The short wire between element leads makes me think this was originally wired like a Faemina, with both elements ON for the MAX setting. If this is a 220V to 110V conversion, then switching to this scheme would have been a possibility to get sufficient watts from the existing elements. If the elements are sized for sufficient power at 220V you may be underpowered at 110V.

dcbrown wrote:The short wire between element leads makes me think this was originally wired like a Faemina, with both elements ON for the MAX setting.

I take that back. This is consistent with either wiring scheme.

What a fun project and thanks for keeping us in the loop.

Looking at the pic of the element, it appears that it reads W250, W750, and V(volt)110, so would indicate a 110V machine with two elements in the assembly, 250W and 750W. With the elements jumper'd like that, if you wire power to the remaining posts you would have 1,000W. It would seem that it was originally set up with a second switch to give you a hi/low between the 250W element and the 750W element. Low being just the 250W live and the hi adding the 750W in series. Just a guess, but the '1' and '0' markings on the element indicate the two legs of that element. Reading resistance would tell you which was the 250 and which the 750, or it could be that the stamping on the element body indicates the wattage of the element it is close to. That is if the markings are traditional.

What is the fitting on the bottom next to the element? Looking at the three holes in the front, the far right being for the power cord and one for the drip tray drain tube, it would seem the machine was intended for plumb-in, with the third hole for the water line. The top knob seems to have a pressure relief valve, and not knowing the scale of the machine looks to be rather small for filling. Tho it is possible it is designed for both, much like the Rivieras.

Agree that the lamp is probably a neon. There's also a '76' stamped into the casting next to the element, tho most of the machine looks like something from the '50s. The '53 Caffomatic also had hemp packing for the valves. Looking at the rather sloppy fitting and zinc plating of the bottom cover, it is possibly an added later kludge.

cuppajoe wrote:What a fun project and thanks for keeping us in the loop.

It's my pleasure! Thanks for all the informative help!

cuppajoe wrote:Looking at the pic of the element, it appears that it reads W250, W750, and V(volt)110, so would indicate a 110V machine with two elements in the assembly, 250W and 750W.

Upon further inspection, I think you're right! It was a little deceiving because it looks like the "V" might have been struck twice, but yeah it makes sense.

cuppajoe wrote:Reading resistance would tell you which was the 250 and which the 750

I took some resistance measurements! After this reply I'm going to put together another post with new pictures, so stay tuned!

cuppajoe wrote:it would seem the machine was intended for plumb-in, with the third hole for the water line.

Is that a thing? How would it work? If the water flows directly into the boiler, wouldn't heating it cause problems?

cuppajoe wrote:The top knob seems to have a pressure relief valve, and not knowing the scale of the machine looks to be rather small for filling.

The pressure relief valve is definitely too small for filling, but the hole that the top knob screws out of is big enough! Here it is:

cuppajoe wrote:There's also a '76' stamped into the casting next to the element, tho most of the machine looks like something from the '50s.

The number stamped next to the element is actually a '94'. It's the same number that is stamped on the bottom cover, so I'm thinking it has something to do with voltage. Is it possible that the input voltage is 110V, but then after passing through the lightbulb it drops to 94V, hence 94V at the element? Although then I wouldn't know why it would say 110V on the element...

That doesn't look to me like a fill cap. You'd be looking for something that's made to be removed and replaced every day perhaps several times, because of the very small boiler. Commonly they have coarse, rounded plastic threads - coarse and rounded so they're easy to start, plastic so they don't wear the female threads. No washer. And large so you can easily pour water into it.

He's right, it does look kind of like plumbed in, though of course that's very unusual for a small domestic machine like that. But there'd have to be more than just a hole in the front of the base - did I miss something, is it clear where the water line would enter the boiler? You'd need a fitting that would hold up to mains pressure, and a valve to seal it off when the boiler pressure goes up. Earlier I was thinking that the top valve might be where the water connects, but I don't see any way to hook a line to it.

AGordo wrote:The number stamped next to the element is actually a '94'. It's the same number that is stamped on the bottom cover, so I'm thinking it has something to do with voltage. Is it possible that the input voltage is 110V, but then after passing through the lightbulb it drops to 94V, hence 94V at the element?

That wouldn't be it. The bulb and the element would be wired in parallel so that each would have 110V if the power cord has 110V. Maybe it's a serial number.

homeburrero wrote:The bulb and the element would be wired in parallel so that each would have 110V if the power cord has 110V. Maybe it's a serial number.

Okay that makes sense. I hadn't really thought about how to connect up the light bulb yet. And I think you might be right about the serial number. I just remembered that there is also a '94' stamped into the base of the portafilter.

AGordo wrote:It's my pleasure! Thanks for all the informative help!

More than welcome, glad I can return something to repay all the help I have recieved.

Is that a thing? How would it work? If the water flows directly into the boiler, wouldn't heating it cause problems?

There is a fitting of some sort on the bottom that looks like it connects to the boiler. It may be damaged or not the original part, which would probably have had a tube for attaching the water feed. My guess it relied on an outboard valve to control water filling, which would be done between brews. The Riviera uses a similar system, but with an onboard valve. When the sight glass indicates water getting low, turn on valve to fill.

The pressure relief valve is definitely too small for filling, but the hole that the top knob screws out of is big enough! Here it is:

For manual filling, the large knob would be removed and not uncommon for there to be a gasket.

The number stamped next to the element is actually a '94'. It's the same number that is stamped on the bottom cover, so I'm thinking it has something to do with voltage. Is it possible that the input voltage is 110V, but then after passing through the lightbulb it drops to 94V, hence 94V at the element? Although then I wouldn't know why it would say 110V on the element...

See it now as a 94, and it probably is either a serial or production number. Once you get the elements out there may be a date stamp on the calrods, plus the wattages. Will be interesting to see what the piston seal looks like. The unmolested 53 Caffomatic I'm working on had hemp packing for the seal.

Italy did have 100 and 125 volt at one time , but never heard of 110, which would indicate it as possibly produced for export.

Alright, so I bought a multimeter and some PVC pipe and tried to keep going a little bit deeper with this disassembly.

First thing I did was check the heating element to see if it's still in good shape:




I also checked for any shorts between the leads and the body of the element and there doesn't seem to be any shorts. These measurement readings are pretty encouraging since they're pretty close to the right power values! Remember P = V^2/R so P = 110^2 / 17.8 = 680W and P = 11^2 / 49.8 = 243W. These values are close enough to 750W and 250W to suggest that the heating element should still function as intended.

Next, I needed to compress the spring to be able to remove the lever and piston. I used a vice and a piece of PVC:




The removed lever and pins:



The piston and spring:



Piston head with one remaining gasket:



Spring that has quite a bit of rust:



I'm assuming it was the rusty spring that was jamming the lever? What would be the best way to remove the rust and restore the spring to working condition? Right now I'm thinking of using steel wool to remove the large rust flakes, then possibly soaking the spring in CLR before using steel wool to remove any remaining rust. Is there any better method?

Okay, so next I removed the sight glass and gasket:






Note that one of the screws had previously been sheered off and is stuck in the body of the machine. Here's a picture of the space between the sight glass and group to allow for the water level to pass through and be seen:



Fixture, sight glass, and gasket:



Group gasket (and removed):




What seems to be paper rings underneath the gasket (and removed):




Everything removed:



Piston head gasket (and removed):




I recently noticed that there is some more writing around the heating element:



One side says 31M and the other side (apologies for it being blurry in the photo) I think says RECO. I googled "RECO heating element", and it turns out it's a heating element company out of Italy, which makes sense. 31M might be an old product number.

I've tried on multiple occasions to unscrew the heating element from the body of the machine and have not been able to. I don't want to force anything too much. I managed to get a look inside the boiler (and took a picture) and there is a considerable amount of what looks like possible calcium buildup (white powdery/flaky/crusty substance). I'm thinking it might be the reason why it's difficult for me to unscrew the element? Here's a picture I managed to snap of the inside of the boiler, showing the element at the bottom:



I think an important next step for me is to be able to properly clean and treat the inside of the machine as well as all of its elements. Does anyone have any recommendations as to what the best way to go about this might be? Do I have to fill the boiler with a certain substance and let it soak? If anyone has any suggestions as to how to clean everything out and restore the machine for safe use, that would be much appreciated.

Also, are there any suggestions for the best way to replace the gaskets?

cuppajoe wrote:The unmolested 53 Caffomatic I'm working on had hemp packing for the seal.

Any idea on what the best way to replace that would be?