drrum_vi
New member
Anyone here have this roaster? I'm starting a micro-roastery and am leaning heavily towards this unit. Seems real solid. But I'd like to hear from others about this.
Thanks
Thanks
Monster Coffee Roaster
- Thread starter drrum_vi
- Start date
PM NW Java...they seem to be avid promoters of monster...or talk to maxtor I think it is his company..either way they seem to travel in pairs Or you could contact me and I can point you towards some awesome drum roasters.
Alaskan Coffee
New member
I'm bumping this thread in hopes that there may be some more repleis.
I am looking a getting back in the coffee business after a few years out of it. When I had my shop small roasters that you could have in your shop were just showing up and were pretty spendy.
I am doing some research now to try and figure out what to get.
Been reading some old posts but any new info would be great.
Thanks
Sean
I am looking a getting back in the coffee business after a few years out of it. When I had my shop small roasters that you could have in your shop were just showing up and were pretty spendy.
I am doing some research now to try and figure out what to get.
Been reading some old posts but any new info would be great.
Thanks
Sean
www.ambexroasters.com I have one of their 2 kilo drum roasters...and it is awsome...drop me a pm if you have any questions.
espressomaniac
New member
hey
bad url, it's really : http://www.ambexroasters.com topher's doing some major volume for what I'm hearing, so he's going to be pushing these guys to their limits, I'd follow his lead on these.
bad url, it's really : http://www.ambexroasters.com topher's doing some major volume for what I'm hearing, so he's going to be pushing these guys to their limits, I'd follow his lead on these.
Thanks for the correction...need sleep!
JavaQueen
New member
From what I understand, the monster machine has some difficulties getting consistent roasts. You must keep it meticulously clean between roasts to help with that. Plus it is limited to 3 pounds per hour, so that might be a problem if you are really busy.
There are a lot of smaller roasters out there. If you go to www.roastmagazine.com - they have a classified section of advertisers with a bunch of roaster manufacturers there to look at. Might help you get started better?
There are a lot of smaller roasters out there. If you go to www.roastmagazine.com - they have a classified section of advertisers with a bunch of roaster manufacturers there to look at. Might help you get started better?
What size did you go with??
Sinister703
New member
The 2Kg from Ambex is a solid machine, I used it when I went to the 3 day roastting class they offer.
I ended up buying the 10Kg though, currently awating shipment (sometime in Dec 04 they say)
I ended up buying the 10Kg though, currently awating shipment (sometime in Dec 04 they say)
NW JAVA
New member
love it! it works great and is a great small yet robust unit. I prefer brum roasting, it seems to have a more carmalized flavor. But air roasting works great. The blend I used for monser is STTS, and I like it and my customers do too. I used it for my espresso drive through and my firns customer, then I have to buy a larger roasted ( drum, Diedrich) and I love it too... I really recomend the monster fluid bed roaster...tell Dave i sent you
NW JAVA
New member
also re: nedding to be cleaned......yep! and what about those group heads?
NW JAVA
New member
And, how does not checking your timed shots affect cosistancy.....heck, every thing in this buisness requires consistant quality checks and maintance.
MAXTOR
New member
Topher, cant get over that thread Air roasted or drum roasted?
I think that this post clears-up that MAXTOR has nothing to do with MONSTER.
Regards Maxtor
Please read below comments from a current user.
The roast is not user programmable, has 9 preset finish temps, most often the desired temp. falls between these settings. Some chaff remains in the finished roast, not a big problem, but it does require some method of removal. Hard to open for routine cleaning.
The roaster measures air temp in the exhaust, and will give a digital reading on the control panel- Celsius. It has preset roasting profiles, which you can select on the control panel. These are #1-#9, and it basically lets you select the temperature at which the roaster stops the roast. I don't use them. I like my Columbian roasted to 450F bean temp. Setting #3 stops the roast too light and setting #4 stops it at 465F. The thermocouple also measures exhaust air temp, which is not accurate enough to duplicate roasts. After a year of mixed results and much aggravation I installed a 10" probe with a digital thermometer. I now set the roast level to a higher setting and manually shut off the gas when the beans reach the desired temp. Of course this means you have to be there at the end of the roast, but it's the only way I've found to get the results I want. I just carry a timer if I have to leave for a few minutes. I have been very happy since I started roasting with bean temp. And I can now easily duplicate a roast.
I have worked out most of the headaches to my satisfaction; the one item I wish I could correct is to have a programmable roast profile. I talked with them several times about this; their opinion is 'our design is the best why would you want to change it'? I don't like the preset roast profile, it goes into a 6 second cooling stage at certain set points to stretch out the roast time and maintain the time/temp profile. My biggest problem with that is it goes into a cooling stage just as the beans hit first crack- I get about 20 seconds of 1st crack and then the burner shuts off. The bean temp can drop as much as 20F, and first crack stops. It can take 30secnds or longer to move back into 1st. The same frustrating thing happens during 2nd crack. I do get good results with most of my roasts, but I'm not convinced I'm bringing out the best the beans have to offer.
I would advise purchasing a second roast chamber, chaff collector assembly. The roast chamber is glass and it is a good idea to have a backup. It also speeds up the roasting time to have a second unit ready to put in immediately after you withdraw the finished roast.
Within the last 3 months I purchased a 100lb propane tank. What a difference! When the tanks get low it really throws off the roast times and temps for some reason. One roast set on #5 might turn off at 440F and the next one with the same beans and setting will go to 475F or something crazy. With the 5 lb tanks this happened more frequently and it caused great irritation until I figured out why.
I think that this post clears-up that MAXTOR has nothing to do with MONSTER.
Regards Maxtor
Please read below comments from a current user.
The roast is not user programmable, has 9 preset finish temps, most often the desired temp. falls between these settings. Some chaff remains in the finished roast, not a big problem, but it does require some method of removal. Hard to open for routine cleaning.
The roaster measures air temp in the exhaust, and will give a digital reading on the control panel- Celsius. It has preset roasting profiles, which you can select on the control panel. These are #1-#9, and it basically lets you select the temperature at which the roaster stops the roast. I don't use them. I like my Columbian roasted to 450F bean temp. Setting #3 stops the roast too light and setting #4 stops it at 465F. The thermocouple also measures exhaust air temp, which is not accurate enough to duplicate roasts. After a year of mixed results and much aggravation I installed a 10" probe with a digital thermometer. I now set the roast level to a higher setting and manually shut off the gas when the beans reach the desired temp. Of course this means you have to be there at the end of the roast, but it's the only way I've found to get the results I want. I just carry a timer if I have to leave for a few minutes. I have been very happy since I started roasting with bean temp. And I can now easily duplicate a roast.
I have worked out most of the headaches to my satisfaction; the one item I wish I could correct is to have a programmable roast profile. I talked with them several times about this; their opinion is 'our design is the best why would you want to change it'? I don't like the preset roast profile, it goes into a 6 second cooling stage at certain set points to stretch out the roast time and maintain the time/temp profile. My biggest problem with that is it goes into a cooling stage just as the beans hit first crack- I get about 20 seconds of 1st crack and then the burner shuts off. The bean temp can drop as much as 20F, and first crack stops. It can take 30secnds or longer to move back into 1st. The same frustrating thing happens during 2nd crack. I do get good results with most of my roasts, but I'm not convinced I'm bringing out the best the beans have to offer.
I would advise purchasing a second roast chamber, chaff collector assembly. The roast chamber is glass and it is a good idea to have a backup. It also speeds up the roasting time to have a second unit ready to put in immediately after you withdraw the finished roast.
Within the last 3 months I purchased a 100lb propane tank. What a difference! When the tanks get low it really throws off the roast times and temps for some reason. One roast set on #5 might turn off at 440F and the next one with the same beans and setting will go to 475F or something crazy. With the 5 lb tanks this happened more frequently and it caused great irritation until I figured out why.
