Yes, a 54mm bottomless portafilter fits the Sage Bambino (BES450, SES450) and the Bambino Plus (BES500, SES500). Both machines use the same 54mm fitting as the Barista Express, Pro and Touch. Whether it is worth buying one depends on a single question: what grinds your coffee, because the Bambino does not have a grinder of its own.
This page answers both parts: will it fit, and will it actually help you.
Will a bottomless portafilter fit my Bambino?
If the sticker under your machine says BES450, SES450, BES500 or SES500, it takes a 54mm portafilter, and every part on this shop fits it. The Bambino and the Bambino Plus share the same group head. The only difference between them is the milk: the Plus textures milk automatically, the standard Bambino has a manual steam wand. Nothing about the portafilter changes.
If you are not sure which machine you have, the portafilter size guide lists every Sage and Breville model code, including the 58mm machines that nothing here fits.
The question that decides it: what grinds your coffee?
A bottomless portafilter shows you the underside of your coffee puck while the shot runs. That only tells you something useful if the coffee is doing the work, which means a single wall basket and a grind fine enough for espresso.
| How your coffee is ground | Which basket to use | Is a bottomless portafilter worth it? |
|---|---|---|
| Pre ground coffee from a bag | Dual wall | No. Pre ground coffee is too coarse for a single wall basket, and on a dual wall basket there is nothing to see. |
| A blade grinder | Dual wall | No, for the same reason. A blade grinder cannot produce an even espresso grind. |
| A burr grinder sold for filter coffee | Dual wall, most likely | Probably not yet. If it cannot grind fine enough to slow a single wall basket down, the shot will run fast whatever you do. |
| A burr grinder that grinds for espresso | Single wall | Yes. This is exactly who it is for. |
We would rather you knew this before buying. If you are on pre ground coffee, stay on the dual wall basket that came with your Bambino. It was designed for that, it does it well, and no portafilter will improve your coffee until the grind changes.
Which basket to put in it
Your Bambino came with four baskets: a single wall and a dual wall, each in a one cup and a two cup size. Our basket guide shows how to tell them apart in five seconds. With a bottomless portafilter, use the two cup single wall basket. A dual wall basket pushes the coffee out through one small hole, so you would be watching that hole rather than your puck.
Where to start on a Bambino
These are starting points, not rules. Change one thing per shot.
- Dose: about 18 grams of coffee in the two cup single wall basket. The 54mm double basket is designed for roughly 16 to 19 grams.
- Ratio: aim for about twice the weight out that you put in, so around 36 grams of espresso.
- Time: roughly 25 to 30 seconds from the moment the pump starts. Faster means grind finer, slower means grind coarser.
- Weigh it: a small scale that reads to 0.1 gram tells you far more than the volume in the cup.
What you will probably see the first time
Most people see a jet of espresso firing sideways on their first shot. That is channelling, it was happening before, and the spouted portafilter was hiding it. It is almost always fixed by stirring the dry grounds in the basket with a thin needle before tamping, and by tamping level rather than hard. Our guide to why espresso sprays explains each pattern and the fixes in order, starting with the free ones.
Bambino or Bambino Plus: does anything change?
No. Same 54mm portafilter, same baskets, same puck screen size (53.5mm). The accessories on this shop fit both.
The parts, if you want them
- 54mm bottomless portafilter, with a solid hardwood handle and a filter basket
- 53.5mm puck screen, which spreads the incoming water and keeps the shower screen clean
- Both together, cheaper than buying them separately
Free delivery in the United Kingdom. If a part does not fit the machine listed on its page, the return is free and we pay the postage. How returns work. Not sure? Email contact@cremalab.co.uk with your model code and we will answer the same working day.