Through the whole VAM to Caravel to Caravel Lite (seals in cylinder) we have not seen any difference in the portafilter body, just the handle..... thin ears, spun or pressed stainless steel body....same portafilter for all of them. Other differences yes. the basket is by the way 43.5mm inside diameter and the fit in the pf body is tight. 45mm baskets will not fit.
forgive the rush.....had a long day coffee touring Seattle today and am slowly unwinding. Paying a house call on a VAM with a permanently erect lever tomorrow. I think after 4 hours one is supposed to consult a doctor but this has been over 4 weeks! An interesting case for us.

I'll take picture of the two different PFs on the Caravel today. Will be getting the digicamera out for my Cremina experience lever showdown with Reiss later today....

Theough they look different they may of course both fit. I'll try that.....

I did that. The old fits in the new one but the new one won't fit in the old.

Here's a pic:



The old VAM PF is on the right, the new orange Caravel on the left.

Cheers

Mike

I do believe that the VAM is slightly smaller in inside diameter than the Caravel. My Penney tamper fits comfortably in the Caravel basket, but is slightly too large for the VAM.

Ditto with my very nice orange jobby from OE. Well actually it does fit VAM filter but can't go down very far. It has to be dosed to the top....

hi mike

sorry ive not got back to you before now. thought HB would send a mail if anyone replied....
ill make sure i keep a better eye on it this time

well my caravel has just arrived via good old italian post...its a silver model so from what you said im guessing an earlier version...resevoir release it right at the top, under that the thremostat regulator, and down by the foot what i think is an on/off switch (twists left /right from red to green)....the plug looks original and is stamped with arrarex...and the drip tray does seem to have VAM pierced through it...does that help at all in figuring out which size portafilter i need?
and any ideas where to get one?

thanks
chris

Hi Chris,

you are probably going to need the type on the right. I'm afraid I have absolutely no idea where you can pick one up. The drip trays and portafilters are the most commonly missing parts in ebay sales....

Cheers

Mike

thanks mike

and damn
having now had a play and taken off the resevoir there is the VAM under that....at least now i know what it is i need now. from the pic the older one looks to have a bit of a lip up by the basket and is slightly deeper....are there any other ways to tell them apart? ie if i come across one how do i tell the difference tween old and new? if the newer version wont fit the older, dont want to end up with one of those...so near and yet so far...

cheers
chris

The handle is the big give-away as are the slightly more pronounced "teats" for the twin holes at the bottom - all reasonably easy to see in the photo.

I can send you a bigger photo if you like.

Cheers

Mike

thanks mike....that would be helpful

cheers
chris

OK. PM me your email address and I will send you a few photos from different angles....

either of those handles will fit. The teeth on the bayonet are formed differently- but ever PF fits every machine- from VAM all the way to the Zerowatt thing.

chances of finding a lone PF seem pretty slim I should say. Getting one made is the best bet.

michaelbenis wrote:The old fits in the new one but the new one won't fit in the old.

I just read Sorrentinacaffe's comment and so went and tested again, and I have to admit I was wrong. It takes a bit of fiddling on mine but it will work: you can get the newer ones to slot into the older machines. I just couldn;t manage it first time round

Sorry for the confusion.

Mike