I am still not sure what are the differences between the M3s and the M6.

As I said earlier my M3s maxes at 1500W (even though the label says 1150W) and it can roast 340g batches pretty easily.

Dick, what you did on your Quest works fine for the MCR 500, and in fact I have only 4" duct on it. Looks like you have 6 or 8. It's only 10,000 btus.
I do keep the propane tank outside away from the house. I use a 2x6 in my slider. Top hole is for the chaff collector, middle hole for the cooling tray and bottom for the gas line.

Peppersass wrote: I highly recommend the cart (an inexpensive AV cart from Amazon), especially if you add instrumentation. Before I had the cart, it took at least an extra half an hour to setup and tear down the roaster, computer connections, bean cooler, etc.
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What ultimately kept me from going with a small gas roaster was the prospect of using bottled propane indoors. That's a code violation. I concluded that if I ever go with gas I'll clear out a space in the basement and have the gas company extend our propane line to the roaster with a code-compliant hookup. That would also require extensive modification to a basement window for proper ventilation.

If I do a cart, it'll probably be for a more heavy-duty roaster in my garage so I can vent it out the window on crappy days and roll it outside on nice days. Unfortunately, there's really nowhere for me to store the cart on the ground level of my house so that it's out of sight when not roasting. There are a few steps down into the garage, so that's out. Otherwise, I like your idea. I won't do propane indoors either (I prefer not to blow up myself or the house), but I'll do it in my garage with the tank outside and a long connection to my roaster if I go the gas route.

For venting out a garage window, I was looking at this solution from Amazon. It might work in your basement too if you have the right kind of window and want a non-permanent solution.

https://www.amazon.com/Window-Vent-Adju ... 782&sr=8-2

MattS wrote: I won't do propane indoors either (I prefer not to blow up myself or the house), but I'll do it in my garage with the tank outside and a long connection to my roaster if I go the gas route.

We've had a propane range in the house for years, hasn't blown up yet . Hopefully no one is hauling a propane tank inside their house to roast. My set up is similar to Michael's except I built a box that fits into a window with an insulated duct pass through for venting hooked up to my 4" flex hose & a section of black pipe for the gas with a QD fitting outside/shut off & over pressure valve inside. In the window when I roast, out when I'm done. Tank with regulator stays outside.

If you plan to vent out a basement window in snow country the window would have to be 3' above ground to pass code in most areas.

JohnB. wrote:We've had a propane range in the house for years, hasn't blown up yet . Hopefully no one is hauling a propane tank inside their house to roast.

Yeah, I meant having the tank inside. I haven't yet blown myself up with all kinds of NG appliances in my house, so I'm sure the same could be true with propane

I have seen pictures of people doing all kinds of crazy things, including having a propane tank inside to roast.

Got my m6 on Tuesday. Ever since selling my commercial roaster before moving to NC I've missed roasting in a better machine than a Behmor. I've roasted for 30 years. I almost pulled the trigger on the Bullet. Just seemed like too many issues with that roaster? I'm also a very manual and sensory roaster. So far so good!

The roaster came VERY WELL PACKED! The cooling tray works great. Better than my commercial cooler on my 2k machine. I've done no mods yet and no computer connection. Sight, smell, and experience only so far. Very pleased after 15 batches. She's a work horse and I'm roasting 420 gram batches for a baseline. Glad to answer questions for those that are interested.

BTW, I use to be an active member here a few years back. Jim

Journeyjava wrote:She's a work horse and I'm roasting 420 gram batches for a baseline. Glad to answer questions for those that are interested.

BTW, I use to be an active member here a few years back. Jim

Welcome back! What are your roast times like for 420g batches? How about heat (charge temp, settings after charge)? I'd be curious to hear just how powerful it is.

I'm a city plus roaster for most of my greens. My first three roasts were the exception while I was seasoning the drum. Those roasts were French.... Beyond second crack. I charged those roasts at 400 ET. First crack at 380 in 9 minutes. Dropped the roast at 12:30.

Since then I've charged at 370, shooting for 11 minutes to first crack and dropping the roast close to 14 minutes. That profile is one I've used for many years getting to city plus to full city. Last batch today was a Geisha.

I've never needed to go beyond the 9 amp setting. It goes to 15. Low air during drying and early roast with increased air at first crack. I have been cutting back heat by half at first crack to stretch without a stall.

I have no doubt she'll do 550 grams on higher amps. I'll be doing more experiments with batch size and amps soon. My years of experience tells me 75 to 80 percent capacity is the sweet spot.

Is the M6 a solid drum roaster or a perforated drum roaster?

Welcome back, Jim. I've been doing good on the Bullet, but it took quite a while (most of a year) to adjust to after the Behmor.

Glad to hear you're liking the M6.