GaggiaBrass Shower Holder 57x14mm - WGA16G1002, kit for Gaggia Classic

I have a Gaggia Classic EVO PRO espresso machine. Once I swapped out the 12 (or 13) bar spring with a 9 bar spring at the start of the water feed coming out of the pump, AND swapped from the stock 4 larger hole steel diffuser with this brass 4 smaller hole diffuser, I could taste an immediate difference in my espresso shots. They went from good to great! My theory is the stock higher bar spring and larger diffuser holes were allowing for higher pressure from the pump to more quickly enter holes that were easier to pass through, hence allowing greater opportunity for channeling...hence bad shot. But with the swap of that pressure differential to now make it easier for the pump to introduce water at the start of the line at lower pressure, but taking an increase in pressure to get through the 4 smaller brass holes at the end of the line, it now gives the water time to build up over the diffuser before the 4 holes allow that water at pressure to pass, hence reducing channeling. The water is more likely to start passing through all 4 holes at the same time now.That's my layman's conjecture and arm-chair analysis. The only fact I'm sure of is, the espresso tastes better :)That and of course brass conducts heat better than steel.

This part is much more substantial than the stock part on my gaggia classic. I was hoping this would have six holes but this one has four. The four holes are larger than the stock part. Other than the mass difference, this part does not transfer heat as much as the aluminum part and is machined much better. Each hole and where the shower screen goes is chamfered which actually makes the part easier to get a good placement of the stock or ims shower screen. That being said, the stock shower screen is a perfect fit as shown.

My Gaggia Classic had the older, aluminum shower holder that was pretty corroded in spite of regular maintenance, so it seemed like a good idea to switch it out for the brass part. What I did not expect was the noticeable improvement in brewing speed, vastly better crema and a distinctly better flavor. WOW! Smoother and less acid. I love this machine. We have had it for 2 years and pull 4-10 shots a day depending on how many friends are over and it is a champ. I LOVE it!

The piece fits perfectly in my older generation Gaggia Classic. It installed in minutes and it’s a nice upgrade from the cheap aluminum one my machine came with, which was really beginning to show its age with all the corrosion. The heat dispersion and retention is much improved with brass than aluminum as well. That being said, I will say it’s not an EXACT replica and I believe it is causing a notable problem. Ever since I swapped out the original for the brass one, my portafilter has a puddle of water on it when I take it off after pulling a shot. You can see from my picture that the four holes around the edge, which disperse water to the puck, are smaller than the OEM piece and because of this, I believe the 3-way solenoid valve is having a harder time sucking up all the water to divert to the drip tray. I used to have a perfectly dry puck before. Now every time I pull my portafilter off, its a soupy mess. I can only fathom it's because of the smaller holes in this brass shower holder. While this does not really affect the shot in any way, it is a bit of an annoyance having a soupy puck to knock out afterward.As far as packaging is concerned? ...What packaging? There was absolutely no protective packaging for this item at all. It came in a small plastic baggie shipped in an envelope mailer. As a result, there were a few dings around the edge of the piece from what I assume was from getting thrown around during shipping. This is a lazy and unprofessional way of shipping a heavy piece of brass with hard edges such as this. Luckily the piece doesn’t interfere with the seal or anything so I’ll keep it.

This item replaced the original shower holder in a 5-year old Gaggia Classic Espresso Machine which had become mildly corroded and would no longer come clean. An improvement in flavor was obvious and immediate. You won't find a better cheaper upgrade.Operation of the Espresso Machine remains about the same as before, except that some liquid now remains on top of the puck when the filter basket and filter basket holder are removed after brewing. There is still no "filter burp", so this change is not much of a problem.

I bought this knowing that there would be issues with flow due to the holes being too small. I did so because my only other option was buying the shades of coffee stainless from the UK for $20 more and waiting 2 weeks, vs getting this in 2 days for cheaper. The original has tapered holes but I found a way to emulated the exact sizing on the original and get good flow.Here is how to fix it:- Drill out the holes using a 3.5MM bit, feel free to first use a 3mm then use the 3.5 after if your drill can't handle boring out the larger hole initially.- using the original plate, mark on a 4MM bit where the bit stops when put into the larger hole (exit side) if you don't have the original plate, I found that it went in about 60% of the way in.- Drill on the exit side with the 4mm bit until you've reached the depth marked on your bit.From there give the plate a super good scrubbing to get rid of brass shavings and run a few pulls of hot water to give the holes a little bit of patina and you're good to go.

The brass shower holder replaced the original aluminum one on my Gaggia Classic. The original one reacted to the hard water and began to corrode. The brass shower holder is made of material that does not react to water and is brass like the other components. After the first cleaning at one month, it looks brand new and came right out. Referred it to a coffee maniac friend and he agreed it was a better.

Easy to install. Fit perfectly. Highly recommend if you need replacement.