My $30 Rancilio Silvia vs. Gaggia Classic Pro (and ranting about the Gaggia Classic)

$30.29 Rancilio Silvia takes on the world. I compare it against my 2019 Gaggia Classic Pro (steaming + ergonomics) and I rant about the Gaggia Classic. Most of what I am saying has been covered in depth by others but I was very surprised to find a V3 Silvia performing so much better than my 2019 GCP. The Silvia has a bigger boiler than the Gaggia Classic but other than that they are basically the same in terms of performance (entry-level single boiler machines) and you can do the same modifications (PID, OPV, Dimmer) to them.
If you were considering a machine I'd take a look at an older v3/v4 Silvia or an older Gaggia Classic to modify. I absolutely would not buy a brand new Gaggia classic pro as I think it is terrible value and I made that mistake. If you want better coffee I'd suggest you put the money towards something like a Europiccola or manual lever machine such as a Flair. OR if you have the time, scour the wonderful world of craigslist/fb marketplace/ebay for a used Breville Dual Boiler.
I may modify or giveaway this machine depending on requests! But for now, I'm keeping it for the memes. For you astute viewers, the Cremina video is on the way.
Instagram: @thgbrian
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Machines: Decent Espresso DE1 1.3 Pro, La Pavoni Europiccola, Gaggia Classic Pro, Uniterra Nomad, Xbar, Flair 58/58x.
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