# Thinking of purchasing a used Francino Heavenly



## Rick (Mar 16, 2018)

Hi All,

New to the forum and new to home expresso world but with a 'thirst' to learn. I am considering buying a used Heavenly as a first machine. Seemed to me Francino make good solid British machines and it would be a good machine to up the anti on my coffee skills. I have read the comments re drip tray, access and size.

Am am I going down the correct route here purchasing this for a few hundred pounds to get me going. Also haven't yet chosen a grinder to complement.

any input would be welcome.

thanks

rick


----------



## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

They are a good machine but have been around a long time. A few hundred pounds can mean many things! The second hand value has been boosted recently due to increased prices new. Just see it in action, check what sort of water it has been fed, if you can get that sort of info and possibly pics we can advise


----------



## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

You just need to understand what you are getting into.

Pros:


Large boiler, and very powerful heating element (2.8KW)

Well set up HX system

Simple design

I think (can't remember for sure) mine Had a big commercial sirai stat inside, not sure if all do


Cons:


The water tank is not removable without a lot of hassle e.g. removing top (minimum) and possibly side case, the hole is small and it's not really practical to clean/disinfect the tank in situ, something you would want to do every few weeks!

It's relatively easy to get the top off (lot of hex bolts), the side come off easy enough, but it's a thin corrugated springy thing that can be an absolute PITA to get back on

The drip tray is ridiculously small and literally can only hold "drips".

The build of the machine is bean can thin, so look for dents

The top of the water tank is a plastic chromed cap and this is usually in a terrible state, luckily there are lots of those steel topped canisters (satin finish) in Tesco and the like, where the lid makes a perfect replacement.


The portafilter holders (if original) are heavy and of good quality....take the top off any machine you purchase and look inside for leaks/other problems.


----------



## Missy (Mar 9, 2016)

And I can attest that if they do need fixing any idiot can manage it....


----------



## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

I decided to go in a completely different direction in the end but discounted the Heavenly on size particularly the drip tray. So if I had bought HX from Fracino it would have been the Gem which can also cope with tall mugs. A more modern design in other words. I believe most of the chassis parts on this one are directly from their smaller commercial machines.

Personally I don't think there is any need to worry about duff caps or even dented panels etc as I understand replacements can be bought directly from Fracino. Pass on prices but unlike some makers parts lists and diagrams can be easily downloaded from their web site.

John

-


----------

