Here's a cheapskate "Scace" I made.



Parts are single serve filter basket that came with my old espresso machine which has been collecting dust for years (I don't know anyone who uses it), bulkhead drain fitting from Amazon, small head temperature probe from Amazon and some JB Weld glue. The most challenging part was putting a pinhole at the cap. Even 1/32" diameter drill bit is too big so I has to use a drywall nail and a hammer to punch it. It took many blows to get it. I put a piece of sponge in the shaft to slow down the flow rate little bit and to filter out the stray coffee ground from making its way down to the pinhole and potentially clogging it.


Other than slightly angled water discharge, it works. Total parts cost under $40 if single serve filter basket isn't counted.

Looks good! Can you still use coffee to mimic a real shot? In my experience pressure makes a big difference in temperature measurement at basket.

I believe a #80 bit is the correct size to mimic the "standard" espresso flow rate of ~70ml in 30 seconds at 9 BAR, but it's somewhere between difficult and impossible to drill a clean and precise hole by hand with a bit that thin. It probably can be done with a very carefully aligned drill press, though I don't think a typical drill press chuck can securely hold a #80 bit. So it might require securing the bit in something else, like a hand drill designed for use with tiny bits, then securing that in the drill press chuck.

Have you done a corrected boiling water calibration to see how accurate your t/c & meter are? Scace flows about 75ml in 25-30 seconds. Have you measured the flow through your device?

Someone please make something like this and offer them for sale!
Scace is nice but too costly for a lot of home users and many probably don't need the pressure gauge part.
I bet a basic thermofilter basket like this will sell like hotcakes.

You can still buy the Scace 1 although they regularly go out of stock. https://www.espressoparts.com/products/ ... evice-only

For what it is the price has definitely gotten ridiculous. Last time I looked at them they were $300, now $400??

I did not know they had a thermofilter-only version!
$400? Yikes. It's probably worth it for professional cafe use, but a little too steep for me.
If someone can build and sell one of these for under $100 which I think is doable, I think a lot of home baristas including me would buy one instead of going DIY. Such a handy tool since most machines don't tell you what temp you are brewing at.

Capuchin Monk wrote:Parts are single serve filter basket that came with my old espresso machine which has been collecting dust for years (I don't know anyone who uses it), bulkhead drain fitting from Amazon, small head temperature probe from Amazon and some JB Weld glue.

That looks great! In your photos, I see a bulkhead drain fitting sort of like this:

https://www.amazon.ca/Bulkhead-Fitting- ... B09DXV5NWP

Attached to the bulkhead fitting is, I think, a 3/4" brass end cap that you've drilled a small hole through. Is that right?

It might be possible to drill the hole accurately using PCB drill bits like these:

https://www.amazon.ca/YWD-FMM-0-1mm-1-0 ... B08X6PZPJK

I gather these really need a drill press, otherwise you wind up breaking a lot of them, as they're quite fragile.

Thank you for the link on drill bits. I should've looked it up beforehand. Another issue with such thin drill bit is the potential breakage when used with hand held drill.

This bulkhead fitting comes with a cap. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095HMV7M3/

As for the flow rate, I measured the amount of water in the cup in 25 seconds with scale. It was between 45g - 60g depending on pressure which may be little faster than ideal?

I drilled 3/4" hole through my single serve basket with stepped hole cutter. https://www.amazon.com/Cutter-Stainless ... 096FYKHY1/

Yeah, someone can / should market something like this.

It needs to have filler ala Scace for a better representation of the thermal profile. IMO, 75ml in 30 seconds is much more than the flow of a 'typical' shot and does not give an accurate picture of the shot profile. I adjust mine down to more like 35-40 ml in 30s.

If ya wants ta be shot nutz:



Regardless, if the plug end is not sealed, use an extension so an liquid forced down the sheath does not enter the data logger.