Thanks to OE my parts have now arrived...

In hind site I should have got a spare glass tube and seals.. But we live and learn.

As some may have seen here Olympia Cremina no water flowing through group head

The boiler had been mistreated, but only took a few min to flush and clean. With great pleasure, I found that the internals and the rest of the machine to be in rather better shape, than I expected. The paint work is almost as new and has a shine and lustre that I have not seen on many machines..

While waiting for the parts, I had the chance to strip a Breville BES800 series and found it had a 1200W removable element

So now I have a 1000W from OE and a 1200W element, care of a dead appliance, picked up off the street. I have tried it as to a fit and it looks OK, be it a touch bigger in Dia. But still with good clearance from the sides of the boiler...

Thus I am in a 50/50 and would like some comments / feedback as to which one should I fit

Here is a pic of the two, side by side.



Oh and here is a messy table and a pic of the Boiler, that I have left with the original coating, but have given 5 coats of HI Temp enamel paint to seal the coating that was used at the time of manufacture... You may also not the including of an Anti Vac valve at the top of level sight glass, and the safety one is to be repositioned. Note: Use a good seal and be aware that the thread on the Anti Vac valve could be too long and tighten down onto the glass; thus causing it to be cracked/shattered.

Went for the big guns and installed the 1200W element.

Just did a quick test and at approx 3min from cold, the Anti-vac closed off and steam was building..

One small leak on a crush washer on the safety valve and the usual splatter around the anti-vac valve.

A: Fixed the leak and as its late here, will try again in the morning. Should all be dry as well.

B: Will also remove the Anti-vac valve and fit a modified tea light candle holder to contain any splatter.

NOTE: The DCM has a nice SS Anti-Vac shield and the tea lights have a thin ally cup which can do just as well AND cheaper than drilling out a blind and using that.

I guess that's like turbo charging your cremina

Interesting outcome to date..

Set to cycle at about 0.9 to 1 bar and Steam power is much better than I expected !!!

Would like a swivel steam wand and a new style tip.

As to the CUP !!!

Well the ship is still at sea

Will need to get a few purges and shots under my belt and to look at the grind and the dose !!!!!!!!!

At this early stage; a better mouth feel is all I can say....

Cons;

1: Temp management. Will need to look at a gasket to possibly cut-down on the thermal transfer between boiler and head ?
2: Position of lever at rest and locking in of group is a bit tight.. I can see my wife lifting the lever and shooting water every where. I know I did it
3 The double basket outer size is bigger than the PF and catches in the group when inserting
4: A tad small/light. I find I need to use my other hand to balance / hold in position ? Or is this just down to my newness

Other;

A: Basket ... Need some more 49mm baskets to try
B: Need to find my 49mm tamp to level and assist with dose management

Oh and with 1200W, tis quick to heat up

Machined 1mm of the outer rim (dia) of the basket and now it all locks in with no catching..

Also had an old but very solid Tamp from another old leaver machine and machines it down to a best fit size for the basket. A good fitting tamp is a useful tool. I don't tamp to hard, but settling and having to dose / tamp/dose and then finish is the method I am using.

The shot I just had was good... almost great but not where I would like it to be

But that will come with time.

Steaming the milk is a pain. It is almost like the BZ99 I was trying to use the other day.

NOTE to self and others...

DO NOT LEAVE THE HANDEL UP...

I was playing, left the handle up and the PF in..... Turned the machine on and walked away.

A short time later I heard a BANG.. Raced outside and the handle was down but two big wet areas and a drip tray 1/2 full ???

I will let people espouse what happened, but I know what and why

I will need to play a bit with the pressure/temp but I must admit the warm up time is quick.... Other than when I need to be making a few coffees in a row, I am starting to move to this baby to pull that first or quick coffee.

Still coming to terms with some little tricks and having to lift the handle a tad to fit the group, but it's what's in the cup that makes it all worth while.