# R58: The good, the bad & the sexy



## forzajuve

As promised here is my first look review of my recently acquired Rocket R58 v2.

I received this as a collective gift from the family for my 30th and as such as I have not forked out for it, gives me a bit more impartiality to review. This is the version 2 of the R58 dual boiler from Rocket which was bought from Alchemy Coffee. I have had this for just over a week, including a weekend when more family and friends were over than I have cups, so it has been put through its paces.

Review gives a brief overview then into the pros/cons and some Rocket porn to finish









*Overview*

As mentioned this was purchased from Alchemy Coffee. For the purpose of this review I asked about the process and everything seemed to go perfectly well. Payment was cleared on a Tuesday with bench test on Wednesday before posting to arrive next day on the Thursday. Good communication throughout and even the courier did his job. The machine was double boxed, Rocket box inside large outer with extra cardboard and those foam puffs? You know the ones that go everywhere!

The Rocket packaging was superb, the only problem getting it out of both boxed onto the counter, cue Rocky theme music and wishing I spent more time at the gym, actually no I don't. Assembly was very easy, only the drip tray and cup rail to attach and no film to strip off. Actually had to remove one of those bloody caution stickers on the E61, what a pain in the ass.

Comes with box of supplies including a single and double portafilter, blank basket, group brush polishing cloth, instructions and DVD. Oh and some sort of electronic box with curly lead, more on that later. Everything is great quality and weighty, it is really well put together and looks the nuts.

*Pros/Cons*

I decided that some pros/cons are one and the same so I have decided to break it down into key areas and give feedback that way, this should become apparent why. I have focussed on particular areas from my own experience but also particularly looking at areas on the v1 which I know people had issues with.

*Noise:* Ok lets get straight to it. Lots of complaints about v1 being too loud and also making an "opera noise". I am happy to report no opera singers came installed on my R58. However, I would say that this is louder in operation than other rotary pumps (Rocket Evo, Alex Duetto). In addition I was getting some rattle which I pinned down to the cup rail which was slightly out of shape and not sitting flush. I just with my hands moved one of the arms in slightly and problem solved. Also adding the cloth that came with the box of extras to the cup tray reduces cup rattle.

I am happy now that the noise is not an issue. Yes it is not as quiet as other rotary machines but it is still much nicer than vibes and lets face it, all pumps are going to make a noise, get a lever if you want silence. I still think Rocket could improve this for their next version of the R58.

*Drip Tray:* More complaints on v1 were leaks from the drip tray after closing the solenoid caused by a gap between the back of the tray and font of the machine. The Rocket fix for this was to add a magnet to hold the tray in place. In addition some mounts were added to the base where the tray sits to reduce rattle. I can safely confirm that I have none of these issues that were reported on the v1. There is no rattle or leaks anywhere. The drip tray is quite shallow, for me this means I would need to empty every 2/3 days as I like to use a fair amount of water to clean after each shot. This does not bother me and of course in the future I can hook up the line out.

For me the drip tray is not an issue at all. If you cant face emptying the tray every couple of days you may find it a bit on the small side but I like things to be kept clean so in reality I empty at the end of each day.

*Brew Gauge:* Not something that I had ever noticed or come across before so I thought I would share. Firstly there have been the odd wonky gauge sent out by Rocket which they are not happy about, no such issue for me. Something that I noticed which I queried with the supplier was that during the shot the the brew gauge went up to 9bar and stayed rock solid (nice) but on finishing a shot the needle would stay at that point. It would then slowly drop off over a couple of minutes back to near zero or following steaming. I would have expected that as soon as you drop the lever it would drop to zero as the pump is killed. I queried this with Alchemy and the response from Dylan was as follows:



"The lingering at 9 bar after the shot and subsequent drop to 0 bar is due to the placement of the gauge in the design of the water system. The gauge takes its reading from a T piece just after the outlet from the pump. The water is then split off to feed both the boilers and group with the addition of one way valves at each of these points.

So, given that, when the pump is switched off at the end of a shot the water is trapped between the pump and the one way valve, so the gauge continues to read 9 bar.

The exhaust only drains the back pressure from the shot but not the rest of the system due to the one way valve.

The gradual drop in pressure is likely due to the equalisation of water pressure in the copper pipes either side of the one way valves as the water in the system moves about, refilling the chamber in the group and dripping out of the expansion valve as it allows any over pressure to be released. Both of these parts are mechanical so there is some tolerances in their control. So, as long as the gauge reads 9 bar during extraction the machine is working correctly."
​
This makes sense and I am happy that all is working well. I have not plumbed in the machine to date but will one day and test how well the gauge works when playing with line pressure to pre-infuse. Any user feedback on this is most welcome.

*Stability/PID:* The big divider! To have externally or not. I personally like that it can be detached. I think it does look better and to be fair I would only ever use the temperature control on the box apart from when I come to plumb in. I will not be constantly changing temperatures every shot so for me it works well. My one gripe is that serial plugs are a bit of a pain to locate, something like a USB or a more accessible location on the machine would have been nice. The box is easy to use and you just flip the machine off and on after changing temp to effect the change.

I have played about with temperatures and am happy to report that it really does make a big difference in shot taste. Makes me think that a dual boiler with PID really is the way to go. The R58 is also extremely stable, from finishing a shot to getting back up to temperature takes on average 8secs, more than enough time for grinding and tamping the next shot. One thing I dont like is that the offset is not programmed so you have to look up in the booklet what the brew temperature is. I can sort of understand why they did this and I know the numbers will become second nature but for now it is a bit of a pain.

*Steaming:* Power! Too much power! That is all.

*The End Result*

So what is the end result after all that? Well I can state that the machine is really impressive and a huge step forward from the Classic. Although I was able to get good shots from the Classic the R58 gives me more control and stability (obviously) but there is also a certain something extra to the shots pulled. I can only describe it as a smoothness or roundness, like the shot comes together more in the mouth at the front and then on the finish you get all the lovely individual flavours. I can only assume this is down to the wizardry of the E61.

Overall the only negatives are that it could be quieter, but for me it is not a big issue, and that I would prefer the PID to display the temp at the brew head. Other than that I am delighted.

Oh and yes, Rocket machines are sexual:









PS. I will update this as more things come to mind and as I gain more user experience.


----------



## Mrboots2u

Great piece there ,thanks for taking the time and effort or write and well balanced review .

Enjoy your new machine in piece now !


----------



## 4085

It looks lovely, but I think they have made an error on the steam/water taps and quite clearly fitted the right one on the left and not bother with the 'L' initial at all....!


----------



## The Systemic Kid

Excellent review. Reading it made me think the forum should have a dedicated section where members can list their personal experience/review of equipment they are using. This could be really useful for other forum members potentially interested in buying the same equipment. Have PMd Glen to see what he thinks about opening up a dedicated thread using Forzajuve's headings format.


----------



## forzajuve

dfk41 said:


> It looks lovely, but I think they have made an error on the steam/water taps and quite clearly fitted the right one on the left and not bother with the 'L' initial at all....!


Brilliant!









Should have added, big R apart, I love the steam/water arms and big nobs (cue jokes). I was undecided about them until using them, they are much better to use than the other Rocket ones.


----------



## Daren

Great review! Lovely machine. I had a play on one at the forum members day at BB and was quite smitten. Rocket porn is the best!

If only they did the R58 in the Giotto shape! Maybe best they don't as I'm not sure if I'd be able to resist.


----------



## forzajuve

Daren said:


> If only they did the R58 in the Giotto shape! Maybe best they don't as I'm not sure if I'd be able to resist.


I know what you mean. I used to think a Rocket had to be in Giotto given it is iconic of the brand, but having gradually warmed to the R58 I now think it is much better looking with the new font layout with steam/water arms. Having said that all Rockets look amazing so you can't lose really!


----------



## Daren

Your right... They are all eye candy. My ideal machine would be the R58 layout, dials, internals etc with curved sides from the Giotto. My bank manager is thanking Rocket for not doing it.

If I was buying new now it would be a hard call to make. Sod it.... I'll take both


----------



## Fevmeister

Dream machine!


----------



## mcgregor_dave

It looks like something that came from a sci-fi movie, but totally awesome nevertheless!


----------



## Finsternis83

Nice picture !

However, where is your hopper ? Do you pull your grinder to the front each time you grind ?


----------



## NickR

I used one of these machines today to make a flat white at the London coffee festival, very impressed. Loverly feel to all the controls and nice heavy porta filter. Best coffee of the day, although this could be down to the beans (Volcano).


----------



## adam0bmx0

Where you in the coffee making speed competition? I was around 3:30pm. And yes, the Rocket is a lovely machine, also used an ECM before for a week, one day i'll own one.



NickR said:


> I used one of these machines today to make a flat white at the London coffee festival, very impressed. Loverly feel to all the controls and nice heavy porta filter. Best coffee of the day, although this could be down to the beans (Volcano).


----------



## NickR

Not in the competition just messing about on the Volcano stand.


----------



## GreenJacket

I am about to experiment with the temperature on my new R58. I have two questions.

What is the sensible range around 95c, I am thinking of 93 to 97.

What can I expect to our observe from higher and lower temperatures?


----------



## gman147

Easy to swap out the R/blank knobs ? Not that it's a big deal. Pretty sure they would have already considered this. Tbh, the R is anatomically correct anyway ;-)


----------



## jakeapeters

gman147 said:


> Easy to swap out the R/blank knobs ? Not that it's a big deal. Pretty sure they would have already considered this. Tbh, the R is anatomically correct anyway ;-)


They just pop out with anything thin and blunt (butter knife would be useful). Easy to swap over if you're that way inclined!


----------



## motd2k

I've had mine around a year now and love it - not much at all i'd change


----------



## shrink

im interested in hearing from those that have one.. is yours a V2? any issues at all?

im considering an R58 vs celllini evoluzione V2!


----------



## forzajuve

I have replied to Shrink by private message but also as an update some 18 months on I am sharing my thoughts on owning an R58:

Generally I love it, form as I'm sure you are aware is something else on Rockets and I personally prefer the R58 to Giotto shape (friend has one). I also like the external PID, I know this is widely debated but I have it located under the drip tray which is less obtrusive but still visible. Steaming and brewing are a joy, although I am still to plumb in which should improve further the pre-infusion capabilities.

Some negative points which are worth noting. The drip tray is small, I don't have an issue with this other than a not so often talked point which is that it is not really wide enough. Width being from contact point with machine out. This means that when just running water through the group to flush it splatters over the edge, annoying. There was also some rattle with the drip tray which I have fixed with some tape, but again annoying given the cost of the machine. I had one fault on the machine which was after ~6 months the steam pressure relief valve was sticky and constant hissing was coming from it. Easy to replace, tried cleaning but think the part was faulty in the end.

So in summary the machine is a delight, bar the drip tray which needs more thought, basically making it wider and more accurate cutting of parts to eliminate rattle.


----------



## hotmetal

On mine there are a couple of things that (used to) rattle:

-Occasionally the little pins on the water reservoir handles rattle inside. I haven't done anything about this.

- Drip tray grille used to rattle but I used 'Cookamesh' to protect it from scratches and now it doesn't. The remaining piece of the Cookamesh sheet protects the cup warmer from scratches too. A couple of quid well spent.

- I also ran a small bead of silicon sealant along the back edge of the bit the drip tray sits in. I don't think it's strictly necessary but just on the off chance any water gets into that bit (e.g when cleaning the drip tray) I'm now happy none can get into the frame. Although it probably wouldn't anyway but I wanted to take extra care.

Note mine is one of the first, not the V2. I don't know what changed between versions other than firmware and maybe the drip tray support frame?

Other than that I love it. I also have the PID display under the drip tray as it's out of the way but you can still check temp. I do think they look great without having the PID built in but that's a subjective point and wouldn't put me off a similar machine like the Duetto.


----------



## forzajuve

Interesting on the cookamesh, I use this on the top of the machine to prevent scratches from cups but hadn't thought to use it over the drip tray. Out of interest what is your gap between the drip tray and tray cover? Mine is approx 3mm when pushed to one side which I determined as the source of rattle.


----------



## hotmetal

forzajuve said:


> . Out of interest what is your gap between the drip tray and tray cover? Mine is approx 3mm when pushed to one side which I determined as the source of rattle.


Sorry mate I've only just seen this.

I'm not at home right now to measure it but in my case it's sort of irrelevant. What I did was fold one edge of the Cookamesh (the front long edge ) and tuck it between the drip tray and the grille. Then I snipped out a few threads to make a hole for the E61 exhaust port.

Wedging the mesh between drip tray and grille was enough to eliminate any possibility of rattles from the drip tray and also keeps it shiny and unscratched. It's a tight fit and the grille just squeezes in nicely to the tray, which also holds the Cookamesh tightly in place so no danger of catching it and launching a cup.

If I remember I'll take a pic and also answer your question on the fit/gap. Hope that helps.


----------

