Cleaning the pre-ground funnel on a Magnifica, anything I'm missing?

Here’s what nobody mentions: the rubber seal on the infuser. When you pull it out to clean the funnel, look at the rubber seal. If it’s cracked or hard it will impact the flavor of your espresso and cause leaks into the drip tray. Replace the seal every couple years. Costs around $4 and most people never think about it until the machine starts acting up. Its easy to clean the funnel but the infuser is more important for these machines.
 
Here’s what nobody mentions: the rubber seal on the infuser. When you pull it out to clean the funnel, look at the rubber seal. If it’s cracked or hard it will impact the flavor of your espresso and cause leaks into the drip tray. Replace the seal every couple years. Costs around…

how do you know when the seal is going? is it visible or does it just feel hard
 
how do you know when the seal is going? is it visible or does it just feel hard

Both. Visibly it will look glossy instead of matte and it could be compressed instead of squishy. If you press on the seal with your fingernail it should not feel rock hard. Also if your puck comes out wet or there is water pooling around the infuser when you pull it out the seal is probably done.
 
Also lubricate the infuser o-rings with silicone food grade grease. This will make it easier to pull it out and in and the rubber seals will last longer. The tiny tube of grease lasts forever.