I currently own the PV 'Lusso' machine and have gotten pretty decent results from it - I bought it from Vanelli's espresso in CA because it was the closest available machine to the Olympia Club which I used to own, and still regret selling. While the smaller machine is pretty cheap, and does use the same grouphead, the added power, thermal stability, and hot water tap make the Lusso a better deal IMHO.
Here's a quote from a msg I posted to the Sweet Maria's list:
"The Sama, Riveria, Ponte Veccio, Olympia 'Club,' and a host of other machines are all direct descendants of a Bezzeria design from the early '50's.
I used to own an Olympia Club - which IMHO was much better than the Cremina - but I stupidly sold it in a moment of impoverished frenzy. Which rash action I still regret, since there appears to be far more money in the world than decent espresso machines.
Here's a shot of our Ponte Vecchio:
More information available from the manufacturer:
http://www.pontevecchiosrl.it/
All of these machines have a roughly 3-litre boiler lying sideways (as opposed to most consumer HX machines which mount their boilers vertically) with a steam valve to the left and a hot water tap on the right side. The grouphead is a spring-loaded affair with typically a 49-51mm portafilter -except for the Bezzeria, which was 53mm - and uses a fairly deep basket like the Elektra.
Given good beans, and proper Grind, Tamp, and Extraction techniques, these machines can produce a lovely 1.5oz shot, although it's pretty difficult to get as much crema as a good HX machine will put out. Their steaming is typically excellent, although using a single-hole steam tip does take some practice - but, unlike the Pavoni's, you can steam and pour simultaneously
Initial temperature stability is quite good, the grouphead is bolted directly to the boiler, and there's enough water and metal mass to pull 3-4 shots before the group gets too hot to use - this is the major complaint about these machines, that they overheat relatively quickly, and there's no easy temperature 'fix' other than shutting them down to cool.
There are several other minor annoyances which underscore the age of this design, there's no separate water tank - you must fill the boiler when it's cold, which requires you to raise the cup-warming tray and unscrew a small knob on top of the boiler. You soon learn to check the boiler sight gauge before going to bed, since it's a major PITA to discover you've run out of water in the middle of a pour, and unscrewing the knob from a hot boiler is an instant lesion in excruciating.
There's also no vacuum breaker on the boiler, so you need to bleed off the 'false pressure' two or three time before the machine is really up to temperature and stable. It would be pretty simple to fit a breaker into the steam line, but I've been lazy and haven't gotten around to it yet.
My biggest complaint with all of the consumer-grade lever machines is that just don't hold enough coffee. I've been spoiled by the 58mm commercial-style baskets, especially the Marzocco 'triple' baskets, into which I can stuff 21gms of grind - it's a struggle to get 14gm into the Ponte Vecchio. 14gm is enough for a 1 to 1.5oz pour, but just doesn't quite cut it for a full 2oz shot - the richness and chewiness that I long for just disappear, and it's way to easy to get sour/fusty/mouldy notes from the smaller baskets.
