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Recommendations for first coffee machine and grinder

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  • virma
    commented on 's reply
    Thanks, I appreciate your advice!

  • virma
    commented on 's reply
    Thanks for sharing your experience! Which Eureka Mignon do you have? Manual?

  • tompoland
    replied
    I would certainly prioritise the grinder. And I reckon that it you got the same set up as HA_DA_JA you would have exactly what you needed and wanted. That's a really great value package.

    Leave a comment:


  • HA_DA_JA
    replied
    Eureka mignon grinder is great option. No problems from mine over the last 4 x years. I too have 2 -3 coffees a day.
    i bought a ecm casa iv machine . Descale this once a year but it probably needs a professional service now being 4 x yyears old. The steamer has lost a bit of punch. Not sure if this is normal though. Cheers

    Leave a comment:


  • virma
    commented on 's reply
    We have not settled on anything yet. I am keeping an eye on the for sale section of this forum, and we are considering a couple of offers from the site sponsors, which I recommend contacting using the forum quote function.
    If we buy new, we are probably going for the Rancilio Silvia or Gaggia pro, and the Eureka mignon manuale.
    The experts will be able to comment on warm up times, personally I would say 15 min is not bad, but I am a laid back person

  • virma
    commented on 's reply
    Thanks! It is a fantastic deal, but a bit too wide for our counter space. Still, great price: thanks for the recommendation!

  • SHAWK
    replied
    Originally posted by virma View Post
    Thanks for the recs for the Breville dual boiler. I see it can be found at around $1k from major chains.
    I believe it is probably a bit too big for the space I have? I cannot seem to find the dimensions.
    What did you end up buying Virma? I'm in the same position as you - looking to buy but with a bit more flexibility around price. I'm thinking of a single boiler Italian built machine like a gaggia pro although there are some price accessible heat exchangers out there at the moment. One thing I've been thinking of is how long each machine takes to warm up. Apparently the heat exchangers take 15 minutes plus compared to 5 min for single boilers. Any advice coffee snobs?

    Leave a comment:


  • Blues1143
    commented on 's reply
    Dimensions (WxDxH). 17.3" x 17.3" x 20.2" from breville website

  • Blues1143
    commented on 's reply
    i cannot provide link publicly but if you look at ozbargain website right now - it can be had on evil bay for $809.10 C&C / + Delivery @ The Good Guys evil bay, which is a fantastic deal

  • virma
    replied
    Thanks for the recs for the Breville dual boiler. I see it can be found at around $1k from major chains.
    I believe it is probably a bit too big for the space I have? I cannot seem to find the dimensions.

    Leave a comment:


  • Blues1143
    replied
    Depending on if you have evil Bay plus, the bes920 can be had for about $850 delivered which is a steal today IMHO.

    Leave a comment:


  • o4kapuk
    replied
    BES920 is very capable unit.

    Leave a comment:


  • virma
    replied
    Thanks WhatEverBeansNecessary!

    That is very useful advice to reflect on --- not planning on upgrading anytime soon, and potentially this could become another hobby, both out of personal interest (I'm a physical chemist) and out of wanting a good espresso, which when I'm out and about is quite hard to find (hate it in takeaway cups, hate having to sit down and wait 20 min for it).
    Yes, absolutely with a water tank.

    I'll see if I can get to a shop and see the grinders in action during the holidays, hopefully there are a few open in Melbourne.

    I've seen the Grimac Mia and it seems like a great machine, currently doing some research on it

    Thanks for all the great advice!

    Leave a comment:


  • WhatEverBeansNecessary
    replied
    Welcome virma,

    You have obviously done a bit of reading on the forum before posting so kudos!

    Some things to keep in mind
    pgrade factor - if you don't plan on upgrading anytime soon then try get the most out of your budget with all the features you could possibly need/reasonably want.
    Hobby - for many of us (myself included) coffee is as much a 'hobby' as it is a way to get a delicious brew. If that is you (or could likely be) things like PID controllers, flow profiling etc are great to play with and be part of the hobby. For the non-hobbyists I would suggest they are less important and can often be tools you won't use but still be paying for.
    Bench space - likely you will need a machine that has a water tank rather than plumbed in.

    You have hit the nail on the head that the grinder is the limiting factor most of the time. The Eureka Silenzio is apparently very quiet which brand new is just above your budget but might be a good option if noise is a big deal. You might be able to get down to a shop for a demo and see the noise difference in grinding.

    There is a grimac mia in the for sale section at the moment - something like this might suit as it's relatively small. Keep in mind as well some machines will have a standard E61 group heads so parts are pretty easy to get like baskets or naked portafilters. Others like sun beams, brevilles etc typically don't have standard group heads so you have to use specific parts/baskets.

    Leave a comment:


  • virma
    started a topic Recommendations for first coffee machine and grinder

    Recommendations for first coffee machine and grinder

    Hello, new to the forum and looking for advice as we finally bought our place, which needs a grown-up coffee machine, and a grinder
    I have made coffee in a moka pot (Bialetti of course) my whole life, so this is a serious upgrade!

    Our coffee machine needs:
    • we will be making 2-4 coffees a day most days, occasionally when we have guests 4-6 in a row
    • looking for a manual machine, but with a not-so-steep learning curve, that behaves quite consistently in the hands of a newbie.
    • we'd like a machine that we can repair over the years and last a long time.
    • we drink black espresso (no milk), but I like to froth my soy/almond/oat milk at breakfast, so a frothing capability is needed. I make coffee last so I can wait after steaming the milk.
    • relatively small footprint as the bench space is limited
    Our grinder needs:
    • relatively small footprint as the bench space is limited
    • not very noisy as we live in an apartment.
    • stepless if possible with our budget
    Budget: around $1000 for the machine, $500 for the grinder (open to pre-loved items).

    As we have a fair few expenses in setting up the new place, I will buy one earlier and the other later in the year.
    From what I understand by reading in this forum, the grinder is the limiting factor. Should I get that first and keep making coffee with the Moka, and get the coffee machine later?

    For the grinder, I think probably the Eureka Mignon would suit our needs best. Is the Manuale model a good buy?

    In regards to coffee machines, I see that suggestions include the Gaggia Classic Pro, Rancilio Silvia, Lelit PM41 (which I can't find, I can find the PL41).
    Any advice on which would suit us best?
    How about the Quick Mill Stretta? I haven't found any reviews.

    I also see that Jetblack Espresso has a pre-loved Lelit PL41TEMD for $900, I guess that could be a good buy for us?

    I will use the quote request form on this forum as well.

    Thanks for any advice you may have, and have a great Xmas/New Year break!

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