EM6910 Collar Replacement. A How To Guide

[Davidque]

Hi all. First time responder, long time lurker.

A big thanks to all who contribute, not just on this topic but all. Super helpful

I've had my EM6910 since 2007 and done almost all repairs myself including the collar replacement yesterday morning.

And to anyone with a Sunbeam Cafe Series coffee machine, stick with it, its an absolute bulldozer of a machine!

Wow that's a good innings out of a machine!

I am in the process of doing a collar swap + refresh on an old worn out machine I inherited. Can't wait to get it all back together. This guide has been extremely helpful.

[Dr0ng0]

Hi all. First time responder, long time lurker.

A big thanks to all who contribute, not just on this topic but all. Super helpful

I've had my EM6910 since 2007 and done almost all repairs myself including the collar replacement yesterday morning.

And to anyone with a Sunbeam Cafe Series coffee machine, stick with it, its an absolute bulldozer of a machine!

[pschurr]

Late entry on this topic - but there ya go.
Replaced the collar today on the old girl.
I want to note that the 5 torx screws for the collar itself are T25, not T20.
Only the two black torx screws for the rear-side of the 'lid' (so-called 'hidden' pair) are T20.

I didn't remove any of the copper piping, just eased the group-head assembly up and slid the collar out/in.
Also, the replacement collar is markedly heavier than the original, the main circluar flange is solid rather than hollow, and the inside surface is actually milled rather than just cast/polished.
Thanks for the guide - helped a treat.
Was also able to adjust the axial position of the steam/water asemblies to better calibrate valve-open and motor-switch operations. Interesting little setup there with the cam's on the rotating assembly.

[level3ninja]

These are the additional pipe fittings to undo (in order 1,2,3). 1A and 1B is a pipe that is easiest to completely remove, 2 and 3 are each just one end of a pipe to undo, the other end stays attached.
When undoing all these fittings it is important to counteract the undoing force with something holding the other side of the fitting.



With 3 a lot of care must be taken as it is a fitting mid pipe, not attached to something screwed to the frame. Make sure to only put force perpendicular to the pipes, in equal amounts, and opposite directions. Use 2x 10mm spanners in the places indicated by the arrows.







Once all these are undone and the screws etc from the guide you should have a much easier task of swapping the collar out. To reinstall just tighten them back up in reverse order (3,2,1)

[JMC1975]

You're an absolute legend, we've just replaced our collar and without the guide we'd have been lost, not to mention several hundred $$ out of pocket. Thanks for compiling and thanks to all the contributors! If the document ever gets updated it would be great to add screw length and indicate which screws have washers OR instructions to sticky tape each one to a piece of paper with notes about which step in the document they relate to. We were nearly brought unstuck with this as there was a long delay between the dismantling and the replacement part arriving - so even though the screws were in a secure container, it was bloody hard to work out which went where.... and where the F&%$ does this extra screw go ) All good now. And incidentally the Sunbeam repair place in Vic that I bought the replacement collar from indicated that it was perfectly fine to use an EM7000 collar in an EM6910 machine rather than wait four months for a replacement collar. (I couldn't find that as an answer in the forums before we started....) Good luck to anyone else giving it a go. Thanks community - you're all legends

[Lmf]

Hi all my machine is finally fixed. Collar and seal replaced. The new noise and leak ceased. Coffee whenever I want without having to go to the cafe. A big thanks to the authors of this guide. A big thanks to Xanthine for your help at the end. You too LeroyC. Some feedback for anyone who will attempt this. I found the torx bit inside three machine located at about '9' o'clock quite difficult to get too. I ended up stripping the head a bit and then needed to give it a massive whack with a screwdriver to loosen it. Also I've never been handy but Corona has done strange things. I didn't own torx drivers. Before u begin this make sure u have good quality torx driver. In their middle of this project I had to head to the large hardware chain store to get torx drivers with a handle and one for my drill. Annoying. The first torx tool I got from the smaller hardware chain was quite hard to use. I used all three types of torx drivers in the end. Also I read that this project took some people perhaps an hour or so. It took me between 4 to 5hrs. That is not counting having to undo the whole unit again to fix the problem with the sound and heat (mis connected steam knob) or the third time when the electrical wires had not stayed connected so I had no power to the unit. Take your time, stay relaxed. Walk away if u need to. When I had it all working again having achieved what took so long I felt great. The first coffee was one of the best tasting I ever had (even though I know it wasn't the best coffee I ever had). Thanks for all your support. I think for all my effort it's now it's time to buy a grinder. Enjoy your coffee. Liam

[LeroyC]

Yep, sounds like your steam (and/or water) knob isn’t quite assembled correctly. They’re not just mechanical valves like on a prosumer machine, there’s a micro switch inside the knob assembly that is used to activate the pumps. If it’s not set right it could be just on the verge of turning on. So your steam pump is trying to operate with the valve closed. Hence the sound and excessive heat.

[Lmf]

Hi xanthine not quite sure where the grunt is coming from. perhaps the steam arm side. I haven't made a coffee as i was unsure of safety of making a coffee. You mentioned the wrongly positioned knobs. I think there is a good chance both the steam arm knob and hot water knobs are both on incorrectly. When i first turn the machine on steam came out of the arm when i thought the knob was turned off. I turned it off but it seemed tight and you might be on to something with it being wrongly positioned. I'll see if i can correctly position. I'll make a few coffees and possibly open it up too. Thanks for the offer but I'm in Victoria. You've been great Xanthine. I'll let u know the next update.

[Xanthine]

Hi Liam
Can you tell where the 'grunt' is coming from? It doesn't sound good that it is overheating. I agree that taking the covers off and making a thorough check of everything is a good idea. Check for pinched wiring and loose connections. Other than the grunting and overheating is it making coffee OK? One thought, just check the micro switch on the hot water control - it might be stuck 'on' or the knob is wrongly positioned, although I'm just clutching at straws a bit here! Also try a factory reset, it can't hurt.
BTW, where are you? I may be able to help if you happen to be in S.A.

[Lmf]

Xanthine I really appreciate both your artwork and the time and thought you've put into my problem. I couldn't do any repairs yesterday but tonight I filled up the water tank again and thought I would run a group head clean after putting on my new seal as it was on list of repairs to complete full job. I did that and the first thing I noticed was how different attaching the handle and filter basket was with a brew seal. So tight and struggled to get it to 90 degrees. What a difference a new seal made. After the clean was complete I took off the handle and realised I was seeing steam. I felt the dirty water in the container and it was hot. I have no idea what's changed. And xanthine all that effort might not have gone to waste. I feel like I just keep coming back with questions. Thanks in advance for your patience. The machine is making a repetitive noise. It's like a grunt which goes for about a second stops for less than a second and then starts again. I left the machine on for about ten minutes and it had not stopped. What I also noticed was that the outside top of the machine was really hot. So hot that it would burn of you left your hand on for too long. All sides. I think I'm gong to have to re open the machine to look for the problem. Any thoughts? Thanks Liam

[Xanthine]

Hi Lmf
I have been thinking about your problem for a while and can only suggest that there is a wire disconnected to the '3 way'. The cold water from the brew thermo has me beat as I always thought that the machine would not operate until the brew thermo had heated up.
I have sketched out the water circuit so you can see how brew water can get to the drip tray when there is no power to the 3 way solenoid - I hope it is correct and will possibly help you track down the problem. It might pay to remove the covers again and check all connections.

[Lmf]

Hi all I've got a much bigger problem than a dirty group head. I've changed the collar and put the machine back together. I began to descale the machine and the water is now coming out of the group head cold. Also when running the water through the machine and out the group head, water was constantly dripping into the drip tray from the hole at the back of the drop tray area. When changing out the collar what have I done to create these 2 new problems? Thanks Liam

[Lmf]

Hi I got the new collar in. Thanks for the guide. No could done inteit without it. I'm now trying to clean the group head. It's a mess. Any suggestions on what to clean it with both the cleaning agent and tool eg type of brush or scourer

[Lmf]

perfect timing. i put up a post a few weeks ago about replacing the seal. got great feedback. ordered the seal and then had to chat to the store owner about other cleaning parts i ordered and he recommended a new collar based on what i said the problem was. we came to an arrangement financially which i did very well by. i was jumping on to coffeesnobs tonight to find out how to replace a collar and bang, this post jumped out at me. now to give it a go tomorrow. thanks so much

[scottwright]

I have just replaced the collar in my Em6910, using (what I assume are) the original instructions. Care and time are mandatory, but the job was a success. The handle now locks positively, zero leakage.

When disassembling, I was somewhat surprised to find that the collar screws were quite loose. I wondered, for a moment, if just tightening them might have saved a replacement. But obviously, as I had bought the collar, I pushed ahead

Anyway, encouraged by the successful restoration, I treated myself to a new M2M stepless grinder. Happy Days!

As per the instructions. Does the collar come out upwards or downwards? I'm fiddling but nervous on this step!