That is the water softener I see on the table behind the machine. First glance I thought it was a big pump motor. Never mind...

I would get with Stefano. He has kits with the needed seals and the other parts. He can put together a one stop fit it kit and you will be in business.

I would suggest the missing wires for the pump light are still there somewhere, probably tucked up into the loom. Big job to pull them all out.

You were spot on. I managed to find the cable, plug, and broken lamp tucked down inside the machine near the bottom of the boiler. I'm surprised with the relatively little amount of cable insulation given so many hot uninsulated copper parts close by that some of the cables brush against. I also notice that the black cable insulation only covers don't run full length, and I may look to improve this as some of the cable PVC insulation appears quite stiff (heat affected?).

Thanks

Removed the shower holder and shower filter. Based on the amount of crud and buildup in the portafilters I expected to have to pry the screen off - if not destroy it totally to remove; however to my surprise I was able to easily remove by hand.



Photo showing the state of the bell and filter holder gasket having removed the shower holder and shower screen.



As advised by Dave (cannonfodder) I am attempting to remove the cap (group bolt) using 17mm socket and driver bar- as seen in photo below;

If you take the group bolt (big hex bolt on the top of the group) you can get a good idea of what the machine internals look like.

However at first attempt it seems fairly rigid, and I'm reluctant to put much more force on the bar without confirming there's no trick to removing it. I also tried clockwise in case it was Left hand thread, but same deal. Am I being too cautious and should I just give it all my might?

What's your modus operandi for trying to loosen it? Mine was tight and I found the best was to use the base of my palm as a hammer. Two or three thumps and off it came. If you just lean into it it will fight you.

But you probably already know all this..

O.k. Thanks for the confirmation. A little more effort was all that was needed to release the nut. Looking in the cavity having removed the group bolt, I couldn't see much, mainly thanks to it being full of water. I'm guessing that I need to remove the solenoid valve to allow the water to drain?

In any case I also removed the bell from the group assembly and cleaned it up. It appears to be in a reasonable state.

I'm now in two minds as to whether to take it apart to give everything a good clean (everything inside the housing is covered in dust and lint and it bugs me with it not being clean) as well as to clean up the stainless by polishing etc. The only parts that I can see at this stage that are essential are the two neon indicator lights (red and green) on the top of the machine.

You won't even need the lights other than to tell that it's on. If you are in France, Stefano may not be that convenient for you. On the West Coast of the US it sure rocked for my rebuild.

For polishing up your Stainless, follow advice from CannonFodder. Unlike me, he know how to get this done right, I merely managed by. As for the broken/cracked handle, he's also your guy.
Custom Wood for your Espresso Machine

All the best.
Mark
(Wishing my new home had a slightly larger space under the counter so I could put MY Elektra T1 there).

O.k, so I stripped some components out to enable me to clean up inside a bit. I removed the boiler and have currently got it soaking in a bucket of citric acid solution to give it a bit of a clean up; however from what I could see (similar to photos below) it looked remarkably free of built up scale, but there appears to be quite an amount of loose scale as you can see in the photos. I'm not sure if this is a result of the DVA water softener, but the loose scale washed out easily enough leaving a near metal finish inside from what I could tell. In any case I have given a quick acid bath clean, as the heater element does have some built up scale.

Heating element. Showing some scale build up.



As-removed: Inside boiler showing lots of loose scale (I think) but clean parent metal walls.



The large pile of loose scale is accumulated on the bottom of the boiler.



Photo showing with boiler removed and having started a clean of the inside.



At this stage I don't think I'll fully dismantle as the frame looks in good condition and free of corrosion as well as all other parts looking o.k.

Once the boiler and lines are finished I will probably reassemble, but I need a few parts first.

Does anyone have advice on what parts as a minimum should be replaced (i.e. boiler safety valve)?, mesh filters, washers, etc?? Thanks in advance.

Anything with rubber in it. Gasket for the group, steam/water valves, get the Teflon heating element gasket, anything that you removed that has a brass crush washer go ahead and replace the washer, vacuum breaker, no real need to replace the boiler pressure release valve if it had never opened unless you just want to. When you descale the heating element, just soak the element, do not immerse it in water. Keep the heater contacts above the descale solution.

When you descale the heating element, just soak the element, do not immerse it in water. Keep the heater contacts above the descale solution.

I've already soaked the element, initially only the element as I had it tied up to keep the terminals etc just above the solution line in the bucket; however I noticed this morning the whole item was immersed in solution as it must have loosened and dropped into the bucket overnight.

Is this likely to cause me some problems given the whole unit was submersed??
Cheers

It may explode when you power it up. Water in the internals of the heating element. Or it may work without issue.