# about to buy a new setup, anything i am missing?



## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

Hi all,

ive been reading the forums now for a few months but i never do post much.

what im planning on is picking up a standard fracino cherub and a black abs piccino grinder (from what i understand its a rehoused MC2 but it looks a lot nicer) from espressounderground but i cant find out if i need to buy anything else or just the 2 items, i.e. does it come with a stock basket?, portafiller?

i plan on just using things as stock but ive heard a lot about a 2 hole wand for the cherub and a VST basket is tempting

i currently have a baby gaggia dose 06 with the silvia wand that looks a bit beat up but other then the wand holder inside the unit snapping it works great but lacks the capaciy for steam and struggles to make more then one drink.

i have a 58mm knock tamper and 3 different sized milk jugs with a temptag attached (i love the thing)

anything else that is an absolute must have as convincing the wife has been hard enough let alone telling her i need another £XXX of extras may delay the purchase yet again.

i already plan on buying a couple of kilos of supermarket beans to use up until the burrs have settled and ive dialed in the grinder before ruining a fresh batch of beans.

there is only one last small hurdle and if thats all cleared i should be ordering tomorrow.


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Great news that you love the TempTag!

Sounds like you have everything to get you off the ground.

The stock baskets are fine and the machine usually comes with a Portafilter.

A set of scales wasn't mentioned.


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

i dont currently have a set of scales but i can pick up a set cheap enough (i work in a lab so verifying/correcting the calibration is easy enough if they are not perfect) im sure an extra tenner wont be an issue


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## rodabod (Dec 4, 2011)

Is that Piccino grinder any good? I thought it was the same as one of the Ascaso models which had mixed reviews (too many fines?).


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## aaronb (Nov 16, 2012)

That grinder looks suspiciously like an Ascaso i-Mini rather than an MC2. I used to have one, and whilst it is fine for an entry level grinder it isn't great. I got my Vario just before my L1, so on my old pump machine I could compare it to the iMini and you got a LOT more flavours from the Vario (same beans, same parameters).

If I were you I'd look at a Eureka Mignon or a Vario to go with the cherub, I think you will get more out of it than with an entry lever grinder like the iMini or an Iberital MC2. It will cost a bit more but then you have a great setup that should last you for life!


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

i dont know if i can strech the budget much more, i had agreed £800 for machine and grinder and cant really argue much more, it was a push at just over £800 for the cherub and the fracino grinder.

is there a better grinder in my budget? or without pushing it too far?

i really like the vario and that was my original choice but its a push for my finances if i want to keep buying beans

other option would be to delay it another few months and i really dont want to do that


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

What about a used mazzer or other commercial grinder? How much are you being charged for that grinder?


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

What is the cheapest price for a cherub anywhere, new?


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

cheapest i can find the cherub is £674 at espressounderground and ive found the vario at £312 at myespresso


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Coffee ran on he sells them for £645


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Coffeebean on here sells them at £645


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Still will only leave you 155 for a grinder though


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

i have emailed espresso underground for a best price on the cherub and vario, myespresso is cheaper on the vario but all i could find were horror stories of the aftersales customer service and people struggling to get refunds and being supplied units with issues.

if i can get the pair for


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Coffee Omega also sell the Vario - for £290 + VAT


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## vikingboy (Mar 11, 2013)

I'd avoid the piccino grinder if you can afford the vario. It's a much better grinder. I had random spurters with the piccino that the vario eliminated off the bat.

pick up scales and stuff from eBay as they are cheaper than the online retailers.

i have an unused 58mm tamper here I bought by accident I can do ou a deal onto help you out too.

welcome to cfuk from another newbie


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## Godders (Dec 29, 2012)

Will take you a shade over your (already revised) £900 budget but the Eureka Mignon is another grinder option. Cheaper than the vario (£279) and has a lot of admirers here. Sold by Bella Barista (no customer service worries with them I can assure you).


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

i know this isnt the besy way to make the decision but i dont like the way the Mignon looks, not sure why i just dont like it.

ive been offered £977 for the Cherub and Vario, is this a good price? (i cant find anywhere to beat it)

im waiting for the funds to clear but i have managed to up my budget to £1000 (and not a penny more) so this this the best possible option for my money?


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

If you want to buy new then probably if you housed or refurb on the grinder then much better can be had just depends on the spAce you have


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Sorry to for used or refurb


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

A word of warning. Two sisters, one good looking and one not so. If you choose the one with the biggest tits then you are mad as you have to live with it! Grinders do a job mate, produce stuff to bung in your machine. Go outside and ask someone to drop a Vario on your head, then repeat it with a Mignon. I know which one will leave the biggest bump. Then ask yourself where your plastic Vario will be in ten years time!

Look second hand. That said, a Vario costs more than a Mignon. I have owned both in the past


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## Godders (Dec 29, 2012)

gtanny said:


> i know this isnt the besy way to make the decision but i dont like the way the Mignon looks, not sure why i just dont like it.ive been offered £977 for the Cherub and Vario, is this a good price? (i cant find anywhere to beat it)im waiting for the funds to clear but i have managed to up my budget to £1000 (and not a penny more) so this this the best possible option for my money?


Nothing wrong with placing some importance on aesthetics. I love the look of the Mignon (and conversely think the Vario looks pretty naff for a £300+ piece of machinery) but horses for courses as they say!


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

ive been looking more into the mignon, my first impressions were by the first photo i saw and looking on reviews on youtube it may actually suit the style of the cherub better then the vario does

also bella barista have one used at the moment for £150 but i dont know if that will still be available when my funds clear

i am definatly set on the Cherub thats 100% and now its just a choice of grinder to finalise, the mignon does sound good and clearly has some lovers, also having a thread a few down from a very dissapointed vario owner i may have to skip that one.

it may seem i changed my mind very easy but im a complete ametuer when it comes to these things atm


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Ring Claudette at bella b and tell her you are a forum member and tell her how long you need and ask her to put it aside


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

Ultimately it is what ou want that counts, both these grinders will get the job done, just depends what YOU like and not what we like visually. We can however be objective when it comes to the quality of the grind, which both the vario and the eureka do similar, if you want a step up then go for a smaller commercial grinder, however this is still dependent on looks and what will look right in our kitchen as well as taste right in the cup


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

Unfortunatly the used mignon had gone but after a couple more hours reading reviews and comments im pretty set on a Eureka Mignon from Bella Barrista and a Fracino Cherub from Espresso Underground!

I will also pick up a set of 0.1g scales from ebay but thats all the extras i will be getting for now, im going to pick up a 1kg bag of espresso beans from Makro just to dial in the grinder and get used to the machine for a month or so and ill order some more fresh beans.

i would like a bottomless portafiller and a few extras but thats all things to come in time when im more used to the unit (reading around i may have to pick up a 2 hole tip for the steam wand soon as the stock tip sounds very powerful.

ill keep the thread updated though and until the funds clear (should be wednesday at the latest) i will be open to suggestions. thanks for the advise so far


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## vintagecigarman (Aug 10, 2009)

Mention that you are on the Forum when you order the grinder from BB. I'd be amazed if they don't include a bag of their beans to get you started. They aren't anything magic, but they'll be better than what you get from Makro!


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## coffeebean (Jan 26, 2010)

Hi, only just seen this thread! I can do you a Cherub delivered to you direct from Fracino for £645 (and as you are a forum member, I won't charge you the £30 carriage charge) Give me a shout if you are interested!

Andy


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

cheers, ill be sure to mention it, ive already been offered an excellent price on the cherub by mentioning the forums so will do so to BB.

even if they are just basic beans its another £5 saved if i dont need to get such a big bag of basic beans, ill still get some of the supermarket beans for the initial run through to prime the grinder.


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## Big Tony (Dec 18, 2012)

Excellent choice on the Mignon mate. I don't regret buying mine but did consider others before I took the plunge. Some grinders go for crazy money on eBay and gumtree so I'd consider your options. As an example, gumtree recently had a mazzer for £50!!! And eBay had a rancilio md50 which sold for £110.


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## Pdalowsky (Dec 31, 2012)

great choice on the Mignon - im totally inexperienced with anything else but love mine and it definitely looks great in the kitchen.

The build quality is exceptional

There werent any beans in my order but thats no biggy whatsoever


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

Its done!

order placed with BB for my gloss black Mignon (to go with the black Cherub) on my lunch break and its already been dispatched

and ive just transferred the money to Peter from EU for my Cherub

i think im going to order a set of scales off ebay but thats all im getting for now as £906 on coffee equipment for one day is more then enough.

now to keep the wife happy


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## Big Tony (Dec 18, 2012)

Well done that man... Keep us posted


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

gtanny said:


> Unfortunatly the used mignon had gone


Congratulations on your choice of grinder, I'm after a Mignon at the moment seems to tick all the boxes.

Weirdly enough I thought I saw the used mignon on the bella b website on Sunday night but when I called Claudette on the Monday morning she didn't know anything about it and it wasn't on the site.


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

so then the first part has arrived, many thanks to Bella B for next day delivery

came home to this (well not really this box was in a bigger plain box full of packing beans)










which opened up contained this










so i put it together and put some old beans in to play with










paired with my soon to be redundent Baby Dose 06 (its served me well but its time to get a more powerful beast)










First impressions are its a lot quieter and smaller then i was expecting (both good things) and although the box on arrival didnt seem that heavy for the size of the unit you can tell its high quality and made to last a very long time.

had fun dialing it in and was a lot easier then i expected, i did a test of either extreme to see the difference and even with old beans that i didnt actually like before when i got good shot on my hand grinder but when they are done using the mignon they are actually a nice espresso (beans were hasbeans kicker and blake blends, still not going to be picking any more of either up but it shows they can be drinkable)


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## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

The Mignon looks as if it's sulking to me or maybe a tad embarrassed..... or just waiting for machine that can really do it justice! Enjoy your Cherub - good match.


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

just had an email from peter at EU and my Cherub has been dispatched for delivery monday which is nice as i work shifts and finish for 3 days off after my sunday night shift


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## forzajuve (Feb 2, 2011)

gtanny said:


> just had an email from peter at EU and my Cherub has been dispatched for delivery monday which is nice as i work shifts and finish for 3 days off after my sunday night shift


Perfect. 3 days with no sleep thanks mr mignons caffeine!


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## gtanny (Jan 6, 2013)

So then the deed is done, a week ago my setup was a well used baby dose with a crap bodom hand grinder which is now a Cherub with a Mignon, also just been told i have £100 extra then originally planned so i plan to get a naked filter and i am very tempted with a VST and Knock Heft Tamper combo with a knockbox

So thats before:

  

and after:

  

ill post a full thread in the Fracino forum as i photoed the unboxing









many many thanks for the advise, i havent had chance to play yet as its currently warming up but i need to go out for an hour or so so it should be nicely ready to play with when i get back


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

What is the considered buily quality on the Cherub, or should I say the Fracino range? I ask a genuine question here, as they also build for another manufacturer.


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## Big Tony (Dec 18, 2012)

Looks lovely mate... well done you


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## coffeechap (Apr 5, 2012)

nice little set up


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## Spukey (Nov 4, 2012)

Looks fantastic, can't wait to get my Cherub! Enjoy


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