What do YOU use to home roast?

[Sunbeamer]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

that was 19mins to 2nd crack (probably well into 2nd, I still have lots to learn here) on 250g

I will admit it looks a lot more even in real life, I think its a flash thing there, I will get better pics when the beans come out of resting

I originally had 3 flaps to help stir it up but have since flattened them down as they were throwing the beans around and making a lot of noise so you couldnt here what was happening, the beans look to still be getting mixed well but I think I will need to add something to help stir them up some more as I think beans down the lower end are staying there and the higher end would be getting more heat exposure

[robusto]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Yes, the uneven roast looks to be a problem. A shroud, with less flame, may be the solution. The mas appears to be getting stirred quite well.

How long is the roast, Sunbeamer?

Are there agitators in the drum?

-Robusto

[segrave]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Maybe there is a little too much direct as the roast looks a little uneven

[Sunbeamer]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

yes orginally I planned a shroud, but empty testing showed it may be a little too much heat
I think now though I am pushing the limits on a still day so the shroud is getting knocked up this weekend

the shroud material you ask? 1kg tin of Nescafes finest, the mighty 43 beans ;D 8-)

[robusto]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Not bad Sunbeamer, especially for the pricely $0. The thermouple gives if a high-tech look of sorts.

Theres an awful lot of heat loss though ... have you considered an equally cheap shroud?

-Robusto

[Sunbeamer]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Hi all thought I would post up some pics of the contraption I have cobbled together based on what I had lying around and pics of what others have done here  

the drum is a recycled Nescafe decaf tin (see nescafe is useful) and the mesh nicked off a truck airfilter
its spun by my cordless drill held on with a ziptie and heated by my trusty camping stove

total cost to date $0  8-) ;D




The final result of my 1st real roast, 250g of Brazil Peaberry


heres a bit of a video of it in action, right click and save as (2mb)

http://www.auszookers.com/royce/roaster.avi

I noticed looking around I might well have enough bits to make up a HG and paddle in a bowl type setup so that might be next cause I am not real keen on running the drill real slow next to a flame as it isnt really a cheap drill

[Ray_C]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

I also am in the process of building a bench top fan forced roticerie convection oven raaster to take over from my ever so reliable popper.

[smoky]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Thanks to all for such good info, and thanks Thundergod for those links, very informative from what Ive seen so far.

Cheers..........Stu

[Thundergod]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Look in the Home Roasing section manually if you have to but heres a few to get you started:

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1171622615 (has link to a video of roasting)

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1164028430 (breadmaker reviews)

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1164000407 (heatgun reviews)

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1174636354

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1170221386

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1170472435

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1169639005

http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1167177851

[Dennis]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Smoky, you also need to consider a few other factors - eg. how your personality matches your roasting technique

I found a popcorn maker was just too slow for me and didnt produce anywhere near what I needed. It can be mesmerising to the point of making you dizzy!

The HG, colander, and balloon whisk method is great - I like roasting beans with this way because it is so tactile and you have quite a lot of control re the results. I never upgraded to a BM so cant comment there

The Gene is terrific, and though the initial outlay is high, i can see it paying itself off many times over - very even, decent sized roasts that you can just about walk away from, and some people do...then again, I find I come back toward the end of the roasting process just to make sure Im satisfied with the colour and because...I like to watch

[smoky]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Would do Mal, but search site on here doesnt want to cooperate.... :

[smoky]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Point taken Belinda, yes, it has me going out this week to look for a 2nd hand bread maker, only trouble I can see, and know where I can get a good heat gun for a good price, dont have a Bunnings out in this dump, but sure I can pick one of those stands up for around that price; yes, sounds like a good idea indeed...........

[Dimal]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Gee,

300 grams in an hour.... Ive done about a Kilo in that time :P. Actually Smoky, if you do a search for threads on Corretto roasters youll turn up a wealth of information. Even though I got in on the act pretty early on in the piece, there are plenty of others who have done much more with their setups than I have.... Mine is still pretty basic by comparison .

The Search tool is your friend 8-)

Mal.

[Corretto]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?


2nd hand breadmaker for under $50.

Good heatgun for $50 to $100.

Drill Press from Bunnings $12.

Under $740 easy Id say ;D

Yes plenty of threads on this about the place.


Belinda

[smoky]

Re: What do YOU use to home roast?

Sounds like a good idea Thundergod, but expense is my question, as by the time you buy a bread machine and a heat gun, would it not be around the cost of a Gene Café, which Ive found as low .... as $740.

Need to convince better half with a lot of data about the different types before making a monetary commitment... :