Glad to hear you got it worked out. I meant to say that it is a lot easier to insert the gasket by using a portafilter with no basket at all. The ears on the portafilter will be a bit higher helping them to engage the slot more easily. Then I go back with a basket in the portafilter to shove the gasket all the way up.

I use Full Circle to clean the gasket, soaking it along with the shower screen and basket. I just wipe the bottomless portafilter clean without soaking it.

Rocky

shanec wrote:On a related topic, how do you guys clean the gasket when it is out? Will soaking it in Cafiza along with the screen cause it to dry out and start rotting a little earlier than usual?

Detergent is not the friend of rubber, nor is it necessary, so why bother? If you drop the screen often enough, and keep the surface of the gaskets lubed with a tiny bit of silicone grease, water rinsing and wiping is all you need.

BaristaBoy E61 wrote:I use an IMS 200 Shower Screen and find that after even 2-shots, if it's not absolutely clean, the 'shower' is no longer 'even'. So I clean the screen and gasket almost daily with just warm water. Both come out easily without the use of any tools and go back just as easily using a portafilter with a blind basket that is only used for back flushing and reinserting the screen and gasket.

This is a great habit to get into, and many would likely find their cup quality benefiting from doing this. I'm not sure how you accomplish this "without any tools" - fingers only? Really? Golly... I know Cannonfodder used to do it with his teeth:

Techniques wanted on removing E61 shower screen

Nor do I think that uneven flow with your particular screen is the primary problem. Rancid coffee oils on and under the screen will add an ick factor to your pull a lot sooner, a lot easier, and a lot more than any uneven water flow after two shots will. Your method goes a long way to controlling both issues, but oil is the biggie.