I am very excited to be taking delivery of a brand new Olympia Cremina soon. Tomorrow if FedEx is to be believed!

This is our first home espresso machine. My wife has worked with commercial coffee shop espresso machines but neither of us have ever tried a lever machine. I had started my search for something more in line with a small modern espresso machine like the Lilet Mara X or the Profitec 400. But after seeing the Olympia I fell in love with its size, its design, and simplicity. I've been reading everything I can on the subject, here and elsewhere.

I suspect I will soon want the piston pressure kit from Gábor but I think I will wait a little bit and get a feel for the machine 'stock'.

But there are a few items that I am thinking about purchasing now and would love feedback/suggestions:

1) Bottomless PF. I see an OEM one available, as well as the one available on Gábor's site. I've also seen mentioned a Penney PF that may not be sold anymore but perhaps available secondhand. Are there advantages to any of these in particular as far as basket size/compatibility? I may want to experiment with some different baskets for dose size, or perhaps a precision basket.

2) Dosing funnel. The Strietman Basket Funnel looks nice, but currently sold out. I'm sure there are dozens of options out there for this but if there is anything particularly beloved by others I'd love to see it.

I've ordered some other basics, a pitcher for some milk drinks. Considering perhaps a WDT. Anything else you would recommend I be looking at?

nice ride. congratulations.

I added the OEM bottomless PF and dosing ring from Cerini. Still using the stock tamper and double basket, seems fine, getting better over the past 8 months. The Levercraft Ultra WDT has noticeably improved my shots. I absolutely love the wood bling from Dave S - look in Marketplace section. I've resisted the Gabor thing for now - definitely improving and enjoying getting to know the feel of the pull. I've learned to pull easier than I expected and to just stop when the blonding starts even if it's only 20 seconds. I've kind of had to let go of the whole 2:1, 30 seconds thing sometimes! Mostly I just drink every shot and keep a log. I drink primarily medium light to dark roast. You will love this thing!

Use a paper (or puck screen) on top of the puck to keep the shower screen clean.
Research the tools you need for the piston maintenance so that there is minimal downtime when it's eventually needed.
Most of all, definitely get a thermometer to monitor group temperature.

In any case, enjoy it! You made a spectacular choice and you'll love it.

Orphan espresso makes a great dosing funnel. I have both Gabor's bottomless and Olympia's bottomless portafilter and prefer the latter because I think it looks and fits nicer. Get the piston pressure profiler - I think it does make a big difference. Enjoy!!! and post some pics!

mattkeys wrote:
But there are a few items that I am thinking about purchasing now and would love feedback/suggestions:

1) Bottomless PF. I see an OEM one available, as well as the one available on Gábor's site.

A bottomless portafilter will teach you a lot. I recommend using and enjoying the machine as it comes from the factory until you get used to it. After that the possibilities are endless.

great purchase! 100% get a bottomless PF as it will show you everything that's going on with your shot (and I like how the shots come out more too)

Congrats! You may find you need to apply more-than-expected pressure to turn the portafilter into proper position at first. You'll know because you'll get water coming out top of portafilter. Don't stress, just nudge it a bit tighter. This goes away.

I thought I needed a bottomless PF, got the oem one and don't use it. Cerini suggested oem on rationale of keeping metal consistent (hardness, wear), which made sense me. Just my personal taste, but I get a lot of feedback from the lever, the visual/taste of the espresso and haven't missed having another thing to monitor.

Have fun!

WDT makes a notable difference for me.

I bought a bottomless PF from a vendor on ebay (search olympia cremina) . They also had wooden handles, which I used to replace the stock handles. I also bought a dosing funnel from Orphan Espresso. I too use paper puck screens which originally were Aero Press filters.

Thanks for all the feedback everyone! It arrived today and my wife and I were pretty giddy setting it up.