Warning: Verismo 801's Selling On Ebay

[Ipmcoffee]

PLEASE DO NOT BUY THERMOPLAN VERISMO 801 MACHINES ON EBAY!!!
I'd like to post another warning about the Thermoplan Verismo 801 cts machines - listed as Starbucks machines - on eBay. Because we are a Thermoplan distributor, several times a month we receive emails from people asking for technical support, parts and manuals. This kills us because we and Thermoplan take the reliability of Thermoplan machines very seriously. Thermoplan truly produces the most reliable, high volume machines in the world and this is why Starbucks has chosen their machines for their retail locations.
The Thermoplan Verismo 801 is the original Thermoplan machine built for Starbucks back in about 1998. Since these 801's were machines exclusively built for Starbucks, and Starbucks has discontinued support for these machines almost 10 years, these machines have no support in America. These machines were to be deinstalled, disabled and returned to Starbucks. However, many have made their way onto eBay. Many adds claim that the machines are "like new" have "low shot counts" or have been "factory refurbished" but I'd like to make it clear that the factory and Starbucks have not supported these for many years. Even at a cost of $2000, a fraction of the new cost, they are most likely not going to be usable. What we find is this: many times machines are not properly packed, are damaged in shipping making them unusable. Often a buyer connects the machine and the software eprom Chip has been removed making the machine unusable. If the eprom Chip is still in the machine it starts up, but within days, brew chamber spindles squeak due to old grease, leaks develop due to stuck pistons and broken orings and the machine malfunctions. I performed a service call on a machine in NYC that was bought on eBay. It had no eprom, it leaked water and I found a mouse nest within the machine. This machine was sold as a tested, working, refurbished machine by an eBay seller. Please do not spend your money on these old unsupported machines!
Greg
Ipm coffee

 

[Cafeparts]

Hi, I am Rudy from Cafeparts a leader in providing parts for all espresso machines and grinders. We still carry the non-startbucks eprom and sell this for $ 59.99 on our website, www.cafeparts.com. We also carry all the spare parts for the 801 / Black and White from Thermoplan. If you need manuals we also carry those. We have many years experience fixing these machines as we were the preferred service vendor in the Colorado area. If you need used modules, we also have many units left. We provide free technical support for all our customers, so if you decide to buy from us you will know where to find help solving any current or future problem.

 

[Ipmcoffee]

Rudy, please remember that these verismo machines are being sold without permission from Starbucks and the Eproms and their software is licenced and proprietary to Starbucks. We Thermoplan distributors have been warned not to distribute them or else we will be breaking the licensing agreement.
Good luck,
Greg
Ipm coffee

 

[Ipmcoffee]

Rudy, please remember that these verismo 801 machines are being sold without permission from Starbucks and the Eproms and their software are licenced and proprietary to Starbucks. We Thermoplan distributors have been warned not to distribute them or else we will be breaking the licensing agreement.
Good luck,
Greg
Ipm coffee

 

[CCafe]

I agree with Ipmcoffee. Those 801's were suppose to be taken out back and destroyed. Pulling the eprom and selling it on ebay was never authorized. To top that off anyone who buys a used machine where the eprom has been pulled and not disclosed has the right to take action against the seller.

 

[Cafeparts]

The eprom we carry is a NON-Starbucks eprom, it was issued for those customer who owned the 801 machine and no longer wanted to serve SBX.
The eprom is the original B&W eprom with regular programming. We don't sell the SBX eprom, we sell the B&W (Black & WHite) eprom. The machine was originally called the B&W when it was first imported to the US.

 

[Ipmcoffee]

Over the past 20 years we've sold just under 100 Black and White CTM machines and have all the parts necessary to maintain and overhaul the Verismo 801. We have the factory Eproms also but have been instructed by the factory not to use them in Starbucks equipment due to that exclusivity agreement. If you have a non Starbucks black and white model cts2 or ctm2 or a machine that came from a business Alliance customer such as a Wood dining or Aramark, this may not apply-
those are not covered by the exclusivity agreement. If you have a Verismo 801 from a Starbucks store, those were to be destroyed. Adding a non Starbucks Eprom does not change that.
As I mentioned in the original post, we receive so many phone calls from people that have purchased the verismo machines for thousands of dollars and are now stuck with scrap metal. This is what we would like to avoid. But if you have the parts and are willing to provide the technical support to the people who have purchased these machines, more power to you! I can't tell you how many hours I've spent on the phone with service techs trying to describe the procedure for overhauling steam boilers and mechanical assemblies. Rudy, you should post your tech support number for those looking to be walked through a 100,000 cup pm [emoji106].

 

[kurtanoz]

I agree with Ipmcoffee. Those 801's were suppose to be taken out back and destroyed. Pulling the eprom and selling it on ebay was never authorized. To top that off anyone who buys a used machine where the eprom has been pulled and not disclosed has the right to take action against the seller.

Would you please recommend steps to take such action? Bough machine and paind for instal. Now stuck with something that noone is willing to service.

 

[PinkRose]

Would you please recommend steps to take such action? Bought machine and paid for install. Now stuck with something that no one is willing to service.

This thread was created in 2015. Taking action may be difficult now.

I hope some of our members can give you some suggestions about what to do.

 

[Cafeparts]

Cafeparts and Thermoplan support

Would you please recommend steps to take such action? Bough machine and paind for instal. Now stuck with something that noone is willing to service.

No need to dispare, you should be able to find help. :decaf:

Use our online tool to find a local service company that might be able to help you with your install and service issues;

http://www.cafeparts.com/locate-service-vendor

We sell the parts and service manuals for the Thermoplan 801 machine.

Rutger
Cafeparts.com

 

[CCafe]

The problem with the 801 now isn't that you can't find someone to service them it's the fact that the parts for it are becoming scarce. The 801 was discontinued almost 10 years ago which means the parts supply has been whittled down to next to nothing. I called Bunn a few years back looking for any modules that might be left and was informed they sold out of modules about a year before my call. They sold out of all their PM kits a long time ago, I still have 2 200K kits left then after that I'm down to just a handful of parts left.

My suggestion is simple, cut your losses and move on. The 801 has died and repairing it has become a nightmare, hence why nobody wants to service them. If anyone needs parts I'll sell what is left of mine to you. Otherwise AVOID BUYING 801'S AT ALL COST!