l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 10:56pm Subject: Wega EVD restoration
I chose to delay the creation of this thread so I could get a head start, but now have a few questions, so am posting the work I have done over the last several weeks all at once:
I had been watching Craig's list and Ebay for quite awhile with many lost auctions and denied Craig's list emails. Finally I bought a machine that was nothing like I was originally desiring.
what I wanted: E-61 HX espresso machine under 500
what I got: a 2 group E-61 220v plumb in BEAST
I made the 3 hour drive to Chicago and after a bit of finesse managed to get it in the car.
I did not however notice till I got home that it did not have an internal pump as I had originally thought. I had mistaken the over sized power switch for a vibe pump (don't ask me why, it had no plumbing going to it)
This meant I could not have tested it, so I took the sellers word for it, hoping everything was in fact in working order as I ventured on.
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:00pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
After taking off the exterior stainless steel covers I see that there is a lot of cleaning to be done, but everything (except the pump) seems to be present and in relatively good condition...just very dirty
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:06pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
there did seem to be some leaking from the end cap. However, as I plan to open up the boiler anyway this gasket will be getting replaced anyway. This leak makes me hopeful that with a constant drip from the bottom of the boiler much of the scale (that would have settled to the bottom) will have been accumulated in the strange crystal formation on the end of the boiler, instead of caked on the inside of the boiler.
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:14pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
The brain however looks like it is strait off the production line, quite a relief, the wires also seem in good condition. The plastic wire shield has become brittle over the years and will be replaced, but the wires are still flexible and do not appear to have any scrapes or nicks.
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:18pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
The frame, not in great condition. However, as i have seen on other restorations rust is quite common on these older machines, and with the thickness of the metal does not concern me to much.
NOTE: I did manage to get the steam wand/valve off, but the bracket had rusted to the frame. I decided it was not worth drilling out the rusted screws, instead I will just paint over the screws.
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:33pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
In an attempt to separate the brass and copper I used mason jars for the various plumbing connections, there was still a lot of copper plated brass once I was done descaling but there was still an effort to separate the two.
My room mates were skeptical of my experiment looking jars filled with acid.
l8nightCaffeine Senior Member Joined: 29 Nov 2011 Posts: 52 Location: Kalamazoo,MI Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Feb 19, 2012, 11:44pm Subject: Re: Wega EVD restoration
The boiler in more murky water, this took a surprisingly long time, most posts that I saw said it took a night to descale their boiler mine spent 3 nights in the citric acid solution. Maybe I simply didn't add as much powder, but even still there was a little scale on the inside of the boiler that I gave up on as I started to notice the copper changing, from a dull colored pink to a sparkly copper. Was I wrong in doing this? Was the sparkly copper actually a good thing?
I will have more pictures showing this in the coming days as some pictures are on a different camera, this rebuild is happening in 2 places, my fathers shop in their basement and my college apartment, if you note the difference in background scenery.
my room mates were also not thrilled when i placed the red bucket in the bathtub the first night as i was not sure how the citric acid would react to the general purpose plastic.
I regret that I have no advice to give on the subject of acid soaking. I just had to post because of the smile and chuckle I got reading your post. I drove 3 hours to Edmonton for my 2 group WEGA and, much like you, tossed it in the back of my truck without a second thought about the missing pump. My machine was $500 including a grinder and probably could have used a complete disassembley and cleaning like yours is receiving. I just didn't have the patience at the time and everything (with the exception of the couple of inches of "sand" in the boiler and the missing pump) was in good working order- so it just got put into use. It is a plumbed in machine on 220V and I had the perfect place for it. It was to sit between the sink and stove. The water supply was close, the drain was accessible and I have converted my stove from electric to gas leaving me the outlet. Regrettably, I failed to understand what a beast the machine really is... it did not fit under the top cupboards and I had to place it clear across the kitchen resulting in a few hours of plumbing and electrical work; I still have not hard plumbed in a drain. A massive commercial machine takes a little work to get up and going- but I wouldn't trade my WEGA for any other machine.
I believe mine was sold to me as an Atlas, and I keep referring to it as such. However, it was an Airy and made in 1992. Any idea if the data plate on yours lists a date?
On the bright side, being able to remove the whole end of the boiler on the WEGA makes cleaning much easier, as I'm sure you've experienced. I'm certain that once the room mates get a shot or two of what that machine is capable of producing they will forget all about your little science experiment sitting on the counter. One of the local reps told me that these were built like a tank, and I have no reason to believe any different. They also make a great shot of espresso, stem milk like a pro and, as I have recently discovered, make an excellent hot chocolate using shaved chocolate and the steam wand... Great find, and please post pictures of the progress. It will make a wonderful machine when it is done and put a smile on your face every night when you use it.
I stopped by my parents and got the other camera i had been using, i do plan to create a flickr account in the near future to let those that are truly interested see the ...excessive... number of pictures i have taken. I am only posting the highlights for now. Here is the name plate: 1993
I am not real clear between the different models, but I believe mine is also an Airy? The steam knobs matched what cafeparts was labeling airy. and the boiler matched what they had for EVD 2-4 group machines.
I am planning on simply testing it from a bottle without a pump, and than once i have confirmed that it works i have picked out a Shurflow pump for around $90 on amazon (i have lots of amazon credits from selling text books back).
Great to hear that you have enjoyed your WEGA so far, and i would love to keep it, but i am not sure that it is practical for this point in life and will likely post it at a high selling point as soon as i would be comfortable selling it as a "like new" machine and look at purchasing a 110v single group machine. However i have a place for it for at least the next year.
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