Surfing Ebay italy after getting outbid on a 110v Peppina on domestic Ebay (hopefully it goes to an HBer!) and stumbled across this:


Does that look like a steam wand to anyone? Looks sorta like an adapted La Peppina type.

(Note, I tried to buy a beautiful Yellow La Pepp from that Ebayer many months ago and after weeks of 'I'm having problems with customs'--he refunded my money. I would have rather owned the machine but I guess these things happen)

Sure this is an "official" model.
I have an identical one that came from Spain. Not a very good steaming machine.

Yep, the steam wand versions pop up every now and then. Not too hopeful of its' steaming ability since it's an open boiler.

Whale wrote:Sure this is an "official" model.

Oops Newby mistake

beer&mathematics wrote:Newby mistake

There are so many different machines with so many different variations in the parts and accessories that even for a seasoned expert (which I am not) there are still new machines and versions to be found.

I've got one and sadly I've never been able to use it - the steam wand starts going crazy venting steam the second it gets up to temperature. I've been meaning to take a closer look at it for a while - from what I recall there didn't seem to be any valve to control it, the wand was permanently open.
I'll post some pics tomorrow if I get a chance.

The peppina steam lid is the same. I used it once with a severly under filled pitcher to prevent milk from going everywhere. The results were eh. I did enjoy that the wand unscrewed for easy cleanup..

OK, I was inspired to take a closer look at my Mini last night, here's what I found.
The steam wand is activated by depressing the top of the boiler cap, which in turn would depress a plunger allowing steam to vent past the plunger and exit through the wand.
On my Mini Gaggia, the plunger had clearly snapped off prior to my acquiring it. I had thought that the steam wand was an after market mod so I'd never inspected it too closely. The boiler cap itself is rather flimsy the plastic is cracking due to its age. This seemed like a good opportunity to break out the Sugru (a moldable non-toxic silicone compound that cures in 24-48 hours). As per the attached photos, I filled in the steam path, effectively sealing up the steamwand. A trip to Canadian Tire is in order to procure an acorn nut to complete the fix, but it'll be 48 hours before the Sugru has cured regardless. Given that replacement caps aren't readily available this seemed like the best course of action, I'll let everyone know how it holds up to the pressure.
So far, my first impressions with Sugru are fantastic - to date I've only used it on motorcycle repairs, but it seems like a good tool for all espresso machine restorers to have on hand...

Was it the black one with no lid? If so, it did in fact go to an HB'er

there ist now a Mini Gaggia on Ebay.de http://www.ebay.de/itm/201071317767?ssP ... 1586.l2649