Does anyone know where I might be able to source this red plastic piece with washer that's attached to the bottom plate? I've called Cerini's but it's not a part that they stock. Not needed but convenient in case reset is necessary. The machine I have is missing this piece. This pic was borrowed from an Ebay auction.

I'll assume it's a reset switch or circuit breaker. Likely removed when it failed, wires then by-passed. You can find a generic one that matches the power draw of the machine. May require adapting to fit a new one in place. Try some electronics stores or suppliers.

D.

A generic replacement may work.

http://www.espressocare.com/products/it ... ostat-127c

HBfencing wrote:Does anyone know where I might be able to source this red plastic piece with washer that's attached to the bottom plate?

The red plastic piece you're looking for only works with the old style thermostat switches. These older switches don't last forever and when they die they're replaced with a newer version. Unfortunately the new style switches are incompatible with the red reset button extension you're looking for. That's why you often see them missing on older Maximatics and Creminas.

OrphanEspresso has a video about the old and new switches here. The Cremina and Maximatic both share the exact same heating element and switches.

If you do have an old style switch, and need the red piece, PM me.

roadman wrote:. The Cremina and Maximatic both share the exact same heating element and switches.

If you do have an old style switch, and need the red piece, PM me.

Roadman: Thanks. Seems like I have a bigger issue though.

Just got my flea bay machine and while it is supposedly in perfect working order according to the description most of the connections were "charred" crisp. Pretty much all of them so I'm either on the hunt for a replacement harness (or maybe I can make one myself with the help of an electrician).

Positive it does have a rather new FOT pump, and the outside is in very good/excellent shape. In all fairness I did get a picture of the innards but the response was a few connections were blacked out. I'm going to chalk this up as a lesson learned so hopefully with the help of this community I can restore this completely. I should have asked for more detailed pics. I guess I can run it with the connections as is and plug it into my gfci which should cut out if a short were to occur. However this was going to be my work machine and I want to make sure everything is safe before I bring it in.

Bottom of boiler.

Some other connections but pretty much all of them are charred.

Nice to see that you have an FOT pump.

HBfencing wrote:Just got my flea bay machine and while it is supposedly in perfect working order according to the description most of the connections were "charred" crisp. Pretty much all of them so I'm either on the hunt for a replacement harness (or maybe I can make one myself with the help of an electrician).

It's pretty common to see charred connections on these machines. If you're at all handy you can replace the connectors with bright, shiny new ones. It's a safe, simple repair. There's plenty of info about the repair here on H-B. Orphan Espresso has videos about this type of electrical repair here and here.

Thanks roadman! Nice roadmap for sure. Going to study these in detail. I took a peak in the boiler from top and the element is just plain nasty. I have no idea why anyone would drink from it but it's gunked up beyond belief. As far as cleaning up the outside of the boiler -top and bottom (not really important at this point) what is suggested? I was thinking of using a dremel to get the gunk off the top and bottom with a rotary dremel tool. As far as the inside a nice citric acid descale?

All the other metal non painted parts should receive a citric acid bath? I took a sample of clr to the bracket that holds the water tank and while it got the surface rust out I'll still need a strong wire brush to get the gunk off.

The three way looks pretty gunked up as well. Anyway should be a fun project. I don't have a complete set of metric wrenches so any sizes that I should concentrate on or will a good old adjustable wrench do the trick? I have a full set of allen wrenches.

I want to completely strip the machine down and am wondering where to start. Don't want to randomly start taking it apart.

HBfencing wrote:Thanks roadman! Nice roadmap for sure. Going to study these in detail. I took a peak in the boiler from top and the element is just plain nasty. I have no idea why anyone would drink from it but it's gunked up beyond belief. As far as cleaning up the outside of the boiler -top and bottom (not really important at this point) what is suggested? I was thinking of using a dremel to get the gunk off the top and bottom with a rotary dremel tool. As far as the inside a nice citric acid descale?

I wouldn't whip out the dremel just yet. First soak it in a citric acid bath to get the inside scale out. The acid may also loosen the outside gunk. If the outside gunk didn't come off, soak it in some JoeGlo.

All the other metal non painted parts should receive a citric acid bath? I took a sample of clr to the bracket that holds the water tank and while it got the surface rust out I'll still need a strong wire brush to get the gunk off.

Just make sure not to soak chrome plated pieces in citric acid. Chrome doesn't like acid. If you want to clean the chrome, use something like JoeGlo.

I don't have a complete set of metric wrenches so any sizes that I should concentrate on or will a good old adjustable wrench do the trick? I have a full set of allen wrenches.

Get a set of metric wrenches! They don't cost much. At the very least get a 15mm and 17mm. You'll also need some smaller sizes like 8, 9 and/or 10mm. Adjustable wrenches can slip and cause problems.

I want to completely strip the machine down and am wondering where to start. Don't want to randomly start taking it apart.

If you're doing a strip down make sure to document each step with a photo. Makes putting it together so much easier. And if you do a strip down, make sure you have a complete set of replacement seals and gaskets on hand for the rebuild.

Check out Orphan Espresso video series titled "So You Got a Cremina" on YouTube. Most of what applies to the Cremina is relevant to the Maximatic. Also there are good Maximatic rebuild threads here on the site.
Good luck!

Just wanted to add that the eBay seller I purchased this from was great to deal with and even offered to take it back (he noticed the HB thread) but I'm going to attempt to restore it as best as I can. Overall I'm happy as I got it for a fair price with some extras. With the help of this community, the many build threads and in large part to Doug and Barb's informative videos I'm in good hands.