Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Agreed. I started playing with the machine knowing full well it would void warranty if Id done any damage, but thought that Id take enough care to not have to worry about it... I was wrong.
Cheers,
Nader.
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
I am glad to hear that all is well Nader, however there is a message in this for owners of new machines.Originally posted by 5F70757463110 link=1300016146/39#39 date=1301898772I was playing with the steam wand and must have loosened it, and it leaked onto the PID... The distributor I bought it from was extremely generous and spent some time today fixing it for me
You have been lucky in this case that your buddy has provided you with a favour and repaired the damage created by the leakage of steam due to your modification. I have little doubt that Expobar would take a dramatically different view towards a future warranty claim, and rightly so. I am struggling to appreciate how this change has made for a better machine. Its still not a Synesso :
What if water found its way to the control board, pump, solenoid or other critical components and killed some or all of them? You would no doubt be on your own- and fair enough that you should be. Other non standard modifications can easily put owners in a box.
In the last few weeks, we have had similar goodwill repairs on two Alex Duettos. The owners figured theyd set the PID to oF rather than oC but did not read enough to realise that the other PID parameters needed to be altered to suit. Bottom line was a cantankerous machine in both cases and I suspect damage to one thermocouple may have been caused by huge overshoot to a brew boiler as a result. I would argue that few palates can taste 1oF anyway and any inconsistency of dose would make more difference in the cup.
We made both machines good- as a goodwill gesture, but repairs of this nature are irritating and a huge waste of time. Perhaps we should have invoiced our time. We are heading down a road where we may one day be forced to seal machines to keep tinkerers out.
Guys, dont fiddle with new machines and if you dont know what yourre doing, dont fiddle with machines.
Chris
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
All fixed... It was my fault :-[
I was playing with the steam wand and must have loosened it, and it leaked onto the PID... The distributor I bought it from was extremely generous and spent some time today fixing it for me... Wont play with that again. On a better note, I got the Synesso steam wand onto it
Link: http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1301560645
Cheers,
Nader
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Originally posted by 353D252F32560 link=1300016146/36#36 date=1301825483Reply #36 - Today at 7:41pm Mark & Quote Quote
Temp when first tested was ok - thought the on board PID read 92 programmed top end and actual was spot on 94.
Realistically we found again that the Scace 2 is invaluable......
It takes a lot of modelling as Chris from Talk Coffee has alluded to...
Basically you need to model the fundamental use of your machine, then work out what will change when you change those variables and how far...
then, do you need to recalibrate your machine for a given event, or will it cope given the parameters you set...
and THEN... are you willing to frig around each time a bunch of people rock in on, say, a Saturday night, upset the apple cart, and ruin your daybreak perfect Monday morning cuppa.... at least with an Expobar Minore it aint that hard. The only thing you should deal with is temp drop off. A little harder to adjust the Vibiemme.... Wink
Or maybe they wont notice +/- 1.5 degrees in their shot Wink
Knowing what is going on makes it SO easy Smiley
Yeah fair enough. I hate to say it, but in cases like this Id rather be a little bit selfish and keep it set to what works for yourself
Had a bit of an electronics issue with mine tonight though. Brew boiler wouldnt stop boiling, so temps reached 108+ before I turned the machine off at the power point. Will be speaking to the dealer tomorrow morning... A little odd really :|
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Temp when first tested was ok - thought the on board PID read 92 programmed top end and actual was spot on 94.
Realistically we found again that the Scace 2 is invaluable......
It takes a lot of modelling as Chris from Talk Coffee has alluded to...
Basically you need to model the fundamental use of your machine, then work out what will change when you change those variables and how far...
then, do you need to recalibrate your machine for a given event, or will it cope given the parameters you set...
and THEN... are you willing to frig around each time a bunch of people rock in on, say, a Saturday night, upset the apple cart, and ruin your daybreak perfect Monday morning cuppa.... at least with an Expobar Minore it aint that hard. The only thing you should deal with is temp drop off. A little harder to adjust the Vibiemme....
Or maybe they wont notice +/- 1.5 degrees in their shot
Knowing what is going on makes it SO easy
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Thats good to know. After my post I found that things starting tasting a bit sour, so I upped the pressure until it tasted better, and the gauge now sits on ~10bar. So at least I know my palate is relatively calibratedOriginally posted by 333B232934500 link=1300016146/32#32 date=1301790029Okay Nader
Just adjusted my friends Minore IV to show 128 psi (8.8 bar) at the Scace 2, and it shows 10-10.2 on the pressure gauge on the machine.
Pretty much in line with what you will see regarding twin boilers on other forums.
Hope this helps mate
Chris
and man, how easy is that thing to adjust??
What did you find with temperate variance? I cant decide what tastes better and if my mind is just playing tricks on me, after having tasted so many shots
Cheers,
Nader.
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Originally posted by 6F40494B5C634F404F494B434B405A2E0 link=1300016146/33#33 date=1301791261
Slight re adjustment, settled on 91C and the shots so far are 110% better that what I had last week. Pressure is showing almost 10 once the dwell time is over and under load. And as per my testing on my unit previously, should expect to be seeing about 9 at the puk.
Bang for Buck a great machine and a large following OS.
Should be on the money there AM. Adjusted temp down slightly on the IV as well. Couldnt hang around as kids coming for lunch but they have a gathering this evening so it will be interesting to hear the result.
Hope the info was helpful
Chris
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Having it accessible means there is so much less hassle.Originally posted by 696179736E0A0 link=1300016146/32#32 date=1301790029and man, how easy is that thing to adjust??
Just had a SB and it was not bad.
Had to follow with a FW as I do prefer them unless the bean is to my liking for a SB. MM is still resting for another 4 days
Have been having all sorts of issues with the cup and it has as usual come back to the user. Cleaned the grinder and took extra time when replacing the bottom burr as a little movement allowed the burr to be ever so slightly off centre. Thus a grind consistence error.
Slight re adjustment, settled on 91C and the shots so far are 110% better that what I had last week. Pressure is showing almost 10 once the dwell time is over and under load. And as per my testing on my unit previously, should expect to be seeing about 9 at the puk.
Would like to have the IV and the III side by side as I think they are very close, other than some improvement in the ability to control. ie. the Steam boiler (and on/off) and the new pid.
Bang for Buck a great machine and a large following OS.
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Okay Nader
Just adjusted my friends Minore IV to show 128 psi (8.8 bar) at the Scace 2, and it shows 10-10.2 on the pressure gauge on the machine.
Pretty much in line with what you will see regarding twin boilers on other forums.
Hope this helps mate
Chris
and man, how easy is that thing to adjust??
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Yes please....Originally posted by 436C69687F0D0 link=1300016146/30#30 date=1301483642Also, should I start a new thread, or will someone be able to help me with my question about rotating the steam tap?
Mal.
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Hmmmm... I prefered the shots before I tested the pressure, when the gauge on the Minore sat at about 9 bar. I shouldnt have dropped it down. Everything is tasting a little bit sour even though shots are tighter (lower pressure :
).
Also, should I start a new thread, or will someone be able to help me with my question about rotating the steam tap? I want to know if its possible to losen the tap, and rotate it to face the outlet upwards... Is it mounted to the front panel in a way that would prevent this, or does it seem possible?
EDIT: Just had a look... It seems the Synesso Steam wand ball may be very similar in size to that of the Minore III ;D That will make things much easier if everything else is doable
Cheers,
Nader
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
pretty sure I paid about $140. its a very neat setup, fittings that fit perfectly, only takes a couple of minutes to install and looks very tidyOriginally posted by 052A2F2E394B0 link=1300016146/27#27 date=1301301737and if its not too dear, then I wouldnt mind an extra bit of information
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Originally posted by 5976737265170 link=1300016146/27#27 date=1301301737On another note, I borrowed a makeshift Scace device this arvo and with the gauge on the Minore reading ~9 bar, the gauge on the group handle was reading about 9.5 :-? I was a bit confused, to say the least... The scace had only just been tested on a Synesso and seemed very accurate, so I was more than confused when I saw the slight offset was entirely different to what Id expected, especially based on previous observations of shots. Maybe Expobar calibrated it to make up for the offset?
Now that IS weird based on what we saw on our friends machine...
Didnt do any adjustment at the time, due to various constraints along with Expobar not telling you where the adjustment is :-?, but will be playing with it this weekend.
Ill let you know what we come up with Nader.
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Re: Expobar Minore IV ?
Apologies for the image size, I uploaded from my phone, not realising that the forum maintains original image sizes :|
Yeah you have a good point... Ive got one of those bead type TCs and Ive used that technique before on my lever. I will probably just stick with that for now. Ill see how much the temp probe is though, and if its not too dear, then I wouldnt mind an extra bit of information, even if its just to tell me if the group has reached proper tempsOriginally posted by 577B7B647166222D47140 link=1300016146/26#26 date=1301273013hey what is your main purpose in wanting that thermometer?
On another note, I borrowed a makeshift Scace device this arvo and with the gauge on the Minore reading ~9 bar, the gauge on the group handle was reading about 9.5 :-? I was a bit confused, to say the least... The scace had only just been tested on a Synesso and seemed very accurate, so I was more than confused when I saw the slight offset was entirely different to what Id expected, especially based on previous observations of shots. Maybe Expobar calibrated it to make up for the offset?
Cheers,
Nader.
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