Hello All,

Been looking to move up in roaster capability as I am currently running a freshroast 500.

After much experimentation I only roast Sweet Marias Monkey blend as I have found that roasing this only has helped me produce a solid roast that works wonderful. For experimenting Ill pick up something from an established roaster.

Things that I like on the freshroast
full control, more hands on roasting experience, being able to hear beans hit first and second crack to judge roast.

things I dislike
Small batch size, difficult to hit roast temps in winter as I roast in garage in winter, having to shake the crap out of it to clear the chaff out of the machine

its a toss up between this roaster and the KALDI WIDE size as target roast size for me would be a 1/2 a pound.


Thanks,

Chris Herbert

You may like the Stringhold, I remember briefly seeing it somewhere that it is cafe imports sample roaster. It's probably pricy https://www.stronghold-technology.com/prod/020101en.rq

I think you can go ahead and remove the "probably" from that sentence. I don't remember the price, but I remember doing a double take when I heard it.

Ira

Stringhold is in the Probat/Giesen territory, price wise.

Not saying the Kaldi isn't a great little piece of kit, but I'd get myself on the list for the Cormorant or go straight for a Bullet R1.

Well that's the problem for me,

My first big expense has been the HG-1 and while I love it and do wish I had skipped the two grinders before it.
I Do have other needs and hobbies.

As for roasters the Belmore seems too restrictive and would force me to run it improperly to get what I want out of it I.E. forced pulling of drum to cool externally.

The bullet R1 while having amazing features is 2600.00 when and if you can get it.

Quest would prob be the highest I would go but 1400.00 is still crazy.

So I'm looking for options in the 300.00 to 650.00 range was thinking of DIY roasting but would like to not make roasting more complicated.

^ this is why I only roast Monkey Blend as I have gotten quite good at getting a solid roast out of that when I was experimenting with different various beans my results are all over the place.


I guess I'm looking for
1. 1/2 pound roasting capability
2. Cost
3. Batch constancy

The Stronghold is apparently 15K NOT INCLUDING tax and shipping. That exceeded my wildest expectation by 10-12K. So that's my bad. Neither of those roasters look like an upgrade from a FR500 more like a side step.

Honestly just save up more money. You seem like you are on the fence....the picture I am getting is that you would spurge for something like a Bullet if you could get one, but the others are just stepping stones. That's my guess.

It seems like the Quest can last for the long run and is upgradable with lots of advice threads/tutorials here. I would take that over a Kaldi, if I had to choose. The Kakacoo looked like I can build a better one, if I was going to go through the hassle since there are no probes but good wattage.

If you don't care about getting a better taste then don't upgrade, downgrade. Go get a large cast iron pan or better get a cage you can put over a grill. Persoanlly if I was going that way I'd go for this: http://www.auvelcraft.co.jp/coffee/

HG/BM roaster should work perfectly for your budget and needs. Batch consistency is very difficult to achieve no matter what roaster you have, and is vastly more dependent on BBP (better batch protocol: ensuring that the beans enter your roaster in the same exact state every time) than the roaster itself. I got my start with DIY machines and always thought my inability to replicate roasts to a high standard was a fault of my equipment. When I upgraded I realized that nope... replication is just hard period, much less for small roasters without much thermal mass and hobbyists without climate controlled green rooms.