Coffee roasting has come a long way! My father-in-law was laid off two months ago, and as much as I hate to admit it, I have benefited greatly! He is a union plumber/pipefitter and is great with all things metal. He also is an avid coffee drinker. All of these things made it easy for him to catch the home-roasting fever. We fumbled around with a fluid airbed roaster design for awhile but he quickly let go of that and began pursuing a more conventional design. Before I knew it he unveiled the roaster below.
Well, it was not quite this glorious to begin with. Having watched many drum roasters on youtube and even studied their blueprints in books, I was able to offer lots of constructive criticism that has led to the current design. The amazing thing is that as pictured, the only thing we didn't have on hand is the thermometer! I purchased some bearings and a gearmotor today from Surplus Center. That site is amazing and has incredible prices. I bought bearings online a month ago and thought I was getting a good deal. Well, they suck compared to similar priced ones from that catalog. Currently, the drum only rotates at about 4 rpm, and the new motor will ramp that up to 64. I am excited for that! It easily roasts a pound at a time with good but slightly inconsistent results. I am banking on the higher rpms to fix this.
So, if you love good coffee, buy it fresh from me and I will cut you one heck of a deal! God bless.
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