"It's just like owning a vintage Ferrari."
I love my espresso machine. It's gorgeous. It's truly special. And it produces incredible espresso.
But the machine has been out-of-duty since June due to a gasket failure. I briefly thought that I could take on the repairs myself, but when I told Terry Z from Caffewerks that it looked like I was going to need to bend the sheet metal to do the work, he told me to stop right there.
In retrospect, he was right and having to live without espresso for a half year was, in fact, the correct choice.
This is the reality of living with a vintage espresso machine. Either you are one of the rare number of people in the world who are mechanical engineers with a deep background in vintage Italian espresso machines and a garage full of no-longer-in-production parts -- or you know one of those people and they are willing to help you fix your machine every time a part fails.
The good news is that it only took Terry a day and a half to replace the damaged cage and put the correct gasket in place. The good news is that Terry is a genius and a good friend. The good news is that now I can make and drink great espresso again. The good news is that the Waiakalua Espresso Garage is back in business!
Huge mahalos to Terry. And to those considering purchasing or running a vintage espresso machine, caveat emptor.
