luxhaus espresso tamper

So, I've been using this tamper for a little over a week now and I have to say that it has noticeably improved the consistency of my espresso. I already weighed my beans and ground them fresh, but this was the last piece of the puzzle. Having a consistent force and level tamping base have made the overall quality of my shots improve. The strength is always the same, the crema is dense and full, and the flavor is always spot on (no over/under extraction issues). The results alone speak volumes about the benefit of this tamper, but the craftsmanship is also worth noting. The tamper feels solid and hefty in your hand but not unwieldy or awkward because of it. It's a comfortable size and shape for my hand and I feel like I can consistently place it correctly and level with ease. The spring is stiff (it's supposed to be!) but I have no trouble compressing it to tamp my grounds in the portafilter. It's easy to use and obvious when I've compressed enough. The quality is also top notch. The steel base is flawless and is very precisely turned, cut, and etched. The handle is finely polished with good grip but is not abrasive. The look blends in perfectly with my modern looking machine and contemporary kitchen. I love this tamper and would highly recommend LuxHaus to any friend as I feel the cost/value ratio is perfect!

This calibrated tamper works like a charm & has made a noticeable improvement in the consistency of my shots. The tamper is attractive, hefty, well-made & reasonably priced. It fits perfectly in my Gaggia Factory 106 manual lever espresso machine's 51mm single and double baskets. (The Gaggia Factory 106 was essentially a limited edition, rebadged version of the still-made and much more commonly found La Pavoni Millennium.)BTW, with respect to the pressure accuracy issue... I can't especially vouch of my decidedly non-laboratory test methodology. Such as it was, however,it consisted of using our bathroom digital scale (with, of course a clean folded-over paper towel between the tamper and scale for sanitary purposes! ;-) ). I then pressed the tamper down on the scale just to the tamper's fully depressed position and then held it there in place until the scale readout registered, without noticeably increasing the pressure beyond that needed just to hold the tamper in place in its fully depressed position. I repeated this three times and got readings of 27.9 lbs, 33.1 lbs & 29.6 lbs, respectively. To me, those readings seem reasonably close to 30 lbs...

I first purchased the tamper through Amazon and was sent a used item. The seal on the box was broken and there looked to be some coffee grounds between the metal portion of the tamp and the handle. There was a card in the box that said to reach out directly to LuxHaus if there were any issues, so I did. After a few photos and emails were exchanged, the people over at LuxHaus (Stefan, specifically) ended up sending me a brand new tamper. The customer service alone deserves 5 stars.As for the tamp itself - it feels quality; has a nice weight to it and there's nothing loose or rattling around. I can't say for sure it's calibrated exactly as it's tough to gauge that by trying to use the electronic body scale I have, however, it does feel about right. All I know is that now I have a consistent way to tamp my espresso and anything that helps a newbie like me remove as many variables as possible is appreciated. Will it immediately improve your shots? No, but tamping now is a consistent process for me and I can adjust my grind accordingly since I know I'm using the same force tamping now. I definitely recommend this for anyone who's just getting started.

I read the worst reviews before ordering, and almost certain that I will be returning it, but I thought gonna give it a try.The packaging is pretty fancy, from outside it also looks like a high-end product. It is heavy (almost 1 pound), it tamps coffee basically just by sitting on it :D The handle is not wobbling, like someone complained, it is nice and sturdy. The diameter is exactly 53mm, so it fits the Breville Barista Express basket even better than the original tamper which is slightly smaller (52.66mm), virtually no gap left between the tamper and basket wall, I even get clean sides of the basket after tamping. So it is already much better than the original tamper.But now, the thing what it is designed for - the calibrated 30lbs pressure. It would be nice that the spring would move gradually, and you would hear a click or something (like a nice automotive torque wrench), or maybe 30 pounds would be when it reaches the bottom, but NO. The handle does not move at all till you reach "about" 30 lbs, and then suddenly it drops about a quarter of an inch, nearly silently, sometimes you can hear it sometimes not so much, but you should feel, and after that point you can easily reach 50 lbs. It does make a louder noise when you release it.So you can tell that you did tamp it with at least 30 lb, but maybe it was 45, who knows.I'd give it like 4.5 stars, but since that not an option, it gets only 4. Maybe it is calibrated to something, but you can't tell much about the exact pressure anyway. But better than nothing though. (I did test it on Withings bathroom scale)I'll keep it I think, it will begin my tampers collection :)

FANTÁSTICO!!!

If you don’t have a calibrated tamper and you are reading these reviews you have realized there are so many variables that go into making the perfect espresso.Do yourself a favour, buy this tamper right now and remove one of the variables so you can move onto concentrating on the dose and grind.We have a Breville Cafe Roma and after a lot of experimenting this is how I make a great tasting shot.01. Always use fresh water, fill it up before turning it on02. Turn the machine on and let it warm up for 15+ min. Just because the outside feels hot does not mean the inside is.03. Clean the shower head,you don't want old grinds impacting flavour04. Bring out your double basket. I never got a good pull from a single basket because the variables are exaggerated05. Run hot water through the filter basket and group handle to heat them both up. Cold baskets impact the pull.06. Wipe the filter basket dry and group head now that it is hot, the old coffee comes off easier.07. Grind your beans or bring out our pre-ground beans (illy/Lavazza/Starbucks work with this method, illy the best)08. Weigh between 13g-15g in the basket only - enough to fill the basket but not get compressed with the leveler09. Shake, tap or vibrate the basket to get the air between the grinds out10. Place the basket in the group handle carefully so as not to cause any grind disturbance10. Use your leveler to level the grind. If your leveler compresses the ginds, reduce your dose. Buy a single-line convex base leveler next if you don't have one….life saver.12. Use the calibrated tamper. Then spin it if you want.13. Carefully place the group handle in the machine14. Place the scale under the group handle and then your cup/mug underneath to weigh the yield15. Wait for the orange heating light to turn off or alternatively preheat the element by turning the knob to steam without the steamer coming on (for 5 seconds)16. Pull your shot until you extract 2.5 oz (not 2oz not 3oz but 2.5oz)17. Stir and enjoy within 1 minute18. Take your basket out and examine it, you don't want to see any pit marks. If you do adjust the dose.18. Mark this comment 'helpful' and have a great rest of the day :)

Precision made and fits my Barista Pro Sage. Make sure you buy the right size. Using this Tamper takes one variable out the the Tamper equation. It presses the grinds to the right pressure every time. You just need to get the amount of coffee grinds and coarseness correct. When using it don’t press it completely down until the spring stops as you will apply more pressure than the spring is calibrated for. Press it halfway down.

Good item but expensive

Well made and easy to operate, gives a consistent tamp pressure which is essential when making coffee.