Baratza Sette 270 suddenly drifting

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bean74
Posts: 94
Joined: 2 years ago

#1: Post by bean74 »

Been using a Sette 270 for more than a year, single-dosing 3-4 shots per day. Noisy, but otherwise it's been great.

However, my shot times began dramatically dropping in the last two or three days, in terms of time to first liquid (1 bar) and time to full yield. I've been chasing the shot time with the stepless ring (fine adjust on the Sette 270), but actually ran out of range, having to go down a full step on the stepped ring for the first time since initial setup.

I have a pressure gauge on my boiler, and it seems to be running at or close to normal. I was into the last 2 oz. of a 12 oz. bag of La Colombe Rouge when the behavior started, and popped open a fresh bag of La Colombe Nizza today. The behavior did not change, I don't believe it's the beans.

Anyone ever heard of this happening on a Sette 270? Where should I begin the debug?

Thanks!

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Jeff
Team HB
Posts: 6808
Joined: 19 years ago

#2: Post by Jeff »

https://baratza.com/sette/
Are you seeing your micro adjust move towards coarse when grinding?

If you notice your micro adjustment ring moving toward the coarse direction, tighten the three screws on the bottom of the adjusting ring. To do this, remove the adjusting ring and burr and turn it over to see the screws, tighten the screws (if already tight, only tighten a 1/16 of a turn further) and re-install the adjustment ring/burr and you should be fine. Do not over tighten the screws or you risk stripping the threads.

If the issue persists it may be because there is insufficient friction between the micro adjust collar and adjustment assembly. This can be solved by replacing the friction felt which our support team is happy to provide- please contact us at support@baratza.com.
Baratza Sette 270 micro adjust drifting

Baratza Sette Micro Adjust drifting while grinding

Baratza Sette 270 with major setting drift

Baratza Sette 270 MACRO setting slipping toward coarser during grinding

There is also a shim that can adjust the overall range of the grinder, but it sounds like you've got a mechanical drift problem.

bean74 (original poster)
Posts: 94
Joined: 2 years ago

#3: Post by bean74 (original poster) »

Wow... you're fast, Jeff! I am pretty sure my rings have not been changing setting while grinding, they seem to have the normal friction, and appear to be holding their set point. I will watch this, but I believe I'm seeing a change in shot timing with no slipping or movement of the adjustment rings. Is it possible the burrs could move without any change in the ring position?

Perhaps this is an indicator that the grinder isn't the culprit, but then I can't imagine what else would be.

daveR1
Supporter ♡
Posts: 248
Joined: 6 years ago

#4: Post by daveR1 »

After about a year my Sette needed another shim to bring it back in range for a correct grind. 1 shim - grind @ 2-3; added 2nd shim brought it back to 9-10 if I recall correctly.

bean74 (original poster)
Posts: 94
Joined: 2 years ago

#5: Post by bean74 (original poster) »

Confirmed, the adjustment rings are not moving/drifting. It is presently set at 8G, which is still yielding way too fast for my liking at 23s, but it's not drifting from that 8G setting.

What's so strange is that this was a sudden change. Until two or three days ago, I never had to adjust the grinder out of the mid-9's, always yielding around 30s. I'd compensate with the fine ring a bit, as an open bag would age, or when switching roasts, but never had to touch that coarse ring. But now I'm mid-8's, and still running 30% faster.

Will take apart later today to investigate. Will also run the machine with a blind basket to confirm OPV didn't drift, but I'm pretty well convinced it's not that, since even my sub-1 bar pre-infusions are starting to drip at 4 seconds (used to take 7-8 seconds).

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slybarman
Posts: 1207
Joined: 12 years ago

#6: Post by slybarman »

I would reach out to Baratza support. They will likely ask you for a video of it in action. They may recommend a shim, or (as they did in my case) may replace the entire gearbox assembly - depending on the underlying cause. When mine started drifting, I could visibly observe the micro adjust ring moving while the grinder was in operation.

tennisman03110
Posts: 356
Joined: 5 years ago

#7: Post by tennisman03110 »

Is this just a new or different bean? I routinely go between macro rings 5-8, depends on roast. Each coffee needs to be dialed in.

SutterMill
Posts: 337
Joined: 2 years ago

#8: Post by SutterMill »

bean74 wrote: Will take apart later today to investigate. Will also run the machine with a blind basket to confirm OPV didn't drift, but I'm pretty well convinced it's not that, since even my sub-1 bar pre-infusions are starting to drip at 4 seconds (used to take 7-8 seconds).
If you lift the back off the sette, check the screws on the rear motor mounts. Another member mentioned suggested this and I found mine were a slightly loose after 2 years of use. This is not to say its the cause of your current issue but more a maintenance item.

bean74 (original poster)
Posts: 94
Joined: 2 years ago

#9: Post by bean74 (original poster) »

Will definitely check that, SutterMill. But I think I may have come upon the cause of it elsewhere. This is a little embarrassing, but here's what I think has happened.

My the once-new burrs on the Sette 270 have likely been wearing a bit over the last several months, enough that the setting has drifted a full 'coarse" step. But the effect was not visible to me, because I had not been cleaning my shower screen, other than a simple flush after each shot. The slow but likely cloggage of the shower screen was apparently happening at a rate which was (closely enough) compensating the wear-in of my relatively new Sette burrs, over recent months.

I say this because I gave the shower screen a heavy cleaning in Cafiza a few days ago, right before I noticed this sudden shift in shot timing. I don't know why I didn't make the connection sooner, I guess I hadn't noticed the shift immediately after the cleaning, and had just not previously thought it was dirty enough to really affect shot time.

Seem likely? The screen must have been more plugged than I had realized, for this to be plausible, but since I'm not finding any more likely culprit...

SutterMill
Posts: 337
Joined: 2 years ago

#10: Post by SutterMill replying to bean74 »

For me it would be hard to say but it certainly sounds plausible given all other factors are the same. I would have leaned towards changes with the coffee itself or aging but the fact it appears to have happened suddenly makes your diagnosis more likely. A cleaner shower screen is just one of the reasons I run a stainless puck screen like the link below. YMMV with one.

Normcore 58.5mm Puck Screen - Lower Shower Screen - Metal Coffee Reusable Filter for Espresso Portafilter Filter Basket 58mm - 1.7mm Thickness 150μm - 316 Stainless Steel https://a.co/d/0NJwEc4

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