New Olympia Cremina 2011 from Olympia Express

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orphanespresso
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#1: Post by orphanespresso »

Olympia Express is now a subsidiary of Schatti Metallwarenfabrik located in Glarus Switzerland. The Olympia Cremina is now being manufactured in the new home of Olympia Express. The last model iteration of the Cremina was designated the Model 2008 and this new Cremina arrives with no model designation, so for the sake of naming we shall refer to it as the Model 2011, as there are differences both major and minor between this machine and the previous production model.

First look of the new models shows little or no superficial differences for the new production. Colors are red or anthracite, powder coated both on the case and the black frame. Out of the box the Cremina arrives with an instruction manual, as well as booklet on espresso and Olympia Express, a single filter basket, single portafilter spout, double spouted portafilter with spring, double basket, a stainless steel funnel and plastic tamper. No knock box is included.



The Olympia marked manometer has no zero pin as in the previous model.



The stainless steel coverings for the face plate and the top cap are very highly chromed and polished to mirror perfection.


Upon removal of the cover and case the differences are immediately evident. The boiler and fittings have been extremely streamlined and simplified as compared to the last model. Gone are the brass block unions for the steam and water level fittings and have been replaced with simple stainless steel blocks welded to the sides of the boiler toward the rear.





The pressure stat switch is a Mater pstat which is mounted on a J shaped brass pipe. As the boiler occupies almost all available space in the case this J shape not only keeps the pstat in the proper upright orientation but allows it to be placed forward in the front corner space within the case.



The heavy stainless steel boiler is beautifully manufactured with expert welds throughout....very lovely welds actually.



Another large change is the bottom of the machine, which has the boiler access cover made as a full rectangular plate held by 6 screws. There is no serial number or model designation, but the product code number and the new Glarus address. There is no red reset button through the bottom plate, although the thermostat safety switch remains the resettable type, under the bottom plate.

The view with plate removed shows the wiring access to the power switch and a slight reworking of the wiring with somewhat different terminal connectors.


The electrical system uses high temperature wire and there is a single post with 4 ground wires, including a separate ground to the top machine cover.



The steam is supplied through a 4 hole wand tip.


The group screen slips over the cylinder and is held in place by the group gasket. Note the square central area of the screen.



The boiler is affixed to the frame with screws along the entire length of the boiler with an additional stainless steel channel welded to the face of the boiler.



The machine uses standard brass compression fittings and the safety pressure valve is serviceable and adjustable through the bottom.



The water sight glass tube is serviceable OFF the machine by removal of two flat head machine screws.



The extreme attention to detail is shown by the design and finishing of the group lever yoke, with recessed lever pins and additional stainless steel bushings inside the yoke for greater stability of the lever mechanism.





In summary, there are a few changes to the newest Cremina Espresso Machine from Olympia Express... involving a simplification of the components inside the case while maintaining the tradition of quality in construction, and attention to detail that we associate with Olympia Express.


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michaelbenis
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#2: Post by michaelbenis »

Lovely pictures and write-up Doug. The u-tube for the pressure stat sounds like a worthwhile addition. I was a little sceptical of mine being mounted "upside down,"though I have to say it has performed faultlessly now for 2 years. The Cremina is the only machine I have owned that just keeps going up in my estimation....

Cheers

Mike
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tekomino
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#3: Post by tekomino »

Very nice and simple, but with that price Olympia ain't gonna sell many of them. Pricing is just plain crazy :shock:

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Boldjava
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#4: Post by Boldjava »

tekomino wrote:Very nice and simple, but with that price Olympia ain't gonna sell many of them.
Don't forget that the Swiss Franc is at an all-time high against the dollar. That impacts pricing. I also believe that Olympia knows its market/margins within its business plan. I doubt they have any delusion of putting a Cremina in every leva-lover's home.

B|Java
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HB
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#5: Post by HB »

Nice writeup Doug! I agree about the "sticker shock." It's cold comfort for those considering such a machine, but the same comment applies to some products from La Marzocco, Elektra, and Versalab (to name only three) and yet they have ardent admirers.
Dan Kehn

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michaelbenis
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#6: Post by michaelbenis »

If you look at the price over the life of the machine, including maintenance costs, I very much doubt you could get anything much cheaper that offers comparable quality in the cup....
LMWDP No. 237

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tekomino
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#7: Post by tekomino »

I mean you can buy a house for that much... I cannot believe that it costs that much to manufacture especially for company that is already setup with everything... I predict, and you read it here first, continuing hard times for Olympia due to out of reality pricing. This should not cost more than $2000.

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Londinium Espresso
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#8: Post by Londinium Espresso »

Full cover plate over the reset switch is to comply with the european health & safety nazis
(the concern raised was that a pencil or other object could roll under the machine and prevent the trip switch popping out)

Technically you are now meant to return the machine to the dealer if the thermal trip needs to be reset. Does anyone else find this heavy hand of regulation overly intrusive?

Free tip: remove the screws from this cover plate and smear a thin film of Dow Corning 111 on the thread of each screw, or indeed any product intended to protect against corrosion & lubricate. If you get water lying in the bottom of the frame the mild steel and the stainless screws will corrode nicely together and make removal a real pain in the proverbial

For those who think Olympia pricing is aggressive, I would respectfully suggest the opposite is true. There is much more margin to be added to domestic machines that are half the price, and the greater volumes that can be shifted mean the market is worth a lot more. A large part of the sticker price in an Olympia is quite simply the weight of the metal you buying. Why don't people make similar complaints about Jura, a domestic machine that costs more than the Olympia in some configurations, yet is largely constructed from flimsy plastic and lots of fiddly bits that can fail.

There is hardly anything to fail on an Olympia. The number one service tip is to use Volvic water (or similar) and never let limescale get near it. There are guys out there with Olympias they bought 40 years ago and still make great espresso with them.

It is great to have the Orphan Espresso stamp of authority added to the Olympia brand

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HB
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#9: Post by HB »

tekomino wrote:This should not cost more than $2000.
Consider that a Ponte Vecchio Lusso retails for $1199; I like the Lusso a lot, but let's be serious... it's "working class" workmanship versus Olympia Express "world class" workmanship.

Sadly the prices of most espresso machines have been marching upwards the last six months. According to vendors I've spoken with, the holiday inventories are depleted and the incoming stock will be priced higher due to increases in transportation and material costs and unfavorable Euro/USD exchange rates.
Dan Kehn

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tekomino
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#10: Post by tekomino »

HB wrote:Consider that a Ponte Vecchio Lusso retails for $1199; I like the Lusso a lot, but let's be serious... it's "working class" workmanship versus Olympia Express "world class" workmanship.
Agreed on all points. But, I have both Lusso and Cremina and with Lusso I can make better espresso more consistently than with Cremina and I can keep it on all day long. While Lusso is working class design wise, it is not much more complex or less well built inside than Cremina. I think Lusso is great value even given some build quality issues. Lusso will last as long as Cremina... It is simple machine.

And there is also Elektra Micro Casa A Leva which is $1349 and is beautiful machine. With all these great choice that are much cheaper, Olympia will have huge problem selling these machines, but they already know that...

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