Super Miss Silvia

I searched long and hard on the internet to find a good home espresso machine to replace my Krups (UGH!) bad tasting coffee machine (it was one of those $49.95 numbers). OK, so beat me, I didn't know any better at the time. After tons of reading I decided on Miss Silvia. There are several companies that offer Miss Silvia for $395.00 delivered. Chris' coffee also gives a set of Illy logo cups. If you don't want the cups they will knock the price of the cups off the price of Miss silvia. I believe it came to $371.00 delivered. Anyway, when Miss Siliva arrived I was suprised at the weight (30lb) and bulk. It looks like it belongs in a restaurant. It is beautiful. After my first abominal shot, which was totally my fault, I have been making perfect espresso. Using my Maestro grinder set at 2 clicks above the finest grind and a 40lb tamp using a Reg Barber tamper, the espresso was fantastic with the perfect crema on top. The double shot pulled in at 23 to 25 seconds, just as described in the many articles I read. I don't understand why Rancilio ships an inferior plastic tamper that not only is the wrong size but has a rounded bottom. Get a good 58mm tamper with a flat bottom!!!!! Miss Silvia has enough steam to power a steam locomotive. She is also easy to clean. There are many articles on the web describing in detail how to use Miss Silvia. Those instructions are better than the ones shipped with Miss Silvia. Unless you want bells and whistles and more automation you can't beat Miss Silvia.