Introduction / Looking for a Roaster

[samuelstafford]

Hi,

My name is Sam and I'm a coffee lover on the Central Coast of California. I'm starting a micro roasting business in the first quarter of 2014 and wanted to introduce myself here. I've already gained lots of valuable insight on this forum. Thanks!

I'm also in the market for a 2-3 kg roaster. If you know of any good ones for sale please let me know. I've been looking at Diedrich's, San Franciscans, Coffee Tec and USRC.

Thanks,
Sam

 

[Hankua]

If your looking for new; the order needs to be placed pretty soon.
Who's the closest, Coffee-Per? Good idea to get some training on operation and routine maintenance, save money on shipping by picking it up yourself.
I know their expensive, but resale is a consideration.

 

[Redswing]

i'm in the central valley, near sacramento, and chose the san franciscan because of it's reputation and it's proximity. it is the closest, like Hankua said. i highly recommend considering coffee-per. i bought the sf-6, and love it for my purposes. i am doing this primarily for fun, alongside of my regular job, and am roasting anywhere from 15-50 lbs a week on it (friends and family + a bakery and a small deli), which works out to a night or two weekly. i love that you put 6 lbs green in, you get right at a 5 lb bag out. and roasting a single pound at a time is no problem.
however, and you'll hear this over and over, if this is all you plan on doing, a 3 kilo roaster would be a mistake. lot of people don't even consider roasters this size as batch roasters. it's borderline sample size. but it works for me. totally resaleable and easier on the wallet.
i don't know your background, but one of the most helpful things i've gleened as far as the business side goes, is to put together a board of advisors of sorts. at the minimum, a cpa, an attorney, and a professional roaster.

best of luck to you! keep us posted.
-greg

 

[samuelstafford]

Thanks Greg and Hankua. I'm definitely leaning coffee per. Great feedback on them and a few shops I like use their roasters.

Greg - Where is your SF6 set up? I'd love to put one in my garbage but I'm not sure I can do that with the air quality issues while roasting (i.e. smoking out the neighbors).

 

[samuelstafford]

Greg - You can really do a pound on the SF6? That's something I'm looking for…being able to do large and small batches on my roaster.

 

[Nurettin]

Hi,

My name is Sam and I'm a coffee lover on the Central Coast of California. I'm starting a micro roasting business in the first quarter of 2014 and wanted to introduce myself here. I've already gained lots of valuable insight on this forum. Thanks!

I'm also in the market for a 2-3 kg roaster. If you know of any good ones for sale please let me know. I've been looking at Diedrich's, San Franciscans, Coffee Tec and USRC.

Thanks,
Sam

Hello Sam

I have Toper 5 and 10 kg roaster ready for shipment can you contact with me [email protected]

 

[Redswing]

i have mine set up in my garage, near a man door, and i just put a single walled vent pipe from the roaster out the door whenever i roast. works great. i roast after my day job, after the kids are in bed, so it usually is after 9pm. never heard anything but compliments from the neighbors, they love it...but it goes without saying, you need to read YOUR neighbors.

as to batch size, i believe willem boot teaches a you should roast no less than 20% of it's full batch. that would be just over a pound on the sf6. i've been getting my samples from royal coffee in oakland in 8 oz bags, and roasting them in the sf6 too. turns out undeniably better than when i sample roast on my behmor. i can mantain nearly identical time/temp profiles on an 8 oz sample (compared to a 6 lb batch).

 

[samuelstafford]

i can mantain nearly identical time/temp profiles on an 8 oz sample (compared to a 6 lb batch).

Are we talking bean temp or environmental temp? (I'd imagine the bean probe may not be in the mass for 8 oz).

 

[Redswing]

it does read the bean temp, and seems to be accurate. first crack happens with 8 oz. right around 385* just like normal. i'm not saying it's ideal, but i have witnessed it working.