La Cimbali Junior Casa - Page 2

Need help with equipment usage or want to share your latest discovery?
bzarycranski
Posts: 55
Joined: 13 years ago

#11: Post by bzarycranski »

Matthew, glad to hear you are enjoying your DT1. I purchased a Junior Casa from Chris' a few weeks back but haven't hooked this up yet due to lingering kitchen renovations. The new granite is in and plumbing & electrical hook-ups are in place; just waiting for the painting to be completed before I place the Cimbali on the counter. I've read practically everything regarding the flush routines for this machine but I am curious where you are now with flushes, p-stat, and brew pressures. What coffee(s) have you used?

Bill

Javacat
Posts: 144
Joined: 16 years ago

#12: Post by Javacat »

I've played around with the p-stat quite a bit and now run it at about .92 - 1.1, which I believe is very close to the factory setting. This seems to give the best performance for me. I pull most of my shots by counting down at the end of the flashing, and this setting will allow the machine to rebound nicely between shots pulled within a few minutes of each other. I usually flush down the machine pretty hard if it's been idle for more than 30 minutes. I will flush water through both group and hot water jet to cool down the system then it's just a matter of flushing untill the flashing ends plus 4-5 seconds then pull the shot after about 12 seconds (the video on Chris's website is pretty accurate as to how to flush the machine). As far as baskets, I've spent considerable time with about 4 or 5 (no VST's yet) and seem to keep coming back to my Synesso 18g. I also like the LM triple with some coffees. The double that came with the machine is not bad either although it's a bit shallower than what I like.

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boar_d_laze (original poster)
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#13: Post by boar_d_laze (original poster) »

It's been a long time since checking in here. Wish it hadn't been quite so long as I had to independently discover javacat's wisdom. Works for me too.

BDL
Drop a nickel in the pot Joe. Takin' it slow. Waiter, waiter, percolator

bzarycranski
Posts: 55
Joined: 13 years ago

#14: Post by bzarycranski »

I plumbed in the Junior Casa today. John Guest fittings made the water hook-up a breeze. I also hooked-up the drain line as well and for those who go this route it is important to eliminate even the slightest hump in the drain line once it exits the bottom of the machine, i.e., the slope should always be negative or flat at the worst. The pipe should not rise such that a mini 'trap' is created. Initially I did have a very slight rise in the pipe as it approached bthe hole in the counter but I flattened the pipe by wedging a block of wood between the underside of the machine and the drain pipe, effectively flattening the pipe. Also, keep the drain line as short as possible. As received, p-stat is 0.9-1.1 and brew pressure is ~9.5 bar. Line pressure is 25 psi.

Machine is inherently very quiet (compared to a Silvia). It is also easy to discern the end of flash boiling water during flushes. Used several week old Black Pearl just to season the machine, check for leaks, etc. Got to get some new beans and a new grinder (still struggling w/Mazzer Mini).

Tomesd
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Joined: 13 years ago

#15: Post by Tomesd »

I agree about draining the junior- I wedged the cap from the drain itself to flatten the drain. With the Scase I worked out a cooling regime when it's not in use for more than an hour. I just flush the boiler by opening the hot water spout for 10 seconds, press the big flush button (120 ml) to flush the HX, then after prepping the PF for a double I'll press for a double first (mine is 100 ml) prior to pulling the shot. Mine is consistently 198 deg. with this routine. If I press a mini flush (60 ml) prior to starting a double it's at ~200 deg. The Scase really took a lot of guesswork out of it.

bzarycranski
Posts: 55
Joined: 13 years ago

#16: Post by bzarycranski »

When adjusting the incoming water pressure to 25 psi on this or any other machine, should this be the static water pressure or the observed pressure during pre-infusion? Currently, the pressure regulator reads 25 psi during infusion and static pressure is ~30 psi.

Bill

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boar_d_laze (original poster)
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#17: Post by boar_d_laze (original poster) »

Bill,

Did you ever get your question answered?

I spoke with the tech guy (Roger, I think) at Chris Coffee when buying and installing my machine in late December. He said the machine can handle considerably higher pressure, (a) not to worry about it; and indeed (b) not to buy a pressure gauge unless the line pressure was somewhat (I forget how much) greater than 70psi. Too bad, because the gauge would have looked cool.

What do you think of the Casa? I loved mine from day one, and love it more every day I use it.

BDL
Drop a nickel in the pot Joe. Takin' it slow. Waiter, waiter, percolator

bzarycranski
Posts: 55
Joined: 13 years ago

#18: Post by bzarycranski »

Rich,

I did contact Chris' tech staff and I settled on 25 psi (not critical). BTW, the pressure is set while water flows through the machine and not static. I thoought as much but just wanted to be sure.

The Casa is an impressive machine both inside and out. I did open her up to fiddle with the pressure stat in an attempt to get 0.8-1.0 but I ran into a problem--turning the pressurestat to lower the pressure seemed to only effect the low (on) set point while the high set point stayed pretty much at 1.1 bar, i.e., as the adjustment was changed, the pressure range went from 0.9-1.1 down to 0.68 or so to 1.1. Not sure why and that kind of freaked me out, so I truned the adjustment clockwise to return to the original setting. Not sure why I even attempted to change at this point since the machine is so new and, using all that I have read about various flushing routines, the espresso tastes great. Could it taste better? Probably, and I will take to experimenting with flush routines at some point to see if I can do better. No rush though. I'd also like to rent a Scace device at some point just to give me some idea where I actually am regarding temps, but like I said, the coffee is great. The fit and finish is very high quality (I think) and just plain looks fantastic on the coffee bar. It really is a solid machine. Having the drip tray plumbed (out) is also a real advantage and I am glad I decided to go this way--it's nice not having to worry about emptying the drip tray. I've had no problem making great microfoam either. Overally, I am exceedingly happy with the purchase and I have no doubt I will be living with this machine for quite some time. Now, I just need a new grinder. My wife likes the looks of the ProM which appears to be an excellent grinder but for the additional $200, the K30 vario appears to be the better deal, albeit considerably larger appearing. I really would like speed, quietness, and the ability to disassemble and clean periodically.

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TomC
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#19: Post by TomC »

I'm 100% certain this will be my next espresso machine. I will set up for plumbed in on my Duetto first, and then save a bit, and try to sell the Duetto. I'm confident I should be able to get out of the Duetto for not very much of a blood letting. Phone call To CCS tomorrow to get some det's to see if the water treatment setups are the same at the connection points.
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boar_d_laze (original poster)
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#20: Post by boar_d_laze (original poster) »

Tom,

Good luck with your new machine. Casa gonna love you long long time.

It's going to be interesting reading your reactions coming off a plumbed-in, high-end, prosumer like the Domo. You're not setting a low bar; but think you'll be very pleased; at least once you get the hang of the La Cimbali's few idiosyncracies and realize the wisdom of the factory settings.

Let me know if there's anything I can do to help flatten your learning curve. Whatever mistakes there are to be made, rest assured, I made them.

BDL
Drop a nickel in the pot Joe. Takin' it slow. Waiter, waiter, percolator