I'm really pleased to see your getting on so well with the Cuadra, it really deserves to be more well known than it is! I'm really sorry I haven't got around to measuring the flush for you .

Beautiful shot.
I gotta have that handle!

Is it the:
Faema E61 Standard - bottomless portafilter?

And also, what basket should i get?
I mostly drink espresso in the 2oz range.
I only have the 2 original baskets, single and double.

Bump! More reviews, please, from any of you in Europe familiar with this machine

Extraction video looks great

I just ordered one. I'll post my first impressions when I get it, and try to answer any questions that you have.

Well, I've had the thing for a week, and I am very happy with it. I have been able to pull consistently decent shots (I still have some work to do as far as technique, though.) My main problem is with steaming milk. The steam pressure is very powerful indeed, and it ships with a 4 hole tip. On my old machine (Breville Modena, lol) the steam was weak so I had plenty of time to work it, but with the Cuadra I have maybe 15 seconds before it is too hot. Does anyone have any tips for me here? I am beginning to get less big bubbles in the foam, but the foam does not integrate throughout the milk, I have a suddy head floating atop hot milk.

Also, does anyone know which bottomless PF will work with this thing?

Kszmigie wrote:Shuurajou , can you please measure how much water you actually flush when machine was idle for let's say 30 minutes? I did my measurement and 35 seconds flush was around 220 mg=ml of water. Thats a lot! I would prefer lest say 100ml flushes.

Cheers!
Kuba

I am finding I have to flush even more than that. I am flushing 10-11 ounces (roughly 300 ml) to get the temp where (I think) I want it. That gives me 203 f on the E61 grouphead thermometer which I believe should be 198-200 f at the puck. This is with a 20-30 second wait after the flush for the temp to stabilize. See video here for reference. I believe the cup I used in the video is 14 ounces IIRC. For real shots I flush about a second or so longer than I what I show for the 2nd flush in the video.

Does anyone have any tips for me here?

You might want to check out these links for milk frothing tips:

Learning latte art with steamed soapy water [video]

How to Steam Milk for Cappuccinos and Lattes [video]

I haven't used your machine, but generally speaking with a four-hole tip you want to let in just a bit of air in the first phase of frothing, then sink the tip a bit and try to position the tip so that it creates a standing wave or whirlpool in the pitcher. Then just let the turbulent action of the milk mix the air in until the milk is heated up to 150 degrees or so. Stop steaming when the pitcher is hot to the touch. Bang on the counter a couple of times if there are any big bubbles left, swirl a bit to mix things more, then pour.

It takes some practice to get the technique down, but once you've mastered it, it becomes second nature and you can pretty much do it in your sleep. In fact, I'm usually half asleep when I'm doing it.

slybarman wrote:I am finding I have to flush even more than that. I am flushing 10-11 ounces (roughly 300 ml) to get the temp where (I think) I want it.

I think this is too much... I find the second shot from Cuadra mostly very pale compared to the first one. I think the machine is rebounding slow and temperature is just too low if I flush too much. I know that's not very scentific since I have no tool to measure it but I find now best reasults doing short 5 secs flushes & go technique (or 10 sec flushes after lets say 40 minutes of idling or more).

Kuba

Well, the thermometer does not lie!

Since making that video I have dialed the pstat down a bit and I am using an ounce or two less per flush than I was.

Each machine might be a bit different, so I cannot comment on yours. My coffee tastes right to me going by the temps on the thermometer.

I will agree that successive shots definitely require less of a flush, but am still surprised by how quickly this machine rebounds. I would classify it as a 'dragon'.

Steve

To slybarman, check out this thread on installing a thermosyphon restrictor in an Expobar Office machine: Installing thermosyphon restrictor on expobar office pulser. I had a VERY similar flush routine when I first got my Expobar Office Lever (which looks very similar to the Cuadra - manual E61 HX) - I had do to really long flushes to get my grouphead down to a proper temp.

After I installed a thermosyphon restrictor, though, my flushes are MUCH shorter, and for some coffees that I like a little hotter I don't do any flush at all. A thermosyphon restrictor is just a little teflon washer, basically, that restricts the flow of water from the top pipe going into the grouphead, and it makes the grouphead idle about 10 degrees cooler. I'm really glad I installed it on my machine - makes my routine a lot faster and simpler.

I don't know if the Cuadra has a similar restrictor available (or if it already has one installed), but you may want to look into it with your distributor.