I thought i'd post some pic's of my latest restoration project, waiting on parts and re-chroming at the moment, will post more pic's as i get it finished.I had a few parts different from others shown on here, so i thought i'd post these.It's from the first Conti French factory before they moved to Monaco around mid 60's



Still has original Sopac pressurestat



Different piston than others i've seen, takes 2 Faema seals (V & W)

Great looking machine...elegantly simple design. What is the second lever on the left for? Manual fill?

jarviscochrane wrote:Great looking machine...elegantly simple design. What is the second lever on the left for? Manual fill?

Thanks, the left lever is indeed a manual boiler fill.They're quite an unusual valve, and seals are no longer available from conti.Luckily Orphan espresso has started making the seals.The biggest issue has been the panels.There are no stainless panels on it.they're all chromed brass, and after 51 years it was quite worn.

Kitt....here is your machine's equally grubby sister....electrified in a different way with SOPAC pstat accessible through the gas line hole in the frame on the side and what I think is the original piston. How these gal's get so grubby is beyond me!

Cheers Doug, always interesting to see alternative versions.Do you have a manufacture date for yours? Edith at Conti was very helpful in getting mine (1960)
Although the outer castings are the same, my spring/piston assembly looks completely different than yours.I wonder if its original, or an earlier version.Good luck with the resto, it certainly looks like its had a hard life (like mine) but sometimes these are the most satisfying projects when you look at the before and after shots

I think part of the clue to age is the Conti front badge...oval vs rectangular....but I have no information as to when they changed the shape. This is the 2nd Empress I have seen and in each case the piston was the same as this one....3 seals, leading to the possibility of a changed piston on yours, but as long as it works!

A Conti history expert would know this but it seems to me that all of these machines were gas fueled. No voltage or wattage stamped on the badge. Both this one and the other I had showed soot on the bottom of the boiler and inside of the case and if this is so it is too bad that whoever electrified them threw away the gas bits as they must have used a round burner instead of the linear ones in the old Faema machines. The electrical installation on mine pictured above is mostly insane since two pretty big elements are wedged in there and yours likely has a very nice long stemmed coil dangling in there. My previous model had two long stemmed coils intertwined. One if not both of my heating elements are burned out so there is a lot of sourcing to do on this one....I just got it out of storage to spec out some parts and fit a bottomless portafilter for a guy and back into storage this one goes as there is a La San Marco calling out to me at present!

Hi Doug

My badge is stamped with 220V 1300W, and no markings in the gas field.The element was clean and still works.It may be a little slow at 1300W heating what i guess is around a 5L boiler.
The front badge is an interesting one, i've seen a few of the half ones, but the screw holes are still in the same place.Maybe when they moved to Monaco they still had alot of badges to use, so just cut the French address off the bottom?

Hello everyone

I saw two different pistons, one as your Doug and a different one:



On the left, the same as a "Conti Princess", and right an older one, from Empress the two ones.

Your piston Kitt, one really seems to be from a Faema President group's one

Pascal

zeb wrote:Your piston Kitt, one really seems to be from a Faema President group's one

Thanks Pascal, both Doug and i thought it may be a Faema piston, as it takes the faema V and W seals.Once i get it up and running i'll check to see if it works as it is.If not i guess i'll have to get one machined up.

hello
color different for a empress:




dont now conti open in france and after change for monaco...
first model of group 1956 (the group is on a contact hot water)



the modification of different piston to empress is the position group/boiler (contact steam) the piston are large place on a V & W is for give more thermal contact hot water(fond boiler) and group.
best Restoration