I'm in the midst of a big change in my lever identity. I already own a Magister HX and a pre-millenium Europiccola, so I need more machines like a hole in the head, but I can't help it.

A few days ago I was on my second All-Clad/Presso. I got my first one on Ebay decades ago, but the arms broke when I used too much force for them. Soon after that i found a second one for only $6 on a clearance sale. It was very inconsistent and when I found out about the available Rok rebuild, I tried to remove the plastic cylinder, but no luck. It was so frozen on that when I pried part of it off, metal chunks also came off, so I reluctantly disposed of it.

The empty space on my counter made me feel nostalgic and when I learned that the Faema Baby was the original butterfly lever machine, I looked on Ebay and found a replacement which was said by the Italian seller to have "Guarnizione del pistone in ottimo stato e non secca o screpolata." Nothing like gaskets in optimal condition! So I went for it.

There were two available, a yellow one which I took and a blue one that's still there. Now I only hope it's in as good shape as the seller said.

By the way, I previously owned another lever--the Peppina, but I gave it away when I bought my Europiccola in 1989. Now I would have kept it for sure, but I looked at things differently in those days. Those were the days when I posted on Usenet alt.coffee in the late 80's. I wonder if anyone is still around from those years. I remember that a French UN employee praised the Olympia Mocca grinder that he got at Zabar's and I went there and bought one too, which I'm using to this day. Any more alumni of alt.coffee here?

Well, Ron, my wife is going to kill you...
...as I just bought the other one!

I think they owe me a commission if you got it as a result of my post and not coincidence. I missed my calling as an espresso machine salesman but I like buying them more than selling.

Yes, not a coincidence. I have always liked them, and your post made me do it! I also like the color.

I am going to post up a working peppina soon. To squeeze into your countertop

Ron wrote:Any more alumni of alt.coffee here?

Yes, I'm one and remember the 'good old' alt.coffee days when collectively we struggled with the domestic equipment available at the time. It was only less than 20 years ago, but feels like a century given the rate of change in the coffee world (and world at large).

I just realized that alt.coffee is not accessible anymore on Google Groups. They have banned alt.coffee because it became full of spam.
You can find alt.coffee posts outside of Google on:
http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive ... e/2005-07/.

I also found some of my old posts from the early 90's on rec.food.drink.coffee. I had completely forgotten about this group and I can't remember why I posted there instead of alt.coffee. I think alt.coffee may have been a later offshoot. You can still read the newsgroup on Google at https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum ... ink.coffee, but recent posts are displayed at the top of the screen.

One of the favorite old topics was Zabar's own version of the La Pavoni Europiccola, called the "Carina." It was a way to get a Pavoni for a lot cheaper than the regular price. Unfortunately, it's now history.

The posts I found are almost twenty years ago and it does feel like much more than that. One of the biggest changes is the internet, which was very primitive and mainly text-based on a black-and-white screen back then. Usenet had a lot of information and an equal amount of fighting, trolling, and arguments. I remember this from the audio groups which argued about some of the early CD players, which are now also history.

I wonder if anyone on here still owns a Carina. I opted for a real Pavoni after going to Forzano's in Little Italy and making a deal they couldn't refuse for cash)). FYI, Forzano's is no longer in Little Italy. It is now: http://europeangift.com/

truemagellen wrote:I am going to post up a working peppina soon. To squeeze into your countertop

Already have one!

There is no hope for us, we are lever addicts

sweaner wrote:Well, Ron, my wife is going to kill you...
...as I just bought the other one!

Hi Sweaner (and others),
I just took delivery of my Faemina Baby yesterday and it turned out that the seal leaks. It looks like the seal is a good fit at the very top of the cylinder, but then by the middle part of the cylinder there is an air gap around the seal where the water leaks out of the top when I press the levers. It looks like I need about 1mm or so extra diameter. I emailed Francesco Ceccarelli for info about his seal but no answer yet. I've been checking around the internet and it looks like what I need is exactly like the plunger seal on an Aeropress or syringe, but 59-60mm in diameter. I just don't know if hypodermic syringes are made in a 60mm diameter size.

Sweaner, if you got your machine and it has the same problem, maybe we can trade ideas about the best solution (or anyone else here in the same boat).