Buyer's Guide to the Quick Mill Vetrano - Page 8

Behind the scenes of the site's projects and equipment reviews.
jackbang
Posts: 9
Joined: 18 years ago

#71: Post by jackbang »

I'm not sure how long it will take me to get a plumber in, but I'll check back once I've had a chance to have first impressions. In the meantime, I thought some people might be interested in seeing the new gauge on this version.


kaioslider
Posts: 27
Joined: 18 years ago

#72: Post by kaioslider »

Hi Dan,
I also received my Vetrano, and set it up last night. I've been pulling shots trying to learn the machine. I'm coming off a PIDed Silvia and initially (as one would expect) I've been fumbling around. It's funny how you get into a rigid routine, some things you know you're doing, others you don't; the natural rhythm or timing is an example. Obviously the my rhythm is completely off. Steaming is another big difference - night and day. Simply put, the Silvia is a toy next to the Vetrano. Don't get me wrong, Silvia is a great home machine and I had years of great service from her, but to compare the two, no, it's just ridiculous. One thing I'll be working on is steaming small amounts of milk for a double and triple cappa. My shots have been pretty good so far, I had read the articles here on HB on HX flushing and such. At the moment I am using Black Cat, I roast my own, but b/c I knew I'd be getting this machine I order some extra. As it turns out, I ran out of my own blend only having enough to pull one shot on Vetrano. My blend has a very nice berry flavor, ruined on a dirty Silvia. The Vetrano pulled this quality out of my blend, this was my very first pull, I was amazed to find this very delicate flavor come out, but on top of that I could taste that it was brewed just a tad too hot, something I could never detect with Silvia; it was either there or not. Now the Black Cat pulls I've been doing are also good, but I never pull any from my Silvia so I can't compare. I had thought that I would set up both machines and do side by sides, but after my one pull of my own blend, well, it would seem a waste of time, clearly I'm getting a much larger flavor profile with the Vetrano. I should note here, I don't feel I have a sharp palate, which indicates to me that I've really missed out....."ignorance it bliss". One other problem is it doesn't take to many pulls before I hit my caffeine limit, YIKES! :shock:
I roasted some Sweet Maria's Donkey blend 13 days ago (kinda jumped the gun on the Vetrano arrival), so I'll pull some of that this afternoon. Oh, an one other thing I've noticed using my naked portafilter: The Vetrano has such a beautiful, consistent pour, my Silvia would start out nice, but I always, always got those pin prick streams from about 2/3 of the shot in. I never did the pressure mod Silvia, and now that I have something else to compare it to I recognize what so many others have report regarding this.

The set up was quite easy. Along with my order, I got a water filter, water softener, and line pressure regulator, which came from Chris Coffee with everything needed to install. A word on the John Guest (JG) fittings - I've never used these, and was amazed at how simple this made the installation, I am also still in somewhat disbelief that these connections are water tight; no leaking at any of the 12 JG connections. Having followed this thread, I can say the drip tray plumbing re-design is a huge improvement. A couple of things I would have like to have seen included in the box are the two Allen wrenches need to remove and installed the plug and drain adaptor, respectively. Also, I have a decent set of "standard" open box wrenches (are they called SAE?), I did not have the size for the water supply line into the Vetrano, I'm sure it's metric since it's made in Italy, and would have like to seen an assembly wrench included. For me none of these were a problem as I could easily work around these with the other tools I have, and most people have adjustable wrenches, but as I suggested to Chris in an email, there's nothing worst than getting a new item and finding out you need to run out and get something, the old "oh, it needs batteries". I don't find the additional 3/4 inches added to accommodate bottom supply and waste line out of proportion; something I wondered about.

Oh, and the cup warmer real estate - For some reason I really like the look of all those cups on top of the machine.

jackbang
Posts: 9
Joined: 18 years ago

#73: Post by jackbang »

kaioslider - the Vetrano came with both a braided metal cable and a thick vinyl tubing. It's not clear to me (being a neophyte, and since there are no directions) which one to use for the water line and which one to use for the drain line. Any ideas?

User avatar
HB (original poster)
Admin
Posts: 21983
Joined: 19 years ago

#74: Post by HB (original poster) »

The braided one is for the incoming water and attaches to the fitting on the bottom of the machine, near the back.
Dan Kehn

jackbang
Posts: 9
Joined: 18 years ago

#75: Post by jackbang »

Thanks Dan - after thinking about how long it would take to get to use my new toy if I waited for a plumber, I started looking more at what needed to be done. I'm not very handy but decided I could handle it, and now a couple hours later I'm all hooked up. I'll be pulling my first shots tomorrow morning. Reports to follow.

kaioslider
Posts: 27
Joined: 18 years ago

#76: Post by kaioslider »

Hey Jackbang, sorry I missed your post, glad you got it worked out. I'm currently renting so my hookup needed to be zero impact, ie no holes. I have a large kitchen and was lucky to have a perfect spot right next to the sink. My drain hose snakes out the back and around to the sink. I think my only concern is that this hose is transparent and can become unsightly. I'll have to wait and see, the advantage is that if there is a blockage, I can see it, same goes for knowing when it needs cleaning. Anyways, look forward to hearing how your first day goes.

JOE ROACH
Posts: 2
Joined: 18 years ago

#77: Post by JOE ROACH »

I received my vetrano today. I could not find the green washer in the portafilter box. So it will be off to Home Depot in the am.
This is one very nice looking work of art. I cant wait to pull some shots on it.

kaioslider
Posts: 27
Joined: 18 years ago

#78: Post by kaioslider »

Joe, are you referring to the washer mentioned in the directions? I think those directions were intended for the first 30 machines, the ones we received don't need it as the inlet hose is a little different.

JOE ROACH
Posts: 2
Joined: 18 years ago

#79: Post by JOE ROACH »

Thanks for the info on the washers. I looked all over the house for them. After work I will be toying around with the vetrano and a shot or two may pass my lips. LOL cant wait.

3amwhew
Posts: 1
Joined: 18 years ago

#80: Post by 3amwhew »

I received mine today... thanks for the washer info, saved me a lot of time for sure. I have barely had the chance to play with it but will say that installation is made very easy with the wretch-less fittings. Enough extra tubing was included to allow me to be very creative in the routing to avoid any (new) holes in the counter/sink. I was timid about the direct connect only but am now glad i went that route.