OK31 wrote:I THINK wdt is helping but will definitely try lower temp. It's a bit of a nuisance to keep adjusting between beans so a consistent number would be great.

Thanks for the tip

Bret wrote:I don't do anything complex with the timing: I just use the timer on the BDB. When I did use preinfusion, I just wrote down the total time and noted the preinfusion time separately (eg. 40 s, 7s PIF -- so the 33 seconds after PIF is represented if you really need that for some reason). As said before, it doesn't matter much how you do it so long as you do it consistently -- then timing changes with your system will be meaningful to you. As a result of the variations in how people count their times, the 30 second shot is not The Goal, just a ballpark.

I have the the BDB and the SGP. I moved to single dosing the SGP for a variety of reasons, among them being a consistent dose.

I use the 920, but I still use the old baskets from my 900. The 920 baskets are very good, though, so probably no need to get any VST puppies unless you need to some very specific smaller doses.

In the first 3-4 months, as the SGP burrs break in, you'll likely find that the grind setting will need to gradually move from the 10-12 range toward the 6-8 range (assuming same coffee). So if you get it all dialed in and then in a month it seems off, adjusting the grind down a bit might be helpful (and normal).

I wouldn't buy a calibrated tamper if I were you. I did, found it to be an expensive paperweight (and as valuable as paperweights are in the paperless era!). Tamping to full compression (as previously mentioned) works very well for me, is very consistent, and at the rate of shots I pull is not a repetitive motion injury risk. If you did dozens and dozens of pulls a day, getting dialed in with a consistent 30 lb tamp would be of much more value).

The better way to spend money on a tamper is to get a leveling tamper. I use the Lev Tamp from Kafatek -- it is fantastic, self leveling and depth adjusting for varying dose levels. I highly recommend it. I have not used any other leveling tamper, so I can't objectively compare it with others. But I have no reason to seek another tamper any more, ever.

I did play around a lot with pre-infusion, trying to emulate Slayer shots, etc. Eventually, though, I found that zero preinfusion worked best for me and the roasts I use. I prefer more traditional Italian style roasts, and pre-infusion didn't seem to add anything (for my taste). So without preinfusion in the equation at all, I dialed in 19-20g doses for 36g outputs in a range of ~30-38 seconds (ranging from size 6 to 3 on my fully broken in SGP).

Lately, I've stopped cutting of the shot at a specific weight, and instead am trying to get consistent about cutting it off just as blonding starts by watching the bottomless PF carefully. So I get varying outputs because of my variable judgement of blonding, age of coffee, etc. But the taste 'seems' more consistent.

A bottomless portafilter is a good purchase in my opinion (if you don't already have one). You'll get better feedback on your process by seeing what the pull looks like, and even when you are not dialing in, etc. it is still a lot of fun to see every time. I put a mirror and a light on my BDB so I can see the bottom of the PF easily while standing at the machine. Can link what I use if you are interested.

Bret wrote:It is possible to tamp without the leveling plate fully resting on the pf/basket rim, but you'd almost have to try if your dose is appropriately sized and reasonably distributed. So if your dose is still in a pile and offset, or perhaps over dosed, then you might not make contact evenly around the rim to start. Apart from corner cases like that, it just works. And in the corner cases it just doesn't feel right, so you kinda know something is off anyway.