# New to the forum



## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

Hello everyone,

New to the forum, wanted to say hello. However I feel kind of daft now, I spent some time this morning looking through other forum members setups and reading about huge budgets for coffee machines and grinders and I'm at home drinking coffee from a Nespresso machine! Anyway at least now I can collect some info and have something to build towards. Look forward to using the forums a lot more.

Kyle T


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## PeterL (Aug 5, 2015)

Kyle T said:


> Hello everyone,
> 
> New to the forum, wanted to say hello. However I feel kind of daft now, I spent some time this morning looking through other forum members setups and reading about huge budgets for coffee machines and grinders and I'm at home drinking coffee from a Nespresso machine! Anyway at least now I can collect some info and have something to build towards. Look forward to using the forums a lot more.
> 
> Kyle T


We all started that way, the slide to depravity is just further along for some folk.









Join a forum, any forum and you suddenly go from jonnie public to nutter in the making.................


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

This is so true! I've always liked coffee and was happy with a French press (what most people call a cafetiere) and beans from Tesco smashed with a £30 blade grinder. Then my landlady at the time got given a cheap 'espresso machine' with a plastic milk bubbling wand on the side. I loved making cappuccino and when I left she bought me a Delonghi. Then I joined this forum after my blade grinder broke to find out what to replace it with - I was thinking Krups - got hooked, bought a Classic and an MC2 thinking "wow I must be mad spending £300 to make coffee." I've subsequently got so into it and understood what your money gets you that I've picked up some fantastic lightly used kit from members here and am well on my way to coffee nirvana, and far better equipped than I ever intended or expected to be. I drove my espresso machine away in a car that cost less than its cargo! One of my tampers cost more than my original thoughts on a replacement for that blade grinder.

Point being, I'm not trying to to be flash, I'm admitting to having lost control of an addiction and the more time one spends on this fine forum of ours, the greater the temptation to succumb to the dreaded 'upgraditis'! There should be a banner ad on the registration page saying "Abandon hope all those who enter here"!

Welcome!


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

Hey Carl,

Welcome to the forum.

We have all been in your shoes so please don't feel bad mate. I started off drinking supermarket frozen coffee and that wasn't good enough so got hooked to starbucks and costing me mega monthly. So bought a Philip Saeco espresso machine last year for £50 from tesco and a £30 blade grinder and thought was ok for a few months. However the espresso that I'm getting was not strong enough and not getting good crema plus takes forever to get the milk steamed. So I was looking through the net and found the forum and joined. Since then I've learned a ton of stuff about coffee. I have now upgraded my machine to Sage Barista Express and using fresh beans (although still going through some 5 kilo of Taylor beans from family.) lol.

So what I'm saying is start small, take it all in. Save up and enjoy the journey.









Later dude.

Mark.


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Your family bought you 5 kilos of Taylors? Well they say you can choose your friends... LOL! Better idea - buy an awesome grinder and use them for seasoning the burrs he he! (Only pulling your leg! )


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

MarkT said:


> *Hey Carl, *
> 
> Welcome to the forum.
> 
> ...


Hi Mark, thanks for the reply, but its Kyle, not Carl.


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

Thanks to everyone for the replies and warm welcome so far. I will admit I bought my Nespresso only yesterday







and was so excited with the machine and the coffee it produced I have been browsing the net most of the day about coffee and coffee related things. Little did I know eh! Anyway, as a few of you have mentioned I will take it slow, get some use out of my Nespresso and start using this forum and you lovely people to consider my next step to making a better coffee.


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## grumpydaddy (Oct 20, 2014)

Welcome Kyle.

For most it is just a question of how long you can wait, how long it takes to save for that shiny new piece of kit. You could follow the path of buy, upgrade, upgrade, upgrade etc. or you could choose to jump in at the deep end







Whatever you choose, enjoy your stay with us here and feel free to ask questions.

Mark: Don't forget to enthuse over the wonderful new beans you have discovered at (enter choice here) and tell all the relatives that you are thinking of getting a subscription next year.... Do this around early November time and don't let up until Christmas ......Should work


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Nespresso is super convenient, fast, no fuss and makes acceptable coffee - best of the pod machines really. But to move into the realms of making espresso based coffee that tastes like the ones you get when you go into a decent coffee shop is a long journey involving a lot of learning, expenditure and faff. It's a huge trade-off, with Nespresso you get a standardised shot in under a minute at the push of a button and a capsule costs 30p. Once you get into the realms of freshly roasted coffee you're faced with loads of variables and decisions, what beans, what roast level, from which roaster, prepping baskets, warm-up times of 30-40 minutes etc. And at first you might find that what you're making tastes awful until you get the hang of it. But for some the results justify all the hassle and expense as it goes way beyond a hot beverage and becomes a hobby or even an obsession.

If you buy used kit from members here who have upgraded you can always sell it for not much less than you paid for it and go back to the Nespresso if it all becomes too much/too inconvenient. It has been known to happen!

Welcome to the slippery slope muahaha! ?


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

Kyle T said:


> Hi Mark, thanks for the reply, but its Kyle, not Carl.


Apologies Kyle! Typo error, was in a rush before work. Lol


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

@hotmeal

i know mate not have much of a choice.







so I will be using to try some shots as practice once I finish my beans from Coffee Compass. Lol

although they did buy them when I had my old espresso machine as Christmas present and I was not having the freshly roasted beans at that time. I will now be directing them to fresh beans. Lol


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

@grumpydaddy

yeah i will have on tell them early. Lol. At the moment I'm not sure which one to go for as I'm trying to get use to the machine first. Lol

i don't think it will be long before I for through the beans as I have a 4 shots latte in the mornings and white had a 2 shot and the Inlaws comes around for coffee when I'm at work to look after my daughter so wife makes them coffee. On avearage 100 g a day easy. Lol


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

Wow this forum has already changed me opinion so much so I returned my Nespresso today! :-O For now I will use an areopress (heard great things for a cheap way to get nicer coffee) and then sum up where I go from here.


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## MarkT (Nov 21, 2015)

Great stuff, not got an areopress myself but some say you get better coffee with inverted method. Do you do the inverted method?

Not sure what the guys on the forum thinks! Have a look on you tube for videos.


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

@Mark T, I wasn't clear with my post, I've ordered an Aeropress (should arrive tomorrow with some redtail coffee!) I will look into the inverted method though.


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## Juarill (Jan 8, 2016)

I have an aeropress myself and it is not bad however I have not tried the inverted method myself.


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## Juarill (Jan 8, 2016)

Although I am going to look into this method.


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## Cawfeekid (Jan 18, 2016)

Me too. Hi!


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

So, apparently I only joined this forum at the beginning of January this year (it has felt like longer) I started with a Nespresso which I quickly returned after joining the forum. I moved onto an Aeropress and Hario V60. I picked up my first manual grinder around the time of the V60 too. I then moved onto a Clever Coffee Dripper and changed my grinder for a Porlex and now as of yesterday evening I purchased a Gaggia Classic refurb from a member of the forum!

@hotmetal did mention its a slippery slope lol but in less than 2 months I have bought quite a bit of coffee stuff. Hopefully I use the Classic for longer than a month before moving onto something else







Ah well, guess I will see what grinders are for sale


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

You'll get fed up of the Porlex soon (it'll grind for espresso, but will bore you to death in the process) - and you will get the urge to move into a proper used commercial grinder.... mark my words. ;-)

Check the For Sale section, as there's often a few bargains in there....

(blatant plug: and if you're looking for something like a Super Jolly that is perhaps functional rather than pretty, then I may have something for under £200 that would suit. I've got a nicer one advertised in For Sale at the moment, but also have one that has a few chips here and there but grinds very nicely that would be cheaper.)


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## Dallah (Jan 31, 2015)

Started with an Aeropress and now thousands of pounds later


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## Kyle T (Jan 6, 2016)

@MrShades as much as I would love a new grinder I'm afraid I spent up on the Classic. A grinder is next on my list but for now the Porlex will have to do. Thanks for the offer though.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

I've got a Porlex and know what it's like... Aeropress grinding is slightly easier but time and effort for 18g of espresso grinding tends to restrict your coffee intake.

Enjoy your Classic - great machine, got one or two of those as well!


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## 4515 (Jan 30, 2013)

You are well and truly on that slippery slope

Have a look around, see which machine and grinder are your dream combination and go out and buy them

It will save you loads of time and money

Only joking - enjoy your coffee journey (I think)


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## Rachc (Feb 21, 2016)

Ha ha I am the same as the original poster. I can definitely see the skipper slope and my wallet becoming lighter. Looking forward to the journey though


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## colb16 (Feb 22, 2016)

I'm the same boat OP, so much knowledge on here though, enjoy the learning process and journey!


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## 2bor2bru (Mar 7, 2016)

Like the rest, I'd say to continue enjoying your coffee, and try and have as much fun as you can without breaking the bank.


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## PeterL (Aug 5, 2015)

My wife told me today that "she's enjoying her coffee so much these days she can't even begin to think about divorcing me"............. consider it all an investment in your long term relationships


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## Rhys (Dec 21, 2014)

Welcome Kyle.

The Classic is a great machine to start on, in fact I got mine going again the other day and produced some lovely shots from it. So much so, I turned my La Pavoni back off! (was taking pics for the sales thread..)

If you want to improve your shots whilst waiting for grinder funds to mount up, try using a naked portafilter. I can guarantee you'll be sat watching it pour!






..plus it'll show bad tamping and distribution problems (note the scales covered in cling film, just in case...)


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