amount of ground coffee you are using and the quantity of liquid espresso produced. Keep the ground coffee dose the same for each shot to the nearest 0.1g. Time the extraction.

For each shot, just adjust the grind based upon how the last shot tasted or how long it took to pour. Bear in mind that the grind may need changing several times a day as humidity and temperature change.


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