Hi,

I introduced myself in rollcall, and hope to be inducted as I am lever-centric, but let me restate a few relevant things to this post: I learned on commercial spring-levers in the 90s, finally go back to making espresso a few years back and was enjoying the Presso, but tired of the ever-cracking plastic pistons (even with good technique, eventually... ). So I looked for a reasonable spring lever and bought an Arin, which was built in the 70s in Spain.



The portafilter reportedly holds 5gm of coffee (I haven't weighted my fills yet), which is quite small, and the shots I've pulled seem somewhat smaller than a shot (but perhaps I'm used to doubles). On my first fill the machine was choked, even helping the lever back up was a struggle (6'4" and full of muscle - Midnight Oil), so I coarsened the grind a bit and relaxed my tamp pressure, but finally found that leaving it just lightly filled to the brim of the portafilter and then using the group head screen's depth while tightening the portafilter was enough - BUT someone said that coffee should not touch the group head. My pucks look very nice in case that matters.

Of course it comes with no instructions so I've been looking for how to operate the machine on the web. There is scant info about these machines (links to what there is posted elsewhere in this forum). Here is what I know about it:

The Arin has no power switch; plug it in to turn it on. It has no "boiler", as the element is in the group head, along with everything else; the machine's body merely serves to hold the group head above the cup. It has no thermostat or other temperature control; after about 10mins the "full" (I assume I am filling it appropriately) group head/water reservoir reaches a boil; my question is when do I depress the lever to begin pre-infusion, are there any techniques during pre-infusion, and such. Nice thing is after 10mins of heating the group head/portafilter seem nice and toasty, so no pre-warming seems necessary (guesstimates of course).

I've been trying to just let it approach a boil (90-100 deg), then depress the lever to allow water to enter the portafilter, hold the lever for 10sec to pre-infuse, and then release (and help if slow - wondering about spring strength). I have also started to release and then depress the lever a few times during pre-infusion as there was this guidance in the la Peppina instructions I found on the web; I saw more bubbles indicating more water was entering the portafilter, so this might be a good practice and improve my shot quantity.

One problem is that it reaches a rolling boil before the shot is complete, and I wonder if that is a problem. I found a note in an auction for a Le Peppina to allow such a machine to reach a boil, then shut it off, allow it to cool for 30 seconds, before beginning pre-infusion (did not find this guidance in the la Pep instructions). My results with either method are nice tasting but slight on crema (tried several very good micro-roasters in my area: Sightglass, SF; Verve; Santa Cruz; Barefoot, San Jose; Chromatic, Santa Clara; etc.). Of course the coffee quantity may play a role in this as well.

Any thoughts or help appreciated. My first accessory will be a plug "switch" so I can avoid wearing out the very nice vintage US adapter that came with the Arin, which of course has a Spanish plug. I am curious about thermometers, and may eventually look into thermostats (plenty of room in the Arin's body) if the portafilter size is ok, or I can use a larger capacity unit from another machine (some doubt there from others posts).

I was hoping you might find instructions here:

http://www.francescoceccarelli.eu/arin_eng.htm

There is some history you might be interested in-for example, the company is from Spain, not Italy-as well as links to a newspaper article and advertisement (in Spanish) from the production era.

Ah, Spain, yes I glossed right over that detail. Thanks for the correction; I'll edit my post.

But I scoured that site, once again, and still don't see any link to instructions... did I miss it?

No you didn't miss anything. This site has instruction manuals for many vintage lever machines, but not the Arin.

Ob-v8 wrote:My results with either method are nice tasting but slight on crema (tried several very good micro-roasters in my area: Sightglass, SF; Verve; Santa Cruz; Barefoot, San Jose; Chromatic, Santa Clara; etc.). Of course the coffee quantity may play a role in this as well.

Home levers with relatively weak springs give this result unless you're still grinding too fine. But if coarsening the grind doesn't yield more crema, you can enjoy the flavor clarity for which such machines excel or try a booster spring. With this machine would be a one-off challenge to spec and source.

Thank you for the feedback drgary - I must admit that I am not adept at modifying the grind to change results - I will experiment with this, but if there is a tutorial about I'd appreciate a link.

I hadn't heard of a "booster spring" before, but I had thought about finding a stronger spring, and guessed like you that a replacement that fits the Arin's dimensions but produces the needed pressure (and not much more) will be a challenge. Maybe I'll ask Orphan what they think about the idea.

I have read that there's been some experimentation by some on a different (higher capacity) portafilter, with no luck. The portafilter from my old Presso almost fit, but the internal diameter was smaller than the shower head's. I agree with the talk in that thread, that cutting the Arin's portafilter to make it "naked" and also allowing for a deeper basket seems wrong-headed. Challenges abound.

David:

I've been experimenting with booster springs on my Lady Duchessa and Elektra Microcasa a Leva and can dial you in for grind. We're in the same area. I even have some springs that may work but would need to see your actual machine. If you'd like feel free to PM me and we can get together and figure out your Arin.

Gary

Thanks Gary,

unfortunately the Arin's piston gasket failed so I will need to replace it first. I have contacted Orphan to see if they have a suitable replacement first, and if not I will work on sourcing an replacement from other commercial sources. Any tips on the type of rubber that's best for these o-rings would be great (n-butyl?)

I'll have to borrow some calipers to measure the piston and o-ring's diameters. I'll also have to borrow a spring compressor... I had to remove the lever's pivot in order to access the last screw closing the chamber, but now its too difficult to compress it by hand, and keep my hand out of the way while someone else inserts the pivot hardware. I did notice that the screen and shower head were pretty fouled (maybe with an amalgam of coffee oils and disintegrating o-ring rubber), which may have muted the spring's pressure. Probably should have cleaned it up first thing.

You can always get the replacement from Francesco.

http://www.francescoceccarelli.eu/Ricam ... in_eng.htm

Ob-v8 wrote:Thanks Gary,

unfortunately the Arin's piston gasket failed so I will need to replace it first. I have contacted Orphan to see if they have a suitable replacement first, and if not I will work on sourcing an replacement from other commercial sources. Any tips on the type of rubber that's best for these o-rings would be great (n-butyl?)

I'll have to borrow some calipers to measure the piston and o-ring's diameters. I'll also have to borrow a spring compressor... I had to remove the lever's pivot in order to access the last screw closing the chamber, but now its too difficult to compress it by hand, and keep my hand out of the way while someone else inserts the pivot hardware. I did notice that the screen and shower head were pretty fouled (maybe with an amalgam of coffee oils and disintegrating o-ring rubber), which may have muted the spring's pressure. Probably should have cleaned it up first thing.

Not sure what type of rubber. Orphan or Stefano should be able to help you out. I've got a Jorgensen clamp and a larger spring clamp, so let me know.