Hi All,

First and foremost - great forum. Lots of good info...
Glad to have found it.

Now I know a bunch of you have seen these problems a million times - but hey, go easy on me! I've got to start some place. I'm a newbie with a Rancilio Silvia & a Rocky, and I'm struggling to get good shots after 2 weeks of use - well maybe nearer 3

Here's the situation:

I've read lots online about Rocky settings, and the general pointer seems to suggest a setting of around 7 based on the premise that your zero point is a 'real' zero. Despite me going as low as 3 - I cannot get a grind fine enough.

When I get a grind that I think is about the finest I can get I go for a 14/15 gram shot I go through the process that I've seen a load of other do online - being >

1: Pull hot water through the system once and get the boiler light to kick in.
2: Flash some water through again and get it to kick back in a 2nd time to make sure the machine / boiler is properly heated up. Plus drop some of the hot water into the espresso cups while I'm at it...
3: Grind 14/15 grams, spread even, tamp light, tamp hard to 30lbs & remove any stray grind.
4: Flash the steam from the group head to drop the temp from around 110 to 95.
5: Then within 10 secs of the last point I fit the portafilter on ready to go.
6: Ditch the hot water in the espresso cups and put in position.
7: Hit the water switch and run for (hopefully) 25 secs or there abouts.

The outcome is:

It only takes around 2 secs for water to start coming out of the portafilter.
The espresso is way too blond / thin.
After 10 secs I have almost double the amount of fluid I am hoping for.
The shots taste very bitter.

I've been changing the variables for over a fortnight now and dont seem to be getting any place fast, but I'm determined to get this right. Any help folks might be able to throw my way would be much appreciated.


Cheers


Steve

What's your coffee? is it fresh?

If not, as your in England you might consider Has Bean or Square Mile for great quality coffee, freshly roasted (within 2 weeks of roast date).

This might be your issue.

Marc wrote:What's your coffee? is it fresh?

If not, as your in England you might consider Has Bean or Square Mile for great quality coffee, freshly roasted (within 2 weeks of roast date).

This might be your issue.

Yip coffee is fresh... around 9 days old at present. Nearing the end of a batch...
I buy from Hasbean and Union - both top suppliers.

It's an espresso blend called Revelation: http://www.unionroasted.com/coffees/ble...ation.html

No probs with beans grinding for french press - tastes fine, just with grinding for espresso and the Silvia.

If you can't choke the silvia with the rocky at the finest grind, than the grinder is at fault and need recalibration.

sgx wrote:I've read lots online about Rocky settings, and the general pointer seems to suggest a setting of around 7 based on the premise that your zero point is a 'real' zero. Despite me going as low as 3 - I cannot get a grind fine enough.

I would say "wrong premise". The zero mark rarely coincide with the real zero point.

To find the real zero point, remove your hopper, remove the blocking screw on the bottom of it, and put it back. With the grinder empty, run it and adjust it until your hear the burrs touching (this won't damage them as only the outer rim of the burrs touches). This is your real zero point. You will probably find out that your real zero point was below the zero mark.

You can put the blocking screw on if wanted.

Thanks HB... done a fair amount of that already, but cheers for the links.

Louis, thanks for the tip! I may have found the problem...
When I opened up the unit and took the hopper off, there was a bent screw attached to it!

Any idea where this may have come from?? I didnt put it there!
Seems very odd.

I'm going to contact the company I bought it off and see what the deal is. But I guess this screw was stopping the grind settings working properly - so must be the cause of the problem...

What Louis said! Good procedure. Don't fear the zero point; the brief scraping/squeaking between the smooth areas of the burrs won't hurt anything. Nothing will touch the cutting surfaces of the burrs except the beans that you feed into them.

That screw is not intended to limit closing down the adjustment (no reason to do that anyway), but just the opposite: to prevent the hopper unscrewing many turns, possibly all the way, and flying off the grinder. This is what WILL happen if you unlock the adjustment while grinding beans WITHOUT holding the hopper to prevent it spinning due to the high bean-to-burr friction. The screw is a stop to prevent the hopper spinning all the way off, and while it does do that, the violent impact when it stops the hopper can easily bend it, if not crack what it screws into as well. The bent screw says that this impact has already happened. The solution is not to adjust grind with the motor off - that will likely clog the burrs if not jam them outright. When making small adjustments in everyday use, DO run the grinder while adjusting, with or without beans (never mind what the sad little "manual" says ). DO hold the hopper firmly while doing this; in fact, you could use the other hand to hold the grinder base steady, while its thumb depresses the lock button. Good luck and good brewing!

Louis wrote:I would say "wrong premise". The zero mark rarely coincide with the real zero point.

To find the real zero point, remove your hopper, remove the blocking screw on the bottom of it, and put it back. With the grinder empty, run it and adjust it until your hear the burrs touching (this won't damage them as only the outer rim of the burrs touches). This is your real zero point. You will probably find out that your real zero point was below the zero mark.

You can put the blocking screw on if wanted.

Hi Louis,

Just to check I get you right...

I've unscrewed the 3 screws inside the hopper, then removed the hopper itself.

Then which screw are you referring to when you say 'Blocking Screw' ?? And what do you mean by "remove it, then put it back" ...?

Just want to be sure I'm getting this right, and not:

A) Get confused
B) Grind my hand off!


Cheers


Steve