Used Rancilio Silvia, can somebody offer insight/tips?

December 20th, 2014, 9:10 am

Hi all,

Long time lurker but first time poster, as I finally "inherited" (eg from a friend of a friend) a Silvia. This is my first real machine, and I studied this forum, lots of videos and am getting a decent shot from it even though I have a Baratza Encore (which I previously used for aeropress, etc). I wanted to ask a few questions to get myself prepped for this brave new world.

1. Can anyone tell me how to identify *which* Silvia it is? I have a picture, here:

2. Can anyone identify this weird old portafilter, and tell me more about it? Should I move to a double one, or a bottomless (I was reading that those might not be best for beginners) or any other kind? I'm not even sure if its pressurized or not, but its unlike the portafilters I've seen with newer Rancilios.

3. Are there any things I should immediately check for on an older machine to make sure its in top working order?

4. If I really jump from an Encore to a Preciso (or Vario) will that make a tremendous difference in my shots?

Thanks again for all the help, guys and gals!

Robbie

December 20th, 2014, 10:46 am

Standard size portafilter but have no idea what size portafilter basket since didn't show a picture of that side! The detached brass piece appears to be a pressurized cheater attachment. Check out the How-Tos section for proper cleaning procedures etc. When I started my home espresso Journey many moons ago, also with Miss Silvia, I had the same Encore grinder (its predecessor) and fought it for 6 months. You will definitely hugely benefit from a better grinder.

December 20th, 2014, 11:09 am

Welcome.
The machine appears to be a V2. Underneath the drip tray there should be a sticker with the manufacture date.

December 20th, 2014, 11:12 am

Thanks, great to know its a V2!

Should I try ditching the pressurized "attachment" and using the portafilter as is, or replace the portafilter? Not sure if that makes a big difference.

December 20th, 2014, 11:33 am

I would ditch the spout and check that the basket is not a pressurized basket. But doing this means you will need a good grind out of your grinder. If you are struggling there, the pressurized basket and/or spout may help overcome not being able to grind fine enough without them.

Basically I would say try both ways, and start saving into a grinder budget asap!

December 20th, 2014, 12:41 pm

Go by the date code - four digits in the lower right corner of the sticker.

The distinction between v1 and v2 is never clear because there was a disconnect between the external changes - the drip tray, the grate, grouphead surround, and various portafilter designs - and the internal changes - boiler, (easily) adjustable over pressure valve, braided pump feed line, pod-able grouphead, etc.

For example, it looks like you have the v1 grouphead surround and the v2 grate.

Many of these machines have had parts replaced as well - easy enough to replace the grate, for example - and the grate gets lots of scrapes so people replace them. Thus, manufacturing date is what to look at

The boiler type (for potential PID-ing) and adjustable OPV are the most important items in v1/v2. Auber covers determining the manufacturer date and the boiler type here in this handy pdf: http://www.auberins.com/manufacture_year.pdf

Your grinder can work, but it will be a PITA to dial in. If you have a local roaster that offers a consistent espresso blend that you can buy every couple of weeks, then it can work well - albeit with a steep learning curve.

Oh yeah - +1 on ditching the spout.

Good luck! Even though I have a 'better' machine now, I have kept my Silvia for my morning espresso - plus I totally tore apart and rebuilt/modified mine so I 'know exactly what I have' - which isn't always the case with espresso gear, even if brand $panking new.

#7: Post by **Randy G.** » December 20th, 2014, 3:52 pm

There was also a major change from V.0 to V.1 (I call it V.0 here because few ever consider it a separate version.. "Few" meaning that I seem to be the only one). The first Silvias came with a bolted-in heating element that could be changed on its own without having to replace the entire top half of the boiler. That was updated to a welded-in heating element in late 2000 (around September-November or thereabouts). The reason was that the sealing washers often failed before the element did, and that caused the boiler to go dry and burn out the element. But at least the element was easy to change!

December 20th, 2014, 4:52 pm

And Rancilio has gone back to a replaceable heating element in v3-2014 / v4 (name depending on which website you go to).

If one was changing the design of the boiler, then one might have thought of putting in a water level switch to, say, refill the boiler when the water gets low - but no, let's just make it easier to replace the part that burns out when the (novice) espresso maker forgets to turn on the pump in a fit of steaming.

I love my Silvia

.

FWIW, the other change for 2014 is a new improved double basket design (third version I believe). I have one coming from Stefano's - just to see how it compares. (I usually use a 15g VST.)

#9: Post by **sweaner** » December 20th, 2014, 5:28 pm

It looks like the basket is not a pressurized basket...can see it on one of the shots. The attachment may just be a single spout of some type.

It would be easy enough to make that portafilter bottomless. A hole saw will do the trick.

December 20th, 2014, 10:13 pm

You can see the basket through the spout in a photo. It is a normal non pressurized portafilter/basket. The spout, I can see through it in one of the photos. The hole is way to big for anything pressurized. The previous owner probably took the double off and put a single straight spout on it. A bottomless is a good thing to have, especially if you are just starting. You can see what is going on.