Ok, so I keep reading about replacing the Gaggia steam wand with a Silvia.
Before I do that explain to me why? :P What is the difference between the Gaggia steam wand and the Silvia?
thanks
New Gaggias owner - milowebailey
I got sick of waiting for a Gaggia to turn up in our local CR market so I bought one off of ebay (from whole lotta love?) From the initial post here I thought the "baby" would have the adjustable OPV but now looking at the parts diagram for the "new baby" I see it may not....Darn it! Which OPV would I replace it with? I think it has a plastic valve.
[url]http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400111035328&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123[/url] ([url]http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400111035328&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123[/url])
I think it would have been a decent deal if it would have only needed to be PID'd....I don't do the milk thing so I don't need the silvia steam wand.....at least for now.
Thanks Again Tex! :) Should I remove item 60 (the plastic 11 bar valve) or just leave that there?
[url]http://www.shop.partsguru.com/B0147-A-BK4-Gaggia-OPV-and-water-inlet-fitting-for-pump-kit-B0147-A-BK4.htm[/url] ([url]http://www.shop.partsguru.com/B0147-A-BK4-Gaggia-OPV-and-water-inlet-fitting-for-pump-kit-B0147-A-BK4.htm[/url])
Before I read your reply I found this......deals with the "new" baby OPVs. So I take it that these Gaggias need the pressure tuned down more often than not and leaving the 11 bar valve in is not a restriction in the line.
What's this 11 bar valve thing?
And if they could why not put in a 9 bar valve?
:icon_scratch:
What's this 11 bar valve thing?
And if they could why not put in a 9 bar valve?
:icon_scratch:
If it was only capable of producing 9 bar, someone might think that a machine capable of producing 15 bar was better....
If it was only capable of producing 9 bar, someone might think that a machine capable of producing 15 bar was better....
An option would be nice.
Yes, I'll take the 9 bar machine...thanks! :angel:
Just buy a Classic...
+1.Just buy a Classic...
...for $499.99.
Or can one buy a used Gaggia Espresso/Coffee for <$100 and buy a Classic OPV for ~$50 and have the same brewing capabilities for a lot less money? Maybe one could use the remainder to buy a good espresso grinder & PID kit? Just a thought.
...for $499.99.
Or can one buy a used Gaggia Espresso/Coffee for <$100 and buy a Classic OPV for ~$50 and have the same brewing capabilities for a lot less money? Maybe one could use the remainder to buy a good espresso grinder & PID kit? Just a thought.
...for $499.99.f
Or can one buy a used Gaggia Espresso/Coffee for <$100 and buy a Classic OPV for ~$50 and have the same brewing capabilities for a lot less money? Maybe one could use the remainder to buy a good espresso grinder & PID kit? Just a thought.
Been there.
Done that.
But that's not the route for everyone.
Not everyone wants to bake their own bread.
Not everyone wants to change their own oil.
Not everyone wants to build their own house.
I went the do-it-myself route before I bought the Classic, and I spent W A A A A Y more than the $399 I paid for the Classic buying clunkers, buying parts that did and didn't work, buying tools, etc. It was fun and I learned a lot, but it is not for everyone. Anyone who wants to do it should; for everyone else there's.....The Gaggia Classic (and darn, even then you have to add a PID....)
Susan
Just buy a Classic...
...for $499.99.
Or can one buy a used Gaggia Espresso/Coffee for <$100 and buy a Classic OPV for ~$50 and have the same brewing capabilities for a lot less money? Maybe one could use the remainder to buy a good espresso grinder & PID kit? Just a thought.
edited: The only advantages a Classic offers are a s/s chassis and a 3-way valve. Some like the brushed s/s look and some don't.
The 3-way valve has nothing (as in zilch) to do with the quality of the coffee. It'll give you a drier puck and makes pulling back to back shots seem faster. In reality it takes ~30 seconds between shots for the brew temp to stabilize; more than enough time for the group pressure to bleed off between shots. Of course, if you don't have a 3-way valve and you remove the portafilter too soon after pulling a shot you'll get the dreaded portafilter sneeze!
Just buy a Classic...
...for $499.99.
Or can one buy a used Gaggia Espresso/Coffee for <$100 and buy a Classic OPV for ~$50 and have the same brewing capabilities for a lot less money? Maybe one could use the remainder to buy a good espresso grinder & PID kit? Just a thought.
edited: The only advantages a Classic offers are a s/s chassis and a 3-way valve. Some like the brushed s/s look and some don't.
The 3-way valve has nothing (as in zilch) to do with the quality of the coffee. It'll give you a drier puck and makes pulling back to back shots seem faster. In reality it takes ~30 seconds between shots for the brew temp to stabilize; more than enough time for the group pressure to bleed off between shots. Of course, if you don't have a 3-way valve and you remove the portafilter too soon after pulling a shot you'll get the dreaded portafilter sneeze!
Oh yeah, one very important thing: If your machine does NOT have a 3-way valve you'll never have to worry about back flushing. A 3-way valve is the ONLY reason you have to back flush; a group valve equipped machine cannot be back flushed.
The cause of so many problems, the Gaggia self-priming valve (SPV) is one of Gaggia's worst ideas; right up there with the Baby Twin. Simply stated: The valve doesn't work; it leaks, robbing Gaggia's of steam and brewing pressure.
I developed a simple fix: [url]http://tinyurl.com/Gaggia-SPV-fix[/url] ([url]http://tinyurl.com/Gaggia-SPV-fix[/url])
The cause of so many problems, the Gaggia self-priming valve (SPV) is one of Gaggia's worst ideas; right up there with the Baby Twin. Simply stated: The valve doesn't work; it leaks, robbing Gaggia's of steam and brewing pressure.
I developed a simple fix: [url]http://tinyurl.com/Gaggia-SPV-fix[/url] ([url]http://tinyurl.com/Gaggia-SPV-fix[/url])
For anyone who's done this mod, did you purchase the .45 piece from McMaster-Carr? If so, how much was shipping? Were you able to find a local source like home depot?
Irwin
I normally just unscrew the barbed fitting and tap the center of it to 4-40 and then buy a 4-40 stainless screw... add a little teflon tape to the threads of the screw, problem solved. I also put a nut on the end of the screw, but I don't think that it's necessary.
I normally just unscrew the barbed fitting and tap the center of it to 4-40 and then buy a 4-40 stainless screw... add a little teflon tape to the threads of the screw, problem solved. I also put a nut on the end of the screw, but I don't think that it's necessary.
Great suggestion, but I don't want to invest in a tap set too; well, I want to, but I probably shouldn't. I'm already getting a pressure kit and the adjustable OPV.
I'll keep that in mind though. Think I like the teflon tape idea, just in case my coffee making habits have irreversibly been synced to having the hot water flow back into the reserve tank, then I can go back to the stock setup.
Irwin
Boy, I didn't ralize how much trouble making decent espresso is when I bought what appears now to be a used Gaggia Espresso. I thought it was a Classic because it had all the same controls only in different places. I figured it was just an older model. I don't make really decent espresso, so I figure some of the mods here might be needed. But I am 80 now and my geek days are behind me. Wonder if anyone could describe what might be needed for that machine so I could just show it to my son, next time he comes over.
Thanks.
Pete
Great looking shot there Robert ... as usual.
:)
Great looking shot there Robert ... as usual.
:)
As grandpa used to say, "Even a blind pig finds an acorn now & then." That shot was more or less a fluke Mike - you can't always count on the bi-metallic thermostats in consumer machines to be accurate enough to make a shot like that.
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Crema is not all in the machine. The coffee, the age, the grind, and the espresso machine settings will determine the crema.
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Crema is not all in the machine. The coffee, the age, the grind, and the espresso machine settings will determine the crema.
But (There's always a butt around here, right?), brew temp does play into the color of the crema. Too low and it's blond; too high and it's more brown; just right and the crema is redder.
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Crema is not all in the machine. The coffee, the age, the grind, and the espresso machine settings will determine the crema.
But (There's always a butt around here, right?), brew temp does play into the color of the crema. Too low and it's blond; too high and it's more brown; just right and the crema is redder.
So you agree with me. :)
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Crema is not all in the machine. The coffee, the age, the grind, and the espresso machine settings will determine the crema.
But (There's always a butt around here, right?), brew temp does play into the color of the crema. Too low and it's blond; too high and it's more brown; just right and the crema is redder.
So you agree with me. :)
Always! ;D
Tex: Wow that video WITHOUT a PID shows so much more crema than my machine ever achieved. I would be so happy to have mine working half that well. At best, I got a quarter of an inch of crema on my espressos. There must be something wrong with me or mine.Nerd
I tried the links to user groups stuff and I guess i'll need to join Yahoo. Already have 3 internet accounts and I was hoping not to have to set another up.
Nerd
Crema is not all in the machine. The coffee, the age, the grind, and the espresso machine settings will determine the crema.
But (There's always a butt around here, right?), brew temp does play into the color of the crema. Too low and it's blond; too high and it's more brown; just right and the crema is redder.
So you agree with me. :)
Always Kemosabe! ;D
They make sockets that fit on your ratchet, with allen wrenches permanently mounted in those sockets, if that's what you're asking.
Something like this;
([url]http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/b9/b99c69a2-2ffa-4dea-8cb4-fa4628b82aef_300.jpg[/url])