Wicked Lure of the Lever... - Page 5

[grong]

And it is easier to get a level surface by tamping a basket when it is sitting on the countertop than by tamping with the basket in the PF.

Yes, I think so, too. I use a little tamping saucer, formerly paired with an espresso cup--this to catch most of the stray grounds.

I collect my fresh grounds from the grinder in a little plastic cup, so there is no spilling. This is upended and contents tapped into the basket on its tamping saucer. I cover with a single basket, quick upwards shake ala Mr. Brown's Distribution Technique, light tamp, then into the portafilter to be locked into the espresso machine. My counter is much neater than it used to be. Just my little system worked out for me.

[Dogshot]

My PV Export came with the spring-loaded PF. I removed the spring so that I could leave the PF connected to the group to do my warming flush, etc., and then just pop in the dosed basket and pull.

I also have an MDF grinder. My MDF saw 2 years of solid use, and the burrs are at the point where I believe they should be replaced. However, it will still choke my Export at a 3 setting. Before blaming the grinder, I would try some different coffee that you know for sure is less than 2 weeks old. I should also point out that having gotten used to the stepless feature of my Macap M4, I find the MDF to be a serious pain. An upgrade to any stepless grinder would make a big difference to your ability to achieve consistency and the freedom to dose to whatever level you want.

If cost is an issue, you could consider the Ascaso i2 stepless conical grinder. I have no direct experience with it, but it seems pretty good for the price.


Mark

[kikuchio]

The baskets of many machines of vintage design fit loosely. Vanelis provides a basket spring-clip retainer, but I don't use it. It doesn't take long to develop the skill to hold the basket in place with the tip of your thumb and thumbnail as you flip it. I don't have any barista calouses. The discomfort comes mainly from your brain warning you that your thumb appears to be in danger; but it only feels as if your skin is being burnt.

Or, using a hammer and punch, you could create a peen bump on the outer wall of the basket which would cause it to sit more tightly in the holder.

Regards
Timo

here is the infomation i can provide.
the ground coffee level at the top of the basket before any tamping the weight is about 11.5 - 12 grams.
a light tamp to give about 5mm of space to the basket rim results in a first pull of about of about 12 - 15 seconds from when i release the handle to when the dripping about stops. the second pull is still very fast, both in how rapidly the handle rises (4 or 5 seconds) and in flow(definitely less than 10 seconds) which seems almost completely blond.
from your descriptions this does not seem to be ideal.
i doubt there is any significant amount of malabar in the beans, which came fro the good coffee company and are about a week old.

PC

what is that grinder you pictured?



thanks again
regards to all

kikuchio

[peacecup]

I usually dose closer to 15 g. and leave less than 5 mm space.

I suspect the beans from GCC are much older than a week POST ROAST. You need to ask Carl the roast date, and either get some less than 2 weeks POST ROAST or get some from somewhere else. Caffe Umbria used to put roast dates on the bags try their Gusto Crema. Also, Zoka's, Viviace, and Cafe D'Arte are good - but again they need to be < 2 weeks POST ROAST.

Also dark roasts like GCC produce less crema in general, and require a finer grind.

The hand grinder is a KYM from Ebay - they can be had for <$50, but you need to check with the seller to be sure the burrs are in very good condition (sharp and not rusty, fully adjustable, etc). If you see one you can send me a PM to ask my opinion if you'd like.

I still think you need to give the MDF a chance with a fresh, lighter roasted espresso blend. Dose a little fuller and tamp to 30 lbs. Check out the video "A Little Blonde"

http://www.home-barista.com/forum...ng%20lever%20video

PC

[kikuchio]

[quote="peacecup"]I usually dose closer to 15 g. and leave less than 5 mm space.

I suspect the beans from GCC are much older than a week POST ROAST. You need to ask Carl the roast date, and either get some less than 2 weeks POST ROAST or get some from somewhere else. Caffe Umbria used to put roast dates on the bags try their Gusto Crema. Also, Zoka's, Viviace, and Cafe D'Arte are good - but again they need to be < 2 weeks POST ROAST.

Also dark roasts like GCC produce less crema in general, and require a finer grind.

The hand grinder is a KYM from Ebay - they can be had for <$50, but you need to check with the seller to be sure the burrs are in very good condition (sharp and not rusty, fully adjustable, etc). If you see one you can send me a PM to ask my opinion if you'd like.

I still think you need to give the MDF a chance with a fresh, lighter roasted espresso blend. Dose a little fuller and tamp to 30 lbs. Check out the video "A Little Blonde"

http://www.home-barista.com/forum...ng%20lever%20video

PC[/quote

thanks peacecup,
i will try to find a local source for fresher beans to see what difference they may make. meanwhile, i will try some of the other variations suggested


kikuchio

[peacecup]

By the way, in the video I dosed with the basket in the portafilter for convenience. In real life I dose with the basket on a plate, where it is easier to level. I dose some, gently tap a few times to settle the grinds, then dose some more.

I didn't see you were in LA - I don't know of any roasters there, but several of the HB sponsors will ship on the roast day, and you'll have it by day 2-3. Check out the HB birthday sales page.

PC

[kikuchio]

By the way, in the video I dosed with the basket in the portafilter for convenience. In real life I dose with the basket on a plate, where it is easier to level. I dose some, gently tap a few times to settle the grinds, then dose some more.

I didn't see you were in LA - I don't know of any roasters there, but several of the HB sponsors will ship on the roast day, and you'll have it by day 2-3. Check out the HB birthday sales page.

PC

you're right, there a very few roasters nearby. however, as you point out, several can have fresh beans in my mailbox within a few days of roasting.
i've heard that intellegentsia may be opening a shop in the los angeles area.

i will check out the birthday page.

thanks again,
kikuchio

[timo888]

the ground coffee level at the top of the basket before any tamping the weight is about 11.5 - 12 grams.
a light tamp to give about 5mm of space to the basket rim results in a first pull of about of about 12 - 15 seconds from when i release the handle to when the dripping about stops. the second pull is still very fast, both in how rapidly the handle rises (4 or 5 seconds) and in flow(definitely less than 10 seconds) which seems almost completely blond.
from your descriptions this does not seem to be ideal.
i doubt there is any significant amount of malabar in the beans, which came fro the good coffee company and are about a week old.

OK, assuming the beans are fresh and that with your tamp you are giving it little more than the weight of the tamp itself, using finger power not arm power...

When you pull the lever down for the first time, count to 10 before you let it go.

Try that, to see if the preinfusion will help out the extraction on the second pull.

Regards
Timo

[kikuchio]

OK, assuming the beans are fresh and that with your tamp you are giving it little more than the weight of the tamp itself, using finger power not arm power...

When you pull the lever down for the first time, count to 10 before you let it go.

Try that, to see if the preinfusion will help out the extraction on the second pull.

Regards
Timo

Timo, PC and all

the adventure continues....
i've tried several of the options that have been suggested. new beans too.
the longer preinfusion seems to extend the first pull a couple of seconds but the second pull still gushes.

a bit heavier tamping pressure does seem to lengthen the pull duration but my perception is that the result in the cup is more bitter.

just to clarify for me - when we are discussing the duration of the shot are we talking about how long it takes for the lever to rise or the time from when the pour starts to when the the drips about cease?

best,
kikuchio

[peacecup]

OK K,

Here's what happened to me today. I put two coffee scoops (<15 g) of fresh (<1 week Post-roast) beans into my hand grinder, ground em up, and tamped them fairly lightly. I pulled the lever all the way to the bottom, did my little Fellini extra pull (not required, and I'd wait to start using it if I were you) then let the lever rise. It didn't. It rose a little and completely stalled. This is because the grinds were too fine - I had used the grinder the prior day with my pump machine, which requires a finer grind, and I forgot to adjust it before I used the Ponte Vecchio. The point of all this is that with a reasonable tamp and dose your grinder should be able to completely stall your lever. If it is set as fine as it can go and the lever is rising very rapidly, you'd better try tamping harder (dosing full might help too). An approximate time schedule is 0-10 secs - pull the lever to the bottem and wait 10-20 secs, first rise of the lever 20-30 secs pull and rise again.

If you grind fine and pull the lever down the first time to hold for 10 sec, are you seeing coffee flow out of the PF? A few drops would be ok, but if its flowing you're not grinding fine enough. I prefer a grind fine enough that no drops will appear for the full 10 sec pre-infusion.

PC

[timo888]

the longer preinfusion seems to extend the first pull a couple of seconds but the second pull still gushes.

a bit heavier tamping pressure does seem to lengthen the pull duration but my perception is that the result in the cup is more bitter.

just to clarify for me - when we are discussing the duration of the shot are we talking about how long it takes for the lever to rise or the time from when the pour starts to when the the drips about cease?

I mean the duration of the flow, from when the stream starts to when the stream ends. Don't count drips at the end.

After you grind, are you guesstimating, or actually weighing the dose?

Did a heavier tamp prevent gushing on the second pull?

At your finest grind setting on the MDF, yet still with only a light leveling tamp, are you ever able to stall the machine by increasing the dose?

I still suspect the grind is too coarse. Perhaps new burrs for the MDF would be an economical approach? Then, if you still need to sell it, you could say it has new burrs.

Regards
Timo

[kikuchio]

Well basically, having tried as many different variations as i could, the conclusion seems to be that even at the finest setting the mdf does not grind fine enough. With a light tamp the pull will not stall. heavier dosing, so that there are only about 3mm between the coffee and the rim, lengthens the pull a bit, but still no stall. a heavy tamp will just about stall the machine on the first pull.

the burrs are only a few months old and have seen perhaps 2 or 3 kilos of coffee as i have been rearching a new machine.

it would appear that there is a different grinder in my future.

thanks to all for your kind advice

kikuchio

[mgwolf]

I'm not familiar with the mdf but I think others have used it quite successfully as an espresso grinder. Perhaps the burrs are misaligned. On some grinders it's possible to screw them in 90 or 180 degrees off so the numbers are not representative of the actual grind. So, for example, at the finest setting, you may be grinding much coarser than you thought. Anyone else know more about the MDF than me? Michael