Hi guys, I've been lurking for a while and figured that I might as well try and make my first post a good one. I know there's a fair few popper threads around the place, but a lot of them mention a limitation that can be fixed reasonably easily. Plus everyone likes pics, right?
I started with a Target 900W popper and found that the limiting factor wasn't just the heating element, but also the fan. I was struggling to get it hot enough (<200°) while maintaining a decent fluid bed (later realised that removing the outer casing dropped the temp substantially due to the fan pulling in cold air rather than pre-heated air passing across the heater housing).
I grabbed a Homemaker (1150W) popper off gumtree and set to work on it with the goal of something that was pretty much set-and-forget, was hot enough to roast properly, could handle decent loads and was (most importantly) a piece of pie to put together with minimal materials/expertise.
To cut a long story short, I assumed the heating element wouldn't be the limiting factor and decided to maximise airflow to allow the greatest quantity of beans to be loaded while roasting evenly then alter the air path if necessary to give the "best" chamber temperatures I could, easily. This amounted to enlarging the air-vents in the base of the chamber slightly then getting some exhaust-header sealant ($6 for a tube from SuperCheap Auto) and sealing the chamber to the heater housing (placing a full bottle of beer in the chamber to keep it weighted down). I then cut the "ceiling" out of the popper's external casing to encourage airflow past the hot chimney (made from coke-cans) and heater housing to keep temps up.




115-130g loads provide chamber temps of 205-225°C (increasing throughout the roast) that self-agitate by about ~30 seconds in (I use a wooden spoon during the first minute or so). For my beans, 1C starts at ~3:30 and 2C starts at 5:00-6:00, providing a roast that's even enough for my tastes (though I'd be interested to hear what people who actually know roasts think of them).
The beans are CoffeeCompany's Bali "God Mountain" beans, which were easily my favourite out of the few varieties I got from them in a roasted sampler box. Stuff on the left goes in my french press, stuff on the right in my "espresso machine".
I started with a Target 900W popper and found that the limiting factor wasn't just the heating element, but also the fan. I was struggling to get it hot enough (<200°) while maintaining a decent fluid bed (later realised that removing the outer casing dropped the temp substantially due to the fan pulling in cold air rather than pre-heated air passing across the heater housing).
I grabbed a Homemaker (1150W) popper off gumtree and set to work on it with the goal of something that was pretty much set-and-forget, was hot enough to roast properly, could handle decent loads and was (most importantly) a piece of pie to put together with minimal materials/expertise.
To cut a long story short, I assumed the heating element wouldn't be the limiting factor and decided to maximise airflow to allow the greatest quantity of beans to be loaded while roasting evenly then alter the air path if necessary to give the "best" chamber temperatures I could, easily. This amounted to enlarging the air-vents in the base of the chamber slightly then getting some exhaust-header sealant ($6 for a tube from SuperCheap Auto) and sealing the chamber to the heater housing (placing a full bottle of beer in the chamber to keep it weighted down). I then cut the "ceiling" out of the popper's external casing to encourage airflow past the hot chimney (made from coke-cans) and heater housing to keep temps up.




115-130g loads provide chamber temps of 205-225°C (increasing throughout the roast) that self-agitate by about ~30 seconds in (I use a wooden spoon during the first minute or so). For my beans, 1C starts at ~3:30 and 2C starts at 5:00-6:00, providing a roast that's even enough for my tastes (though I'd be interested to hear what people who actually know roasts think of them).
The beans are CoffeeCompany's Bali "God Mountain" beans, which were easily my favourite out of the few varieties I got from them in a roasted sampler box. Stuff on the left goes in my french press, stuff on the right in my "espresso machine".

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