Hello all!

I've been lurking the forums for a couple of months now, soaking up all this knowledge, and now I'm hoping to contribute a little.

A little background on my coffee history: in my small town (28k people), there is no good coffee within a 2 hour radius. We have 6 Tim Horton's, that should give you a good indication of the quality of coffee the people like.

I started to drink "speciality coffee" when I travelled to Italy and Australia and became a big fan. Once I returned home, I started to brew with a French press when I could get decent beans from the city. I wanted to venture into espresso so badly.

Before I did any research and found home-barista, I saw the ROK Presso and decided I wanted to get it. Hey, it's a looker, plus I figured it was a cheap way to get into espresso. It wasn't until I came here and realized that it technically isn't real espresso and has some other issues (heat sink, lower pressure, air gap). I am going to attempt to fill the airspace under the plunger with some HDPE rod to improve function. I might also look into tapping a hole to put a pressure gauge in.

It only took a few attempts of turning a Hario Skerton 300 times to grind 18g of beans to end up destroying it by utilizing a cordless drill. The Presso has sat unused on my counter awaiting a real grinder. I was going to buy a used Super Jolly, but really couldn't afford it right now, especially with the Canadian dollar so low. I was scared to delve into manual grinders after the Hario disappointment, but after reading rave reviews, I have a Lido E on its way to me now! It was between that and the Pharos, but I decided on portability and ease of use since I'll likely bring this camping too. I also have a Bellman steamer that makes great steamed milk with decent microfoam.

Onto my question: Should I bother spending money on modding the Presso and attempt to get some decent shots out of it? Or should I just save and get the better functioning EspressoForge later on?

P.S. Sorry if this intro is in the wrong section, I couldn't find a dedicated sub-forum

The ROK will get you at least decent shots if you use enough water (I use 100-150ml). I have several posts about my techniques if you'd like to browse them. Will link when off my phone!
Don't be discouraged! It may not suit your preferences for fuss, but it doesn't need to be modified.

What part of Canada are you from ?

I would say this is a useful discussion and a video on page 4, please feel free to ask Qs
Newbie with ROK espresso maker questions

There's heaps of flexibility in the device and I think that's a major source of problems... for instance I've started using paper filters to keep it clean and now I just use a single stroke of the levers (and a change in grind). I feel that perhaps there's less coffee oil in the system which reduced lubrication in addition to the slight extra resistance of the filter that made my old technique less successful.

JFDUP wrote:What part of Canada are you from ?

Small town Saskatchewan. Closest big city is Edmonton, my favorite cafe there by far is Transcend by Garneau Theatre.

aecletec wrote:I would say this is a useful discussion and a video on page 4, please feel free to ask Qs
Newbie with ROK espresso maker questions

There's heaps of flexibility in the device and I think that's a major source of problems... for instance I've started using paper filters to keep it clean and now I just use a single stroke of the levers (and a change in grind). I feel that perhaps there's less coffee oil in the system which reduced lubrication in addition to the slight extra resistance of the filter that made my old technique less successful.

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm assuming you're putting the paper filter between the shower screen and the coffee?

I also forgot to mention that I have a naked portafilter on its way also, to help aid my extractions.

The biggest thing for me is to get the Lido in my hands, that way I can practice pumping out more than one or two failed shots a day.

Yep just an aeropress filter between the screen and basket. It won't seal as well with alternate baskets (la pavoni, krups, generic ebay), but reduces cleaning.

Just get a proper lever machine

Want to give me $1500?

Fredericton, NB here. Nice to see another canuck. good luck with your machine. I've seen tons of videos online on how to use it. There must be some method to maximize what you get out of it. What kind of grinder do you have?

jbenson4 wrote:Want to give me $1500?

Get a la pavoni Europiccola for less than a third of that and really start learning and enjoying the art