Grimac Eclisse two group compact

UNM

Thanks to the generosity of Bottom Line, I have one of these sitting in the back of my truck.

The machine does apparently have issues, so I shall update here as I find them, but it may be a slow process due to time constraints and other projects in the pipeline.

Cosmetically, it is in pretty fair shape. A damaged side panel had already been repaired quite well, just a bit of extra reinforcing and some polishing needed. Metalwork has all the usual scratches you would expect.
Inside looks rough - black in places, probably years of coffee grounds failing in and getting cooked on.
Pump looks pretty new.

No sign off any dicking around with wiring or plumbing.

Passed insulation and earth tests, but still needs caution and more checking before applying electricity.

Photos to come

Brett_H

Living vicariously through you mate!!! Lots of pics eh... :coffee2:

UNM

A glimpse under The hood so to speak

UNM

A couple More. Controller box And control Panel. Apparently It had problems With some Buttons. Looks like i should be Able to Swap cables From left and right groups to troubleshoot.

Brett_H

Love it! Can't wait to see you work your magic on it!

UNM

While waiting for a client to turn up, took more of a look. I seem to have a broken leg, not sure but it was probably just loose and took some punishment going over speed bumps in the back of the back of the truck. The plastic cup for waste water has a split, repaired with silicone. Silicone sealant also evident on plumbing connections at the pump. Pump pressure gauge reads two bar. There is a switch and wiring for electric cup heater, but none installed. Control box has little white dots over the numbers 'one' and 'eleven' - date code? If so it is jan 2011 or November 2001 (most likely). No sign of any bodgy wiring. Slight corrosion around heater element connections - quick check called for here. Teflon gasket and no water leakage at boiler. Water level probe slides easily - pinched between thumb and forefinger so I put it back to original level. The day it receives power is getting closer.

UNM

Grimy made it onto the workbench in the garage today. Remarkably light. It looks small, but I measured it and it is only 5cm narrower than the azkoyen. Bit of work with M10 nut and bolt to partially recondition thread and I no longer have a broken leg. Tightened others just to be safe.

Brett_H

I think the sere a BFC machine from memory. If so it'll go as well as it looks!! NICE!

mycuppa

Grimac draws it's lineage from Rancilio which is why historically they were installed into Grinders accounts. Solid machine, reliable and makes an average coffee.

UNM

mycuppa wrote:

Grimac draws it's lineage from Rancilio which is why historically they were installed into Grinders accounts. Solid machine, reliable and makes an average coffee.

have to correct you there Jeff. It is normally the operator that makes an average coffee (and then only on a good day :doh🙂 Also, the reason I got it is because it wasn't reliable. So any words of wisdom as to why they make average coffee? Looks to me like it has all I need if used correctly - adjustable rotary pump, boiler, temp control, switch, 58mm group. Still hanging out for a Caravel as part of my downsizing, but this one is at least smaller than the Azkoyen so it is a step in the right direction, unlike the brute of a bezerra it shares the bench with.

mycuppa

Having worked with many machines of this brand, replaced quite a few and still supply customers who use a variety of this brand machine today............I think I may have some *real* insights based on experience and not making random flippant remarks like others can on forums because they might have *read* it somewhere else. Grimac and their cousin Rancilio machines have been used in both high and low volume cafe environments and the vast majority of them have not had any decent maintenance - with some suppliers adopting the fail/fix procedure which is a perfectly acceptable business practice btw !. San Marino/Wega/Astoria from the CMA factory are of a similar ilk.......reasonably good build quality considering the era, based on trusted technology and as we all know share many common parts. Some were built to a price because of special importer requests. I really don't care about a person's individual skill level as the general barista community have an average set of skills and when coupled to old machines that have years and years of accumulated gunk, worn or ill-fitting parts, or machines that are not calibrated correctly........it typically results in just an average coffee. The statement applies to the brand and era of machines - not yours.

UNM

You can always rely on me to make flippant and opinionated remarks - one of my core skills I am afraid. :-[ Your post set me thinking. Having worked in IT support before, I do tend towards fix on fail in most circumstances (if it ain't broke, don't fix it). Someone on another forum bought a 2000 dollar car and intends to spend another 2000 on preventative maintenance. At those numbers and time off road it would be more sensible to treat it as disposable. There are exceptions though - recent issues with Volkswagen need to be addressed proactively as consequences of waiting for a failure are rather serious. So far all I have done to Grimy is remove panels and inspect. No point potentially creating problems until I know where I stand. Now, on to 'average coffee'. By definition an average coffee is going to be better than half the other coffees out there. As a business, choosing to make average coffee may be a perfectly acceptable goal. Choosing a machine that can continue producing average coffee through years of abuse and be forgiving of less than perfect technique seems like common sense. This reminded me of comments made on chat earlier in the week - I have always had acceptable coffees from establishments running an Expobar Ruggero, but more often than not, those with Synesso or KVDW produce something barely drinkable (samples in Sydney CBD FWIW). I think I know why this is and it is partly how machines are chosen, partly (ab)use of machine capabilities. My experience is that pretty much any commercial espresso machine CAN make excellent coffee under the right circumstances, just that few actually DO. Barista skills are certainly part of that, although I expect there are many other factors, some incredibly mundane and not usually considered by those of us outside the industry. A point to consider - if everyone made coffee to the current highest standard, it would all be average.

UNM

A Couple of views from tbe rear. Note that all wiring is neatly cable tied and Has not been dicked around with.

UNM

Grimy got power! Gave him 240v yesterday. Started to fill, kept filling, then water out the steam wand and hot water tap. Turned them off and immediately realised it would be wise to stop pump too. Let's call that a boiler pressure test. Antivac valve, over pressure valve OK. Slight weep at heater element and sight glass under high pressure. Helps if auto fill probe is connected at BOTH ends of the cable to control box. Both volumetric touch pads go into program mode OK.

Brett_H

IT LIVES! Sounding better and better mate. @Jeff: thanks for putting me straight. I've seen the one group Grimacs and any of the parts were similar to the Diademi Ive owned. I s'pose this could be said for many machines.

UNM

took the sight glass out for a quick clean as it was impossible to tell boiler level. gave it heat - 1.2-1.4 bar cycling. dropped pstat so it is now at 0.85-1.05. Takes a full twenty minutes to get up to heat at 1650watt. Left group weeps very slightly while idling. Anti vac valve was also leaking slightly at first, but settled down after a few minutes. Will monitor and see if the group also fixes itself after a bit of use as it has been sitting dry for quite some time - it will either get better or worse I reckon. set boiler fill to stop at midway between low and high mark. will need a bit of use to fine tune. The flow meters incidentally have a date code of march 2003, which sets the machine as being ten years old maximum. So what next? Need to fix/replace drain cup as it is split - might just make a new one. Need to monitor for any intermittent issues. I dont understand a couple of valves, so will take photos and ask for words of wisdom from others here. basically though, it all seems to work.

UNM

Mystery valves. First one is main valve, but what connections actually do what? Don't suppose anyone has a similar valve or knows where I might find a cut away drawing of it? Second one is a simple on/off stop valve. What is it for? You can see that it links to the main valve bottom left of image. If only I had schematics. Edit - found the inlet valve assembly and group schematics on espressoresource.com

Bottom_Line

Should be the boiler fill. The push "button" from the front is the manual fill. Plumb the machine and push. You should hear water going into the boiler. The solenoid is the for auto fill. Bugger if I can remember what the on off valve is for.

UNM

Grimy currently works from a bucket so manual fill doesn't work, but that is straightforward. One outlet on main valve goes to waste water drain cup, seems strange don't know how/when it is used. One pipe goes to the mystery valve. Also got one inlet from pump, one on side of manual fill assembly and one more. Five pipes total. Edit: six pipes total, forgot about the one straight out the rear of the assembly On my azkoyen, there is a handy 'scald operator' on/off valve - also for boiler drain but seriously dangerous if opened when boiler under pressure. I know this valve doesn't do that as I checked. In open position, everything seems to work as it should.

Bottom_Line

This help?