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Looking for Londinium R to try out or buy (Norcal/Bay Area)

Hi,

I am looking for a Londinium R, preferably close to the SF Bay Area to keep costs down. This would be my first lever machine, so let me know if you have one nearby I can try out, even if it's not for sale. :)

thanks,
Adam

Comments

  • There is one Just Listed on Craigs List. Its located in Oakland.
    Good Luck
    Aurel
  • Thanks, that is a great deal! I was impatient and ended up ordering a new LR. I feel no regret, been using it for a few days, and love it.
  • I wonder how everything went, send photos if you can :)
  • Hey Liam, sure, I'll do a short writeup.

    Ordering went smoothly, and the LR was shipped within 3 business days from the UK. DHL delivered the box to NorCal within 3 business days, so I only had to wait ~10 calendar days. Factoring in weekends, customs processing, a Bank Holiday in the UK, and Fracino swapping the steam wand to the left, is very reasonable. It gave me enough time to read many support threads here. Reiss was very kind and supportive throughout the ordering process, and I'm grateful for his attention to detail.

    First impression: no kidding it is Heavy! The build quality is superb. The stainless panels flex a little bit, but it is still pleasing to look at, and they make the machine a few grams lighter I guess :silly:

    My LR is paired with an HG One which I had for quite a few years now. Shot quality compared to my old vibe pump Rocket E61 is great, but I am still learning! I struggled a bit to pull balanced shots on the Rocket with ligher roasts, not sure if it's due to the vibe pump being too slow to ramp the pressure up, or group temperatures, or my shot routine. Especially back to back shots were lacking. Surprisingly I had to grind at least 5 or 6 notches coarser on the HG One to dial my current beans in perfectly on the LR, but even the first shots were full bodied and drinkable. The Londinium is much more forgiving than the Rocket and provides a bigger range of grinder adjustments it seems. Hand grinding, pulling the lever, and hearing the shot fall into the cup is extremely satisfying.

    I played a bit with different PI pressures, using the digital PI adjustment. It definitely changes the shot characteristics (higher PI pressure means higher initial water temp and higher spring pressure). The only real adjustment I had to make is lowering the boiler pressure slightly from factory preset 1.0 to ~0.9, as there was just a slight bit of bitter aftertaste and lots of dark freckles even at lower end of PI pressure range. A couple turns on the Sirai and the bitterness went away, and the crema looked better. My apartment is around 72F even in the morning, so it's possible the machine was running a bit too hot, or there wasn't enough airflow around the group.

    I've only had the LR for a few weeks and I'm already pulling great shots back to back, and I don't have to fuss about cooling flushes, I can just walk up to the machine, and pull a shot that is exactly like the one yesterday, or five minutes earlier. :)

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