Mega Popper

[Lovey]

Re: Mega Popper

I was toying with a similar idea a while ago, but alas, it went on the back burner.
My thought was a large aluminium tube, say 100mm diameter with a plate blocking off one end. Another small piece of aluminium would then be welded to it at the bottom of the tube at an angle, near the plate.
The nozzle of a heat gun would be inserted into the small pipe to create a vortex at the bottom of the tube, so the heat gun would provide both the heat and the airflow.
I dont know how well it would work, especially if the heat gun would have enough airflow to lift the beans.
I may give it a try one day, but at the moment Im enjoying the flexibility of the corretto.
Steve.

[Yelta]

Re: Mega Popper

I am currently roasting in a modified popcorn popper, and am really happy with the results. The only thing that is a bit annoying is the small batch size - I can really only roast 150 grams at a time.
I have been thinking about making a larger popper style roaster that could do 300 grams at a time.
Essentially I figured I could just replicate the popper but just double everything - larger fan and motor, larger diameter roasting chamber. The only thing that has me a little unsure is the best way to heat the air.
With my current roaster, I have plenty of heat to spare, so initially I figured I could just put a popper element and larger fan, but then I wondered if I it would be better to run two popper elements, or maybe even an element taken from a toaster?
Has anyone ever tried this? or can anyone see major problems with trying this? I figured I could get a toaster from vinnies and take the element out. I guess the hard thing would be working out how much power to give it.
Id be interested to hear peoples feedback on this idea, as I know there are people with electrical experience on this site. I wouldnt actually do any of this work without the help of an experienced sparky/engineer, but I figured you guys might have some insights from the coffee roasters perspective.

Why not go down the Corretto path, old bread makers are a dime a dozen, all you need then is a heat gun.
Will roast 600 grams easily and I suspect a kilo would not be out of the question.

[Aaron]

I am currently roasting in a modified popcorn popper, and am really happy with the results. The only thing that is a bit annoying is the small batch size - I can really only roast 150 grams at a time.
I have been thinking about making a larger popper style roaster that could do 300 grams at a time.
Essentially I figured I could just replicate the popper but just double everything - larger fan and motor, larger diameter roasting chamber. The only thing that has me a little unsure is the best way to heat the air.
With my current roaster, I have plenty of heat to spare, so initially I figured I could just put a popper element and larger fan, but then I wondered if I it would be better to run two popper elements, or maybe even an element taken from a toaster?
Has anyone ever tried this? or can anyone see major problems with trying this? I figured I could get a toaster from vinnies and take the element out. I guess the hard thing would be working out how much power to give it.
Id be interested to hear peoples feedback on this idea, as I know there are people with electrical experience on this site. I wouldnt actually do any of this work without the help of an experienced sparky/engineer, but I figured you guys might have some insights from the coffee roasters perspective.