New Budget Champion? : Alm Kopi Direct Lever Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 เม.ย. 2024
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I mostly only watch coffee making and home gym videos on youtube. When I saw this machine, I wasn’t sure in which genre it belonged.
Former.
Those are exactly my two interests as well 😜
The vibe of this machine kinda makes me want to build my own lever lol
IKEA
From what i understand the people from Alm Kopi are a bunch of engineers who love coffee and made a bunch of things
@@ongzijun3910 oh interesting! Thus the backyard engineer look, love it.
Definetely has some DIY vibes for sure )
@@ongzijun3910 I was going to comment that this thing looks engineered and not designed at all lol
Good to see the market and competition is growing. But its way too big and boxy for me... Flair58 is on the border of "fit" on my counter/under kitchen shelfs. If I had a big big kitchen, why not.
I understand the need for sponsors, bit I inquire that you not support better help, they have been caught in the past selling user data even though they claimed not to. Thank you for consideration.
I'm glad you said something about this because I had never heard of it. I looked it up and they seem really unethical.
@@nicholasscott4138 it gets said everytime he uses them as a sponsor but they still are around so
The problem is that most YT creators signed an advertising contract before knowing about these problems. I imagine the contract is very hard to break, and they'd likely go broke if they did.
Yeah, BH sucks. Hopefully, his contract with them will end soon, and he'll no longer need to advertise for them.
Agreed. BetterHelp are scum and they DO NOT help people. Lots of shady shit about that company.
Thank you. One more under contract.
Gotta say, you stunned me with dropping the Argos on the counter - didn’t see that coming - and I really appreciated you then dropping the Flair 58 and emphasizing don’t go out and upgrade: waiting for the first, daily on the second…and if I was collecting the Alm Kopi would be next on my list after your review. Budget options for great espresso R U…and the fancy stuff is always fun to fancy about. Appreciate that too. Keep ‘em coming. Looking forward to the next data driven post.
great review!! many thanks!
Been waiting for any coffee related TH-cam content All week Lance coming in with the clutch
Nice value, but boy is it ugly. The pid project box looks like someone went to home depot and bought the cheapest NEMA enclosure.
Do you have functional eyes? Seems not.
Totally agreed. Also for me, the design of the lever itself is ugly. I don't get steampunk vibes, I get undergraduate engineering project. Big lumps of steel, oversized nuts and bolts, no thought given to making it look sleek and stylish. Very much like a prototype or home kit build. Perhaps some like that, but for me it's very off-putting and hasn't been thought through to fit into most home kitchens
I had lamented the Argos being aesthetically unpleasing but this makes it look good in comparison. I guess you get what you pay for but the Flair is a lot less ugly than this thing. It's a shame as it sounds like it gets some of the other aspects right and is affordable. Oh well.
IMO it looks nicer than the Flair 58 if only for the fact that it has 1 product logo on it, instead of 50.
@@cenciende9401nah he def does this thing is ugly as sin
I love my Flair 58, but it's great to see more lever machines in the market to drive competition and innovation. The PID box is a deal breaker for me though...
Thanks for the review! I am curious what you think of the Pesado basket?
Btw by ajusting the run of the piston at the ball joint it will fix the touching on the group and allow you to pull full piston shot ... long live the ALM KOPI 😉
Dude I understood some of those words, all I know was that I was at a loss as for why they would engineer a product that always contacts itself at high pressure points
@@gerber8915 yeah but its just a matter of ajustement, it take 2 minutes to ajuste it , Lance usualy look in depth into stuff , he just miss that point and the fact that the pid can but offset on the pid itself so it show the same temperatur as the kettle water ... so it show real temperature. It a very very good machine , no need to update anything, like Lance said ( and its a golden advice) care about your water and beans !
i see my Cafelat Robot in the background.
that color is simply BEAUTIFUL.
and as always GREAT VIDEO and WOW WHAT A CUP.
Happy that you tried it and it delivered well within that low-budget 😊
Makes me want to look into some flair mods to record pressure and read the temp more accurately. Love your work lance
Glad you like it. You know, you can actually adjust the offset so it reads the exact temperature. I was originally concerned about the box, but it looks OK behind the machine when on the counter. I love mine, it's built like a tank and is a joy to use.
how long have you had it ? the link he provides takes to one seller - ITOP but then there is a LXCHan seller who seems to be selling the same machine but 30 less
@@mooriginal i've had mine for around 3 weeks. I also bought mine from itop and they have been very responsive.
@@mooriginal i've had mine a couple months, bought from itop
Lance has been remotely reading my mind for a few months now… Been thinking, looking and researching which lever machine to buy to add to my arsenal. And lo and behold a plethora of reviews. And of course, let’s not forget the surprise alto breakouts. Educational and enjoyable. And now I guess we’re talking about calling the Flair 58 the flex 58?
Great review. It is time to open our minds to other alternatives. I have a similar machine that I have been using for nearly 2 years now. Temperature control is awesome and it makes amazing espresso.
I have a jian yi v2 espresso machine which is identical in features but the pid controller is mounted behind the chamber. Still comes with old laptop charger brick but overall still has a smaller footprint x, y including height.
Interestingly jian yi's maker recommends that you shouldn't switch on the heater for too long without water as it will heat up the chamber wall above 100c and cause excessive scale/burn when water is then pour in. It also reduces the heating elements lifetime.
If Colin Furze made a lever coffee maker............🙂
Wonder how many coffee drinkers know who he is. Wonder how his garage is going
Is he still building underground?@@montanausa329
@colinfurze he really should and do I colab with Lance
This video only made me want a Robot even more.
I sure love mine. It's the last espresso machine I think I'll ever purchase.
😂
Check out jian-yi, the original Chinese PID lever machine, featured in one of Brian Quan's video, which doesn't have a separate box for PID and also cheaper compared to alm kopi. They came out with an automatic lever pressure profiling model recently. Also with these kind of machines the first shot is usually colder, since the grouphead does not get heated to high temperature compared to water chamber. Would be interesting to test with a scace device.
I scaced this one many times
.first shot is perfect because of the pid heating the group
i cant figure out how to buy the jian yi!
How do we find it?
Hi, I have been a Jianyi user since 2020. Strongly recommended, nice coffee machine.
Super cool review! And super cool shirt! Mind sharing where you got it from?
Nicely done.
i have flair 58 and pro 2 , I am thinking that buying Arqos will be something different and a new experience for me , Thanks lance 🥰
Don’t do espresso just came to say I am eagerly awaiting your fellow Aiden deep dive long term review. If it does what they claim I want one. We need you lance!
Hey I saw the Pesado HE basket. I’m very impressed with it myself
Hold the front door... Lance, did you put the puck screen on before tamping at 12:33?
Oh, very surprising for sure! I did not expect you to give this such a great recommendation, especially considering James Hoffmann kinda roasting the thing in his AliExpress video. Good to know! I did upgrade to a Sage Dual Boiler, though, so definitely not in the market for one. Very interesting video, though!
james used the one without heating
if add water THEN turn it on... No need the kettle. And it will measure right temp! COOL
❤
Could the handle be reversed to avoid the handle/brewer collisions?
Wooter Strietman of Strietman espresso has been building open boiler type direct levers well before the Flair came to existence. If you ever get your hands on a CT2, you can introduce something wonderful to your audience. I owned one of his early ES models, and it was real joy to use. Of course they're a high-end product but will pair well with your equally gorgeous EG-1. For direct lever lovers, it's the ultimate end-game machine.
just got mine, works great. this video convinced me to buy it.
Where do you buy it? Wich version do you choose?
I use an ROK Espresso for more than two years now and i am still in love with it. I feel it struggles on the pressure but size wise and mobility wise it is unbeaten in this field kmo
what type of machine is that big chrome pull lever machine behind you? Where can I find a video on that?
Can u do a review on the mibru new coffee grinder K7 i just bought it and i think its really good grinder for $50
I think the liquid in the pressure gauge is more likely to be glycerine, rather than oil. The handle reminds me of a garden spade handle.
@Lance Hedrick where do you get this cool cord shirts? :-)
would be interesting to see what the scace readings were. if i remember correctly from your tests, the flair 58 maxed at 93 celcius
Thanks. I'm in the market for one but the Flair 58 looked cheap to me.
Just got one from China today unbranded. Now surprised to see the video about it. Sadly mine leaking all over the place and possibly defected :( waiting for factory to fix the issue...
The issue with the Argos is that it isn't really available, in the sense that the waiting list is long and production slow. I ordered months ago and have no real expectation of it being delivered this year, and that was before Lance's positive coverage. The problem with this machine is that it's huge and looks like a cross between a shovel, a basketball hoop base and a PlayStation. Choice is great though!
Awesome machine
I think Lance would like the Jian Yi 3.0 in lever mode, which is also more versatile than the flair~
why is the jian yi so hard to buy?
@@parasbhargava6047 It's still a kinda bush-leauge workshop. Besides, the menu is in Simplified Chinese only, and I don't see the owner remedying that issue anytime soon.
@lilteyang i remember when people said foxcon was bush league. we should team up with maker of jian yi and create a champ!
This company sells standalone steamers as well as models with a boiler and steamwand.
And yes they have levers on all of them.
I almost feel like you made a video in response to my comment instead of answering in text 🤘😎🔥
just bought one on sale was going to get a flair 58 but this seems better as I don't need something portable.
Ordering something this expensive from China is a bit of a worry but it seems well built.
what is that little mirror you're using?
just ordered one🎉🎉🎉
Flair 58 is sleek and well designed. This thing looks like DIY from spare parts 😂
But this one is more convenient and makes better shots )
Besides, the power block in Flair 58 is really cheap and ugly. And you must disconnect it in a certain way, which could be annoying.
I know I need to read up on stuff because I had never heard of a 1:5 ratio before! When did that happen? I feel old!
good stuff
I'd love to know why you don't think the Robot really belongs in the same category. I can certainly experiment with pressure curves with it, the brew chamber slash filter is very clever in that it doesn't sink much heat from off-kettle water, and it does use a 58mm filter albeit not one I can really customise.
It isn't actively heating and makes doing super light roast difficult and annoying wrt workflow
@@LanceHedrick thanks, that makes sense! So, maybe more efficient at a narrowed range of roasts, but with the added annoyance of manual preheating faff for light roasts.
I hope this is leading up to the eventual review of the real manual king, at least IMO, the Strietman CT2
Yea I really look forward to that. But it's also kinda shocking that nobody has made a Strietman at 1/2 the price. It's ultimately an extremely simple machine that could be much cheaper if produced in steel and at larger (industrial) scale.
Reminds me of the french fry cutter they use at in n out
What mirror is that?
I need this one in full black
Can we get an update on the gaggiuino
Kopi literally means coffee in south East Asian context, specifically Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Come on! We're waiting for the Max video!
Hope you are well.
That handle looks like a shovel 😂 Does the chamber turn hot on the outside?
I think I still prefer my Flair 58, just looking at the size vs the Alm Kopi is wild, and then you add that big ugly box ... also I prefer that can use any and all 58 portafilters.
Still, good there's more options on the market now.
Looks like they have higher end models with milk steaming and stuff as well!
Has anybody tried out the Turin H40/iCafilas hand grinder? Would be nice to know if it may be a viable budget option for espresso
I have, and I've gotten great results with both my Delonghis (Dedica 680 and ECP3420). I got it because I got fed up with accidentally dislodging the friction fit catch cup of my Flair Royal Grinder. Interestingly, it grinds faster than the Flair, even though it has a smaller burr set (40mm vs 47mm). The only downside I've found is that uniformity at coarser settings (pourover) is visually worse than the Flair, but I don't know if this is a design issue or a QC issue. For the price, I can't complain.
How does it compare with Cafelat Robot? I don't know what is better to buy between this and the Robot.
See my response to another comment.
@@ortonphotoart5770 Thank you, i just saw it.
Very enjoyable vibe and wit 😊
Also, great hair style ❤
What's price
Looks like a prototype.
Hi Lance. Please take a look at the Strietman CT2. It is manual lever machine with a heated piston. And way longer on the market than these two. Keep up the good work!
Agree would love to see more on the CT2. I have one on the way and can't wait. The forums are great and it gets some of the best reviews when compared to virtually any other option. Very expensive though I will admit.
$2.6K for that feature set puts it out of contention against the Argos.
@@markhicks5569 ah, I've been wanting one for ages. Lucky you!
It would be too large for my workspace. Still pretty cool.
Although it looks promising,seems there is a lot of jiggle in between the bolts and the metal parts.
Wonder what is the product's longevity.
flair58 + alm Kopi steamer is the perfect combo😂
I would definitely get this if it wasn’t only available on Aliexpress. If it hits Amazon I’d strongly consider it
I still think it’s so weird that all the flair products EXCEPT the 58 are available on Amazon
Another funny. In the country where I live we can get Neo Flex for about 105$ but it comes with free shipping, which in the end results in much better deal than ordering from official website. It is crazy that for example, ordering from Finland you end up paying $253, with all the heavy taxes. Good that I`m not from Finland, lol.
Great analysis!
But the big side box is a huge turn off. It takes so much counter space and quite frankly diminish the overall look of the machine.
That PID box is very DIY
For that price point I would expect something a lot easier to use than the typical PID controller. Talk about a hostile user experience. (I know, I use this style on my heat treating furnace). And serieously, the poor fit of the arm pivot in the main upright? I can imagine there is no bushing in there, just steel on aluminum.
I guess I don't like the aesthetics of the machine, too DYI looking. Also, the amount of bolts and other pieces make it look like debris could build up in all the nooks and crannies. That's something Flair got right from the first time, a simple looking machine, with few parts and easy to maintain.
the flairs are beautiful. I didn't think the pro2 was a looker from the pics/vids but once mine arrived I can't stop staring at it. Very unique presence and interesting lines. I can't imagine how cool the 58 looks in person.
is the argos worth the extra bucks?
I'm also curious about this part. And is Londinium R24 the best for light roasting coffee?
@@DS__112 well i guess Lancito answers at the end. He feels the Argos is worth the extra dollars.
If you don't steam and are OK with the PID-box, don't get the Argos.
@@ende421 Wrong. Lance lists the extra features of the Argos at the end. It's not just steaming.
Yes.
I guess someone will copy that at some point in a more appealing design that doesn’t involve a big black box… And make it easier to purchase for global consumers… This is still somewhat more of a domestic product and those less easy to get.
Talk about cutting facets on a turd. There is more crap on this janky thing than astronauts strap on for a space walk.
Lol I'm a function over form guy
Personally i don't believe it kicked the 58 of the throne (yes i own one so i'm biased) the footprint and looks are still looking better on the Flair. i just wish they update the heating controls. I've build my own heating controlled system for the flair (everything you need is actually present) and i have a feeling flair did this to later sell a upgrade possibility for the 58.
I'm not arguing looks. Functionality this far surpasses flair with water volume and temp control.
How do you read the temperature to control the heat? More than one sensor in the water column?
@@TomJones-tx7pb so my first version was based on the heater resistance. but with the updated version i added a seperate sensor on top of the valve
@@LanceHedrick yeah i made my own tempcontrol for the flair so i didnt look at that part. The water volume i can imagine its nice to have, and something they sacraficed to keep the flair in a smaller profile i would expect
Curious about your thoughts on controlling the heating. In my opinion, the temperature control as implemented by the Alm Kopi is not as useful as people think. With a 30sec shot time, I would think a PID couldn't contribute much outside of setting the initial temp of the chamber. As I understand it, the purpose of a heating element is primarily to prevent the chamber from acting as a heat sink.
Is it cheaper than 58+ if it's more expensive then forget about it and that black box will dead in few year
Cheaper. But even if it was 50 more it would be better.
Yeah finally a lever that can do higher ratios!
Almost the same ratio on flair! He hot 80g here, i get 75 on flair
@@nemanjastanimirov2684with an 18g dose? I find that very hard to believe. Mine maxes out at 60 +- 3 grams
@@nemanjastanimirov2684 Oh. I didn't knew that. Good to hear!
Yiéeeee🎉🎉🎉🎉 finaly , DAMN i cannot believe im mention in a Lance Hedrick video ... btw there is an ajustement on the lever so it dont touch the group. I had to offset mine of 8 degree , you can offset the number on the PID so it show real water temp....man you absolutly made my day sir 😊🤜... btw have you look at their other machines ? These guys are master of the craft at alm kopi factory
Hey, I am interested in this machine, what is the maintenance like and how to adjust it so it won't touch the group? Thx
@@eileenzeng2082 maintenance is very minimal , once a month i pop of the shower screen, i whipe clean everything and just dab some molykote inside , thatsit . The lenght of the piston is ajustable by the ball valve which is screwable so it ajust the lenght
Awesome thx for the quick reply. Is there any maintenance for the priston like replacing the seal etc. I am actually looking at buying a flair 58 plus. But this looks good too. The flair 58 looks very easy to maintain
Also curious i can see two versions of this machine on Aliexpress one more expensive from ITOP and one cheaper from LXCHAN exactly same pictures and but 30 cheaper
Where do u get the two toned shirts ?
Wait until you guys hear Muvna Espresso Machine with Crank😂
This or Stradivari Europiccola for 599 ?
Man, this thing is far too tall, lol, and the box just increases the footprint too much. Still cool to see another lever, though.
It is perfect for an average Scandinavian )
Tomorrow... AliExpress releases it with a steamwand
budget lol
Looks like a science project.
Robot still better. Pristine and immaculate in its simplicity. Having said that Flair 58 looks better. I want a Flair 58x with a Robot basket. That thing is ugly.
Makes much better espresso than robot, I have both.
It looks like it was built entirely from off-the-shelf parts
It most likely is. Most of Alm Kopi stuff is sorta DYI level. Also reason why its cheap-ish. Real cost of this is probably rather low, but considering its some decent materials, its not that low. I would bet that most cheap espresso machines have way less quality components in them and lot better margins for sales.
Man, the countertop footprint and the aesthetic are really bad. That massive PID box isn't going to look good no matter what. It looks like a tinkerer made it out of scrap metal. I can't imagine trying to talk my wife into letting me put it in our kitchen.
It's pretty damn ugly with the massive lever and huge black box
You’d have to put it under the counter, mount it under a desk
I find it absolutely magnificent and the huge ass black box isn't a issue to me. I find the steampunk look plain great.
As long as you don't use it to brew kopi luwak (never brew kopi luwak)
I feel like never is a strong word.
I like to beleive it's still possible to find wild Civets Kopi Luwak.
@@charlied.g.5029 wild civets should not be fed coffee cherries
In Indonesia they eat it themselves in the wild. It's only part of the alimentation but it's still a thing.
@@charlied.g.5029 not nearly enough to gather for brewing, it's generally not good for them and only started when humans brought coffee trees out of Ethiopia and South Sudan
@@error.418 You can't stop omnivore lil' fellas from consuming fruits just because the plant isn't native. I would be interrested to know more about the general Civets consommation of the coffee berries in the wild. It doesn't take much to make a single cup so I felt like it should be feasible to find some legit sources in very small quantities.
Thank you, Lance.
I'd buy it tomorrow if it wasn't for that damn box...
I will either stay with my robot or get a strietman- but none of this nonsense.
The 10 bucks- PID in the box is a joke. I mean, if I had built the machine on my own, I would be proud, just for havintlt my hands work.
But as a product to buy it looks underwhelming.
I still wonder why there is no cheap strietman open boiler ripoff, but plenty of those "I still need a kettle even if I have a heating element" in-betweens. Not fish, nor meat
I’m waiting for the Flair 58 +++ with more integrated heating element.
Argos is not an option?
@@RasenRambo23 The argos has indeed a quite interesting concept; I also like the looks. Loving the Robot for its simplicity, low maintenance but most of all indestructibility the Argos seems too "gimmicky", very reliant on electronics. This, plus no local dealer (yet), no infos about durability/reliability, a long waiting list has lead me to step back here. But I totally get the excitement about it, an innovation indeed
@@SMS38i this is kind of my point- when the machine is capable of heating, why not take the final step and make an open boiler. Sure, the 58 can still be used to travel/without the electronics, fair point.
@@dabougi8063 The Argos costs a bit more than a third of the Strietmann. Worth taking a bit of a risk with those stakes. What won me over was being able to select the finish, side of the wand, and spring tension. But I'll also wait until they're not running preorder batches anymore and this is a regular product. Hopefully next year or so.
I'm biased, I never buy anything on AliExpress and I'm a Flair distributor. But buying from a brand that has points of sale and service near you has value too. It's easy to make a cheaper product if you're only selling direct, but what happens when something breaks down?
Here in the EU legislation is coming that will firce brands to build their products so they're easy to repair, and spare parts are readily available.
If my customer's dog eats their 58 controller, I can send them a new one in a day. 🤷🏻♂️
Does this even have CE certification ?
Don’t need to be that harsh haha! I also own a flair 58 and I love it. Won’t be upgrading but lance is just showing a new product
All good points. I have bought my fair share of products that look home made, only to have them go away on me. The Smart Espresso Profiler is kinda like that when its proprietary battery runs down.
It has no certification at all, it’s a domestic machine for the asian market not actually meant to be exported here. I would never buy something without certification but that’s just me (insurance if something goes wrong and it won’t cover shit) That said I think it dos offer lot of value for those in that region and those who want to take the risk.
I loved seeing the Argos setting in the back. It should be a mainstay 🙃