# Lockdown project - Gaggia Selecta Deluxe conversion to Gaggia Classic



## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

Hope everyone is keeping safe and well given the current circumstances.

In a similar vein to other members, I've got a bit of a project underway. I've done the same conversion before, however being locked down I can plan this better and document it as I go!

A few weeks ago I became the lucky owner of this Selecta Deluxe in a condition that is best described as 'very good condition'... No marks, no rust and a great sparkle to the original finish.

Having a healthy spare parts selection, I realised that I had most of the bits to convert it to a Classic. I stumbled upon a Classic wiring loom for sale last week and promptly bought it and rummaged through my spares box yesterday to dig out a large (pre Phillips) 3-way valve, OPV, ULKA pump, grouphead, outlet pipe connector plus an assortment of water pipes too. On order is a new outlet pipe, Silvia steam wand and descaler.

I'll probably get this up and running towards the end of the week but the parts are laid out and ready to be cleaned before fitting 

Here's the machine in question

















Pre-drilled chassis for the outlet pipe connector - conversion couldn't be easier!









Spare parts ready to be cleaned up (i think the flash makes the group head look worse than it actually is!)


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## ggbinks (Mar 25, 2020)

Hi Martin. It looks like you have it very well organized from the get go. Well done you. I think the Classic rather 'unfairly' outshines many other very worthy Gaggias. I loved owning my Baby Class and could get fantastic shots from it. I will be following your project. Thank you for posting ?


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## Skizz (Feb 10, 2020)

Looking forward to seeing this come together


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

Getting even busier now... Just sourced a Classic to tidy up for my mate who has decided now is the time to get a Classic


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

Had a few uninterrupted hours this evening so got cracking with the Selecta deluxe conversion. Will get some progress pics up in due course


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

As mentioned I had some time on Tuesday so I got the machine up and running and took a few pics along the way.

First up was to get my spare Classic wiring harness and label it up by using my other Classic and a multimeter (to double check my work using the continuity setting!)









Then I removed the wiring from the Selecta deluxe









The boiler and pump then came out, and I swapped over the fitting to the pump to make it the same spec as the Classic and I gave the inside a quick clean









Wiring and switchbank then went in









In the meantime, the boiler and grouphead were descaled and cleaned with puly caff respectively, and the components were also soaked in descaling solution















Then it was time to lift and shift the complete boiler assembly into the machine and plumb in:









Once that was completed, I switched on, primed and made sure it got up to temperature/pressure in both modes and last night I set the OPV

















As I am using the Selecta Deluxe steam valve I am bypassing the pathetic self priming valve, so the associated parts have been removed and simply blocked up with the correct spec bolt threaded into SPV fitting. Works a treat!

Next steps are to fit my new Silvia steam wand and outlet pipe and bring her inside from the garage to be commissioned over the Easter break ?


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## cuprajake (Mar 30, 2020)

This is so cool

Ive got a classic coming and tempted to take it to bits just to paint the case haha


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

Cuprajake said:


> This is so cool
> 
> Ive got a classic coming and tempted to take it to bits just to paint the case haha


 Do it. They are simple machines to strip down ?


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## jj-x-ray (Dec 31, 2017)

Is that a classic with the pressure gauge in the centre and the badge removed? Quite like the look

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

jj-x-ray said:


> Is that a classic with the pressure gauge in the centre and the badge removed? Quite like the look
> 
> Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk


 It's an old 1995 'coffee' but essentially a classic, yes!


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## BlackCatCoffee (Apr 11, 2017)

Looking good.

I love these things!


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## allikat (Jan 27, 2020)

Looking good. Would love to do a similar conversion sometime when the supply of good project machines improves again.


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

allikat said:


> Looking good. Would love to do a similar conversion sometime when the supply of good project machines improves again.


 I agree, it's bleak out there! Fortunately for me, I had this machine gathering dust for a couple of months and by chance came across the spare grouphead whilst rummaging through a bag of bike components at my parents house, which was the missing piece of the puzzle for converting it!


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

Here she is - with the addition of a naked portafilter borrrowed from my other machine. Been using it all week and she's performing effortlessly


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## allikat (Jan 27, 2020)

My poor baby needs rehoming, it has a cracked case and it shouldn't take much work to fit in that style of case. New steam valve and maybe a wiring harness and a couple of fittings would probably do it.


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## MartinB (May 8, 2011)

You can probably get away with your existing harness, depending on the connectors to the switches. And even then if the connectors are different, replacing with spade connectors is a piece of cake.


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## ting_tang (Jul 26, 2020)

Hi MartinB!

I'm looking to upgrade Gaggia Selecta Deluxe as well. I'm totally newbie. Which source schemas etc you would recommend to start with?

Thank you!


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## ting_tang (Jul 26, 2020)

ting_tang said:


> Hi MartinB!
> 
> I'm looking to upgrade Gaggia Selecta Deluxe as well. I'm totally newbie. Which source schemas etc you would recommend to start with?
> 
> Thank you!


 If I understood correctly.

I'll need:

1. Gaggia classic grouphead.

2. 3 ways solenoid valve

3. Gaggia classic wiring

4. Gaggia classic OPV.

5. Pipe..


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## Blue_Cafe (Jun 22, 2020)

ting_tang said:


> Hi MartinB!
> 
> I'm looking to upgrade Gaggia Selecta Deluxe as well. I'm totally newbie. Which source schemas etc you would recommend to start with?
> 
> Thank you!


 The internet is an abundance of info and drawings etc for both machines.

I may suggest you look at the parts list for both. A hint may be that one is as per the other with/without bits and a parts list comparison will quickly show what's missing.

However, you should be careful and do some study before proceeding to be sure that you do it right. A electric pressurised boiler is a dangerous animal.

Best of luck.


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