Fracino Heavenly -Heaven or Hell
Fracino heavenly -is it heaven or hell?
So considering an espresso machine for the home and your search reveals the Fracino!
Its a hell of a price for what is a machine for the home -I see that Pennine have a special on-line price of £675 ~ in my opinion far too much for such a machine. I have no personal experience with this particular model but on previous forays into Fracino machines I know they are made down to a price - sometimes to “cheap and nasty”.
There seem to be a few comments on blogs that certain features - the steam for example - have a “mind of their own”. I think if I had paid the above price I would have made somewhat stronger and more of a blunt comment.
Alternatives to the above are many - for example the Ascaso Uno espresso machine which is sold by Verde Coffee and many other for a slightly more reasonable price of around £350. Many of the Gaggia home machines are reasonably priced and for a domestic machine good value.
I would be interested if you have any experience of the machine - please do let me know? Heaven or Hell?
October 7th, 2008 at 17:46
You are not comparing like with like in your rant. The heavenly is a ‘real’ espresso machine in that it has a proper boiler, e61 group heads using the thermosiphonic system for constant head temp and proper steam taps. The components are identical to a full blown commercial espresso machine (vibrating pump aside!!). The ascaso you mention and the gaggia domestic machines are a completely different beast. They use thermal blocks instead of boilers and you cant extract espresso and steam milk at the same time. It is possible to get a decent espresso from them and, with a lot of love and farting around a decent frothof milk. However, they dont match the product or the convenience of the fracino. It just depends how serious you are about your coffee! The fracino is value for money.
October 8th, 2008 at 09:59
I am glad you enjoy your Fracino- Just to point out that the Ascaso Duo has two boilers and you can steam milk at the same time as making coffee -it is like the Fracino Heavenly a light duty commercial machine and has a copper group head - [ some models though do have an aluminium block ]
I just think the price differential was very high, It a lot of money to pay- especially for a machine with a vibration pump -which I am sure that you are aware averages 8.5 bar ie vibrates between 0 and 15 bar and this tends to over extract coffee oils - you can never get a really good espresso.
Having also spent some time rebuilding / repairing Fracinos they do sometimes seem to use poor components.
It didn’t mean to be a rant and if my surmise is incorrect then I am quite happy to ’stand corrected’
October 9th, 2008 at 11:06
Hi Andrew.
Sorry, shouldnt have accused you of a rant!!
I may be wrong but i think you will find the ascaso (from spain) has thermal blocks rather than boilers (uno and duo being single block and double i s’pose). I would also be surprised if it has something other than a vibrating pump. The better systems balance the 0-15 range of the pump to mimic the 9 bar that a rotating pump is set at.
With regards to the components in a fracino the valves, switches electronics are all manufactured in italy and are from the same manufacturers who supply gaggia, cimbali, rancilio and all the other commercial producers.
I dont actually have a fracino but have repaired plenty.
October 9th, 2008 at 13:13
Hi,
Had to check on the Ascaso website but the duo has a brass thermoblock for coffee and a brass 325cc boiler for steam. We have used one here in the office and found it particularly good for espresso and cappuccinos /lattes ie milk based drinks.
You are correct that it also used a vibration pump as does the fracino -so I suppose my point does come down to the differential in price [ I will have to take a closer look at the 'heavenly ].
We have had some FCX1 and Gems in for repair and whilst over 1 year old but less than two the paintwork on the Gem had bubbled and there was rust underneath I felt that was fairly poor for what had been a fair investment for the cafe owner.
Years ago I was at a trade fair and someone mentioned to me that Frank [ the owner ] only wanted to pay 95p for components when everyone else paid £5 - you perhaps were left with a feeling that if you screwed a whole lot of cheaper parts together you might get a machine that was cheaper than the competition but not so reliable?
October 9th, 2008 at 13:57
Hi again
Let me start by saying that i find fracinos fairly ugly (generally speaking) and am not surprised to hear your comments about the panels.
I still feel that your comparison is not like with like. The original price differential was with the ascaso uno. The duo must cost more!! Also, the heavenly has a 2.5 litre boiler with heat exchange system for espresso extraction. Thermal blocks just dont cut it as far as im concerned (commercially speaking). They are more than satisfactory domestically.
If you are having another look at fracinos check out the cherub. much more aesthetically pleasing than the heavenly.
October 9th, 2008 at 14:25
Thanks for the advice! I will look at the cherub. By the way I see they are bringing out a bean 2 cup - could be a real can of worms!
Are you a free-lance engineer? If so give me a ring -we are always looking for knowledgeable guys to repair coffee machines [that is if you are interested? ] Use below phone number .
Thanks for the feedback.
October 29th, 2008 at 15:39
Hi Andrew.
Been a while since last communication!
Would be more than happy to take on any servicing work if you had some. I c=
over the south coast area so Bognor to Lyme Regis and north to the M4 area.=
Let me know if i can be of assistance
regards
Paul McDougall
07825545260
December 23rd, 2008 at 05:52
notable position. So hang on to!