Yeah, it's all relative when talking to people pulling their own about espresso I suppose. Everything I'm seeing is $750+, even for the lever machines. And I'm not even sure all of those will give me complete temperature control.

You can get a Caravel or a Peppina from eBay for something around $200 including shipping to the USA.
You probably need to replace the seals, but that's a good opportunity to get acquainted with your new acquisition.

You could also get a used La Pavoni for ~$300 on ebay as well. Install a single hole tip for steaming and you're in business. Add new seals for about $50 and a hand grinder and you're in under $500. Add an electric grinder and it goes up a bit.

jpiper wrote:Yeah, it's all relative when talking to people pulling their own about espresso I suppose. Everything I'm seeing is $750+, even for the lever machines. And I'm not even sure all of those will give me complete temperature control.

Jon,

First of all, by all means, have fun hacking away at your Nespresso, but understand it will never make outstanding espresso or milk-based drinks (cappuccino, lattè, etc.).

Secondly, nothing will ever give you "complete" temperature control. All machines vary in temperature to (no pun intended) one degree or another, some more than than others. Ultimately control is up to you -- especially with manual lever machines.

Third, you need not spend "$750+." There are well-made SBDU semi-automatic machines designed for home use available for under $400 new. Manual levers do indeed cost more, as do prosumer HX and DB models. As others have already suggested, you can buy a used machine or a refurbished one.

Fourth, regardless of what you do, you will need a grinder!. Indeed, without a quality grinder, you might as well just throw your money out the window . . .

Cheers,
Jason

I WILL have fun trying to get the best out of what I will now term "my wife's espresso machine." I have a bag of Redline on the way for just that purpose! I also appreciate the responses here and am looking forward to sourcing a nice, used espresso machine.

I DO have a manual burr grinder which is giving me a good, even grind as far as I can tell. I enjoy the process of tweaking a process, perfecting technique, and getting the best results out of anything that I can. As a result, I'm currently leaning towards an older, used lever machine.

I want to be clear before I take the plunge: I WILL be able to control the temperature, correct? Understandably, reproducibility may take some finesse, but if I want to warm it up or cool it down, that'll be possible. Ie, with good technique (which I intend to try to learn), will I be able to pull top notch shots with a Caravel or a Peppina? The machine won't hold me back (other than convenience, ease of use, etc)?