I recently bought a metal puck screen because I like the way they keep the shower screen and group cleaner. However, after 1 day I am ready to give up because the workflow is a nightmare:

1. Placing a cold metal disk on top of the coffee drops the brew temperature significantly. I leave the disk in the empty pf, but it still cools whilst I am preparing the basket.
2. Fishing the metal disk out of the knockbox is a finger-burning nightmare.

What do other people do to optimise this, or should I just give up with it?

jgoodman00 wrote:<snip>What do other people do to optimise this, or should I just give up with it?

I use sintered metal puck disks, twice a day, nearly every day. When I first got the disks, I used to put them in a spare portafilter and hit them with some steam or hot water, but I gave this up long ago. I've not measured the difference in espresso temperature with/without the disk. We don't notice any difference in taste or temperature; however, we mostly drink cappuccinos. I do agree that it helps keep the group head much cleaner. I don't have to fish mine out of the knock box; I just press on the edge with the tip of a teaspoon, which tips the opposite edge out of the PF, then I use the spoon to pop it out into the sink.

You may try the round paper filters. I have been using them with our lever machine for few weeks and I am super happy with them. They keep the shower screen perfectly clean, no change in extraction time, no change in flavor, cheap and I discard them with the puck.
I use the 54mm filter since we make only single shots with a La Marzocco basket ( the puck is only 40mm) but I assume the 58mm would work fine with a regular size puck.

I have a 4x12in, thick tamp mat that I remove the puck onto. By the time I prep my next shot it is cooled off enough to remove the screen without issue. It usually falls off easily. The pucks are always rock solid so it is easy to dispose of them without the need for a knock box after I am finished in the morning. I preheat my screen with a burst of water out of the group head onto the screen sitting on the drip tray and then dab it with my towel. It is the last step before adding the screen and inserting the portafilter. I like purging the group head right before the shot anyway even though it is unnecessary for temp reasons on my GS3. I do it to make sure the shower screen is cleared so using that water to preheat the puck screen is a dual use.

For my workflow I clean it off in running water, place it on top of my espresso machine to warm somewhat. After prepping my puck, just before locking it in, I drop the screen on to the puck. It's a little warm which works for me.

After extraction, I knock the screen out onto a paper towel, then knock the puck into my knock box. After 30 seconds it's cool enough to handle and rinse with water, then start all over again.

I have a similar workflow to Bob and find it adds minimal time to my workflow. Maybe an extra 5-10 secs, that is compensated by the cleanliness of the brew head. I don't have an issue with the heat of the screen when I pick it out of the knock box. However, I brew mainly dark roasts at a lower temp (188F), so that may be low enough to not burn my fingers.

luckydragon wrote:The thickness of the BPlus/Flair-style screens acting as a heat-sink is why I went with SworksDesigns' 0.2 mm screens instead. The trade-off is that they're somewhat fragile (e.g., easy to bend), but they function just as well, if not better, than the 1.7 mm screens. They're also much easier to clean.

And now SworksDesign is selling magnetic 0.2 mm screens. With a small horseshoe magnet they can easily be removed. Sheer genius! I just ordered a pair.

Look up tweezer tongs or yakiniku. They come in all different sizes and some have offset tips.