tjkoko,

Apparently my "what is Watt?" attempt at humor was misinterpreted. Thanks for your explanation, you had no way of knowing based on my poor humor that I already know this.
However, more importantly, my question is still unanswered. Why so many different specification of the heater wattage? Do our machines have different wattage heaters? This could explain, at least in some cases, why different users have different experiences?

peacecup,

Excellent advice!

To answer your question about the cause of the migration of fines and coffee back into the boiler. I strongly suspect it was due to an irregularly shaped inlet hole. The one the inside of the grouphead which feeds the water from the boiler.

My theory is that on the 2nd pull the piston could travel slightly downwards before its seal fully closed off this hole. During this time a small amount of coffee and fines were forced back into the boiler due to the high pressure caused by the spring. My theory is supported by the fact that the amount of coffee and fines found in the boiler was proportional to the number of coffees made, and that I have not experienced this problem since the installation of the replacement grouphead.

Geoffrey

tjkoko, have a careful look at the first post in the "LMWDP Rollcall" thread, and your question will be answered.

GB, we're dealing with items (lever machines) manufactured in other countries and somewhere along the lines the "translation" in labeling has suffered. I've seen the same phenomena occur when in comes to food labels printed on the side of boxed items produced in other lands for sale here in Amerika.

EDIT

In navigating around Vaneli's, I see that the PVL is advertised at 1200W whereas my SAMA runs at 700W. Perhaps one label fits all!

I have lived in other countries, visited other countries, and understand that translations, even English to English can be a problem. A good example is the word "fannie" which in the U.S. generally means one's buttocks. But in Australia it is a crude term for women's genitalia. In my opinion word translation is not the issue, after all P=IE is the same the world over

To repeat myself, my machine's manufacture's plate is stamped 1200 Watt, and this was overwritten in green magic marker as 800 Watt. Venelis may state their machines are 1200 Watt and you say "my SAMA runs at 700W". Three different numbers, and we are not comparing "apples to apples" so to speak. For example, is your number the result of measurement, or is it what is stamped into the ID plate?

Please bear with me, for what I am trying to do here is find out if there are differences in boiler heater wattage in the various iterations of the SAMA. Because this data may help explain to all of us users some of the differences in our experiences when using these machines. For example, start up time, overheating, steaming, pre-infusion when using boiler pressure, and rebound time, to name a few, are all directly related - and maybe what comes out in the cup? - others more qualified can answer this one.

May I suggest that in response to peacecup's "Ponte Vecchio Role Call" and to clarify this heater wattage issue that folks indicate: 1.The voltage of the the machine. 2. The wattage stamped on their machine's ID plate. 3. What they may have measured - no pun intended.

Now, in peacecup's case, I think he changed the heater in his machine to suit the 220 Volt supply of Europe - to quote Monty Python "All terribly confusing really"

Thanks
Geoffrey

GB: translation and interpretation are two different things!

According to Joe ag GC/Seattle, there is the "earlier" version of the SAMA marked by the basket flange which was flat and a "later" version of the SAMA whose basket flange was and still is curved. Perhaps wattage changed as well. Just speculation re the latter. Joe may have the definitive answer.

To repeat myself, my machine's manufacture's plate is stamped 1200 Watt, and this was overwritten in green magic marker as 800 Watt. Venelis may state their machines are 1200 Watt and you say "my SAMA runs at 700W".

Whether manufactured by Sama or Ponte Vecchio, there are two different models, the Export and the Lusso. The former has the little vertical boiler ( 700 or 800 watts), the latter a larger horizontal boiler (1200 watts). It seems your Export was given a Lusso plate, with the wattage corrected in green marker. Just a bit of Italian charm.

Ed

Concerning the overall construction and "alignment" of components of my SAMA, the build looks good. Neither misaligned parts nor gaps in between them exist. The black, powdercoated base sits level. The tower seems perpendicular and the lever is silent when pulled. And no groaning - at least yet.

Okay tonight I've gone thru 3 or 4 shots with my SAMA using Vaneli's Cremosa espresso beans and learned all about pf sneeze. Heh heh says Hank Hill. Made with a short preinfusion of about 5 seconds each, all shots yielded about 3/4 oz of espresso.

Shot 1: 12g with super light tamp. Draw time was about 3-5 seconds with little short lasting crema. Tastey, though, with 'berry' highlights.

Shot 2: 12g with heavier tamp. Draw time about 8 seconds with roughly the same flavor and crema longer lasting although it didn't cover the entire surface of the liquid.

Shot 3: 14g slightly finer grind with very heavy tamp. Draw time about 10-12 seconds with MORE crema. About the same flavor.

Surrounded by a phosphorescent electric blue glow of being W I R E D, I lumber softly into the night, deep into the misty bowels of the moonlit swamps...

Several shots and pf sneezes later, d*mn am I wired. Okay now on to diagnosing pf sneezes.

14g with heavy tamp. Lock the pf into place and preinfuse 10 seconds. Release lever and nothing happens. Then, a few drops appear while the pf works to unscrew itself. POW, the sneeze. Although I'm aware of choking due to either too finely ground coffee/heavy tamping or a combo of the two, I'm wondering if the pf should have been loose during the first few seconds of the preinfusion followed by tightening the pf just before releasing the lever.

this is a new one for me. The pf actually unscrews itself? As in a horror movie with the doorknob slowly turning? Is it the caffeine buzz or does this really happen? Is the phrase "pf locked in" meaningless? More info as I am intrigued.
Doug