Hi all, been lurking the forums for a while, finally joined and wanted to introduce myself to the lever team.

Been using a super automatic for the past 10 years, moka pots for 18 or so, and finally stepping into proper espresso with a Strega and a Sette.

My setup is pretty cramped now since I've squeezed in the new machine but absolutely loving it.

Still waiting on some accessories to come in like a proper tamper but it's been keeping me well caffeinated regardless.

Hi fellow lever espresso aficionados,

Just got a used ponte vecchio export and have been enjoying shots

My simple basic setup includes grinder and lever machine

Thanks for all the advices I have read on this forum too.

Best regards
William

Hi William,

Welcome to the forum, and nice Export! (I am biased, of course.)

Good to see another Ponte Vecchio/Sama owner. You should join us over in the Ponte Vecchio Export thread! Check-In: Ponte Vecchio Export

I see you are in Singapore. You're lucky to have access to some really good roasters and fresh coffee. Embarrassingly, I miss Toast Box kopi.

Regards,

Mike

My story is simple, the pandemic made me do it. I've been running a Quick Mill 67 E61 double boiler machine blissfully for about eight years with just two trips to the local espresso machine store during that time. Then in March the pump broke and the store wouldn't take any outside repair work because of the pandemic. Hrumff.

With help from kind folk on the Repair subforum, I managed to get the right pump purchased and installed in the QM 67. But it took two hours and I worried the entire time because I'm terrible with even the most rote mechanical tasks and can strip threads just thinking about them. (Not my choice of super powers, it's just what I got.) And for me a successful repair was just fate somehow averted--certainly not a sign of skill or competence. I knew my luck would run out, probably with the next attempted repair. But things were going well again and so I forgot about it.

Not long afterwards I was trolling the HB Marketplace and saw Chris' Coffee now had flow adjustment devices for the QM E61 machines. How cool! Lever-like control with all kinds of variations possible. So I got one. And after a while the lever bug bit me as it began to dawn on me, why would I want "lever-like" control when I could just get a lever? Then around that time the seals around my brew lever began to leak, and I began to panic about another repair.

For years I'd check HB and smile bemusedly when reading about upgradeitis. I know the malady well from my kitchen knife collecting. Still, I was perfectly happy w/ the QM 67 and saw no need to change things up. But the leaking brew lever, and memories of all those degrading connections inside my QM 67 that I saw when I replaced the pump, got me wishing for a simpler machine with a minimum of parts that would need a minimum of repairs and when they were needed I could manage them myself. Subsequently I spent lots of time on this Lever subforum and slowly developed my list of potential lever machines. Strietman was way up there, but I needed to be able to steam milk. You see, I bribe my wife to stay in her good graces concerning my coffee hobby. Every day she gets a cappa delivered (in bed if she wishes). So before long the Cremina was my short list and my long list.

I took delivery, finally, in November. We're two months together going strong. The cappas and lattes are as good as with the QM 67 while the user enjoyment is through the roof. And I haven't had to fix a thing, yet.

Thanks for reading. And thank you to the HB wizards and contributors that put so much knowledge and experience out there for enthusiasts to absorb.

Philip

Phip wrote: My story is simple...the user enjoyment is through the roof...

Congratulations!

Wow, I am green with envy! Nice collection!

A couple machines missing in that picture

My daily driver:


A zerowatt that is on its way from Italy:



And of course, my 3 group eterna that I haven't finished restoring yet:

What is that wall mounted "daily driver." It's gorgeous.

It's a faema velox that I brought back from a trip to Italy a couple years ago and fully restored. Here's a link to the restoration thread

Faema Velox restoration