u/User_Generated_231

I'm very curious about the metrea lever set. It looks like there is a distinctly sculpted right and left lever design. I was thinking of swapping the lever from the right brifter assembly into a left brake assembly. I was wondering how feasible that was (yes I want ss with hydraulics). I have pretty good fab skills.

- Is the level pinned to the assembly or screwed in?

- How long of a straight run do the handle bar tubes need to accept this assembly?

- Are H bars comfortable? (Currently riding bull horns)

- Are there any other hydraulic bar end levers I should be looking at?

So a shop was kind enough to fit me for my first pair of jeans. They put me in a pair of 33x32 501s (sanfordized) that took a few weeks to break in. I love the fit. I fell in love with the brown (the shop doesn't do brown) on these jeans from Bravestar and after carefully taking measurements, looking at their size chart, and consulting their chatbot ordered a pair of 33x36.

In the seat and waist they are identical to my broken in 501s (still unwashed). In the thigh they are a bit bigger. They just don't drape right and I feel like I am wearing pantaloons. I believe Bravestar denim is sanfordized.

So the question is what to do?

Do I suck it up order a size down and wait for a few months to get the same jeans a size down? Will they stretch enough during break in?

Do I just take it to a tailor and adjust the thigh/knee/opening?

Will this just shrink if I wash them or something? They are sanfordized.

https://preview.redd.it/hjv7g628yc6h1.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b25cd4ca34feeac792171398c6ebe59e14bb2fd3

https://preview.redd.it/v4689io4yc6h1.jpg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4475ef7e3cc71459b9b8c9826bfadc9f0e084720

TLDR I live in the SF Bay Area. My shots taste so much sweeter/smoother/better. I've only been doing this for a few months. I don't get it. Everyone makes this sound so complicated that I assume I'm missing something. ***

I should note that I do drink Cappuccino almost exclusively, so I am talking about the flavors I get that come through the milk.

I finally got serious about dabbling in espresso at the beginning of the year. I got a Gaggia Classic E24, a Eureka Mingon zero to start, and cheap scale (later upgraded to a midrange scale). I bought my favorite local beans (Souvenir, sold as medium roast for espresso, I would say they may boarder on light.) watched a few youtubes and started making/logging my espresso shots. After a couple weeks when I started to get the grind dialed in I never wanted to go out to a cafe. Their stuff (even the cafes I liked) just tasted like char suddenly.

Admittedly, I like lighter roasts in general, so char/roasty/toasty flavors have never drawn me in. So when they're not heavily expressed in my drinks at home I'm not complaining. Really I'm just puzzled. I typically get sweet light nutty flavors like caramel, marshmallow, etc. and not a lot of toast and char. I get deeper notes of chocolate and nuts when I use Trader Joe's decaf dark roast (which is surprisingly good), but still minimal char.

I'm as meticulous with my prep as I can be but a scale, WDT, and a tamper can only do so much. I don't preinfuse or temperature surf. My machine stock except for BIT screen and single hole want tip (so no PID). I log my extractions. My extractions at times have been very tightly grouped and at other times see a bit of variation, but pretty much with out fail what I've said holds true.

My extractions are usually around 18g ground and 30 secs with about 25-35g total extraction. After a bit of playing around, I tend to favor time over weight when one of the two falls out of sync on a given extraction.

I will also note that I love a silky, smooth, wet foam. I typically stretch my milk around 80%. To me most cafes serve a latte rather than a cappuccino, but that's a well worn discussion from what I can tell.

So back to the question, am I missing something? am I like some kind of prodigy?(I really doubt it) are my tastes just weird?