I may keep to my original idea of feeding the machine from a static water tank on the shelf above the machine. I can use the existing 1/8 line to fill the tank via a ball valve. As I sit here typing, I am second guessing myself, I may have used a ¼ supply line. I will have to check tonight. Hopefully I can finish the machine tonight.

Well, that may be a bit melowdramatic, but after three months of toil it has power. I hooked up my last copper line and connected the heating element last night. We moved it from the garage to the kitchen so I could fill the boiler and put power to it and check for leaks. I have one fitting that needs about a quarter turn, other than that, it is leak free.

I need to pull off the manual boiler fill valve. That is the one thing I did not completely disassemble and rebuild. When I turn on a group I get a small trickle of water out of the group and more water into the boiler. Since that valve is the only way water can get into the boiler, it must not be sealing.

Once I filled it with cold water I checked the pump and both groups, everything appears to work. My aftermarket gauges are working, the groups are working, my only initial concern was that the boiler was not heating. I have gotten use to the quick heat up of my 1.5 liter Isomac, this thing has an enormous boiler. I have to look up the formula for calculating volume in a cylinder and figure out exactly how bit it is. When it and the HX are filled with 40F water, it takes over an hour (about two) to come up to temp.

I adjusted the Pstat to .85 bar. It appears to cycle from .85 to .7. The original boiler gauge went red at 1 bar so I put a 15psi (1bar) 2 inch gauge on it. My pressure increments on the gauge are very small and precise, much better than the OEM.

Steam, owe, my, GOD, does this thing belt out the steam. It sounds like one of the C5's at the Air Force base taking off, and it never stops! I decided to give it a little test. I took my normal amount of milk that I froth for one drink and timed it. On my Isomac, it took about 30 seconds to go from 40F milk in a frozen pitcher to 140F, and then it carried over another two or so seconds to 148F. I steamed the same amount of milk at the same starting temperature to 160F in 12 seconds. When I hit 140F, I killed the steam (under 10 seconds), by the time I looked back down at the thermom and my watch, it jumped from 140 to 160+. The water dispenser is just as dramatic. Open the valve, WRRGGGGRRGGGGSSS!

I am a bit disappointed that I could not adjust my pump and pull a couple of test shots last night. I have to fix that boiler valve seal before I do that. My existing water supply line is ¼ inch but I do not think that will be sufficient for this beast. I need to run a full 3/8 line to it. I took some photos with the covers off last night. Once I button everything up I will take another batch before I put the machine in its final resting place. Should be 100% this weekend.

Can you tell I am excited?

cannonfodder wrote:Well, that may be a bit mellow dramatic,

Can you tell I am excited?

Ehm, its 'melodramatic'. Quite the opposite of 'mellow dramatic'! ; >
And yes, I can tell you are excited. I went through the same thing (albeit, on a much smaller scale, my machine was almost pristine when I started, I just had to correct a bit of negligence) a coupla three days ago. Its been nice! Click the rosetta to see her.

cannonfodder wrote:I need to pull off the manual boiler fill valve. That is the one thing I did not completely disassemble and rebuild. When I turn on a group I get a small trickle of water out of the group and more water into the boiler. Since that valve is the only way water can get into the boiler, it must not be sealing.

before you do that, see if you can hook the water line directly to the heat exchanger input fitting. pressurize the line and see if the boiler still fills with water.

Well, my joyous glee has turned into desperate depression. I cleaned up the fill valve. It did leak both ways. I had to put it in a vice to get the bolt out which is why I did not tear it down to start with. It was green and crusty. The seals were compacted; I cleaned it up like new and put in new seals. However, I believe I have a worst-case problem, which is what I believe you are hinting at Barry. The heat exchanger is cracked. If I apply pressure to the HX I get water into the boiler, there is only one fill line into the boiler and it is disconnected, still water into the boiler, and the boiler pressurizes when I engage either group.

I am now the proud owner of a nice shiny 150lb expensive paperweight. My wife was overjoyed to find out I have put all of my spare money into a big hot water dispenser. How can a heat exchanger break (sort of a rhetorical question but I am curious)? And more importantly, how much is a replacement boiler? Everything else works perfectly.

I am going to go roast some beans and cry now.

cannonfodder wrote:How can a heat exchanger break (sort of a rhetorical question but I am curious)? And more importantly, how much is a replacement boiler? Everything else works perfectly.

because dave brought it to me on probably the coldest night of the year. i cautioned against it, but he insisted he'd drained all the water. i guess he didn't drain the hx.

i might have a boiler in the basement from a spanish gaggia which might work. let me check tonight/tomorrow.

all is not yet lost.


you don't happen to have a bore-scope, do you?

When I met him, he mentioned that he thought it had a bad solenoid. It may have been a broken HX.

I have spent too much time and money on it to give up. If I have to drop another few hundred on a new boiler, I will. If I end up with a grand in the entire machine, it will still be a very good deal. Everything works perfectly, even my boiler fill light works.

All is not lost, but it is a definite setback, so back to the garage tomorrow. Once I replace it, I plan on cutting it open and peeling it like a banana. It would make for some interesting photos. You don't get to see the inside of a HX boiler other than in diagrams.

I am short on bore-scopes, although I almost got one to use on rifle barrels. I can tell you that it is not a small pinhole. The HX pumps water into the boiler as fast as a direct bypass to the boiler. It must be a huge fissure.

cannonfodder wrote:I am short on bore-scopes, although I almost got one to use on rifle barrels. I can tell you that it is not a small pinhole. The HX pumps water into the boiler as fast as a direct bypass to the boiler. It must be a huge fissure.

if you remove the fitting from the top of each hx, you should be able to shine a mini-mini-maglite inside and have a look.

Time for an update. If you have read the previous posts, you know I moved the machine to the kitchen to fill and pressure test. Then I realized the boiler had a ruptured HX.

But here are a few more photos of the machine in my kitchen










Looks a little better than it did when I picked it up...






There is still hope for the machine. We are looking for a boiler (so if you know where I can get one speak up) but I discovered something. I was under the impression that the heat exchanger was one large chamber that fed both groups. When I disconnected the HX input lines I had no pressure in the left group. When I unscrewed the right group, I got a spray of water. It was still pressurized.

So I got to thinking, that should not have pressure in it, unless each group has its own HX. A quick email to Barry and he confirmed. So, as long as the right group HX is intact, there is still life in the frame. I am going to cap the left HX input and pump supply and just use the right group for now. I will have the worlds only single group machine with a 12L boiler.

I should call this thing the phoenix because it keeps rising from dead. It was pulled out of service once, and came into Daves possession. Then it sat around for a while and was destine for the dumpster when he gave it to Barry where it sat some more. Then it came into my possession (another Dave) went through the rebuild, made it to my kitchen, then headed back to the workbench, possibly to never see the light of day again. Now it may end up back in the kitchen this weekend.