50 years ago, there were no cheap home espresso machines, only the US$3K commercial versions you work on. What changed was not the way coffee is made, but the

50 years ago, there were no cheap home espresso machines, only the US$3K commercial versions you work on. What changed was not the way coffee is made, but the way coffee is sold and consumer grade machines are manufactured at scale. We now have cheap espresso machines which don't last very long, as you have noted. I bought one last week second hand for $70. The new price for that machine was $300, but the guy sold it to me for $70 because it was dripping water whilst idle. I disassembled the head, cleaned the rubber ball end, stretched the spring, reassembled, and now it works like a new $300 machine. I'm told the quality of the coffee is determined more by the grinder than the espresso machine, assuming the latter is working. There are no good cheap grinders. > I have repaired and built up several 25+ year old espresso machines and grinders, and currently run a 37 year old grinder and a 23 year old espresso machine. Awesome! If I knew someone like you who lived near me, I would be the same.