Popcorn Popper Roasters

[Richard Kilgore]

I have a Poppery I coming, so I would like to know anything anyone has to contribute from their experience. I understand this one is least likely to catch on fire, always a plus to my way of thinking. I have heard of modifcations that allow you to extend and control the roasting time and temperature. Can anyone tell me more about that? I plan on using it stock initially, but am open to some experimentation if it will make a significant improvement.

[Richard Kilgore]

I am bumping this up to ask if anyone has used a Variac on a popcorn popper when roasting coffee? If so, where can I get one and what specifications do I need?

[phaelon56]

I haven't personally used one but have a friend in Phoenix who got into roasting recently and has been using a Variac. The Variac will help control the heat level but most folks going this route also find it helpful to hack the poper and separate the controls for the fan and the heater so the roast can be regulated more effectively. By doing this and using a variac you'll be able to introduce a level of control that will make repeatbility of roasts a cinch and you'll also be able to get roast times in the 10 - 15 minute range. The longer roast will lessen the brightness common to popper roasting and producer a smoother flavor profile.

Ed Needham is a guy who's been into popper mod's for a while and has some good instructions on his

Homeroaster Website

My frined got his Variac at Coffee Bean Corral . They are also available from Sweet Maria's

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks. I'll check it out. The variac at SM is $99! yikes! You could make a good argument for a dedicated roaster with that much add-on cost. But I'll look deeper. Maybe it offers more control than I understand at this point

[phaelon56]

It adds much more control. I have a dedicated roaster - the Alpenroast. It does a good job but there's a ramp up to a one specific temperature and it the stays there for the duration of the roast (it's also tricky to tell roast stage due to motor noise and no viewing window). The drum roast "profile" offered by the Alpenroast is to some ways of thinking or tastes a smoother finish to the coffee than air poppers. This is due to longer roast time. Using a variac actually gets the bets of both worlds with air poppers. By controllign the temp riase and rate and modifying the temperature at certain stages (done by controlling voltage), the roast can be lenghtened and thigns like second crack phase can be extended. For those inclined to tweak and play with roast profiles it allows for a combiantion of the subtle flavor notes possible with an air roaster and also the smoother body of a drum roast.

Sounds complicated to me and I'm not a tweaker by nature. A good option for popper roasting that is easy to accomplish is to separate the fan and heater controls and add a toggle switch that allows the heat to be turned on and off while the fan still runs. It's a really cheap and relatively easy modification and will work nearly as well as an expensive Variac. The difference is that you must toggle the switch on and off periodically to control the heat during the roast. This will result in extendign the roast time and achieve much the same results as a Variac.

[flacoman]

I have one of those table-top convection oven with rotesserie , has anyone tried those ?

[phaelon56]

I have one of those table-top convection oven with rotesserie , has anyone tried those ?

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I've read reports from people who've tried them but the smoke is a big issue. bettert results have been obtained with the "Stir-Crazy" popcorn popper but even better results with using outdoor propane BBQ grills.