Interesting observations re the dual boiler Breville from Alan Frew in his latest newsletter. "Finally, I've had a chance to play around with the new Breville Dual Boiler espresso machine, and I must say that it seems to do the things it is supposed to quite well, especially when teamed with a good grinder. After a look under the hood I do have reservations about its repairability and longevity, but when I commented on this to the owner he said basically "Never mind, I expect to buy a better machine in a couple of years anyway." This surprised me, as it seems to be at odds with the expectations of the majority of my customers, who expect their machines to last forever. With good reasons, too, as a 1998 Napoletana 1 we got back for repair last week demonstrates. Its owner estimates that it has already pulled over 18,000 shots, and with a decent makeover and $300.00 worth of parts and labour it looks like another 18,000 espressos are in its future. It does make me wonder how many shots the Breville Dual Boiler will do for its $1500.00 pricetag."
