Roaster Opinions

[DocLogic77]

I think I have outgrown much freshroast. I don't mean the size as much as I need more control over the roast. Mine roasts the beans way too quick. I would like something a little bigger but with alot more play with it. I would like one were I can slow the roast down. What's the best bang for the buck. Keep in mind I don't want to spend a ton and I don't need to roast a huge volume of beans.

[djs134]

Check out Coffeegeek.com and search under SC/CO or some combination that includes a Stir Crazy and Convection Oven. I've been roasting for about 1 1/2 to 2 years with my set up and love it. Added a variac (variable voltage transformer) and I can vary the speed and temp quite a bit. As far as I can tell, there is a limited number of home coffee roasters out there, and very few that can roast up to an lb at a time. I'm considering (not seriously since they go for about $2k used) a Sonofresco fluid bed roaster.

[Black Dog]

What he said.
The only other way I know of to roast large batches with total control is HG/DB (heatgun/dogbowl). I've done that and it's incredibly labor intensive, messy and you inhale too much smoke IMO.
The other larger roasters, like the Hottop, work well but you still don't have much control over the profile.

[texas_stang]

I like my I-Roast 2.

[caudio51]

What's a cheaper entry level model that still gets a good result??

[Kingston]

What he said.
The only other way I know of to roast large batches with total control is HG/DB (heatgun/dogbowl). I've done that and it's incredibly labor intensive, messy and you inhale too much smoke IMO.
The other larger roasters, like the Hottop, work well but you still don't have much control over the profile.
Bah. It's cheap, easy, roasts large batches at a time, and really forces you to learn about roasts.
If you're inhaling too much smoke you're either doing it indoors or roasting too dark.
Just MHO, of course.:grin:

[DocLogic77]

I'm not really looking to roast large batches. I just want more control and slower roasting times. I only have 1-2 cups of coffee a day. That I-Roast 2 looked good. Any other opinions on it?

[texas_stang]

The I roast 2 will roast 5 oz (1 cup) of green beens. Read coffee geeks forum for opinions. I think the only draw back it the noise.

[Black Dog]

Bah. It's cheap, easy, roasts large batches at a time, and really forces you to learn about roasts.
If you're inhaling too much smoke you're either doing it indoors or roasting too dark.
Just MHO, of course.:grin:

I definitely agree that you learn about roasts. There's no more hands-on method than that. However, I didn't roast too dark or do it indoors. I did it on the deck and in my garage. By the time you're approaching 2nd crack there is quite a bit of smoke and it's coming up all around you. There are some pretty volatile compounds in that stuff. I just prefer not to be breathing so much of it. I still do get some now of course but I'd feel really buzzed out when I did HG/DB.
Not knocking it, many people swear by it, just not my preferred method.