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Hi all,
I've just bought an Oscar that is about 3 years old I'm told.
I've got both a Rancillio Rocky and Nuova Simonelli Grinta. I think I'll put the Grinta up for sale and keep the Rocky, unless everyone thinks the Grinta is favoured.
I'm still developing my coffee palate so to me, they both grind beans.
This is a long awaited step up from our Breville 800 appliance which was a no brainer to operate. The Oscar is obviously a much different beast and more "snobby" lol.
I have some newby questions re operating the Oscar.
1. If I use the single basket, with the single spout that came with the machine, how long should a single shot of 30ml coffee take to pour ?
2. If I use the double basket with the double spout that came with the machine, how long should a single shot (two glasses at once, 30 ml in each) take to pour ?
3. I'm after some tips on dosing both the single basket and double basket.
4. I open the steam knob when powering up the machine like the instructions say, no probs. After I turn the power off the machine for the day, should I then open the steam knob and let the built up steam pressure escape from the machine ?
5. Is the 4 hole steam tip easy to remove ? Just unscrew I assume. I think I might look at blocking one or two of the holes as I've read elsewhere.
thanks in advance for any and all replies.
Aza
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Hi, congrats with the purchase!
You should aim for 30 secs with both a single basket and a double basket. For a double basket, it doesn't matter if it's 60ml going into a single cup or two cups each receiving 30mls.
If you're new at dosing, then a cheap scale off ebay would help you get about 7g / 14g until you can do it on the feel.
The 4 hole steam is easy take off, unless it's got some gunk in it. You can get it cleaned with some citric acid from the super. You can descale the whole machine like that, but it's a bit involved to take it apart. I've used a two whole tip myself, and it's a bit easier when starting out.
You don't need to open the steam knob when turning the machine off, at least I never did that on mine, but then I also installed an anti-vac valve, so that i didn't need to open it up after turning it on.
You can get cheap kits to upgrade your oscar at electros dot it: opv and sirai - ELEKTRO'S They have opv-kit, antivac-kit, gigleurs (flow restrictors, for better temperature stability), and combination of those.
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Thanks for the reply iampivot,
my small brain has trouble understanding how a 30 second burst gives 30ml from a single basket, but the same 30 second burst gives 60ml from a double basket. Is it because the double basket has more holes(less restriction) to allow double the amount of liquid to pass thru in the same amount of time ? ?
It seems I have a lot to learn, as what seemed simple grind, tamp, dose on paper is a bit trickier in reality. That's 3 variables to get right. But as you say, I need to find a set of scales that measure grams, that one variable dealt with.
Can you get tampers with graduations up the sides so you know how far to push down once you have your 7/14gm weight of coffee in the basket ? Or could I mark/scribe the inside of the basket somehow ?
That's a good website with some nice parts.
Can someone give me the meaning/function/benefit of the following in plain English ?
Anti Vac valve ?
OPV?
gigleurs?
sirai?
pressurestat?
thanks in advance
Aaron
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Hey all,
I purchased a new machine a couple of weeks ago and it recently stopped making the back flush sound after making a coffee. When it did make the sound, the pucks were pretty dry. Now the puck are so wet they move around loosely in the filter when I unlock it from the group head.
Also, when I backflush with a blind filter, it doesn't drain when I stop the brew. I have to unlock the portafilter a bit before it will drain. Is this normal? Do I need to run the brew for longer? I currently run the brew for 10 secs before stopping.
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I'd try to remove the shower screen and try to clean those parts with caffetto, then try a backflush with some caffetto, just to make sure it's not just stuck with old coffee. If you bought the machine used and you don't know how much it's been cleaned, then my guess would just be sloppy cleaning, and that the solenoid is gunked up with old coffee oils.
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Thanks for response iampivot. I purchased the machine new and it was fine for the first week. I didn't think things could get clogged that quickly (only had 1-2 coffee a day).
When you suggest cleaning the parts with caffetto, is this just soaking and scrubbing?
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Hi,Originally posted by Azamagnum View PostThanks for the reply iampivot,
my small brain has trouble understanding how a 30 second burst gives 30ml from a single basket, but the same 30 second burst gives 60ml from a double basket. Is it because the double basket has more holes(less restriction) to allow double the amount of liquid to pass thru in the same amount of time ? ?
It seems I have a lot to learn, as what seemed simple grind, tamp, dose on paper is a bit trickier in reality. That's 3 variables to get right. But as you say, I need to find a set of scales that measure grams, that one variable dealt with.
Can you get tampers with graduations up the sides so you know how far to push down once you have your 7/14gm weight of coffee in the basket ? Or could I mark/scribe the inside of the basket somehow ?
That's a good website with some nice parts.
Can someone give me the meaning/function/benefit of the following in plain English ?
Anti Vac valve ?
OPV?
gigleurs?
sirai?
pressurestat?
thanks in advance
Aaron
Ill give it a go an explaining in plain English:
Anti Vac valve ? Needed if you are forgetful and lazy and forget to release the steam after 25 minutes or so after turning the machine on. It gets rid of this problem.
OPV? Controls pressure but it is debatable whether or not there is a difference after installation in your brew
gigleurs? Helps with controlling tempreture. They restrict the flow of waer through the head therefore the temp does not get to hot.
sirai? A commercial branded pressurestat. You will either have a matai or sirai usually. Doesnt really matter too much in Australia as we run on 240V therefore less current and so less strain on this part, unlike the US, which is on 110V therefore higher current, where it is almost obligatory.
pressurestat? Controls the on and off of your boiler
These are my understandings.
I have looked at the different mods but in the end here are my reasons for not changing things:
Anti Vac valve ? I just remember to release pressure after 15 minutes
OPV? Too much debate on whether this makes an improvement or not. The problem with it is it makes another spot that could eventually leak as the joins are under pressure.
gigleurs?I have an older machine so where these are fitted is not threaded so therefore makes the job a little more difficult. If you have a newer machine with the threaded bits I woud definetely make this my first mod
sirai? Expensive for something not really needed here
Hope that helps and someone please add if I have things wrong
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If the machine is new, it wouldn't be clogged up. Coffee oils will build up eventually, but it will usually only affect the taste, and that after a couple of weeks.
You should see some brew water going down the plastic tube inside the case on the right side when you turn off the pump and the solenoid activates to take the pressure off the grouphead. If you don't see that, then it's faulty. These parts rarely fail so I'm surprised it happened on a new machine.
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Thanks again for your reply iampivot. I'm going to try and get some help after the public holiday. I think it is a fault as the water purges through the tube if I unlock the portafilter a couple of seconds after I run the brew. I tried to back flush again and at one point I couldn't unlock the portafilter. I guess there was too much pressure. The force I had to use to unlock it was really scary...
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Hey artman, I imagine the Oscar is the same because, during the first week, I could hear it whooshing after I brewed the coffee. I was just hoping I could fix it without having to take it in for repair. I'll update this thread once I get it checked out. Hopefully it will help someone later down the line.
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Hi All, sorry it's taken me so long to provide an update. I ended up getting my machine repaired under warranty.
The cause of the problem was a rusted plunger. I thought this was strange, but apparently it was because when the machines are tested, even though they are drained, a bit of water is still there and if the machine has been sitting there for a while it could cause rust.
Hope this helps others in future...
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