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Melissa:

If you can increase your budget for a Microcasa a Leva, I recommend you go for that. If you do and want it to be temperature stable over several shots and to be able to pull walk-up shots properly temped, you can add a heat break gasket as I discussed in the long form of my review of that machine. Adding a heat break gasket to a La Pavoni will also help stabilize it. If you add a heat break between the group and the boiler, you'll want to compensate with slightly longer screws. The current versions of La Pavoni are not nearly as well built as the Elektra, though. The older versions of La Pavoni are much better built. There were three generations of the home La Pavoni levers. The first are the best. The second generation more easily overheat but can be controlled. The third generation are the current ones. I can pull back to back shots with any of these. This works especially well if you use a lighter roast, which can be pulled hotter. People who want earlier La Pavoni versions and don't want to fuss with servicing them can find ones that have been serviced through several sources, and they will generally cost in the $400 range. The mention of wet steam is when steam is cooler because the pressure has been set low. Generally people will set the pressure on a La Pavoni manual lever at about 0.8 bar. That should provide adequate steaming.

When you open up the possibility of other machines, some folks go for the Ponte Vecchio Export or Lusso. There were quality control problems in the one I reviewed but they aren't universal and would be covered by the dealer. When these work they work well and I am told that build quality is being improved. You can check with the dealer. Shots are smaller but shot quality is similar to the Elektra.

Ponte Vecchio Export: Easy to Use, Harder to Recommend

Another possibility if there's room on your counter is getting a home machine with a larger commercial lever group. I like the Bezzera Strega for its low price, but others like Londinium are also very good. Here's the Strega review.

/bezzera-strega-review.html

Here's the definitive page on successive La Pavoni versions:

http://www.francescoceccarelli.eu/lapavoni_ep_eng.htm

This is my review of the Elektra MIcrocasa a Leva. I prefer the chrome version because the durability of the finish is best on that one.

Elektra Microcasa a Leva Review

Here are some of my threads on temperature control for the La Pavoni machines. These aren't the only ones available but will give you more info:

Reaching the Zen Zone with a Two Switch La Pavoni This is for second generation machines.

Adding Thermometry to a La Pavoni Europiccola This gives you more fine-tuning than temperature strips, but temperature strips also work and are easier to install.

Dalton's law (And problems from it) This tells you how to release pockets of air that register as pressure and may keep your machine from coming up to temperature.

Olympia Cremina Temperature Study, Part 1 This gives you a sense of temperature control on this kind of machine in general.

La Pavoni Millennium Owners, Are Temperature Problems Solved? This is an old thread that may help.

There are other threads on H-B about this subject. Search and enjoy. These should get you in the ballpark.

IMAWriter wrote:PTI, but I'm curious as to why, for your first ever machine (?) you wish to choose a lever?

FWIW I struggled to properly work a good pump machine (Isomac Amica e61 group single boiler dual use), and when I got my first La Pavoni Europiccola, Millennium model, I found it easier to use. A lever machine gives you a direct experience of pressure exerted on the coffee, even a spring lever, where you can see the lever moving under spring power and relate it to the flow you see into the cup.