Synesso Baskets - group buy!! - Page 5

[HB]

Thanks Jon, the two baskets I ordered arrived today! The smaller one is indeed the same as the one I had in my drawer (the "LM Ridgeless" from EPNW), but the 18 gram basket is deeper than any of my other ridgeless baskets. Sort of in between the double and triple basket.

Now I have more than enough basket combinations to keep me amused for quite some time...

[JonR10]

The smaller one is indeed the same as the one I had in my drawer (the "LM Ridgeless" from EPNW), but the 18 gram basket is deeper than any of my other ridgeless baskets.

Is the smaller one identical in every way, even the hole pattern stamping?

[HB]

I reported earlier having two ridgeless 14 gram baskets. The one that I got from 1st-line long ago and Luca suggested was the Ascaso brand, which matches my memory of the invoice. The second ridgeless was from EPNW, which they call a "LM Ridgeless." I really have to squint hard, but on close inspection it's apparent that the Synesso / EPNW LM Ridgeless holes are the same and the Ascaso's are different. The former appear to have been embossed with a criss-cross pattern before the holes were punched out (really guessing, I don't know the manufacturers' techniques). The result is a hole that looks more like a hexagon than a round divot.

That 18 gram basket looks huge next to the stock Faema-style 14 gram. At first I thought it was a triple.

[miKe mcKoffee]

Not only is it larger than a standard double and can still fit a standard E16 PF, but the slight tapered shape seems to help promote more even extractions than the more straight sided 21 gram basket (according to the guy at Synesso). MarkP from CoffeeGeek sez these baskets are made of slightly heavier-gauge stainless and that the hole pattern is more even and uniform as well.

It may fit a standard E61 PF but does not fit a Rancilio Pro PF (which fits and works perfectly in Bricoletta E61 group) and does not fit two different clone E61 PFs, one from ESPN and one from Chris' Coffee. It does of course fit the nekkid, but that defeats the purpose.

[JonR10]

It does of course fit the nekkid, but that defeats the purpose.

Shoot. It does fit my most shallow PF (the Wega) and it fits my Gaggia PF too, but the Gaggia is deeper so I figured it would.

Sorry - if you want to return it I will refund your full purchase price. Many many people have already said they would buy any extras so it's no trouble at all and you only have to pay shipping one way (back to me).

That of course goes for everyone who got these. If you want to return (a 14g or 18g) just contact me.
I can't take back the triples 21g or the singles 7g though.

[dk]

I received the baskets today and they fit nicely on my Vetrano portafilter, I have not yet tried on the naked Rancillio that I have.

I will pull the first shots tomorrow morning.

Jon thanks again for doing this!!

[hperry]

Baskets arrived today. First test tommorow. They really look like triples. Thanks Jon! I know you put a lot of work into this. I don't think anyone expects warranty service for the few bucks we paid. You've already gone "above and beyond."

[HunkaBurninLove]

Also got mine today, JonR. Looking forward to using them in the morning.

Excuse my noobiness, but how does this 18g basket defeat the purpose of using it in the naked PF?

[JonR10]

Also got mine today, JonR. Looking forward to using them in the morning.

I'm very interested to know your impressions so please post....

Excuse my noobiness, but how does this 18g basket defeat the purpose of using it in the naked PF?

I think he was saying that he wanted to use the 18g basket in a spouted PF and so that purpose is defeated.

[greedus]

Hey Jon,

I missed out on the original buy and am still interested in an 18 gr. basket. Should any one return one, let me know.

regards,

pete

[JonR10]

I missed out on the original buy and am still interested in an 18 gr. basket. Should any one return one, let me know.

Hey Pete - shoot me an email to JonR10 at yahoo dot come

[miKe mcKoffee]

Hey Jon,

I missed out on the original buy and am still interested in an 18 gr. basket. Should any one return one, let me know.

regards,

pete

Mine's available, sent you a PM.

[dk]

Not much time today to pull more than 2 shots with the new 18g basket. It fit in very nice and snug on a Vetrano single spout, actually I believe it seemed to fit more nicely than the original double shot basket.

The shots were nice, took a tiny bit longer for the stream to start out as compared with the og however they were of a very nice consistency and seems as if pulling ristrettos from them will be quite easy. Sorry for the run-on sentence!!

I will pull a few more tomorrow morning and perhaps try in the naked pf.

Overall first initial impressions are positive!!

[jesawdy]

Jon-

Received the basket today... thanks!

First one was a bust, completely stalled. Redialed, new batch of Toscano, pretty yummy, if not a little too fast.

As already mentioned, it looks to be the same manufacturer as the EPNW "LM Ridgeless Double" but is clearly larger. This is based on the metal gauge and hole pattern/stampings. In fact the depth is about the same if not identical to the EPNW LM Ridged triple basket, with a different side profile.

As mentioned, does not fit the Silvia or Rancilio Pro PF. It is real close, but not quite, about 1mm too deep. It does however fit my Cimbali portafilters without issue. I just used the bottomless in Miss Silvia.

[RapidCoffee]

Mine arrived today too - thanks again, Jon! As Dan noted, the 14g basket appears to be a close match for my trusty EPNW "LM" ridgeless double. The bottom is flatter on the new basket, but that's probably due to use. The 18g basket is a monster double, significantly larger than the 14g double, and almost as large as my 21g ridged triple. Oddly enough, it fits the Vetrano single spouted PF just fine, but it's a very marginal squeeze with the Vetrano double spouted PF. And as Mike noted, it will not work with a commercial Rancilio PF. Go figure.



Couldn't resist, had to give it a try tonight . By the second shot I was starting to get dialed in. Woohoo, new toys!
________
John

[HunkaBurninLove]

I'm very interested to know your impressions so please post....

Well, I'm still trying to figure this espresso thing out so I'm not sure what I can offer

The only baskets I had were the ones that came with the Anita from ChrisCoffee, plus the triple basket I ordered from EPNW. So these were the first ridgeless baskets and I'm not sure of the advantages of ridgeless.

My initial impression was that the basket was almost as big as the triple. It felt like I had to use the same amount to fill the 18g as the triple. I only pulled the one shot this morning (using the naked PF) and just about stalled the machine, so I have to dial down the grind. But it was tasty, nonetheless.

Will try again on Friday.

[JonR10]

...So these were the first ridgeless baskets and I'm not sure of the advantages of ridgeless....

In my mind the big advantage is the basket can be filled and tamped while the PF remains in the machine. I prefer to slip the basket into the PF at the last minute before pulling the shot, and using ridgeless baskets allows me to do that without upsetting the puck.

Plus I can still use my knockbox because the PF spring holds the basket well enough.



Apart from being ridgeless, these baskets seem to have an advantageous shape and a cleaner hole pattern. My pucks from the 18g triple basket have been coming out cleanly, but when I use the straight-sided 21g basket my pucks fracture coming out as often as not.

[jrtatl]

My pucks from the 18g triple basket have been coming out cleanly, but when I use the straight-sided 21g basket my pucks fracture coming out as often as not.

This has been my observation as well with the 18g baskets: clean dry pucks. I can also fit up to 21g in the 18g baskets, although 20 seems to be the best so far. I consider this a marked advantage over the 21g non-synesso baskets I own.

[RapidCoffee]

Well, I took a closer look at my baskets this morning, and discovered that one of the three was very poorly stamped. One 14g and one 18g were fine, but many of the holes were barely punched through on the other 18g basket, and eight were completely blocked. After uttering some favorite incantations, I used my WDT tool (aka dissecting needle) to repunch the holes. Shown below is a pix halfway through:



Apologies for the lousy lighting, but you can clearly see which half is which. Despite my efforts, three of the holes are still blocked.

Before TerryZ starts gloating: I had to return my first EPNW "LM" ridgeless basket for exactly the same reason. Either quality control on these ridgeless baskets ain't the best, or I've had really poor luck (2 of 5 bad). You wouldn't think it would be so hard to punch holes in a little tin cup.
________
John

[Thwack]

Well, I took a closer look at my baskets this morning, and discovered that one of the three was very poorly stamped. John

I noticed the same problem with my 14g basket.... probably 4 or 5 unpunched or partially punched holes. The 18g I received was fine and I've been using it everyday. I will try punching out the blocked holes on the 14 and give it a go. Seems like a delicate operation though, to prevent enlarging too much.