# Hello from Hampshire



## Ventoux (Apr 8, 2016)

Hi, I am absolutely over the moon in finding this fantastic forum. For years I have been using a Bialetti Moka Express. I started looking at bean to cup machines when I stumbled upon this site, and boy am I glad I did as it is going to avoid me making an expensive mistake.

I am going to dip my toe n the water and as so many others have I am going to travel the well worn path of either a Gaggia Classic or Rancilio Silvia. I will probably go second hand and spend a bit more on a grinder. Do any of you have any tips on what to look out for on 2nd hand machines as looking on ebay shows a vast array of price differences and I want to try to avoid going either too cheap or too expensive.

Many thanks.


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## GCGlasgow (Jul 27, 2014)

Hi ventoux and welcome. Have a look around here and get involved in a few threads, once you have 5 posts you can access the for sale thread where classics come up regularly.

Sent from my SM-T230 using Tapatalk


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## BigEasy (Mar 26, 2016)

Welcome aboard Ventoux! It's a great place isn't it? I didn't realise just how much I didn't know until I came here!

Once you've posted a few times you can view a For Sale section on this forum - a lot of good second hand grinders come up fairly regularly by the looks of it and, coming from members on here, they tend to be well looked after ones.

Good luck putting your kit together.


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## Jon (Dec 3, 2010)

Welcome!


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## Missy (Mar 9, 2016)

By avoid getting too cheap... Is that possible? I assume you mean getting cheap and dodgy?

By moka express do you mean electric "stove top thing" or the one that produces "cappuccino"? If the second I would love a conversation as i feel sure there's a better system than the one I'm using!


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## Ventoux (Apr 8, 2016)

Hi Missy, thanks for the reply. Yes I guess I man 'too good to be true' cheap and therefore dodgy 

Yes currently my Bialetti is for stove top. However I have just had a new Induction hob and the blooming hob won't detect it.


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## Ventoux (Apr 8, 2016)

Thanks for the advice


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## Missy (Mar 9, 2016)

You need a steel one. It's not a cappuccino one then?

Wiser folk than me will be along, but you are right gaggias seem to range from £60-200 used on eBay etc. Someone spotted one on gumtree for £25 the other day, goodness knows what state it was in, but there's little that cant be fixed on them.


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## GCGlasgow (Jul 27, 2014)

@Missy are you looking for an electric cappuccino maker?


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## Missy (Mar 9, 2016)

GCGlasgow said:


> @Missy are you looking for an electric cappuccino maker?


No. I have a mukka express which is stovetop and just wondered if anyone had ever produced a decent drink from one.


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## BertVanGoo (Nov 20, 2015)

Hi @Ventoux welcome to the forum, plenty of decent people on here with good advice. Where about's in Hampshire are you?


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## yardbent (Aug 8, 2015)

********WELCOME*******...................from SW Scotland

I'm just a begineer too, but after a lot of reading and advice here - for about *£200* i settled for

used Gaggia Classic and a used Graef CM800 grinder - both from here - both mint

dont forget you'll need

scales -

a 58mm tamper

some airtight jars for the coffee

i like chocolate

Coffee Compass does a Selection pack of 3 x 500g espresso beans [choose 3 out of 6 depending on your taste] - £22

...........a good buy to get started with the CFUK discount

GOOD LUCK ............!!!

ps

buying from members here ensures you get well-maintained equipment

IMO - learn to do it 'properly' on basic kit before upgrading - unless cost is no object....

the kit above will sell later for what you paid

----------------------------------------------------


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## Jumbo Ratty (Jan 12, 2015)

Hi there Ventoux,

Glad you did a bit of research and have decided against a B2C.

Out of the 2 machines you mention I think the silvia is the better. But plenty to read just on that subject alone !

Looks like youve already made enough posts to access the for sale section of the forum


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

Welcome ventoux - from the Surrey/Hampshire border. And a cycling reference? The Classic is a good machine to learn on - it's where many on the forum started and stay.


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