Got the piston assembly out the top. Cleaned up and seals replaced. Looking good there. But the portafilter holder just would not budge. MIne is the type that screws off (not the type with three screws attaching) Tried many applications of mystery oil and liquid wrench but no luck. Even heated with heat gun but no luck. But it was not leaking so maybe better to wait and address later.

Hope that if I get the window parts of the boiler done I will be able to pull a shot someday.

Now for the But... One of studs broke off part way when removing the cover of the window. Again penetrating oil did not work . Even tried a blow torch to heat and let cool but the vice grips on what was left still did not budge it. Found a retired machinist in my area that took a look and try with his vice grips too. But he was able to cut off, drill and tap a new hole for a replacement stud. He also cleaned up the threads on the other studs but cautioned about trying to remove & replace those a this point as they are all frozen too.

Roy

Got the machine cleaned up & back together. Tested, No Leaks! I was not sure how much to tighten the window part but appears I guessed correctly!

Fired her up pulled my first shot when she started to chatter & steamed the milk. No art yet but tasted good to me after all the work.

Roy

Congratulations!

A general guideline is to tighten as much as you need but to not overtighten. Especially with aluminum or glass, you don't want to crack anything. You can always tighten more if you get leaks during the pressure test when you are first powering on after servicing a machine.