Hi. I'm having a problem with my electric espresso machine: Rancilio Silvia. I know the grind is right (even got some ground for electric espresso by the best shop in town), but after 10 seconds the coffee becomes quite clear: where it used to be after 25 seconds. Seems fine at the start of the shot, but does not hold dark color. Tamping the same as I always did.

Any ideas? Pump? Pressure? Thanks!

The grind isn't right just because a coffee shop did it for you. Flow will depend on dose size and freshness of coffee both of which could be different from your shop.

Do you have grinder if not then you're going to struggle.
If. You do then colour can be misleading as not all coffees blonde at the same time but grind finer, make sure the coffee is fresh and well stored

Mrboots2u wrote:Do you have grinder if not then you're going to struggle.

Yes, and I have it all the way small...just above where the two wheels touch.
I guess I could take it apart again.

But the real problem is not the color at the end of the shot, but the bitterness..bad taste.

Thanks for your reply. Any more very helpful.

illusionsgame wrote:Yes, and I have it all the way small...just above where the two wheels touch.
I guess I could take it apart again.

But the real problem is not the color at the end of the shot, but the bitterness..bad taste.

Is your coffee fresh enough? Use coffee not older than two weeks from the roast date. Are you using a scale?

If the bad taste isn't coming from the coffee itself (over roasted?) it seems that you may be grinding too fine. Bitterness is often caused by over extraction. Maybe you could try adjusting both your grind and dose? Updose and loosen the grind a bit. How does that affect?

Are your grinder burrs properly aligned? Consider getting a new grinder since Rocky probably isn't the easiest to work with.

Using storeground coffee is like a shot in the dark. It only works with pressurised baskets.

illusionsgame wrote:Yes, and I have it all the way small...just above where the two wheels touch.
I guess I could take it apart again.

But the real problem is not the color at the end of the shot, but the bitterness..bad taste.

Thanks for your reply. Any more very helpful.

OK what is the grinder...

We get beans from best shop in this city of about 1 million people: best as rated by espresso techs too
Grinder is Rancilio Rocky: never heard anything bad about this until today.
Align it? Hmm. I just clean and calibrate.
No, I don't weigh coffee or measure tamp pressure.
The thing is, my methods have not changed: only the shot started getting lighter faster.
Same coffee, same everything.

Are using a blend? If so, all blends change as roasters have to adapt to what's available at any given season. You may not always notice the change but they do.

Is it fresh? If it's not freshly roasted any consistency is very hard to achieve if you happen to get a bag which is different age than your previous bag. If you don't know the roast date, then I'd consider it to be a very possible reason.
Weighing coffee is essential in diagnosing possible problems. Get a cheap scale which is accurate to 0.1g and you can be sure you are not the cause of all troubles (I'm not saying you are, but you can't be 100% sure if you don't use a scale). Tamping pressure doesn't make that big a difference as long as it is enough.

Rocky was THE grinder 15 or so years ago. But it's not considered ideal by today's standards. Which is not to say that you can't produce enjoyable espresso with it. Are the burrs still sharp enough? Are you sure your Silvia is working properly?

illusionsgame wrote:We get beans from best shop in this city of about 1 million people: best as rated by espresso techs too
Grinder is Rancilio Rocky: never heard anything bad about this until today.
Align it? Hmm. I just clean and calibrate.
No, I don't weigh coffee or measure tamp pressure.
The thing is, my methods have not changed: only the shot started getting lighter faster.
Same coffee, same everything.

Weigh your dose

The Rocky is a funny grinder. I could not get it to work for me. It is possible there is just too much play with the burr carrier and so although it would appear you are fine by the settings, you may be too coarse.

Take everything apart on the grinder. Clean it. Align it. Dial it in. Try it. I believe this will make it much better. Also measure dose as other have said although I've gone without measuring for years and did just fine using site to determing amount and shot quality.

Then if you are interested in more consistency upgrade your grinder. You will have better luck with a Sette 270, Niche Zero, or you can upgrade even higher. The Sette you might be able to get used and sell the Rocky locally end up saving money in the deal.

Good luck to you, don't be discouraged as you will figure it out.

Ok, that was very helpful.
I'm no expert but I am learning fast.
After 10 years of a steady machine, I never expected anything to go so horribly horribly wrong!
Well, it could be worse. I could live next to dunkin donuts
thanks all
!!!