# Hello from new member



## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

Hello guys,

I'm new here and this is my first post (even though was reading a lot here before registering).

About a year ago I started my journey to perfect espresso with plastic Delonghi Icona 310 and then after few months upgraded to Francis X1 and bought used Mazzer SJ Automatic to go with it. Francis looked pretty cool in the kitchen but performance wise it was a big disappointment. No consistency and milk frothing was a nightmare on this machine. Few weeks ago I sold Francis and as a temporary solution bought used Gaggia Classic from Amazon warehouse. It came in slightly damaged but still sealed box absolutely brand new. To be honest I quite liked classic and mazzer sj combination and was looking to upgrade steaming wand and replace pressurized baskets to normal ones until I tried Isomac Tea at my friends house. Now I have returned Gaggia and researching prosumer machines.

My budget is around £1000-1200. The only 2 boiler option would be Expobar within my budget, but I also consider HX machines such as ECM Barista and Rocket Cellini Plus V2.

Any advice and help will be much appreciated.

Cheers, Taut


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Welcome to the forum, sounds as if you have made quite a lot of headway already. ( Also sounds as if UPGRADEITIS has set in) LOL

The Expobar is well regarded on the forum and several members have them.

Enjoy your coffee voyage /adventure.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Hi there and welcome

A double boiler like a brewtus would give you rock solid temp stability , tons of steam power, a classic e61 grouphead ( pre infusion ) And the ability to alter brew temperatures for different level of roasts of coffee. It is reliable and has a few happy users on here .

Im sure at least one member will also recommend the sage DB , as it fits within that price range . There is a comprehensive review done by Gary( one of the uk's biggest coffee geeks ) on here listed

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?13429-Sage-DB-versus-Expo-Brewtus-Shootout-Results

If that machine interest you then worth Having a look .

HX machines won't allow you to alter brew temperature through a pid. If that's some thing that appeals to you .

Any of the machine you have mentioned will make great coffee , if paired with a good grinder , a modicum of skillz and some fresh coffee .

Ask questions have fun .


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

Thanks for replies, guys. I really appreciate your help. Initially I was considering some higher end HX machine because of probably easier maintenance and repairs if something would go wrong, but Expobar Brewtus dual boiler is really tempting buy. Looks like amazing value for money and only £200 more than expobar office HX.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

wow, some upgrade trip.... Having had the Expo dual boiler I can highly recommend them, if you can get the rotary plumb in version as the delivery is much better than on the vibe versions..


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## DavidBondy (Aug 17, 2010)

Hello and a warm welcome from me as well. I had the Isomac Tea II which was a very good machine for the price. Once it started to keep going wrong and costing me £££ to keep going, I sold it (cheap!) on eBay and bought my present ECM Mechanika IV which I think is a much better machine!

David


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

coffeechap said:


> wow, some upgrade trip.... Having had the Expo dual boiler I can highly recommend them, if you can get the rotary plumb in version as the delivery is much better than on the vibe versions..


Thanks, Coffeechap, but could I run rotary brewtus from a 5 litre bottle for example? Unfortunately have no chance to plumb it in my kitchen.


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

DavidBondy said:


> Hello and a warm welcome from me as well. I had the Isomac Tea II which was a very good machine for the price. Once it started to keep going wrong and costing me £££ to keep going, I sold it (cheap!) on eBay and bought my present ECM Mechanika IV which I think is a much better machine!
> 
> David


Thanks, David. I'm too looking at ECM machines at the moment and Barista is one of my options. Any particular reason you have chosen ECM? Have you considered Rocket HX machines?


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## DavidBondy (Aug 17, 2010)

To be quite honest, it was down to availability and finally colour. I was very interested in a dual boiler, rotary pump machine but didn't have the time to wait for stock.

The ECM is superbly built and I'm very pleased with it!

David


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

DavidBondy said:


> To be quite honest, it was down to availability and finally colour. I was very interested in a dual boiler, rotary pump machine but didn't have the time to wait for stock.
> 
> The ECM is superbly built and I'm very pleased with it!
> 
> David


I didn't really think about problems with availability. Will give Bellabarista a call next week to double check if their stock information is correct on the website. Cheers.


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

best to give Jeebsy a pm as he is running his expo rotary from a 5 litre water container...


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## CoffeeJohnny (Feb 28, 2011)

Personally I am a fan of the Rocket and was considering one myself, however as my machine is relatively new and a highly capable machine I am staying with it.

As Coffeechap said Jeebsy could advise on the Expobar, they also hold their value well should you suddenly succumb to the urge to buy a L1 somewhere down the line.

Any questions ask away as between everyone on the forum most machines have been owned or played on. Happy hunting.


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

coffeechap said:


> best to give Jeebsy a pm as he is running his expo rotary from a 5 litre water container...


Thanks, will search forum for more info about running expo rotary from container- I'm new and pm isn't working.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Taut said:


> Thanks, will search forum for more info about running expo rotary from container- I'm new and pm isn't working.


There's no problem at all doing this. Superb, repeatable pours out it.

Mine is running 7 bar though - asume this is because mine doesn't have the 2 bar of line pressure it did when it was set up. Could adjust the pressure but keep putting it off on the basis a move is imminent and I'll be plumbing in.


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## Dr Steve (Nov 25, 2013)

But don't give up on the non plumber vibe pump Expo Dual. It does everything you could want and more


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Just get your ear defenders on....


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## Charliej (Feb 25, 2012)

Don't rule out the Sage as well, one very well respected member here sold his Expobar and bought the Sage he had for reviewing. I like my Sage as well, don't let the fact that they aren't wrapped in a stainless steel box put you off, after all how often do the vast majority of us move their machines around a lot.


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Thank you for posting an introduction and for donating on your first day too.

I'm really pleased that we have been of assistance and hope that we continue to enhance your coffee journey.


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## DavidBondy (Aug 17, 2010)

Glenn said:


> Thank you for posting an introduction and for donating on your first day too.


Now, isn't this the sort of member that we want here? Well done!

DB


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## Taut (Feb 3, 2014)

Glenn said:


> Thank you for posting an introduction and for donating on your first day too.
> 
> I'm really pleased that we have been of assistance and hope that we continue to enhance your coffee journey.


I'm very excited to find such a friendly and helpful coffee experts community here. I hope to get my new machine in next few weeks so will keep asking for advice and your opinion. Actually does anybody know a retailer in London with the showroom where I could see and compare different machines?


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Taut said:


> I'm very excited to find such a friendly and helpful coffee experts community here. I hope to get my new machine in next few weeks so will keep asking for advice and your opinion. Actually does anybody know a retailer in London with the showroom where I could see and compare different machines?


Bella barista is about an hour half away in Wellingborough , provides great service and and a lot of shiny machines in there . Depends what you have your eye on. Well worth a trip .

And alchemy also

http://www.alchemycoffee.co.uk/equipment.html


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