It could also be the program. I greatly dislike the "P" so someone with more experience can chime in. Read the Roastlogger owner's manual as well as the Manual at MLG Properties for the HTC + TC4C (I think he is calling that the HTC1...?). This aftermarket add-on allows full manual control of the Hottop, bypassing the control panel except for the safety features.

Now that I would love. Who do I need to contact?

Randy G. wrote: This aftermarket add-on allows full manual control of the Hottop, bypassing the control panel except for the safety features.

Aside from the ability to watch the roast on your computer what manual control do you gain over the stock B model? If it eliminated the safety nannies I'd buy it in a minute.

Is there a benefit to using a variac with the current Hottop models? There seems to be a lot of confusion in past discussions because the B and P models are advertised as having some sort of voltage regulation circuitry built in. The Hottop element is around 6.25 A on 120 V, so would a 12 A variac be okay for a constant resistive load, or would a higher rating be preferable?

For the "B" model the computer control adds BT and ET graphing. The visual representation of the roast is quite helpful. The graphs can be saved and then reloaded for future roasts and the new roast will graph over the old. The benefit is that if you are using different beans or environmental factors change (ambient air temp, line voltage change, etc.) the user can adjust the heating element power and fan speed to compensate. RoastLogger allows numerous programming features to control the roast to a much greater (and finer) degree than the stock "B" supplies. Check out the owners manual for RoastLogger. I think the HTC board has a switch that defeats the safety points, but I am not sure about that as I never considered them to be overly-intrusive, and the safety they affords is valuable, imo.

RoastLogger
RoastLogger User Guide
HTC + TC4C from MLG
HTC + TC4C user guide

Note that I have no affiliation with the above other than having written the manuals and being a satisfied user of both.

There are other software and hardware solutions available, but these are the ones I use and am familiar with. The hardware comes pre-programmed for the Hottop and is designed so that it can be mounted internally with little difficulty. All IMO, of course.

So if you already have ET & BT probes in your B model HT & run it off a variac with a voltage readout the only real benefit is the graphs? The stock B panel gives you plenty of control over the element & fan. Seems like a great way to convert a P model to manual control but if you already have the B panel I'd opt to improve the anemic bean agitation in the drum (larger fins) first if your goal is to improve the quality of the roast.

Bob_McBob wrote:Is there a benefit to using a variac with the current Hottop models?

Depends on the voltage at your outlet. Nothing in the Hottop can increase the voltage & it's performance suffers as your voltage drops below 120v/240v. I see 117v at all my outlets as I only get 234v from the pole. With a stock heating element I was lucky to hit 1C in 11 minutes. Running it off of my 22a variac set to feed a minimum 120v at all times shaved 2 minutes plus off of my 1C times & gives me more options to play with the heat settings.

JohnB. wrote:Seems like a great way to convert a P model to manual control but if you already have the B panel I'd opt to improve the anemic bean agitation in the drum (larger fins) first if your goal is to improve the quality of the roast.

There are a number of old threads about Hottop drum modifications. Is there a specific fin mod you would suggest? I've always found the agitation rather anemic as you say, and tipping seems hard to avoid.

This thread has some good ideas: Hottop Modification: Extra Drum Fins My fins have evovled since I posted pics in that thread. You want them to be an inch tall or higher & have them run from the front to as far back as possible without contacting your BT/ET T/Cs. I make mine from stainless sheet & pop riveted the latest version in place.