A big thank-you to Vicki Smith for the help picking a breadmachine. I picked up a Sunbeam 5891 on her recommendation. I roasted 12 pounds of beans today and it worked like a champ!! My shoulder would have been killing me after 4, so it was nice to have a machine to do the hard work. I'm thinking about getting a hole drilled in the lid to hold the heat in and to protect the heating element in the HG. And a thermocouple one of these days... Thanks again Vicki! This is definitely the way to roast! bill in wyo Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |
If you are getting to the beginning of 1st crack in 8-10 minutes (varies with amount, type of beans) and your total roast time seems reasonable for the degree of roast, then increasing the amount of heat retained in the bread pan might have a negative affect on roast quality. Because of the depth of the bread pan, it seems to create quite a toasty little micro-climate. :) If you do try it (and shtuff like this is always worth trying, at least once) you might have a problem with the clear plastic "window". It very well might not have been made to withstand the kind of heat you are talking about. If you can't reach first within that time frame, you might need a heat gun with more oomph. I don't think the heating element needs protection, not if you have a gun with good airflow. I always figured if it was cool enough for me to hold the gun, then it was cool enough for the heat gun itself. My current gun has about 100 pounds to its credit, and it isn't a very expensive one. I'm glad the Sunbeam is working for you. It's a champ of a roaster. I'll be watching for your further adventures!! vicki Bill wrote: <Snip> Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |
Not to increase the heat in the chamber, the HG can do that. I don't want to stand there and hold the heat gun for 12 roasts. That's a lot of holding! I'd prefer to be able to be doing other things, even if it's hoisting a beer! So all of the roasts yesterday I suspended the HG over the roaster. I know that several people on the list dislike that, but I have yet to see a true adverse effect to doing so. I roasted a bunch yesterday and had no beans that indicated tipping or scorching... so that's a big part of wanting to put a hole in the top of the BM... we'll see! thanks again! bill in wyo On Tue, May 6, 2008 at 4:57 AM, Vicki Smith wrote: <Snip> Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |
I wouldn't want to hold the gun for 12 back to back roasts either. I do though adjust the height as I go along, both because the beans are expanding, and also because it gives me more control over the roast. Sorry if I misconstrued your meaning. I guess it was because you mentioned holding the heat in. Folks have come up with some pretty ingenious ways to hold the gun--clamps, the doo dad meant to hold hair dryers, and various other things. I'm a wave it around kinda gal myself, but I do a pound or so and then I am done for a few days. vicki Bill wrote: <Snip> Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |
Don't think you misconstrued anything, think I miswrote in the first message. it was late and I'd roasted a lot of coffee! ha ha ha. Yeah, big thing for me is to roast for friends as well, so i roast a couple of pounds every week... not much in the way of holding the heat gun. And when it's suspended, it gets really hot! Hotter probably than moving it around. So that's a concern for the longevity of the gun. And we'll see about the plastic shield... Wouldn't be surprised if it didn't last too long... but then we'll jury-rig something else to work!!! thanks again, Vicki! bill in wyo On Tue, May 6, 2008 at 3:19 PM, Vicki Smith wrote: <Snip> Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |
Well, Bill, you just may find that the only accessory you really need is a snowmobile suit to deal with Wyoming winters. I roast about 2.5 pounds a week, generally once on the weekend and once during the week. Winters can be tough and my friends do not get coffee nearly as often as they do the rest of the year. v Bill wrote: <Snip> Homeroast mailing list Homeroasthttp://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20">http://lists.sweetmariascoffee.com/listinfo.cgi/homeroast-sweetmariascoffee.comHomeroast community pictures 9upload yours!) :http://www.homeroasting.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemIdx20 |