Londinium L2 Maintenance question

HAFIDZ DIN

Hi guys, so i've had the L2 for almost 4 months now on my coffee truck. I've had a little issue recently and i'm not sure what really to look at though i have a feeling it might be the seals.

1)The right side of the lever are used more frequently.

2)When ' locking ' the group handle, it goes ' in ' way more than the left side. If a normal inserted group handle angle is 90 degrees i'd say the right side can go almost 45 degrees

3)Lever catches high than usual

4)Espresso drips during pre-infusion *from portafilter*. (tested with the left side, and it had no drip. also tested 5 times to make sure tamping, grind etc was as consistent as it could be)

5)Rough feel when releasing the lever.

If the seals are the cause, do i HAVE to use the Loxeal sealant Reiss included along or any good quality sealant would be ok?
Also, is there any guide on replacing them? So far i can only find a video on Londinium's youtube channel.

Reiss Gunson

hello hafidz

thank you for posting, and i apologise for not replying to your email sooner in the week - i have been out of town since monday morning

responses correspond to your numbering -

1. ok

2. yes, that is to be expected. that is why i tell people only to pull the portafilter on until it is snugly connected - there is no need to run strong man competitions with it. over time the chrome will wear off the lugs of the portafilter on the surfaces that connect into the group and that is normal, but if there are gouges and wear marks on the lugs on these connecting faces you are simply cranking too hard on the handles

of course the handles need to be secure, otherwise they are unsafe - if you see the handles start to creep in a clockwise direction you need to move lightening fast to tighten them or you willl be sprayed in hot water & coffee grounds as the portafilter handle flys off, for sure

replacing the portafilter seal will help to lock the portafilter into a more normal position, but if the handles have been forcibly cranked to the right harder than necessary then brass metal will have been ground away over time and that missing material can not be restored, so the group handle will lock in further to the right than is normal

I'm not entirely sure what you mean by 'if the handle usually locks in at 90 degrees', as i usually talk about the handle locking in at the 6 o'clock position, and it is to be expected with commercial use that it will gradually wear further around over time, but it should never wear past the 3 o'clock position

3. ok, but this is a separate and unrelated issue to (2). remedy: replace the piston seals; replace the portafilter seal at the same time

4. execute (3) and then report back on this issue. it seems a bit odd - are you sure the 'leak' isn't running down the outside of the portafilter, which would indicate that the portafilter gasket needs to be replaced?

5. again, execute (3) and report back if this issue remains

im a bit perplexed on this last point. i included the best grease i know of with the machine so owners wouldn't get into trouble with grease that is not suitable. use Dow Corning's 111 valve sealant if you wish as it is a very good silicone grease but it does not contain PTFE so once the silicon grease wears away you have no lubrication at all

Superlube with ptfe is not great in my experience. I have also used fully food certified silicone grease with ptfe that has reacted with the o-ring seals in the hot water and steam valves, causing them to swell and needing to be immediately replaced, so as you can see, the right lubricant is important

kind regards

reiss.

HAFIDZ DIN

Thank you for your response Reiss, appreciate it.

I wouldn't say 3 o'clock, maybe 4 while the left side remains at 6. I understand that this is because we used the right side more.

But what i don't understand is why does it seem like there isn't enough pressure when pulling the shot on the right side. Lever catches high, espresso would drip very little and i would get 40-45g in 1 minute with a 5s pre-infusion though this does not happen every time i pull a shot. I'd say 7/10 shots pulled. I've never had this happening on the left side.

I've had few barista came checking them out and they pointed the seals. But i also thought that if it were the seals the water would leak outside the grouphandle instead of the filter as that'd most probably be channeling or some sort. I will have to get the sealant first before checking the seals. I'll try and get the loxeal first and let you know.

Reiss Gunson

hi hafidz

well if the lever catches high the piston is sitting lower so the shot volume is reduced, and the spring is less compressed so the extraction occurs at a lower pressure

the seals aren't leaking water, just air (the space below the piston is never 100% occupied by water)

if you are going to the trouble id probably suggest our high performance piston seals, the first of which arrived yesterday with the balance to come early next week, but if you have piston seals on hand and want to get on with the job i can understand that too

kind regards

reiss.