I have an one month old Bezzera Magica, a 2l boiler HX with E61 group;
trying to find a pattern/explanation on my constantly wet pucks, independently of any blend/so, dose, tamp, grind etc.,
I noticed what appears to me a rather unusual behavior of the group in the drain area:
after pulling a shot and returning the lever to the down position it drains ok some normal volume of water and fast enough - IMO;
the PF is released of any overpressure, but when it is unlocked - be it after seconds or minutes after pulling the shot - a small quantity of water drops again from the drain valve;
is this a normal behaviour?
it appears that the 9 bar pressure expansion at the opening of the bottom valves, does not eliminate all the water inside chambers (and possibly above the puck), and it drops down released by the outside pressure equalisation when PF in unlocked;
well, the residual water release is not necessarily related to my constantly wet pucks problem...

I am rather new in home espresso and this is my first E61,
many thanks for your understanding and support...

To learn mopre about how an E-61 works download the [http://www.espressocare.com/PDF-Files/V ... AFTvD8.pdf]Vibiemme Domobar Double owners manual[/url] which I wrote. It has a detailed section on how it works.

Also, for more detail on E-61 group maintenance, see these two articles on my website:
How-To 18 - Simple Lubrication of the E-61 Group
How-To 19 - Overhauling and Lubricating the E-61 Group

With both my E-61 machines I get wet pucks. It doesn't matter. All that matters is the espresso. If it bothers you, leave the portafilter engaged in the group for a minute or two after the extraction and the heat from the group will dry the puck somewhat.

Have you tried the blind filter? That should give a good "whoosh" of water when the lever is lowered.

On my mini-Vivaldi, after the shot, when I release the portafilter, I get that final release from the 3 way valve. But, I think it's unrelated to the wet puck issue. I could be wrong, but I'd bet you're using a darker roasted coffee. At least, in my experience, that has more to do with whether I get a wet puck. Of course, the longer I wait to release the portafilter, the less likely I am to have a wet puck.

I believe the behavior you describe is normal. My E61 HX does the same.

A wet puck is nothing to worry about. As long as it is always wet or always dry, do a search for wet puck and you will get pages and pages of 'ignore it' posts. Consistency with the blend is the key. Dribbles out the 3/way is normal.

Thank you all!

Randy, I've read your outstanding Vibiemme manual - "at the opening of the bottom valves" (both valves, I meant) is from there
but I could not find anything about that residual water released only when unlocking the portafilter;

anyway, if this is something normal (bean2friends, slybarman), I agree that this shouldn't be related to the wet puck;

bean2friends, I'm using Yirgacheffe SO, 3 days old, medium roasted (well, towards full city), but rather oily after 2-3 days;(
I should try a lighter roast;

yet, one small detail intrigues me: when unlocking the portafilter, even after 2-3 minutes from pulling the shot, there is a small patch of water on the puck surface which is immediately absorbed into the puck, as it was dropped there just before; indeed if this is a remain from the infusion, why it was not absorbed as such in the mean time?

I will try to include a small clip about these, tomorrow;

I've got the same problem and have been thinking what it could be but all these post now make me understand that it's perfectly normal. Thanks for all the responses and the TS for asking the question. Learned something today.