cannonfodder wrote:You can pick up certain visual cues from a bottomless portafilter but the primary things you should be looking out for are spritzing and uneven extractions. ...

+1

Good looking extraction is only a very basic start. If you have no spritzers, and the color and viscosity of the flowing espresso looks even across the bottom of the basket and there are no area where there is lower flow rate nor areas where the viscosity is watery and others where it is think and slow, then that indicates a decent distribution and tamp. That establishes that the "mano" portion of the equation was pretty good.

From there you have to manipulate dose and grind for taste...

"Tamp for show... Taste for dough."

Not sure where everyone got the idea that I don't care for spritzers, gushers, etc. That's Day 1 stuff...

I think new machine is in order

another_jim wrote:If you use proper coffee and know how to pack a basket, the size of the cone is proportional to the flow rate, and nothing else. But it sounds like you are fishing for some answer you want to hear instead of that. Now we're just trying to guess what that might be.

Reading comprehension much?

I'm not fishing for anything.

I asked what affected the size of the extraction cone.

I got the answer - fresh beans/gas.

I accordingly thanked everybody for the clarification, and that was that.

Hoenen crashed the party late and posted a great looking extraction. I asked what coffee he was using...

Point to me where you read that I'm fishing for something I wanna hear. Please.

bigbad wrote:Reading comprehension much?
I'm not fishing for anything.
...

Point to me where you read that I'm fishing for something I wanna hear. Please.

Fishing? I don't know. I do know that expression via text and emoticons is limited. If contributors to this thread want to plumb the depths of other members' inner meaning beyond the site's stated mission ("Your guide to exceptional espresso"), please use PMs or e-mail. Refer to Guidelines for productive online discussion as required; this thread is locked for the night to allow time to ponder them. Thanks.