It's been 24 hours with my new Europiccola and Ascaso i-mini, except getting burnt and covering everything in coffee i think im slowly getting somewhere but would like some advice on how the pucks look (am i going in the right direction).
Pull time is about 25 seconds with a covering of crema but im hoping the fresh roasted beans i have ordered will improve the crema.

Dunno, how does the espresso taste?


h

I think there is a slightly bitter taste but the beans i've been using aren't that fresh im waiting for fresh ones.

Looks like you can break a window with that puck.
I never believed in "Puckology" but a puck like that on my machine with the taste you're describing would tell me to crank down the temp and grind a little finer....

But hey, fresh beans will change all of that

I would solve for bitter not the look of the puck. If you haven't already, take a peek here

The Home Barista's Guide to Espresso

or check out the how-to section.

h

I wouldn't pay much attention to how the pucks look, since levers tend to make pretty dry solid pucks (has to do with air getting trapped in the piston, I won't go futher into this matter). My advice, let the pavoni heat up until the light goes off. Switch it off. Then let it sit while you grind and tamp, and pull your shot. If the temp drops too much, flick it on and let it boil for a couple secs before pulling (mind you, don't wait until the green light goes off again)