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Lever runs wobbly
Hi ,
I enjoy the coffee from my L1 (L-1P ) very much since last December. Recently, I found the lever does not return smoothly after I release. The catch angle is similar as before. The lever runs smoothly initial then a bit wobbly especially near the end. I add some silicone grease to the seal and it was better. But the above condition returns few days later. Is it related to the seal?
Thanks.
Patrick
I enjoy the coffee from my L1 (L-1P ) very much since last December. Recently, I found the lever does not return smoothly after I release. The catch angle is similar as before. The lever runs smoothly initial then a bit wobbly especially near the end. I add some silicone grease to the seal and it was better. But the above condition returns few days later. Is it related to the seal?
Thanks.
Patrick
Comments
any chance of a short video clip to illustrate the issue?
I'm sure we can resolve it quickly and easily
kind regards
reiss.
Patrick
where are you hosting the video - youtube, vimeo, somewhere else?
if you click on the film icon and the choose 'provider' you will have a wide range of choices there
type in the video ID which you will see in, for example, the vimeo url - just copy & paste the ID
kind regards
reiss.
Patrick
thank you for posting the clip, its helpful
is there any chance of you posting a clip the captures the entire extraction, or at least from the moment you release the lever
i can't tell from your clip, but at a guess i would say you might be grinding a bit too fine
as a rule of thumb, if you were using a medium-light roast you would dose 18g and grind so that the first drip falls in the cup after 7 seconds of pre-infusion (count this time from when the pump stops after you pull the lever down, and after the pump blips stop too), and then release the lever and an average extraction rate of 1g of coffee in the cup per second once the lever is released is quite a good place to start
i am guessing (and that is all i can do with the clip above) that your extraction rate is significantly slower than what i have described)
with a clip that captures the entire extraction i can provide you with better support
kind regards
reiss.
16 g medium roast , the pre-infusion is ~5 sec and extraction time is 22sec for 20g
The loud sound still exist and the level goes stuttering
if it 'just happened' with no other event, for example taking the group top out, then i am struggling to believe that it can be anything other than a lack of lubrication
in this case i would recommend you take the group top out and study these instructions carefully https://londiniumespresso.com/forum/permanent-file/743-video-changing-the-piston-and-portafilter-seals that detail how much lubrication is needed
i would also strongly recommend the use of loxeal no.4 grease
if you took the group out and refitted it, and then it performed as shown in your video above, then there are more possibilities in terms of explanations
for example, if when you have the group top out of the machine you pull the lever down partially the piston beams slack and unsupported and can dangle out of alignment
if this is not rectified before you put the group top back in then it would be possible for the piston to be working out of perpendicular
any additional information you can provide would be helpful
kind regards
reiss.
Thanks for your quick reply.
Every time I watched the clips https://londiniumespresso.com/forum/permanent-file/743-video-changing-the-piston-and-portafilter-seals thoroughly before disassemble and assemble the group head. I use loxeal no.4 grease for lubrication since the day 1 even though it is not supplied with the lever machine. I ordered it separately and you can check the order. I NEVER pull the lever down before I assemble the group head properly.
I will try the lubrication again and order new set of seal for replacement.
Patrick
i apologise for not sending the correct number of tubes of loxeal no.4 in a previous order - i have included the missing tube in the order you have placed just now and booked it out for collection today
i didn't mean pulling the lever when the group top is on the group but not screwed down, but rather with the group top out of the machine if you hold the group top in one hand and pull the lever a little with the other hand the piston and connecting rod flops around - placing the group top down hard on a bench could do the same thing
these comments aren't intended as a criticism, but rather possible causes for you to explore - there will be an explanation
if the piston seals were originally fitted without enough grease on the sleeve then i expect the running surface of the seals are now hard and brittle and adding grease now will not resolve the issue, so i think your approach of replacing the piston seals is probably a good place to start
kind regards
reiss.
I have just added the grease for two days and the lever runs smoothly again. Can I rule out the alignment problem since it will not be rectified by the grease?
Patrick
i think your first plan was a good one; you purchased a new set of piston seals and i expect they will arrive with you tomorrow or thursday
fit the new piston seals when they arrive and i would be most surprised if that doesnt solve the issue
my understanding from your post earlier in this thread is that you have tried adding grease previously and whilst it addressed the problem initially, it did not provide a long term solution, so you raised the issue here
kind regards
reiss.
Thank you.
thank you for telling us how the story ended
much appreciated
reiss.