That's a nice machine. Enjoy the espresso

I'll pass on some good advice given to me: when pulling the lever down with your right hand, always hold firmly onto the portafilter handle with your left. There's enough force on the lever to tip over the machine with a kettle full of scalding water.

Regards
Timo

Yike, that would be terrible. I read someone else making that warning, very good advice, thank you. Anyone know if a Riviera PF or any other 45mm PF's are compatible with this unit?

Huskyfox wrote:Yike, that would be terrible. I read someone else making that warning, very good advice, thank you. Anyone know if a Riviera PF or any other 45mm PF's are compatible with this unit?

Don't worry the PF will not hold you back from making a good shot- but nope...... , no other PF fit this little gal except mayne a Comocafe- they are just about as rare. We do have a sculptor in the group in Toronto and he can custom cast you one. Probably cost you more than your machine is worth... He does great work. I would just focus on seeing how you feel after dial in your grind and technique.

happy shots!!

Don't let Peppina reach a full boil. If you forget and leave the water boiling, the electrical plug will dislodge by design (ESPULSORE AUTOMATICO) but it is possible to overheat the piston o-ring and the washers if the machine gets too hot, and they will perish.

Because the water temperature is where it ought to be and not super-heated, a lightweight portafilter and group are appropriate, as they won't take much heat from the water. FE-AR went to lightweight metals long before the makers of tennis rackets did

Regards
Timo

Interesting! That makes sense. I guess I just have a hard time getting used to the cheap-feel of a PF like this one. But if the shot is good, I will be happy all the same. The bronze PF is tempting, but I have no idea what he will charge for that.
Looks like I will have to go with a wooden tamp, it's the only one I see that's decent and readily available. I haven't been able to try my machine yet, I took it all apart, cleaned it up by hand, but I am waiting for some food-grade lube and cleaners to come in via UPS from espressoparts. I wiped away a lot of the piston's and cylinder's old, black grease, I hope that's ok.. I intend to replenish it with "Sanitary Petrol Gel Lubricant" from espressoparts, hope that works out. Thanks for the replies.

The Peppina portafilter is now encased in rubber. At the next stage I will pour waxes into the rubber mold and then decide whether to keep the original design or model the wax and have a different looking portafilter.

Hey Mogo, I am from Montreal.

timo888 wrote:The back of the machine will have a plate that says 1100W 110V -- near the electrical plug.
Regards
Timo

Timo.
Mine does not have that plate. The one "clue" I do have is that on the power on/off switch built into the power cord (Fulgor - Made in Italy) I see "10A" over "250v". Thus my suspicion it is the 1000 watt model.
-Gene

ghal wrote:Mine does not have that plate. The one "clue" I do have is that on the power on/off switch built into the power cord (Fulgor - Made in Italy) I see "10A" over "250v". Thus my suspicion it is the 1000 watt model.
-Gene

If you take the machine apart, some of them have this information stamped into the calrod. There is a very high resolution pic of the calrod so marked earlier in the thread.

Regards
Timo
P.S. To examine the calrod, you can remove the center rod from inside the kettle with a little nail or hex wrench to get some leverage to turn the rod counterclockwise to unscrew it. See the Packaging La Peppina for Shipment thread for pictures. Gently lift the kettle from the base. When tightening the rod again after replacing the kettle, take care to hand-tighten the rod and do it gently. Overtightening the rod can crack the kettle. You need only establish sufficient compression against the o-ring at the base of the kettle to form a watertight seal. A little no-melt food-safe lubricant on the o-ring can help.

Finally got what I needed today (food grade lube and cleaners) and fully reassembled the machine. I didn't have any fresh espresso beans on hand so I opened a container of Illy, but found the fine grind was not fine enough for this machine. Otherwise all seems great, except I noticed chrome on the top rim of the PF is coming off. I can't remember if it was like that before I started using it or not.. I hope it's not going to start flaking/peeling more on other areas too, like the ears. I'll have more pictures soon.

happytamper wrote:The Peppina portafilter is now encased in rubber. At the next stage I will pour waxes into the rubber mold and then decide whether to keep the original design or model the wax and have a different looking portafilter.

I'd be keen to see your results!