Upgrade to Vetrano from Silvia - things I love so far

[steveschoon]

The Vetrano I ordered from Chris Coffee last Saturday arrived yesterday, so I've had it up and running for just over 24 hours now...and here's the things I love so far:

plumbed in
plumbed in
did I mention plumbed in?
Swiveling steam & water wands...I love being able to move 'em around
steam/water knobs can be opened/closed by "rolling" my hand across the top - don't have to grab
very quiet pump operation
enormous drip tray
putting portafilter in & removing with one hand - no holding the machine steady

As expected, I will need to spend some time mastering the steaming...it is very different from Silvia, but I'm sure I'll get there.

This is such an amazing improvement from Silvia. She served me very well for 4 years, but there is just no comparison.

[espressoquest]

I am also very happy with the performance of the Vetrano. It is really quiet, compared to my previous Saeco that had a couple sympathetic vibrations in the internals when the pump was engaged.

I am very impressed with the before and after-sale service from Chris Coffee also. This is my first purchase from them, and they handled the shipment to Canada with no problem at all, very quick delivery also.

I had a problem with the boiler level sensor in my machine, apparently a number have had the nut over-torqued during production, cracking the nylon sleeve. This results in the sensor eventually being grounded to the boiler by water in the crack and then the auto-refill system doesn't work any more. Mine went for a couple days and the element burnt out due to the low water level in the boiler. If I had previously owned a HX machine, I probably would have noticed that the pump had stopped refilling the boiler. One call to the service department had a replacement probe and element on the way, delivered to Canada the next morning. That kind of customer service makes me feel pretty good. Boiler element replacement wasn't a big deal, not many people will have a wrench that big though - 37mm. It was in there very_very_tight.

I chucked one of the portafilters in the lathe and now have somewhere for my triple basket to live. I haven't yet got a good handle on the triple-basket extraction - my double basket extractions are mainly working well with no channeling, but the triple is elusive. I am using a 58mm flat Reg tamper, and the triple is showing that I have problems with the sealing of the puck to the basket. Something to work on, I guess.

It is great developing your skill on a good machine - I was getting frustrated with the Saeco, there were too many limitations with it and if you were making 4 caps, it was slow. The Vetrano sure pumps them out, in comparison.



Doug

[kaioslider]

Congratulations !

I did the same upgrade path and experienced the same points you mentioned, I also ran a the line from the drip tray to the sink. I forgot about needing to hold Silvia with one hand while locking in the PF, it had become so automatic. Un-Silvia training was unexpected, all those little things that were part of the routine. I'm getting better at the frothing, again, a lot of it was untraining myself. Specifically, speed, once I stopped relying on the frothing thermometer, which worked so well on the Siliva, and started focusing on the milk, frothing milk started to become clearer.

I got mine as part of the first shipment after the initial 30, about 2 months now, I just don't see me upgrading again. When I first started looking, I shied away from the whole HX thing and was convinced I'd upgrade to a dual boiler, but cost and not being satisfied with my DB choices, and the deal at the time on the Vetrano sealed it for me. Yeah, I'm just totally satisfied with my machine and wouldn't trade it for a DB, once you get it, you got it.

Happy pulls

[steveschoon]

Ceasing use of a thermometer is an interesting idea...I'm going to try that. I do notice that I am much more inclined to make milk drinks with Vetrano than I ever was with Silvia.

I was also thinking that I wanted a double-boiler machine, and I was thinking hard about the S1, but in the end, needing a 20-amp circuit installed and then having to buy a 53mm naked portafilter, a new 53mm tamper, started to sound crazy because I already had all the stuff I needed in 58mm for Silvia. Like you, I am completely satisfied with the Vetrano, and I'm glad I decided to go that way.

[kaioslider]

Your observations and experiences seem to be right inline with mine.

I still use my thermometer, I just don't rely on it, rather I watch the progression of the milk. The thermometer just makes sure I'm not quitting too early or too late. I think there is a bit of a lag in the thermometer.