Presso manual espresso machine pt1

One of my most recent toys is the Presso espresso machine. It's a budget manual espresso machine costing around 150 dollars, making it great for beginner home baristas.  It does not require electricity, which makes it a great thing for camping.  It's a simpler espresso brew method and as you can see from the picture, you pour boiling water into the water storage at the top, put in perfectly tamped (major issue! and lots of failed attempts) coffee in portafilter and press down on the two arms.

Using The Boss Espresso from Barefoot Cafe and a Kyocera Ceramic Grinder, i got:

One bad shot with all of my mess in the background

One better shot with more mess!

The difference in these shots i think was mainly due to tamping (my enemy).  However, because i normally make drip coffee, each time I make espresso i have to change grind setting and on the kyocera manual grinder i cannot be sure of having the same grind each time.  With that said I think the Presso is capable of producing some crema despite what many people say online.  You can see some in the picture above, but I'm sure i can do better. Overall, for the price the Presso is a great tool to start getting into espresso, like me!  I do have a Rancilio Rocky coming in the mail at the moment so I'll update my experience with the Presso soon. Very exciting!

UPDATE: part 2!