by farmroast on Sat Apr 11, 2009 11:15 am I think the Behmor is the best candidate for modification to get closest to John's triple value for those who want it all. The starting price and capacity that the Behmor offers are the best 2 out of 3 that John mentions that I'd look to start with. IMHO, the control, 3rd leg of the equation, is really tough for Joe to work around safety wise. In my few years roasting I've heard many stories of well meaning folks being distracted during roasting with a variety of roasters and having some close calls with disaster because of it. Joe did a good job of keeping those risks at a bare minimum.
For those who want control by modifying the Behmor and accept the risks and responsibilities doing so it is not really that complicated or expensive. I had the hub on the drum upgraded at a local metal shop for $50. then added a TC probe for $20. along with about $10.materials for my bean feed troughs giving me usable BT. See my BT mod.part way down this threadhttp://www.home-barista.com/home-roasting/modding-behmor-t8284.htmlThen usable ET is pretty easy with a bead tip TC. The cost of 2 single or one double TC meter will vary depending on quality and if you want datalogging too. Certainly can be done for less than $50. As John mentions the heating elements can be run on a variac with a Kill-A Watt meter optional. A good used US made variac can be had for $50-150. and will last a long time and hold a separate resale value as would the TCs. I upgraded the drum motor to 50rpm (an optional upgrade) for $12. and about a 1/2hr time. Another optional upgrade would be to either add another heating element to provide more energy when ramping for 1lb roasts. To do so on a regular 15amp circuit the afterburner would need to be disabled and either used outside or replaced with a basic vent to the outside or the afterburner could be run on a separate circuit. So with some effort and acceptance of responsibility you can have total control and monitoring, 1lb capacity at a very good end price point. Well below the highest priced home unit the Hottop with it's limitations.
! Those are well thought out modifications. I have a Behmor and can get very good roasts from it. It can't beat my USRC one pound roaster. However it cost more than 10 times the Behmor. If Joe did all the modifications you suggest, my guess is the Behmor would cost over $1500.00. We must remember that the guy selling commercial has to test, get permits, go through all of the R and D. There is a lot of money that needs to be recouped before one unit is sold. I am thrilled with the Behmor. With some thought as to how it works, it can be manipulated to produce excellent repeatable roasts. Not as easy as say the USRC. The Behmor is much more hands on. I found that maximum flexibly by doing half pound to 3/4 pound roasts. So I believe that the Behmor presents the best of both worlds. As is, you can produce excellent roast. It is also a good platform for the guy or gal with the smarts to do some modifications to make it more flexible. When compared to the Hottop, it is a bargain.
