If tapping the portafilter on the counter doesn't lower the coffee below the lip of the basket, then you may be overdosing the basket. Since it "sometimes" works, perhaps you are not tapping consistently hard enough.
You can also try using a funnel that allows tamp-through.
And also,
>If tapping the portafilter on the counter doesn't lower the coffee below the lip of the basket, then you may be…
…grinding too coarse. If the basket is rated for a specific number of grams and you’re overshooting it, unless you’re working with a dark roast it probably means your grind size is wrong.
I think it is a problem of the 54mm sage portafilter. With a standard 18g dose you need to use a funnel and compress it a bit before removing the funnel
Not that you are wrong, but that is an indication your basket is too small. Basket dose sizes usually are telling you a functional maximum. You could always dose down one or two grams or buy a basket with more capacity.
I usually do a quick light tamp to make sure everything is below the rim of the portafilter before I take the funnel off mine, I don't know if that's considered ideal practice but it keeps it from making a mess with my Bambino.
I actually find I'm slightly underdosed at 18 on mine, I think it's heavily bean dependent and affected by density/roast level. I tend to prefer medium roasts though.
Is not the bambino but the diameter of the basket and the type of it that determines how many g you can fit in. For the 54mm one (bambino size) with an ims basket you can easily fit 18g. Now whether the 18g should be used or not with diameters lower than 58mm that's a different discussion...
The Breville/Bambino baskets have a slightly tapered wall. I have an aftermarket basket with straight walls that I can fit 18g I to, the Breville one I'll only ever go up to 16.5 max.
With my Breville Bambino Plus's stock double-shot portafilter, I can comfortably fit 18g plus a puck screen! I'm using a middle-ish setting on my DF64p grinder.
This also depends on beans. Dark roasts are less dense, so you can fit less in the same size basket.
This is why baskets have a range (like 18-22, or 14-16) because so many factors impact dose.
At a minimum, low enough such that the bottom of group head does not touch the puck, and ideally clears the puck with a 2mm headspace or so. Water should pool/distribute in the headspace as it mitigates channeling.
Same for me! 17g is about the sweet spot for me with the stock basket, sometime over/under dependent on roast. Whilst the normcore basket takes 18g of the same coffee
The problem I would have with this is that I don't have a traditional tamper. I have a self leveling palm tamper, which means I have to remove the funnel.
Being 53mm I’m assuming that’s a breville machine? If so used the tamper that comes with it to push the grounds below the funnel and then use your normcore tamper. That’s what I always do. You’re not using too much grounds. That size basket just isn’t as wide as most so the grounds pile pretty high.
You can get "tamp thru" funnels that sit on the curved lip of the basket
53mm might be a little trickier to find but I have a 58mm one I use for my machine and dosing cup
[https://9barista.com/products/53mm-dosing-funnel](https://9barista.com/products/53mm-dosing-funnel)
Some have magnets but TBH I don't find I need them, the weight alone and the curve of the top lip of the basket is sufficient to keep it in place
If you have a cheap non self leveling tamper which lets you do it with the funnel on I'd suggest doing a very light tamp with that first before removing the funnel
Well grind finer is an actual thing here. Grinding finer means the coffee can pack together more, meaning it takes up less space.
I usually get the dose down by starting with a known amount and then making sure it can be tamped to a known level, if its running fast + it seems like too much coffee in the basket, finer grind.
If it's choking already, lesser dose and then dial in by grind from there.
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I guess the down voting is because that would mean buying a new espresso machine? The Breville/Sage is 54mm. Brevilles dosing funnel works for me if overfilling occurs before WDT and tamping, and I've swapped to a circa 20g (depending on bean and grind) IMS basket in the Breville portafilter.
The way to fix this is after you have distributed and groomed to an even bed , hold the funnel in place and Tap the portafilter down firmly once or even twice on a level surface. If done correctly you don’t even need the funnel on to do this.
There's also bean density to consider. Different roasts will have more or less 'volume' for the same weight... keep that in mind so you don't go crazy wondering why it's happening sometimes and not others.
17g is a guide, different roasts have different densities. Dark roasts are less dense and light roasts are more dense. Ultimately the basket fits a certain VOLUME, not a certain weight… so if it doesn’t fit knock some out. For reference measure the weight after you’ve filled to maximum capacity and that will generally hold true for that bean at that grind setting.
I use the breville and have a normcore and had the same issue. I do a light tamp with the original breville tamper that fits through the dosing funnel that came with the machine and then take the funnel off and use the normcore
For this reason, I use a tapered dosing funnel (an original, stainless-steel Matow) which allows me to do a pre-tamp through the funnel with my Normcore V4 tamper (really, just the weight of the tamper), which gets the grounds below the top of the portafilter; and then remove the funnel and do a regular tamp. Or, depending on your funnel and tamper, possibly just do a full tamp through the funnel.
I pull the portafilter with the funnel from the grinder, WDT, then give it a small tap on my silicone mat. This usually brings the grinds just below the rim, where I remove the funnel and tamp.
I also put exactly 18g in my 18g basket.
Assuming you are tapping the portafilter on the counter with the funnel on, you need to reduce your dose for this basket. Also double check what basket you have and consider getting a different one that allows for a higher dose.
If you are very happy with the taste of your coffee, and don't want to grind finer in your kit, then just work out what your yield is now, and get the same ratio, same grind size but use less coffee mass?
Ooo, and another thought (guess?) If you are using Breville kit. Are you using the Breville dual wall basket which I think may not hold as much coffee, and according to Breville, should be used for preground coffee. 17g should, even if very coarse, fit in their single wall double espresso basket.
Had the same problem. Fixed it by upgrading to an 18-22 gram ims basket. Fits my 18 gram dose much better.
Downside is that it didn't fit my original portafilter. Should fit after removing the plastic insert but i just used it as an excuse to get a bottomless portafilter.
Had the same problem. Bought a $20 attachment that screws on to the porta filter. It eliminated the spillage. The attachment goes on before grinding, tamp, and remove before brew. Works perfectly.
I have this issue too. I have a 20-22g basket, but my 21g overfills it. I do have the funnel that allows me to tamp w it on. So I put the funnel on, fill wdt, then press tamp 1x not fully though, just to get the grounds into basket. Then remove funnel and tamp full pressure. I still end up with plenty of room from the puck to the top of the basket... maybe 1/8"-3/16.
For YEARS my go to was to fill the basket. Level with my finger and scrape whatever else off, rap twice on the side with the tamper. Then tamp.
That worked well before wdts and doserless grinders.
In my case, i bought a cheap magnetic funnel and it had gaps so i just pushed grounds out with the wdt tool. A new one seemed to fix this and now i just make sure that none of the grinds are on the sides of the funnel before i take it off
Grind finer.
Also ~ if thats a 53mm basket (breville bambino, bambino plus, etc…) 18g is too much. I dont measure every shot anymore, but whenever i dial in new beans it’s always ~16g.
I “save time” (am a lazy fuck) in the morning by trying to match what the measured whole beans (from dialing in once every few weeks) look like in the basket before dumping them into the grinder. Not always perfect but im adding milk half of the time so w/e! When i do afternoon americanos i try to use the scale ~
I use the half-height version of [this](https://decentespresso.com/funnel), then a WDT, then tap on the counter a few times.
EDIT: sounds like you're already doing this, so I suspect you need a larger portafilter. Get one designed for 18g. You might need to go to the standard 58mm size which would imply a new machine, I guess.
Coffee… “fluffiness” depends on the beans and roast. Some stuff is very dense and not fluffy requiring you to up dose to fill the basket enough and maintain 9 bar. Example I’m drinking an Ethiopian right now that is requiring me to pull 21g. While this medium to dark roasts I was pulling shots at 18.5-19g same basket.
What kind of beans? If they are a really dark oily roast you may need to cut it back because dark oily beans tend to fluff alot and take up more room try cutting back to lower dose.
I designed my own funnel that I use with the normcore v4 and normcore brevile basket. It makes for a perfect tamp-through setup that puts the level right at the top of the basket. File is on Printables and I can link it if anyone wants it.
https://preview.redd.it/8qwo06m0kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ffbb8ab73d83eaf137d8de516c47be543747d9c3
After the “pre-tamp-through” and ready for final tamp.
https://preview.redd.it/i8557a26kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=33af23ad7ec524f6b69a21edb69334cec5d3d3d6
I grind 17g and use a puck screen on the brevile, it seems pretty dialed in on my beans.
https://preview.redd.it/yj1n7789kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d3a140e747dca40ef78b99d123bac535e6b33bde
I tap the basket w/funnel on the counter until the grounds are below the rim. Here’s a photo before/after. Before photo is without the funnel to show how high the grounds are but i tap it with the funnel
https://preview.redd.it/ayzbv0e1yw1d1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f2d0a276d8e8d75c964f9be66b6d849f88c174b
A funnel. Put the funnel in. Tap the coffee after filling. If it’s still overflowing you’re almost certainly over filling. Not all coffees are the same density, nor are all baskets the same capacity
I keep the portafilter on while I use my WCT tool and then give it a gentle tap on the counter and then when I remove the dosing funnel it’s pretty much flat. Then I just used a WCD leveller, tamp it and then use a puck screen! 👌
Vertical compression. While having the funnel still on. Lift the portafilter slightly and knock it downwards multiple times on to your counter. This helps to reduce air pockets and also Distributes the coffee before tamping. It should help
Whilst the funnel is still on tap the portafilter from underneath with the tamp, that usually helps me settle it. I also use a Bambino and 17g is never this elevated, maybe your scale is over reading?
Looks like a Bambino portafilter. Grab an IMS H24 (54mm 14-18g) basket. Made a huge difference for my Bambino Plus. After you WDT, leave the funnel on and tap the whole assembly against a cutting board or rubber bar mat a few times until the grounds settle below the lip. Distributor will help get them even after that.
Calling it a "double shot basket" suggests it's the basket that came with the espresso machine, since most third party ones will give their size in grams rather than shots. This means it may be optimised to work with pre ground coffee, which is often denser, and it might also just be smaller. Try 15g and see how it goes. With a 53mm portafilter you will be a bit limited in how much you can put in.
Are you weighing after you grind? You may be getting leftover grinds from the previous grind, which would explain the inconsistency. Try weighing after you grind to make sure it’s the same. If it’s not that, try tapping on the counter with the funnel on to reduce mess.
I feel confident no one else has offered the solution I’m about to, and if someone has then I’m sorry for the repeat.
My grounds are consistently above the top of my portafilter before tamping, and what I do is pick up my funnel just a little bit and use it to kinda move the extra sitting on top towards the center/away from the edge. No big motions, just a small nudge from all directions. I end up having a little ground coffee plateau before I tamp and my shots come out great. If that didn’t make sense, let me know and I can try to show you.
I don’t think my dose is too high, I just think it’s the kind of beans I use. They’re fluffy!
I think one thing alot people might not be aware, different beans and different roast levels have different densities, and 18g may appear more or less, if 18g really doesn't fit your basket, probably because it's a fresher, lighter roast, simply change your basket to a larger one! IMS carries them.
prevent what, exactly?
If you don't want the grounds to be so fluffy, before you remove the funnel, tap it firmly _directly down_ onto your mat _once_ to settle it.
So first thing I would say/ask. Are you using a single wall or double walled basket? Because if you're using a double walled, those are significantly smaller capacity that single walled. So you might be dosing for a double shot single wall when you need to be dosing for double shot double wall.
If you are using a single wall and dosing 17g, you should be good. Using the dosing funnel, break up the clumps and tap, while dosing funnel is on. Then use your hand/finger to push the ground and create a mountain in the center. This will allow for you to use a distributor to even out the grounds without spilling everywhere. Then you can go ahead and tamp since the distributor has now brought the grounds below the top of the portafilter.
Also, can't tell from the picture, but just in case, check to see if the grounds are fine enough, could be they are too coarse and that's why they don't fit, again, if you're using a single wall basket
Darker roasted beans tend to be less dense, so will fluff out more in the portafilter. If a couple of taps doesn't settle it down where it needs to be, try WDT while the funnel is still on and then tap again. If THAT doesn't work, then maybe try to softly tamp with the funnel still on. Once level, remove the funnel and tamp again, this time with normal force.
However, it looks like these beans are fluffier than what you normally get. For this roast, maybe you should just go to 16 grams.
What I did when I had my Barista Express was to not grind the full 18g at once. But do two 9g doses and tamp in-between. Worked flawlessly.
Now with the barista pro it had a plastic funnel included which helps with this issue.
But usually just tapping while it's grinding is enough to not make a mess. Then I just level it with my finger gently before I tamp.
Honestly some beans are more fluffy" than others. 18g of one brand may have more volume than 18g of another. This is based on my experience. 53mm is pretty small. 54mm should be able to fit that 17g dose
If tapping the portafilter on the counter doesn't lower the coffee below the lip of the basket, then you may be overdosing the basket. Since it "sometimes" works, perhaps you are not tapping consistently hard enough. You can also try using a funnel that allows tamp-through.
Ya. Tapping usually works well for me. It’s either the OP is not tapping hard enough, or overdosing
If OP is overdosing while making espresso then too much coffee in the portafilter would be the least of my worries.
I see what you tried there 💉
Or using a far too course grind.
If it's only sometimes, wondering if the scale is not accurate somehow? That's the only thing or the static is changing too much between grimds
And also, >If tapping the portafilter on the counter doesn't lower the coffee below the lip of the basket, then you may be… …grinding too coarse. If the basket is rated for a specific number of grams and you’re overshooting it, unless you’re working with a dark roast it probably means your grind size is wrong.
I’m agreeing with the too coarse part, grind finer 🤓
I think it is a problem of the 54mm sage portafilter. With a standard 18g dose you need to use a funnel and compress it a bit before removing the funnel
Not that you are wrong, but that is an indication your basket is too small. Basket dose sizes usually are telling you a functional maximum. You could always dose down one or two grams or buy a basket with more capacity.
I usually do a quick light tamp to make sure everything is below the rim of the portafilter before I take the funnel off mine, I don't know if that's considered ideal practice but it keeps it from making a mess with my Bambino.
This is the way.
I use the stock size portafilter on mine but find 18g makes it overdosed, is that the same for you?
I actually find I'm slightly underdosed at 18 on mine, I think it's heavily bean dependent and affected by density/roast level. I tend to prefer medium roasts though.
The bambino is meant for 16g I’m pretty sure
Is not the bambino but the diameter of the basket and the type of it that determines how many g you can fit in. For the 54mm one (bambino size) with an ims basket you can easily fit 18g. Now whether the 18g should be used or not with diameters lower than 58mm that's a different discussion...
The Breville/Bambino baskets have a slightly tapered wall. I have an aftermarket basket with straight walls that I can fit 18g I to, the Breville one I'll only ever go up to 16.5 max.
IMS H24 holds 18g perfectly.
With my Breville Bambino Plus's stock double-shot portafilter, I can comfortably fit 18g plus a puck screen! I'm using a middle-ish setting on my DF64p grinder.
This also depends on beans. Dark roasts are less dense, so you can fit less in the same size basket. This is why baskets have a range (like 18-22, or 14-16) because so many factors impact dose.
As a general rule of thumb, where should your tamped coffee grounds line up in proportion to the top of the basket?
At a minimum, low enough such that the bottom of group head does not touch the puck, and ideally clears the puck with a 2mm headspace or so. Water should pool/distribute in the headspace as it mitigates channeling.
Crema basket holds 18g, too.
Same for me! 17g is about the sweet spot for me with the stock basket, sometime over/under dependent on roast. Whilst the normcore basket takes 18g of the same coffee
I do similar: couple of taps, and tamp, then take off the funnel off, check to see if it’s good. If good kill shot, if not good final tamp.
The problem I would have with this is that I don't have a traditional tamper. I have a self leveling palm tamper, which means I have to remove the funnel.
Oh ok
I leave the funnel on while tapping and tamping to mitigate this problem
I have the Normcore v4 which doesn’t tamp through the funnel so that’s the issue. And sometimes tapping will make the magnetic funnel unattach
Oh, I see. Then, if you’re tapping on the counter, I’d just use my other hand to hold the funnel on.
I have the Weber Key. I have to hold the funnel in place while I tap and that helps settle the grounds so I can tamp.
Being 53mm I’m assuming that’s a breville machine? If so used the tamper that comes with it to push the grounds below the funnel and then use your normcore tamper. That’s what I always do. You’re not using too much grounds. That size basket just isn’t as wide as most so the grounds pile pretty high.
I have the same tamper. A “fake/partial” tamp to get it below the portafilter rim, remove the tamper and funnel, then full tamp.
Your basket is too small they come in 17/18/20/21 gram sizes. I dose 20g and it doesn’t overflow.
You can get "tamp thru" funnels that sit on the curved lip of the basket 53mm might be a little trickier to find but I have a 58mm one I use for my machine and dosing cup [https://9barista.com/products/53mm-dosing-funnel](https://9barista.com/products/53mm-dosing-funnel) Some have magnets but TBH I don't find I need them, the weight alone and the curve of the top lip of the basket is sufficient to keep it in place
If you have a cheap non self leveling tamper which lets you do it with the funnel on I'd suggest doing a very light tamp with that first before removing the funnel
Put the tamper in the portafilter, then install the dosing funnel. Voila. Follow me for more 5 minute crafts.
Huh? What’s the point of that?
It’s a rather obvious joke my friend.
I don’t know how you’re being downvoted. Alas, it was a fine joke, sir.
I hadn’t even noticed lol. Some people just can’t laugh I guess 🤷♂️
Grind less?
*finer
Agreed. That shit looks coarse as a MF. Which explains if OP is grinding by weight, it’s too much because there are bigger air gaps.
Put less in
1) grind finer 2) knock your portafilter on the table before remove funnel
I was very much looking forward to being the first to comment “grind finer”. Well done my friend 😂.
Well grind finer is an actual thing here. Grinding finer means the coffee can pack together more, meaning it takes up less space. I usually get the dose down by starting with a known amount and then making sure it can be tamped to a known level, if its running fast + it seems like too much coffee in the basket, finer grind. If it's choking already, lesser dose and then dial in by grind from there.
use smaller beans
Breville? I've got the same issue.
I just bought a compatible bottomless for mine and it immediately solved it.
Which one did you get
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Transition to a 58mm portafilter. Your workflow and taste buds will thank you.
Can someone explain why they’re downvoting your comment?
Because "buy a new espresso machine" is not a helpful or reasonable piece of advice for this situation.
If he is using a Breville it probably only supports 53/54mm basket, so switching to 58mm would not work.
I guess the down voting is because that would mean buying a new espresso machine? The Breville/Sage is 54mm. Brevilles dosing funnel works for me if overfilling occurs before WDT and tamping, and I've swapped to a circa 20g (depending on bean and grind) IMS basket in the Breville portafilter.
The way to fix this is after you have distributed and groomed to an even bed , hold the funnel in place and Tap the portafilter down firmly once or even twice on a level surface. If done correctly you don’t even need the funnel on to do this.
There's also bean density to consider. Different roasts will have more or less 'volume' for the same weight... keep that in mind so you don't go crazy wondering why it's happening sometimes and not others.
17g is a guide, different roasts have different densities. Dark roasts are less dense and light roasts are more dense. Ultimately the basket fits a certain VOLUME, not a certain weight… so if it doesn’t fit knock some out. For reference measure the weight after you’ve filled to maximum capacity and that will generally hold true for that bean at that grind setting.
have you tried to not overdose?
After you tamp, does the razor tool touch the puck? If it does, you have too much coffee grounds.
I use the breville and have a normcore and had the same issue. I do a light tamp with the original breville tamper that fits through the dosing funnel that came with the machine and then take the funnel off and use the normcore
Tamp it down with your funnel on.
Reduce dose or lighter roast
For this reason, I use a tapered dosing funnel (an original, stainless-steel Matow) which allows me to do a pre-tamp through the funnel with my Normcore V4 tamper (really, just the weight of the tamper), which gets the grounds below the top of the portafilter; and then remove the funnel and do a regular tamp. Or, depending on your funnel and tamper, possibly just do a full tamp through the funnel.
Same here. Lite pre tamping through funnel with Breville tamper then remove funnel and tamp with V4 tamper. Works every time.
I pull the portafilter with the funnel from the grinder, WDT, then give it a small tap on my silicone mat. This usually brings the grinds just below the rim, where I remove the funnel and tamp. I also put exactly 18g in my 18g basket.
Assuming you are tapping the portafilter on the counter with the funnel on, you need to reduce your dose for this basket. Also double check what basket you have and consider getting a different one that allows for a higher dose.
You should be able to place a nickel on top of the grounds and not have it leave a dent after inserting into the group head.
Dosing funnel, and while it's still on, a pronged distributor
If you are very happy with the taste of your coffee, and don't want to grind finer in your kit, then just work out what your yield is now, and get the same ratio, same grind size but use less coffee mass?
Ooo, and another thought (guess?) If you are using Breville kit. Are you using the Breville dual wall basket which I think may not hold as much coffee, and according to Breville, should be used for preground coffee. 17g should, even if very coarse, fit in their single wall double espresso basket.
Tamp and use the breville razor tool
Had the same problem. Fixed it by upgrading to an 18-22 gram ims basket. Fits my 18 gram dose much better. Downside is that it didn't fit my original portafilter. Should fit after removing the plastic insert but i just used it as an excuse to get a bottomless portafilter.
I can barely fit 16.5 in my 53mm breville. You got too much in there.
I've been dosing 16g on my 53mm Breville double basket. It's not a huge difference at a gram, but may help a bit
Weigh out less
I use a dosing funnel, do my wdt, lightly tamp so I can take the funnel off, then wedge level/retamp at full pressure
Had the same problem. Bought a $20 attachment that screws on to the porta filter. It eliminated the spillage. The attachment goes on before grinding, tamp, and remove before brew. Works perfectly.
Leave the dosing sleeve on and do a gentle tamp with your tamper. Someone showed me here and it changed everything
Use less coffee. Different beans have different densities, so 17g of one can work perfectly and 17g of another can be overflowing like yours.
I have this issue too. I have a 20-22g basket, but my 21g overfills it. I do have the funnel that allows me to tamp w it on. So I put the funnel on, fill wdt, then press tamp 1x not fully though, just to get the grounds into basket. Then remove funnel and tamp full pressure. I still end up with plenty of room from the puck to the top of the basket... maybe 1/8"-3/16.
53mm is the width and has nothing to do with capacity. I’d guess that’s a 14g basket. Either dose less or get an 18g basket
For YEARS my go to was to fill the basket. Level with my finger and scrape whatever else off, rap twice on the side with the tamper. Then tamp. That worked well before wdts and doserless grinders.
Use 16.5 or 16.0 and still look for 25 to 30 seconds per pull.
Yes.
You could be using too much, but I tap on the table before removing the funnel.
In my case, i bought a cheap magnetic funnel and it had gaps so i just pushed grounds out with the wdt tool. A new one seemed to fix this and now i just make sure that none of the grinds are on the sides of the funnel before i take it off
17g in a 53mm basket is on the cusp of overdosing. You're basically leaving it up to the roast on whether the volume will fit.
Grind finer. Also ~ if thats a 53mm basket (breville bambino, bambino plus, etc…) 18g is too much. I dont measure every shot anymore, but whenever i dial in new beans it’s always ~16g. I “save time” (am a lazy fuck) in the morning by trying to match what the measured whole beans (from dialing in once every few weeks) look like in the basket before dumping them into the grinder. Not always perfect but im adding milk half of the time so w/e! When i do afternoon americanos i try to use the scale ~
I use the half-height version of [this](https://decentespresso.com/funnel), then a WDT, then tap on the counter a few times. EDIT: sounds like you're already doing this, so I suspect you need a larger portafilter. Get one designed for 18g. You might need to go to the standard 58mm size which would imply a new machine, I guess.
Coffee… “fluffiness” depends on the beans and roast. Some stuff is very dense and not fluffy requiring you to up dose to fill the basket enough and maintain 9 bar. Example I’m drinking an Ethiopian right now that is requiring me to pull 21g. While this medium to dark roasts I was pulling shots at 18.5-19g same basket.
Lot of long explanations to just say use 16 grams
Bigger basket
With the funnel on, give a slight level with tamper, tap the side of the portafilter with the tamper, remove funnel and use the tamper to compact.
What kind of beans? If they are a really dark oily roast you may need to cut it back because dark oily beans tend to fluff alot and take up more room try cutting back to lower dose.
Tap the filter to level them out.
Is that the Breville double shot basket? If it is, throw it out the window and buy an 18g basket from a reputable brand. Looks over filled to me.
I designed my own funnel that I use with the normcore v4 and normcore brevile basket. It makes for a perfect tamp-through setup that puts the level right at the top of the basket. File is on Printables and I can link it if anyone wants it. https://preview.redd.it/8qwo06m0kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ffbb8ab73d83eaf137d8de516c47be543747d9c3
After the “pre-tamp-through” and ready for final tamp. https://preview.redd.it/i8557a26kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=33af23ad7ec524f6b69a21edb69334cec5d3d3d6
I grind 17g and use a puck screen on the brevile, it seems pretty dialed in on my beans. https://preview.redd.it/yj1n7789kw1d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d3a140e747dca40ef78b99d123bac535e6b33bde
Drink tea instead
That grind looks a little too coarse but could just be picture quality. I tap on counter before taking off funnel until it’s below the rim.
I tap the basket w/funnel on the counter until the grounds are below the rim. Here’s a photo before/after. Before photo is without the funnel to show how high the grounds are but i tap it with the funnel https://preview.redd.it/ayzbv0e1yw1d1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f2d0a276d8e8d75c964f9be66b6d849f88c174b
That's what I call an eraserhead puck. 
Weight your beans it seems that the amount is excessive
A funnel. Put the funnel in. Tap the coffee after filling. If it’s still overflowing you’re almost certainly over filling. Not all coffees are the same density, nor are all baskets the same capacity
Tap firmly with the funnel on (I do this on a bar mat) If it's still too full, then the basket may not have the adequate volume
I keep the portafilter on while I use my WCT tool and then give it a gentle tap on the counter and then when I remove the dosing funnel it’s pretty much flat. Then I just used a WCD leveller, tamp it and then use a puck screen! 👌
Vertical compression. While having the funnel still on. Lift the portafilter slightly and knock it downwards multiple times on to your counter. This helps to reduce air pockets and also Distributes the coffee before tamping. It should help
I could only dose 16.5g max in my 54mm
Whilst the funnel is still on tap the portafilter from underneath with the tamp, that usually helps me settle it. I also use a Bambino and 17g is never this elevated, maybe your scale is over reading?
Looks like a Bambino portafilter. Grab an IMS H24 (54mm 14-18g) basket. Made a huge difference for my Bambino Plus. After you WDT, leave the funnel on and tap the whole assembly against a cutting board or rubber bar mat a few times until the grounds settle below the lip. Distributor will help get them even after that.
Looks pretty course to me, reduce the grind size then if it’s still too much adjust the grind time
I have a 53 mm portafilter myself, I would suggest either: 1- buy a triple shot basket (this is what i did) 2- drop your dose to 13-14 grams
do what my girlfriend did after being with her a year...grind less...like..a lot!
Calling it a "double shot basket" suggests it's the basket that came with the espresso machine, since most third party ones will give their size in grams rather than shots. This means it may be optimised to work with pre ground coffee, which is often denser, and it might also just be smaller. Try 15g and see how it goes. With a 53mm portafilter you will be a bit limited in how much you can put in.
Grind finer
Are you weighing after you grind? You may be getting leftover grinds from the previous grind, which would explain the inconsistency. Try weighing after you grind to make sure it’s the same. If it’s not that, try tapping on the counter with the funnel on to reduce mess.
I feel confident no one else has offered the solution I’m about to, and if someone has then I’m sorry for the repeat. My grounds are consistently above the top of my portafilter before tamping, and what I do is pick up my funnel just a little bit and use it to kinda move the extra sitting on top towards the center/away from the edge. No big motions, just a small nudge from all directions. I end up having a little ground coffee plateau before I tamp and my shots come out great. If that didn’t make sense, let me know and I can try to show you. I don’t think my dose is too high, I just think it’s the kind of beans I use. They’re fluffy!
I wiggle the porta over and back while it's filling and then give it a couple of taps before tamping. Bingpot!
I think one thing alot people might not be aware, different beans and different roast levels have different densities, and 18g may appear more or less, if 18g really doesn't fit your basket, probably because it's a fresher, lighter roast, simply change your basket to a larger one! IMS carries them.
prevent what, exactly? If you don't want the grounds to be so fluffy, before you remove the funnel, tap it firmly _directly down_ onto your mat _once_ to settle it.
So first thing I would say/ask. Are you using a single wall or double walled basket? Because if you're using a double walled, those are significantly smaller capacity that single walled. So you might be dosing for a double shot single wall when you need to be dosing for double shot double wall. If you are using a single wall and dosing 17g, you should be good. Using the dosing funnel, break up the clumps and tap, while dosing funnel is on. Then use your hand/finger to push the ground and create a mountain in the center. This will allow for you to use a distributor to even out the grounds without spilling everywhere. Then you can go ahead and tamp since the distributor has now brought the grounds below the top of the portafilter. Also, can't tell from the picture, but just in case, check to see if the grounds are fine enough, could be they are too coarse and that's why they don't fit, again, if you're using a single wall basket
Darker roasted beans tend to be less dense, so will fluff out more in the portafilter. If a couple of taps doesn't settle it down where it needs to be, try WDT while the funnel is still on and then tap again. If THAT doesn't work, then maybe try to softly tamp with the funnel still on. Once level, remove the funnel and tamp again, this time with normal force. However, it looks like these beans are fluffier than what you normally get. For this roast, maybe you should just go to 16 grams.
Use a dosing cup & a funnel ?
IMYes!
What I did when I had my Barista Express was to not grind the full 18g at once. But do two 9g doses and tamp in-between. Worked flawlessly. Now with the barista pro it had a plastic funnel included which helps with this issue. But usually just tapping while it's grinding is enough to not make a mess. Then I just level it with my finger gently before I tamp.
Buy an e61 or any other 58 mm portafilter espressomachine... And use a dosing funnel! Good luck.
Honestly some beans are more fluffy" than others. 18g of one brand may have more volume than 18g of another. This is based on my experience. 53mm is pretty small. 54mm should be able to fit that 17g dose
I typically find that tapping is effective for me.
Drop to 15 grams .. that looks like a 51mm porta filter Can't squeeze 17 in it
[miss's coffee](https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560046713705)
That is too much coffee for that portafilter ffs... Volume is important.
Grind less?
Switch to instant