Sometimes newer isn't better. Sadly, after smashing my Find X3 Pro (with a very small tumble) I found myself needing a new phone (fuck I hate glass phones, no really what drooling moron thought of this and why to the sycophantic fucktards in professional phone reviews keep going on and on about how premium it feels in their hand). I'm rather sick of how pricy things are now, so I saved some money and got this "refurb with warranty" for AU$250 ... the extra cash left in my hand feels better than any phone IMO.
Strangely the X2 Pro (while older) has in my opinion a better camera system; indeed it has a proper optical long focal length camera done in the periscope style (see below).
This idea dates back some time to perhaps the Minolta DiMAGE X from 2002 (so like 24 years ago) when the sensors of the time were 3M pixels not 48 like the current ones.
note that it was mounted horizontally ... while the camera is held vertically.
The technology for this optical zooming (instead of digital crop "zooming") was important because at 3Mpixels you just don't have any room for cropping. Not to mention that since photography started we "zoomed" mostly with lens focal lengthe changes and kept film size and print enlargement for zooming to a minimum because clarity loss was obvious..
Various phone/camera makers had a go at this (periscope lens design) over time, to enable the physics of a longer focal length without adding a great long bulge at the back of the phone; not many have stayed. Perhaps people have historically had a poor ability to judge pictures? People often buy add on lenses that make the back of the camera look weird and the phone unweildy, but I'll not start on that here.
The three cameras on the phone are specialised to different tasks, as seen here: as well as a similar sized 120° wide angle system which has a much smaller pixel size (making it less desirable in low light) with a slightly dimmer f2.2 aperture.
This arrangement (using the IMX 698) gives quite some scope for cropping (say, up to x2) from the ample "general" photography lens and generally (even when shot with the wide) binned down to 13M Pixels don't too crap look crap (and you'd never bother digital zooming that) ... if you're unfamiliar with pixel and sensor sizes then I recommend you read the articles linked in the next paragraph to understand pixel binning (or throwing pixels in the bin to make better images) because compared to bigger sensors on actual cameras (like my m43 or Full Frame) because "size matters".
Long ago Nokia tried a super high density sensor and further analysis (here) employing digital zoom to make a lower pixel crop (they used a then stellar 39M pixel sensor and cropped and binned down to 5M pixel (about x7 enlargement) while Oppo is here capturing directly as a x5 enlargment (compared to a "normal" view) but perhaps a x10 on their standard wide lens.
So here's a sample image (reduced for the web) taken with that proper telephoto.
The lens data is available in the picture EXIF
So in 35mm camera (who even knows what that looks like anyway ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ but I digress) its equivalent to a 160mm lens, or mild telephoto ... perhaps a bit long for portraiture. Anyway lets look at what advantage over digital zoom this brings.
Next, here we have that and the "digital" zoom applied to their 48M pixel these zoomed in (not even to full pixel peeping)
Even at 50% (which you should know that I've chosen as the "compare on screen", because that is very close to what one sees when the full image is printed at 300dpi. Specficially that would be a print 25.4 x 33.9 cm; or 10.00 x 13.33 inches). The observant will spot that the RH picture is enlarged a bit more (61%) because if I zoomed to x5 it would automatically switch to the other lens...
At this size you can see far more detail in the grass that I don't even need to tell you that the native telephoto shot is the left hand side. The pixel binned digital zoom is over sharpened and lacks texture (even the grass has texture on the zoom) and resolution.
This however means that for video this periscope lens arrangement will be capable of doing x10 or about 300mm equivalent comfortably. That's impressive.
So, there you have it ... a much more compact phone than the new Oppo Find X10 Pro ... which looks like an amazing machine. However at the prices of these things are likely to be, that's a solid no way.
Recently the Australiann Financial Review ran a piece (link here) about the Australian population, I found it very narrow in historical scope and perhaps intending to further a government policy with no discussion about the usefulness of that policy with respect to the interests of Australian People and effects on our way of life.
Their question seems to be "why do we (the public) think there is too much growth". This is to me the wrong question, the question we really need to ask is "why are they doing it to us".
Much is said (there) that attempts to persuade you that the water temperature here in "Pot Australia" is not too hot by comparing it only with how hot it was last year and its only a bit over a 1% increase. Right! Well a good example for me to start with in this analysis of their views is here:
Which while offering "trend lines" from the "historical; 1950's 1960's ... up to 2010, only gives us data starting at 2018. WTF? In my view Australia was already cooked in 2010.
Next lets they to other countries growth rates over a short period withot context (as if to demonstrate that its all ok here).
Oh, its only a 1.57% increase, nothing can be wong. Words surrounding this are difficult to make sense of:
Rizvi says Australia coped with even higher rates of migration in the pastwhen productivity and building activity were higher, such as in the 1950s.
Perhaps we did ... but what was:
the actual population back then
what happened back then
Its childishly simplistic dismissal. That leads us to this timeless quote:
This is hardly surprising when two parties have diametrically opposed views and neither is willing to budge. The problem is that one of the parties is supposed to be representing the views and desires of the other.
The article does not ask why its toxic. I put forward that its toxic because we on the ground know the squeeze is on and feel it, and know they're wrong. They on the other hand are in their ivory towers and just trying to squeeze more out of this situation.
The Government is supposed to be representing us, not being a Crown that Rules us.
This is the actual nub of the problem and to me the actual issue here is that "The Crown" have been seeking more and more tax money over the last century and the best way to do that is get more and more people here as well as increase the taxes. A good word here is profligate:
So that's to me the core of the problem and the AFR article (if not the whole organisation) are just being the Handmaiden of the Crown here and attempting to pretend its all ok.
With that clarified, lets dive into the historical details. Some problems with using the above (AFR) views (which seem to be "we're doing ok") are:
back then the population was about 9million (yes, closer to a third than half of our present population)
productivity meant making things (like houses, cars, appliances, infrastructure food ...) not just a"service sector" (where nothing is made: see bullshit jobs)
many more people had active hands in building their homes (like my parents, my neighbors)
we weren't "consumers" back then and our demand for imported goods was much less as we made our stuff last and we made do with less (lets not start on how we're producing so much garbage in this article)
So they attempt to pretend there isn't a problem by simply comparing what we've absorbed in the past while ignoring the problems which its continuation has created right now.
Myself I think the right question is "how much can we take in total, and what's needed to ensure we can be sustainable going into the future". (hint, we reached that in the 1980's or maybe 90's)
Accumulation: and compounding. Another angle
The following graph is a bit compicated because the population and growth rate of Brisbane is different to Sydney and Melbourne; so I've put Brisbane on the right hand side (RHS) Y (vertical) axis. The X axis is year.
The next important thing to observe is that I got that Data from ABS some time backwhich therefore has only got data to 2005 *(cat. no. 3105.0.65.001 Australian Historical Population Statistics). Back then I wanted to show how its changed since over time. I refreshed it by just adding to it a single data-point. So we therefore see a straight line from 2025 to the final data point. This makes the more recent acceleration in population growth look milder, but it'll suffice for now.
How many have we accumulated (by growth and by migration)?
Numbers are a bit easy to closs over on, so another way is by looking at this is to see how long it takes a population to double. We can see that from the middle of 1960 to the middle of 1990 Brisbanes population doubled in about 30 years, meanwhile it took Sydney a lot longer to double (about 2016) and Melbournes doubling a bit less (2012). Brisbane however doubled again since then just about now. *(Note: I picked mid 1960's because thats when I was born and therefore I can discuss this from a position of direct experience).
So is it any wonder that Brisbane has a housing crisis now, when between 1965 and now its population has doubled twice?
An anecdote: I personally grew up in (what was) a small town, to the south of Brisbane, where population has grown even faster than Brisbane. The Gold Coast. When I was born it had a population of about 65,000 to now a population of nearly 700,000. Yes that's more than ten times, but as its a tourist destination that swells to well over 800,000 during various times.
Lets be clear about the magnitude here: 65,000 doubles to 130,000 then doubles 260,000 then to 520,000 and then to 1,040,000. So nearly doubling in population 4 times.
This sort of growth is unprecedented in Europe and places enormous strain on a city. Supply and demand will make it clear why housing prices have gone the same way (up) and we haven't even started to count the costs on infrastructure (or asked who's paying for that and how).
In the face of this is the simple fact (commonly observed that many are homeless and living in tents or in cars. This just wasn't the case when I was at school there.
I asked an AI (Claude) for a summary of the position and got this:
... I can provide you with some important context about homelessness in Queensland and the Gold Coast region:
Broader Queensland Context
In Queensland overall, between 2023 and 2024, approximately 48,800 people reached out for help through government-funded homelessness support services—the third-largest number in Australia after Victoria and New South Wales.
Gold Coast Situation
While specific Gold Coast figures aren't available, recent reports indicate the region faces a critical housing crisis that's directly driving homelessness:
Rental costs are surging: Gold Coast apartment rents have climbed 8-9% annually over the past three years, far outpacing wage growth.
Extremely low vacancy rates: Rental vacancy rates on the Gold Coast are only 1.1-1.3%, well below the 3% threshold considered healthy for rental markets.
Council enforcement: Brisbane, Gold Coast, and Moreton Bay councils have been taking an increasingly hardline approach against rough sleepers by threatening fines, evictions, or bulldozing homeless camps.
The lack of precise local figures suggests that homelessness on the Gold Coast may be under-recorded, particularly among those sleeping rough or in informal camps. For the most current and specific data about declared homelessness on the Gold Coast, I'd recommend contacting the Gold Coast City Council or local homelessness support organizations directly.
Surely by now we can see that the AFR article is plain wrong about growth, and hiding the actual causes. Since then each successive wave of Governemt has behaved like a machine with bad programming: its interested in itself, it (and its actors) has no accountability, it can not be punished, the public has no capacity to change it (because both parties have become similar problem type entities).
So basically this question started with the problems of population and expansion; now we need to ask both why and when is enough.
The last time I wrote on this subject was back in 2009 here as well as over here on another blog in 2011 where I talked about the Australian Labor policy of "Populate or Perish", In those I examined issues like why its been bad for the environment, our lifestyle and people in Australia understanding Australia.
When is enough enough?
The cause of the problem, as I see it, is that there is no connection between the wants of Government and the will and wants of The People.
The Government is an entity that wants things; mostly to get bigger and have more income. While it is a rules based system that attracts humans to act in roles (by paying them) it has has almost no ability to sense anything other than money (although some of the actors it hires do sense and are driven by power, prestige and other personal needs fed by those previous two). I've covered before how the Government is a Machine (here and here) and is actually rather poor at being a Nanny. What people want is a bit similar but not the same. People want to be comfortable, to be fulfilled, to better themselves, to raise a family and contribute to a society.
We (as humans) know that there are environmental sustainability limits but actively choose to not be guided by this (lets say, water) and The Actors in Government seem to steer The Machines code to persue what can only be described as "growth for infinity" with no plan to consolidate or understanding of what happens when it breaks.
Remove anything that causes spending and replace it with what provides a source of revenue
We see that the government has systematically eroded every aspect of our self sufficiency as a nation. For example we have gone from being energy independent to now depend upon on Energy from overseas sources (as well as Manufactured Goods from overseas and indeed Food from overseas...).
Since I started with Energy, lets have a quick look at one aspect of critical energy: liquid fuels. Despite what the Green Magic Faries will tell you (and what everyone right now in Australia must be keenly aware of), we need fuel to run our machines. So how has the Government "bolstered our Energy Security"?
Australia's Fuel Refining Capacity Decline: Key Dates Since 1980
Year/Date
Refinery
Location
Capacity
Event
1984
Westernport
Victoria
34,000 b/d
Closed
1985
Matraville
New South Wales
45,000 b/d
Closed
2003
Port Stanvac
South Australia
100,000 b/d
Mothballed (demolished 2012)
July 2011
Shell Clyde
New South Wales
100,000 b/d
Closure announced
30 September 2012
Shell Clyde
New South Wales
100,000 b/d
Refining ceased; converted to import terminal
July 2012
Caltex Kurnell
New South Wales
135,000 b/d
Closure announced
December 2009
Caltex Kurnell (lube oil)
New South Wales
3,300 b/d
Lubricating oil refinery closure announced
December 2011
Caltex Kurnell (lube oil)
New South Wales
3,300 b/d
Lubricating oil refinery closed (last in Australia)
2014
Caltex Kurnell
New South Wales
135,000 b/d
Refining ceased; converted to import terminal
2015
BP Bulwer Island
Queensland
102,000 b/d
Converted to import terminal
October 2020
BP Kwinana
Western Australia
146,000 b/d
Closure announced
End March 2021
BP Kwinana
Western Australia
146,000 b/d
Refining ceased; converted to import terminal
February 2021
ExxonMobil Altona
Victoria
90,000 b/d
Closure announced; conversion to import terminal
So none of that looks good, does it, even if we were still producing oil for ourselves, we can't refine it. When we look at agriculture it looks bad, worse when you add in how much prime agricultural land is lost to urban sprawl (and then factor in how much that impacts our energy requirements.
I haven't even touched on the complete failure of transport infrastructure in cities that are under the largest population increase pressures.
Biology
So I suggested at the start the AFR are asking the wrong questions; the correct question should have been something more like "how can we provide a good society for Australians; foster our own resilience and remain self sufficient within the bounds of our environment". If we aren't asking that then there will be a correction ... I'm willing to bet that nobody has thought what happens when / if globalisation fails.
So, we need to be asking the right questions ... or we'll perish because of our population. Our Government proffers the lip service of Sustainable Development but does nothing of the kind. We need to actually look at how to make our Nation Sustainable.
Long term readers of my blog will know I've had a lengthy interest in two wheeled machines and even 2 wheeled EV type machines. So it should come as no surprise that I'm quite interested in the Flying Flea by Royal Enfield.
I don't want to get into the comparison with the original (read a bit about that here).
but you'll also know (dear reader) that I have an interest in motorcycles, including classice old style ones like my SR500
... which is of course an internal combustion engine type not an EV.
Also I've written more than a few articles where I dive into the energy consumption per distance travelled and found interestnig things with ranges in various conditions from
so you can see that a stand up scooter with little wheels the idea of getting 2kWh/100 is not absurd, so when these articles seem skeptical about the Fleas claims; for instance NewAtlas writes
Which given the 3.9kWh battery suggests that over the100km range is entirely possible >>if you consider the reality of city driving in India<< and drive according to the commuting reality there ...
where you won't be doing 60kmh that much.
Personally I'm keen to see one, but the reality of my location and the pernicious Queensland registration costs are that I'm unlikely to buy one because I can't really use it much here. If I lived in a more sizable town (like Warwick, or back where I came from on The Gold Coast) it would be perfect, but here in my town I prefer my electric scooter or my bicycle.
A pity really; but who knows I might try to justify it.
Getting enough blood is somethhing that confounds beginners and experienced INR self testers alike; and while the manual shows a few things like this:
This is an important topic because if you don't get enough blood the machine will give an error and you've just wasted a strip. This can be more than a nusiance if
you are on a low income (and $6 makes a difference in your part of the world)
you were on your last strip and are waiting for the next delivery (never wait till you run out my freend, that's what preparation is all about)
I've noticed that people still seem to struggle. To help address this, I've done a previous video on the topic of "getting enough blood" over on this post. There you'll find this video:
This video is pretty quick and was intended to show some of the basic techniques (and inadvertently nicely show a source of mild panic as I forgot to cock the lance).
Later in discussion with someone I was assisting I did this more extensive video:
which goes into a lot more depth.
That was about six months back and so I thought that (since I recently referred someone else to it yesterday) I thought I'd add it to my INR series here on my blog.
I think the best way to understand AI is that it wasn't created for absolute honesty nor the premise of accuracy.
If I may quote TARS from Interstellar : Absolute honesty isn't always the most diplomatic nor the safest form of communication with emotional beings.
Also most people don't ask questions seeking honesty (looks over at the Eww Ass Ay and the stark and widening gulf between Democrat and Republican), they're seeking validation. However for the sake of argument lets pretend someone is asking a technical question (from a positoin of ignorance) and is seeking the truth. My experience is that you'll get that 90% honesty that TARS cited.
So I asked a very specific question about EV charging (a subject I happen to know a bit about)
Claude went on to say how it doesn't cause any harm ... however I know differently (from decades of working with batteries), and I knew this was partially wrong
you see it only works in the case where you have not avoided the most critcal balance window listed in point 1. above.
If you go on charging at 80% (which all the EV makers seem to suggest in their advertising you should do) you'll hit problems.
So after I was assured by Claude that it was all OK, I pushed back with the quesion below. The answer is worth understanding and is why Claude should have said "it can't prevent balancing issues" when it first answered my question.
But it didn't and if I didn't know enough to push back it would have misled me. Aside from the "acceptance rate cliff" he mentions there's also the very likely outcome of "inaccurate range estimation because that only comes to light as you discharge (on the highway or taking off from the lights) and one "cell" in the pack buckles down more and you go from having enough range to "we need to charge".
As to how we'll get around this constraint I'm not sure, because all models seem to focus on making you happy (not informing you).
I'm a fan of the Venus 190x movements and before I say anythig more I think any fan of that movement should go check out Kaminski's blog on that.
There are a few unique features in the presentation of the Venus (1901) on this watch, those who know it will know that its a bi-compax dial (running seconds on the 9 O'Clock and Chrono minute accumulation on the 3).
Dimensions
weight = 66.9g
bezel diameter is 39.5mm
case diameter 39mm
lug to Lug is 47.5mm
thickness - 13.5mm (very slight dome to the crystal)
So probably the most wearable chrono I have.
Myself I find the ST1901 almost functionally useless (meanwhile, all the "watch tools" squeal "tool watch" while excitedly tingling their bell) because it only times 30min, I often want to time more, however here its saved by the inclusion of a divers bezel.
Saved you say? Yes, saved I say, because you can turn that red triangle to align with hour hand and know with ease how many hours have elapsed and if its between hours how many minutes have elapsed as well as seconds.
This simple case addition turns the 1901 into a tool that can record 12 hours (and if you can remember when in the day did you start it, perhaps even 24 hours).
Fantastic improvement. My only lament is that the bezel is only rotatable anti-clockwise; which is irritating but not a show stopper. Dive Watch Wankers can check their ego at the entrance because its not a dive watch (you slavish unthinking watch tool).
The watch comes from AliExpress and while I wanted the Black Dial it was all gone...
but as it happens I've had a fondness for green dials.
Noteworthy on the face is the additional clarity markers around the 5 min (at 3 and 7min) making it really easy to clearly distinguish the smaller amounts of time (where the signficance of a minute makes a bigger difference.
and of course (if you know the ST901) its a quick change of the minute at the minute; not a simple gear system like say a VK63. This style of graduation marking was once common when actual legibility was paramount (not watch wanking); as seen on these (one vintage) aviators ...
While some people will perhaps prefer the Speedmaster style bezel (with a tachymeter {and frankly I find almost nobody knows how to use that}), I'm quite happy to trade that for the very functional divers bezel as an adjunct to timing. I mean as tools go, a Chronometer is actually intended as a timing device (AKA a tool).
The watch comes in a nice (and uncharacteristically useful) "watch storeage" more suited for putting into your draw (if you aren't using it every day as I seem to be).
which nicely pops off the sides with press studs just like opening it has.
The back is (as is common) the display back, which is good because the watch movement is beautiful on the ST1901 series
The watch comes with a nice (very nicely made) suede leather strap (which I think will look scruffy quckly, so I took it off immedately and will reserve it for nice occasions)
However in fitting my usual strap style I find that the holes in the lugs for spring bars are a bit close in and makes fitting anything of any thickness difficult.
Happily thin leather straps and NATOs (that have been surgically normalised are fine). Worth noting here is the (yet again) different case back opening suited to a large jawed shifting spanner.
This angle also shows off the work on both case finishing and on the bezel knurling.
Nowhere was sharp (except the edges of the bezel) and the combination of finish and polish was of a much higher standard than anything from China (not branded as say, Seiko) I've yet handled.
Lastly the tuning of the movement in the watch for accuracy has been exemplary
and my daily useage has suggested that over the last few days its been about that 12seconds per day. FWIW my TimeGrapher tives a much better beat error figure of 0.2ms
Lume (always a weak point here) is "basic" but on the poor side of "sufficient" for going inside from being out in the light ...
So there you have it ... a round up of the F.O.D.
The watch is easy to wear and I like that its easy to read (although perhaps I'd prefer the bezel was etched and filled, not "rear printed glass") ... which is cheaper. The crystal has no AR coatings but is crystal, so should resist scratching ...
I've had this Sunbeam coffee maker since about 2004 and I paid about AU$100 for it when the Baby Gaggia was about $600
The unit dimensions (in cm) are: 31 high, 17 wide and 28 deep (front to back)
A good friend of mine had the Gaggia Classic and I wasn't sure I wanted to commit that much money (I was again a student at the time) and the Sunbeam appealed to me on the basis of price and benchtop footprint. I've always managed to have cramped kitchens. Indeed it features in this 2014 (whimsical comic) video I made when I was living in Finland and again you can see there was limited space on the benchtop.
So, yes, its been between Australia and Finland and back to Australia (more than once).
Basically its a single boiler system which is NOT a Termoblock (also something I don't really like), like so many machines in this pricepoint they have one of those baskets designed for noobs (or morons) which has a closed in base with a pinpoint hole to:
provide emulsification of the oils to make a faux crema (to make the incompetent feel good immediately)
give some back pressure for the pump to ensure flow rates and extraction with improper grinds (again, to make the incompetent feel good)
Being the guy I am (check out the DIY tag as well as the coffee tag for posts) I immediately took out my angle grinder and carefully opened that base up ...
which requires some of that outside be left around the edges of the base to be a support for what is essentially a pressed in mesh
I could have opened it up a wee bit more, but its sufficiently open (more than 90% open) now.
A weakness of the system is that the water from the top shower (more like a dome above the basket, which seals on the flat part of that basket rim) isn't so perfect in water distribution and so the system benefits from a nice (51mm) insert that lays atop the coffee and sits perfectly inside the basket
This has been such a great improvement to my shot consistency (which I've only had for a little over a year now).
The controls are quite rudimentary and if you are a noob (which sadly is who this machine is aimed at) you can stuff things up (perhaps not as much as you can with a Gaggia though).
the bottom switch turns the unit on and begins heating the boiler
the top switch starts the pump and you have to turn it off manually (just like the Gaggia)
However the "saving grace" of this system is that to activate the boiler you have to turn the steamer dial where a "cam" presses down on a microswitch inside to activate the "other heating circuit" to get steam up to pressure.
The upside of this is that unlike the Gaggia you can't accidentally have the boiler at well over 100°C and essentially "cook" your brew ... the downside is that it spits a little water for a bit as it starts to steam. I put a cup under it and you can learn to judge when's a good time to start steaming this way too (if you are the kind of person who learns by doing). Turning off the steam therefore also turns off the steamer circuit.
The machine doesn't power down, so (like the Gaggia) you'll have to remember to turn off the power.
With the lid off you can see the wiring and the two thermostats for the different temperature control (water vs steam).
Frankly, for the money I think manufacture is simple and effective. That its lasted 22 years and been moved around a lot is a testimony to its reliability.
Milk steaming is in my opinion among the best and no extra work is needed to have a good simple chomed metal steam wand straight from the Get Go (unlike say the DeLongi ECP3630 which is perhaps the modern version of this design)
indeed the end unscrews easily for cleaning (should you happen to clog it by not clearing / cleaning it after use)
it even comes with a pair of cleaners (one small one for the little hole which I cut off the base of the basket anyway) that are under the lid of the removable water tank.
That about rounds up the machine.
Tips
I'll say that I think its important to always use filtered water (meaning filtration for ION's like Calcium) out of the water because that will destroy the boiler more quickly. Depending on your city or town water there can be a lot of ions in the water, so invest in a filter jug (I used a Britex, but no in Finland where water quality seemed excellent).
For those who want to get a bit more advanced in operation; you can actually have some "blunt" control over the water temperature that flows out of the group set. I find this important because in my dial in process with my beans I felt that my water temperature was a bit cool. Claude suggested:
and while its hard to measure (because a very fine, light weight, sensitive and accurate thermometer needs to be used and the temperature will change as fresh colder water comes into the boiler), I believe mine is under that 93 mark. So I wanted to raise this a little.
My method goes like this and has the assumption that water boils quite reliably at 100C. Here, my altitude, is about 500m. Again I'll turn to Claude for a nicely formatted summary (of something I doubt is contentious)
I've confirmed this with my own (pretty decent, laboratory grade thermometer) and its quite close and begins sinking fairly quickly when you take the power away.
To get my boiler up to 98 I can just turn on the the boiler again by opening the steamer knob just enough to hear the boiler begin to operate. By running it till water is just beginning to sputter out of the spout I know I've pretty much got to boiling (and it won't go past that point quickly with the boiler open).
I now turn off the knob (make sure its a bit firm or the pump will cause water to push out the steamer wand) and start the pump (obviously the handle / group set is attached through all this).
By getting a sense of how long (I used my phone's stop watch) it takes for the low roar of the boiler to start and spitting to begin, I can make an estimation of temperature because it will rise in a fairly linear manner.
This has made a great improvement to my medium roast coffee. I've since found others are doing this (so in case its not as obvious to the Noobs as it was to a chemistry and electronics guy) Tom calls it Temperature surfing:
He doesn't have a video on modifying the basket in the group set but there was no "easy purchase" option for me 15 years ago.
From here its about you, your taste, your grinder and your beans. I keep notes about my beans and what grind works for each, as its different.
Plenty of good discussions on the internet about this, but I happen to have a fair amount of time for what James says:
So remember the size (depth as well as diameter) of the basket and have a go at this video
Myself I find that 19g is about as much as I can get into my basket (and I've made a simple tool to achieve that in my grinder).
its literally as simple as bit of grease proof paper that I've cut into a cuff that stands sufficiently above the rim of the basket. I just tap that down (by hand) then on the bench gently remove the paper cuff (pulling it up) while giving the the whole thing a quick "tap" back down on the bench to make the coffee settle into that small gap between "where the paper was" before you pulled it up. Note the small black dot, this and one on the other end shows the overlap so I can grab that and the other side and pull up keeping its shape ...
Importantly my grinder has a dial that allows me to adjust how long it grinds for, and its (electronically) linked to the grind size, (somewhat) and reports numbers on the digital display for both grind and time. This means I can repeatably get a dose as I change between beans.
Then have a watch of this video and see what you think. Ultimately start practicing, take notes and enjoy your coffee journey
There you have it, a great machine which I can honestly say "they don't make them like this anymore" for that price point.
I hope that this review even if you get something like a Delongi (a great machine too) and begin modifying that to help you get good quality coffee at home for yourself.
Since the 1990's on my travels up to Girraween (well, up in terms of altitude) I've driven past this cottage on a farm; its been abandoned for the whold of my experience with it.
I took this with my Toho 4x5 camera and scanned with an Epson. It was clearly quite a dry year (although its starting winter).
The cottage has featured in my post on Fireplaces in Australia. I drive past there from time to time, and back in 2018 was going past with a friend who wanted to look around. This shot is from a similar angle to the above; but you can see not quite perfectly aligned with where I thought I was standing (not having made any reference as this was an ad-hoc opportunity).
The roof was off in places back then so I knew that the end was nearing
Another angle...
Yesterday I was riding past (on my way south) and thought I'd shoot a quick video from the bike showing its present state from the road side. It was a bit overgrown when down beside it, so this is just what I took from up on the hill.
