Thinking of the plunge into a Rancilio Silvia

[ghostrider]

I may have missed it your posts, but what type of coffee/grinder are you using? You could have perfect technique, but without the right grind/fresh coffee, you're not going to get good results.

[Blueface]

Originally Posted by ghostrider

I may have missed it your posts, but what type of coffee/grinder are you using? You could have perfect technique, but without the right grind/fresh coffee, you're not going to get good results.

Yeah,
Thought that might be an issue but that would not affect the temperature in my mind.
I picked up coffee from a local roaster and had it ground fresh the day before by them.
Have tried two of their blends along with my regular espresso that works just dandy on the cheapo Krups.
One would think the fancier and more expensive unit wouldn't need to have its balls rubbed so much.
I get my Rocky on Monday and will give that a whirl before giving up on this thing.

[Blueface]

WOW!

What a quirky device.
FINALLY got a right brew, back to back.

Seems A, machine needs to be on for a bit.
B, when temp surfing, rather than how the video does it, I used my two cups to fill with hot water.
C, I waited for the light to go on, then off.
D, don't wait 30 seconds, instead, wait a minute.

Got two back to back great brews with good creme/head and right temperature.
FINALLY!!!
Who would have thought something so expensive needs such stroking.

I am walking around the house as if on skates from so much coffee tasting today.

[floydpink]

I never even attempt to use my machine without a minimum warmup of 30 minutes.

There's no harm in leaving your machine on before going to bed to ensure you have a hot machine when you wake up.

I rely very little on the light that says the machine is ready.

One way to tell if your machine is hot enough is to turn on the steam wand.

If it isn't blowing out steam, it is possible you have a boiler problem, which I doubt.

If your machine is hot, you shouldn't be having to do too much temp surfing unless you are pulling multiple shots.

Another possiblity is that whoever is grinding your beans, is grinding them for something other than espresso; perhaps drip?

Once your grinder arrives, you will have all kinds of newfound control over grind consistency and not be relying on someone's grinds.

If the grinds aren't almost powdery in consistency, that's your problem.

If it was easy, good baristas would be a dime a dozen.

One of the joys of home espresso machines is the hands on control you have, once you get past the learning.

My E61 machine is very finicky and pisses out crap unless I give it correct grind, perfect tamp pressure and distribution.

[mosesbotbol]

Once you get the grinder- then you are making espresso!

Floydpink is right about keeping the machine on. I have left it on for a few days at time with no issue. One time the "internal thingy" triggered, but it was easy to reset.

The secret is in packing the portafilter. It's worth playing around with a couple of pounds cheapest beans you can get. Work on getting consistent shops in the right time frame, even from both sides. Toss them out and keep trying.

I overfill the portafileter, scrape the excess off like measuring flour (back into ground coffee in grinder). Tap the portafilter lightly, tamp, tap off excess and clean around the portafilter rim. I know many like to hand pack the portfilter before scraping the excess.

[Blueface]

Tried leaving it on this morning for a couple of hours before brewing.
Surfed and all.
Did everything I have seen and read.
While noticeably hotter by surfing, I am still not happy with the temperature I am getting.
I like my espresso hotter.
I think once I recover from the Rocky expense, a PID is in my future.

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by Blueface

Tried leaving it on this morning for a couple of hours before brewing.
Surfed and all.
Did everything I have seen and read.
While noticeably hotter by surfing, I am still not happy with the temperature I am getting.
I like my espresso hotter.
I think once I recover from the Rocky expense, a PID is in my future.

There must be something missing in this. You shouldn't have such issues. Try heating the espresso cup with a blank shot before making the espresso shot.

I don't really "surf" the machine, but it becomes intuitive once you know how the machine is operating at that moment. Change grind, tamp differently for what is already ground... Does it come out even? Does it take a few seconds, several seconds, before the espresso comes out or does it come out right away?

[Blueface]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

There must be something missing in this. You shouldn't have such issues. Try heating the espresso cup with a blank shot before making the espresso shot.

I don't really "surf" the machine, but it becomes intuitive once you know how the machine is operating at that moment. Change grind, tamp differently for what is already ground... Does it come out even? Does it take a few seconds, several seconds, before the espresso comes out or does it come out right away?

I am not going to panic yet. Will wait for grinder to arrive on Monday and grind some fresh beans.
I can already tell there are differences in the brew with three different types of pre-ground that I have.

The funny thing about this temp thing is that my dad has a Breville, my son has a Delonghi Magnifica and I have the Rancilio.
All three of us have the same complaint about temperature.
We must like our coffee way hotter than most.

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by Blueface

The funny thing about this temp thing is that my dad has a Breville, my son has a Delonghi Magnifica and I have the Rancilio.
All three of us have the same complaint about temperature.
We must like our coffee way hotter than most.

Get the espresso cup really hot before pulling the shot! Are you pulling directly to the cup or glass then pouring to the espresso cup?

[Blueface]

Another great brewing day today.
Brewed twice and both came out to the consistency/strength we like and the temperature was right on the money.

Some things that I have learned:
Unit needs to be on for a while before trying to use it.
Keep the portafilter attached while unit warming as will warm it up nicely for you.
Surfing is cool and works. Temp surf to get it nice and hot and in addition, I turn on the steamer switch to make the pump crank up the temp even more.
I fill the cups with hot water and brew directly into them, which I was not doing initially.

Only thing left that I am truly looking forward to is the creme.
Haven't seen any but clearly due to using store bought can pre ground coffee.
Can't wait until Monday for Mr. Rocky to show up and then we will be cooking with gas for sure.

[Blueface]

Man I have this thing coming out blazing hot now.

Now I need to conquer that creme that eludes me still. Hopefully that will change a bit when Rocky gets here in an hour or two.

[DocLogic77]

This machine has a bit of a learning curve. It took me a bit to understand exactly how it works.