Re: Silvia Questions
Bill
Congratulations, Sounds like some good results have come your way.
Your minimum fill is effectively determined by the tamper hitting the ridge, you dont want to go any lower than this as you wont be able to control your tamp pressure.
Just kissing the showerscreen is working great for you, so that is a good point to aim for. The lack of room for puck expansion is not such a concern.
As the puck tries to expand it will be nicely compressed between the showerscreen and the PF...........so all those good oils will be squeezed out.
Your maximum fill is the point just before overfill [where you will not be able to load the PF].
This is just annoying as it necessitates a scrape out/repack, but you will learn to judge it better over time.
With some blends an under fill/finer grind strategy may work better, yup, it will leave water on the puck, but if the extraction tastes great it doesnt matter.
Anyway now youre in the zone, its time to experiment.
Have Fun.
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Re: Silvia Questions
Ok, well Ive been using the LM double basket (with the Pullman tamper) for a few days now. The LM basket holds 2-3gms more than the Rancilio one, and I must say that this makes a HUGE improvement! Rancilio should really supply these LM baskets with it as standard! Up until I fitted the LM basket I must say I was somewhat dissapointed with the results I was getting out of the Silvia, but the LM basket has completely transformed it. I get a much darker pour now, with more crema, and the coffee has a much fuller body to it.
Im still a bit unsure what the ideal fill level is though. The Pullman tamper hits the ridge in the basket, so I cant go any deeper than that, which is around the top depth marker on the tamper (ie. the deepest mark). If I fill the basket and tamp it to that level, the showerscreen screw puts a large intent into the coffee. Is this normal? I cant fill the basket any lower than this as the Pullman tamper wont allow me to.
However, Ive so far actually been getting better results with the coffee filled slightly higher than that in the basket - to just a fraction above the bottom of the ridge, which sits the Pullman tamper to somewhere around the middle depth mark. At this fill level the coffee appears to just kiss the showerscreen - the portafilter still goes on easily though, so its not crammed tight. I would have thought that this wouldnt give enough room for the coffee to expand, however Im getting around 30ml in 30 sec with a good crema, and the spent coffee puck looks good - firm and just slightly moist. Note that I had also replaced the standard showerscreen screw with one that has a lower profile screw head to give the coffee a bit more room to expand.
So does this sound about right, or should I try for a lower fill level, with finer grind (it pours through too quickly when I increase the clearance off the showerscreen)? Also, when I increase clearance off the showerscreen I get water sitting on the top of the spent puck, which I dont get when the fill level just kisses the showerscreen.
Bill
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Re: Silvia Questions
Originally posted by Bill link=1183296412/0#9 date=1183611926Originally posted by reubster link=1183296412/0#8 date=1183608095I think yours will be on of the first Pullman-JavaB editions
Whats a JavaB edition? How does it differ from the previous version?
Bill
Hi Bill and welcome to CoffeeSnobs by the way.....
If you havent been reading the mail here on CS, I manage the production and dispatch of Gregs tampers now.
There are no changes to the actual tamper..... just made over here in Perth (Greg has now returned to Adelaide by the way).
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Re: Silvia Questions
Originally posted by reubster link=1183296412/0#8 date=1183608095I think yours will be on of the first Pullman-JavaB editions
Whats a JavaB edition? How does it differ from the previous version?
Bill
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Re: Silvia Questions
The main difference between the Bezzera and the LM baskets is that the Bezzera is ridgeless [ie the walls are straight]
Early on, when I was struggling a bit with my dosing technique, I thought a straight walled basket might be easier to fill and tamp, and Bezzera was the only ridgeless I could find............Im pretty happy with it and got the Pullman made to fit....whoo hoo, things will really improve for you when Mr Pullman comes a knocking!.
I think yours will be on of the first Pullman-JavaB editions
Ive double checked with Coffee Parts and a Rancillio distributor and can confirm that Silvia does ship with a 12g basket, and also that a 14g basket is also available aftermarket.
As Robusto says, most baskets hold more than than their rating, but I think the smaller size does make things more difficult for a newbie.
As an experiment, Ive since tried the original 12g Silvia basket and now Im much better [more consistant] with that, but for me the same volume shot the coffee is still richer from the larger basket.
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Re: Silvia Questions
My machine is the same. Better spouts fixed it. I dont have to put anything under the machine.Originally posted by Bill link=1183296412/0#6 date=1183555677
As for the uneven pours, I think I’ve sorted that out now. I got out my level and did some checking – the bench is level, and Silvia appears to be level, but the group head wasn’t level for some reason. So the group head isn’t level with the rest of the frame. Anyway, I packed up under the left side feet of Silvia by about 3mm which got the group head as close as I could get to level, and the pour tonight was nearly spot-on, only a couple of ml difference between left and right spouts over a 30ml pour.
Bill
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Re: Silvia Questions
Thanks for the replies everyone. As a couple of you have suggested, yes I had already ordered a Pullman tamper (and the LM baskets) last week. I haven’t got them yet but I’m expecting them to arrive in the next day or two so I’m looking forward to trying them out. That plastic tamper is pretty useless but is all I’ve got at the moment.
As for the uneven pours, I think I’ve sorted that out now. I got out my level and did some checking – the bench is level, and Silvia appears to be level, but the group head wasn’t level for some reason. So the group head isn’t level with the rest of the frame. Anyway, I packed up under the left side feet of Silvia by about 3mm which got the group head as close as I could get to level, and the pour tonight was nearly spot-on, only a couple of ml difference between left and right spouts over a 30ml pour.
reubster, I haven’t heard of anyone using the Bezzera baskets in the Silvia before. How do they compare to the LM ones?
Bill
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Re: Silvia Questions
Hi Bill
Heres some advice if youre just beginning to get into Ms Silvia.. Get a Pullman Tamper. And get an LM filter that Greg will custom fit the tamper for you. I spent months messing around with the standard filter and various tampers (other branded flat and convex steel tampers and click tampers etc) but none have improved my shot as much as the Pullman tamper. This thing should really come standard with a Silvia! First thing youll notice is that youll be able to control the timing of your shot much easier and it wont blond as fast. I like my coffee sweeter so I generally stop around the 20 sec mark. Also when you look at the puck after tamping with the Pullman, you wont see any channelling so you know the water hasnt escaped down the side of the filter.
Regarding the level of coffee in the filter, I find that if you level off with your middle finger a little bent (palm facing upwards), then you should be able to get a consistent level after tamping that will allow you to easily lock in the handle without the screw on the shower screen obstructing this. Previously I did a level off with a flat edge, but I could never lock in the handle since there was too much coffee in the filter.
Hope that helps.
K.
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Re: Silvia Questions
The Rancilio double basket easilly accommodates 16, 17, 18 grams.
--Robusto
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Re: Silvia Questions
The silvia spouts are a pretty common complaint. The spout my machine came with was uneven and so it always poured faster on one side. I got the coffeeparts LM spout which has the same thread and it hasnt been a problem since. It will reduce the clearance between the drip tray and spouts though and make putting a bug mug under them harder. also I have to tilt latte glasses to get them under.
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Re: Silvia Questions
Nice explanations FB,
Just to add:
You want a light screw impression in the puck, before you pull the shot.
Silvia ships with smallish baskets [I believe they are actually rated at 12g].....
I got huge improvements changing to a 14g basket, ie richer coffee/delayed onset of blonding.
I can recommend the bezzera ridgeless baskets from site sponsor "Barazi Bezzera",
Getting the dosing right is less critical with the larger basket.
I also found the ridgeless basket made it a bit easier to estimate my dosing.
My spouts produce "consistantly" uneven pours [the left side is slow in my case].
If this is a problem for you, another site sponsor Coffee Parts, can supply LM [or other manufacturers] spouts that have the same thread as the Rancillio PF.
Also,
In case you are using the crappy plastic tamper, get something fitted like a Pullman Tamper...another big difference.
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Re: Silvia Questions
Bill,
Welcome.
I used to have a Silvia, so Ill see if I can help you out.
1. I found the ideal level (once tamped) was about 5mm from the top. There is a ridge in the supplied basket, aim for that line. Any more coffee than that, and it was hard to lock into place. Any lower and you might get gushers and/or sloppy pucks. If you are on that line and still having issues, work on the grind and tamp.
2. Uneven flow can be caused by a few things.- Machine not level.
- Tamp favours one side.
- Blockage in one spout.
- PF favours one spout (IE: A machining issue)
3. From the time you hit the brew switch. If your grind/tamp is right, it should be a few seconds (5 or so) from hitting the brew switch until the first streams of coffee appear. Then, a further 20-25 seconds should yield the 25-30 mls (or 50-60 mls for a double) that we all go on about.
Hope that heps.
Brett.
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Silvia Questions
Hi,
Im new here so go easy on me. I just bought a Silvia (upgraded from a Saeco Via Venezia) and after playing around with grinder settings etc over the weekend Im starting to get some reasonable looking pours out of it, but it still doesnt look quite right yet so I thought Id see if I could get some good advice on here.
1. What is the ideal filter basket fill level on this machine? Should the top surface of the coffee just touch the screw that holds the showerscreen on (which seems to be about 3mm off the showerscreen itself going by my measurments) or should it be a bit closer to the showerscreen than that?
2. Im getting an uneven flow out of each spout - higher flow out the the left spout. Is there any way to correct this, maybe by packing up the left side of the machine so it sits on a slight angle (perhaps the bench isnt quite level)? Or is there such a thing as an adjustable spout that could be fitted to adjust the flow (Ive no idea if such a thing exists as Im not too familiar with commercial type machines)? Any other ideas?
3. This may be a simple question, but Ive never seen it explained very clearly before. I keep reading everywhere that the flow should be such that you get 25-30ml in 25-30 sec, but Im a bit confused by this as no-one seems to state exactly when to start timing from. Do you start the stop-watch the moment you press the brew switch, or are you supposed to start timing (some 5 sec or so later) when the coffee just starts flowing from the spouts?
thanks,
BillTags: None
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