stoked to finally have a lever!!

somewhat of a cross-post from Array/forums/used-pricing-for-rancilio-classe-6-leva-single-group-t32143.html, but this information is more pertinent to this forum

questions before I fire it up:

after moving the machine i found a stainless steel ball bearing sitting under it. i'm almost certain it came from somewhere inside the machine.

Being the idiot i am, i cocked the lever and went to lift it back to home position. I WAS NOT EXPECTING IT TO SHOOT UP LIKE THAT! It snapped into the up position with the full fury of the spring!

could i have damaged anything by this total newbie move? I'm worried that ball bearing came from somewhere in the group mechanics.

I'm pretty competent in HX machine repair, but i know absolutely nothing about levers. (hoping to learn lots!)

currently possibilities of where ball bearing came from:
1. the bearings at the base of the lever

2. the rancilio patented steam wand C-levers (do they have a ball bearing in the detents?) the action of them feels OK.
3. some sort of ball bearing check valve in the lever group?

Great score on the tank!

At least your face wasn't in the way of the lever when it slammed back to the up position

Not familiar with these units but the exploded parts schematics on a few sites like Nuova Ricambi, Ascaso, etc don't show any other ball bearings except for the lever cam bearings.

I assume it was just a small ball from a bearing that you found? If it is from the lever cam bearing then I'd expect you'd be also missing the washer that fits against the ball bearing that effectively acts as a shield for the bearing. I can't see how one of the balls from those bearings could come out if the shields are in place on both bearings.

Take a look at the schematics on one of the parts websites if you haven't got a copy.

Does the lever mechanism feel ok?

My Faema lever group does have a small ball (like from a bearing) in the lower part of the group for adjusting pre-infusion I believe, but it doesn't appear the Rancilio lever group has the same arrangement.

Good luck

Yeah, his lever looks to be at least closed off bearings from that picture. (unlike the Strega)
The ball bearing is probably from something else, but in the meantime throw it in the extra parts box in case you find a spot for it later.

You're gonna love the lever, at least I hope you will. They aren't for everyone it seems, but if you don't mind the initial pull there's not much different from an auto/semi-auto operation. In the cup though they can be very different.

And remember... Wet hands and levers don't mix. The handle gets slippery and it's easy to loose grip at the wrong time. Practice pulling with your head, face, chin out of the way of the lever, standing just off center and you likely will never worry about breaking a jaw.

Occasionally on Rancilios, you will find a small ball bearing in the back of the water valve and/or steam valve. They are put there to slow down the flow of the water/ steam from the valves.

If the valves were ever dismantled or disconnected by someone not expecting the ball bearing to be there, chances are that it has fallen out and lodged in the bottom of the machine case.

The valve that has this ball bearing in it will also have a split hollow cylinder in it, which acts to stop the ball bearing from totally blocking flow from the valve.

I will post a pic of this when I get the chance.

Cheers

Mouldy: thanks for the ideas. the lever mechanism feels fine, but bear in mind that I have zero experience with any levers. if anything, there's a very slight amount of 'twist' or lateral play that i'm able to exert on the lever. should it be super tight in all other axes other than up-down?


Dano: thanks for all the help! i've been having trouble finding exploded diagrams for this machine in particular but i'll definitely keep the ball around just in case.

Gor: after i finish wiring the power for this machine, i'll power it up and see if any of the steam valves are out of balance.

well, it's now up and running! steam is great and hot water is hot!

unfortunately no water is coming out of the group head. i'm going to pull it apart sometime next week to see if there is any scale blocking passages...

any other ideas?

update: pulled the group and found a ton of coffee crud covering the shower screen as well as on the piston itself. i've been soaking it all in detergent and citric acid baths to get it cleaned up.

the upper and lower pipes going into the group seem to be unrestricted and the group itself seems to flow fine...

this thread had some helpful information on the group itself and unfortunately, mine was not nearly as clean when i removed it.. Removing shower screen from Rancilio Classe 6 lever

what else could be preventing flow?

there are two allen bolts on the back of the group that i pulled just to inspect. there was some sort of loctite on them and they seem to go straight through the group to the brewing area. any idea what these are for?

there's a hex nut on the bottom side of the group that houses a spring w/ a plunger looking piece. what is this for? is it some sort of flow regulator?