Thinking of getting a Gaggia Classic

Jeltz

Jeltz

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Location
Wiltshire
I'm in the market for a decent espresso machine, I'd go to about £250 tops, is anything other than a Gaggia Classic worth considering.

My grinder is a Bodum Bistro Burr grinder which is pretty good on the finest grind but best for me to use in pressurised portafilter so I need that to start until I find a really good grinder cheap!

EDIT: I just clicked the skimlink :icon_surprised: I paid £40 for the grinder.
 
I don't know about your particular grinder but it's difficult to convince folks when first dipping into espresso world that the grinder is as if not more important than the actual espresso machine. If you can't adjust grind size accurately you're just pissing in the wind and why I suspect there is such a healthy second hand market in Gaggia Classics and La Pavoni's.

LTB is running a typical Classic set up so I'm sure he'll be along to give you some decent advice, there used to be a chap selling refurbs or nearly new for half RRP but I'm not sure if he's still around.

Just found this kit for sale and it looks clean and well maintained, I'd jump on it.

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?18339-Gaggia-Classic-with-mods-MC2-grinder
 
I posted on that forum to and someone else pointed me to that pair. How easy are these to maintain/repair, I'm guessing that being modified I wouldn't get Gaggia to repair it if it went wrong, and thats what generally happens when I buy 2nd hand stuff.
 
Those are standard mods that'll save you the bother and doesn't compromise the machine in any way nor should it affect the way Gaggia treat you should you chose to send it to them...there really isn't that much to them and "how to" fixes and parts are easily available.
 
My setup is exactly the same as that one. Same mods, same grinder.
It's a very capable setup that with a little patience yields very nice coffee ;)

The steam wand takes a bit of time and experimentation to get the best results.

Good luck, just had my first brew of the day. Climpsons & Sons "the baron" great coffee!
 
Well I'm off for 2 weeks from Sunday but when I get back into the office on 1st Sept I should have that Classic and MC2 waiting for me. Now what tamper do I need? Something sprung loaded so that it hits the correct weight of pressure?
 
I went with the Happy Donkey, does the job fine.

Learning correct tamp pressure is all part of the fun.
It's great fun showing off your barista skills when making coffee for visitors :)
 
Jeltz said:
Now what tamper do I need? Something sprung loaded so that it hits the correct weight of pressure?
Click to expand...

You can but it'll set you back £60+ I had the Espro one many years ago. Beautifully made but really I've found the pressure of the tamp to have very limited affect on the pour. I'd get something you find pretty.
 
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