CoffeeGeek - Espresso: Espresso Machines, La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Espresso: Espresso Machines
La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Italian Coffee

Italian coffee beans, grinds and pods from Kimbo, LavAzza, Miscela d'Oro & Bristot. Qty. discounts!
www.espressozone.com

Not Logged in:

updated topics	new posts	new unanswered
search	faq	sign up

Discussions > Espresso > Machines > La Nuova Era...

view previous topic | view next topic | view all topics

showing page 47 of 106

first page | last page

previous page | next page

Author

Messages

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Tue May 1, 2012, 11:17am
Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

1stline Said:

In this case, the steaming is slower due to the 2 holes and the smaller diameter for the throughput, but this design will work better for those who are having difficulty with the current wand and steam tip on the Cuadra 1.

Posted May 1, 2012 link

Thank you Jim. For that price, I think it is worth giving it a try. I already made myself a two hole tip and it works great, but it might be nice to be able to move the wand all around with reckless abandon.

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Thu May 3, 2012, 9:34am Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Jim is still the jedi master of fulfillment. Things show up at my door while the order "submit" button is still warm. I will pop this on the machine tonight and give 'er a try. (Click for larger image)

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Thu May 3, 2012, 9:57am Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

One more bit of good news about the new arm. They used a more common thread size for the tip. The tips from Rocket will fit on this arm. I had previously bought a 4 pack that has 2,3 and 4 hole tips for about $20. This will allow us to experiment and find the best options. They did not put a flat spot on the 2 hole tip that comes with the new arm, so if you go to remove it, put some grippy rubber or something inside your channel locks so you don't chew the finish up. One of those old grips for unscrewing jar lids would work well. The tip on the far left is the one that came with the new arm. The rest are the tips from Rocket. (Click for larger image)

shmulibaby
Senior Member

Joined: 14 Nov 2011
Posts: 44
Location: NYC
Expertise: I like coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Rossi RR45, Krups Conical
Drip: Melitta single cup
Roaster: Popcorn Popper

Posted Thu May 3, 2012, 11:48am Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Thanks for all that info. Mine is in transit. I'm curious how the new wand + tip compares to your original hand + modified tip. Also, I think you mentioned that you're using the Toroid these days. If you do ever steam with a traditional pitcher, I'd be curious if you have different/better results as well. Can't wait to try mine out.

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Thu May 3, 2012, 12:39pm Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Yessir - I still have my straight-sided pitchers as well, so I will get to play with all different combos. I shut my machine off and I'm waiting for it to cool. I was encouraged to see that Jim is now stocking some parts for the cuadra as well. If anyone plans on getting the rocket tips, I recommend getting 4 extra of the steam o-rings from Jim. That way you can have an O ring for each tip. Link here from SCG, if Jim has the same O-rings, maybe he can post up a link for everyone: Click Here (www.seattlecoffeegear.com) Here are the steam tips: Click Here (www.seattlecoffeegear.com)

1stline
Senior Member

Joined: 24 Jan 2002
Posts: 393
Location: Freehold, NJ USA
Expertise: Professional

Espresso: Undisclosed
Grinder: Indisclosed
Vac Pot: Bodum Electric
Drip: None
Roaster: None

Posted Thu May 3, 2012, 3:13pm Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

slybarman Said: Jim is still the jedi master of fulfillment. Things show up at my door while the order "submit" button is still warm. ... Posted May 3, 2012 link Thanks. Just wait... we are working on a new system that will allow us to process orders as quickly as 5 minutes from the time you complete your order during business hours. Of course, weekend and after-hours orders wait until next business day unless we move to a 24/7 business model.... Also, I have a bunch of Rocket tips behind the scenes which I will try to get one of my staff members to put online tomorrow with the oring. Also, just so there are no misconceptions, we did stock many Cuadra parts behind the scenes. We did nto make them available as we only had a limited qty and we were reserving them in case any customers had issues with their machines. I hope everyone could understand this, especially our Cuadra customers.

Sincerely, Jim Piccinich Business Partner 1st-line Equipment, LLC www.1st-line.com Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/1stline Twitter: http://twitter.com/1stline Blog: http://1st-line.blogspot.com/ YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/1stlineespresso

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Fri May 4, 2012, 6:55am Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Here are a few initial results followed by a confession of how I screwed the pooch: First off, installing the new arm is a 2 minute affair. As always when removing the steam arm, be careful to keep an eye on the spring and the little brass circle thing that goes on the top of the ball joint. I started to play with a few of the tips. I started with the 4 hole tip that has one hole pointing straight down. I wasn't wild for that one. It did not make the best standing wave in the pitcher, etc. Next I tried the three hole tip. So far, that seems to be my favorite for the Torroid pitcher. It made a really excellent standing wave and incorporated very well and had lots of steaming power. I also tried it in a straight sided pitcher and it did quite well in there too, but not as well as in the Torroid. The Torroid pitcher by its design augments the roiling action. I also tried to do the swirl in the straight sided pitcher with the steam tip on the side. It did pretty well at that, but I suspect the 2 hole would be better in that use. Next I tried the supplied 2 hole tip in the Torroid pitcher. The did quite well too. Near a well as the 3 hole tip I would say, though I think the three hole was maybe slightly better. And here is where I screwed the pooch. I thought the steam arm was getting hotter than it should be and though steam was maybe leaking into the cavity between the tubes. I removed the arm from the machine and attempted to pull the tubing down so it would stick further into the steam tip. I must have pulled too hard or far on it because I disconnected the tube from the top part of the steam arm (at the ball joint). I am not sure the top of the steam arm under the ball joint is threaded so I may be SOL. So, the moral of the story is - don't do what I did! If i can't reconnect the tubing, I will have to hang my head in shame and beg Jim to sell me another arm.

Posted Fri May 4, 2012, 7:58am Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

I'm not sure I follow exactly what happened - did u basically tug too hard at the steam arm which dislodged it from the ball joint? If so, couldn't you just force/push it back in (assuming it's not threaded)? I would definitely agree though: the no-burn aspect of it is really only for the first couple minutes of steaming. After that it gets just as hot - too hot to touch for more than a half second or so. I was practicing on cold soapy water so put it to use for a bit. As for observations, it's probably way too early since other than the soapy water, I've only steamed one pitcher for this morning's capp, but here is what I am noticing: while the steam power must inevitably be more subdued than a 4 hole tip, it seemingly created the whirlpool effect without any problem whatsoever. In fact, for me, at certain angles/positions, the whirlpool was so damn powerful that i struggled to keep the milk in the pitcher (i was using a 12oz pitcher to steam about 6 oz of milk. Admittedly, a generally difficult task since time and pitcher volume do not allow much forgiveness here). Nevertheless, in my standard pitcher, I did get what I think to be decent pourable microfoam. It seems that the two hole tip definitely requires a modified technique. If I can hone it and produce better and more consistent micro-foam, I'll call it a winner.

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Fri May 4, 2012, 8:03am
Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

shmulibaby Said:

I'm not sure I follow exactly what happened - did u basically tug too hard at the steam arm which dislodged it from the ball joint? If so, couldn't you just force/push it back in (assuming it's not threaded)?

Posted May 4, 2012 link

No. No burn wands work by having a tube within a tube. In theory the steam goes thrugh the inner tube only and the outer tube remains cool. The inner tube in this case is rubber tubing of some sort (or silicone or teflon or whatever it is made of). The inner tube is connected to the ball joint at the top of the wand and terminates near the top of the steam tip at the bottom end of the wand. In an effort to have it terminate closer to the steam tip, I pulled the rubber tubing down through the steam wand, but in the process disconnected it from the top end f the steam wand.

Good to hear you are getting good result. I am sure you will dial-it-in in short order.

slybarman
Senior Member

Joined: 3 Nov 2011
Posts: 333
Location: usa
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Nuova Era Cuadra
Grinder: Baratza Vario

Posted Fri May 4, 2012, 5:21pm Subject: Re: La Nuova Era Cuadra Owners Thread

Looks like Jim put the rocket steam tips up and with a good price to boot: http://www.1st-line.net/cgi-bin/category.cgi

showing page 47 of 106

first page | last page

previous page | next page

view previous topic | view next topic | view all topics

Discussions > Espresso > Machines > La Nuova Era...

updated topics

new posts

new unanswered

faq

Not Logged in: log in
Discussions Quick Jump:
Symbols: = New Posts since your last visit = No New Posts since last visit = Newest post

Forum Rules:
No profanity, illegal acts or personal attacks will be tolerated in these discussion boards.
No commercial posting of any nature will be tolerated; only private sales by private individuals, in the "Buy and Sell" forum.
No cross posting allowed - do not post your topic to more than one forum, nor repost a topic to the same forum.
Who Can Read The Forum? Anyone can read posts in these discussion boards.
Who Can Post New Topics? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post new topics.
Who Can Post Replies? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post replies.
Can Photos be posted? Anyone can post photos in their new topics or replies.
Who can change or delete posts? Any CoffeeGeek member can edit their own posts. Only moderators can delete posts.
Probationary Period: If you are a new signup for CoffeeGeek, you cannot promote, endorse, criticise or otherwise post an unsolicited endorsement for any company, product or service in your first five postings.

Home Espresso Machines

Watch videos with Gail & Kat, Rocket, Jura Capresso, Saeco, Rancilio, Quick Mill, Nespresso
www.seattlecoffeegear.com