# Gaggia Baby machine



## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Hi new to this but I am going to be owner of Gran Gaggia Deluxe which I believe is OK machine and also refurb baby gaggia class It suddenly occur to me that they may or may not be semi auto machines ? Point is my sage bean to cup does it all for you but I love idea of control it myself but do these machines brew for a set number of seconds or do you have to stop it yourself ? How long would you extract for a single or double shot which forms basis of most drinks ? I have find out that a good grinder is paramount as in burr version You can get burr for £40 upwards but i don't want to go mad The manual version can be pretty good Any good suggestions appreciated Thanks


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## allikat (Jan 27, 2020)

The Baby is pretty much a Classic in a plastic outfit. That's the best machine of the ones you have. My Baby is nearly 20 years old, and it's in good condition tho the plastic is suffering, the espresso it makes is great.

Bean to cup machines will almost always use a pressurised basket to cope with the low end grinders they have built in. It does it all, but it does it to a mediocre standard at best and will NEVER be better than that.

First advice: Skip the singles. Always use a double or larger basket. Singles are just way too much trouble to get right.

And for a grinder, there's only one electric grinder available new out there worth getting for these machines that costs less than £300, and it's the Iberital MC2. And even that is a poor choice compared to things like the Eureka Mignon (One of the best £300 class grinders, others options are available).

My advice is, for now, to put up with soupy pucks and pick up the double wall(aka pressurised) basket and it's accompanying nubbin. Those will get you an acceptable shot with pretty much any grinder including the £40 cheap burr grinders which aren't otherwise worth a second glance. Assuming you're not endowed with the money to throw £300 or so on a grinder worth the time. Then you can save for a grinder. Some decent ones have shown up here for the £100-200 price range.

You do want to get a really good grinder, and those are costly for espresso grind. There are some manual grinders around that will do espresso grind too, but they start about the same price as the MC2 (£150). The usual maxim for a beginner is to spend more on your grinder than on your machine (unless you're moneybags incarnate...) The machine can only extract the grinds you give it. And for a semi-auto like the Baby or even the Gran Gaggia, that means a very fine, very consistent grind which you can tweak to a very fine degree to get it right. No £40 burr grinder will do the job, even with modifications.


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## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Wow you are most kind I hope I have the double walled basket and nut with my baby to come in few days My sage oracle touch is high end machine that has flutes and whistles and has a burr grinder but i believe gaggia to be best but i don't have the money for expense at mo How long do you extract for espresso ? Or does machine auto do that for you ? On sage default extraction is 25 seconds TY


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## allikat (Jan 27, 2020)

It's all manual. You push the button to start it, and again to stop it. Ideally you aim for a double shot in about 25-35 seconds. A little more or less isn't important, getting it to taste right is. You'll find most machines are like that. There's only a few that are worth having that have timed shots.

Tho as it's a Gaggia Classic (pretty much) it can be modded to add these things.


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## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Wow you are most kind I hope I have the double walled basket and nut with my baby to come in few days My sage oracle touch is high end machine that has flutes and whistles and has a burr grinder but i believe gaggia to be best but i don't have the money for expense at mo How long do you extract for espresso ? Or does machine auto do that for you ? On sage default extraction is 25 seconds TY


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## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Again thank you its amazing it can be modified to be whatever Will try tween 25-35 and get grind thsts very fine should be fine


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## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Cant wait to try


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## allikat (Jan 27, 2020)

If your machine doesn't come with them, you can pick up what you need here:

https://www.theespressoshop.co.uk/en/Gaggia-Saeco-Jet-Swirl-Emulsifier---4301007000/m-3350.aspx

https://www.theespressoshop.co.uk/en/Gaggia-Perfetta-Crema-Double-Filter-Basket-1416g---21000491/m-3609.aspx

You need both of them to use preground, or grinds from a low end grinder. They stop being useful when you get a grinder worth using for a real espresso grind, but they get you by in the beginning.


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## Gaggiababy (Sep 4, 2020)

Oh great thats so helpful of you

I tried ese pod today in small basket

Worked treat

I had a bung in base of portafilter housing which I took out but I think that's to be there when you do fresh grinds maybe ?


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