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Wow!  I just roasted my first batch of beans... I'm so excited I can =
hardly type this post!!!!!  After reading through this newsgroup over =
the past few weeks I realized I was really missing out on a significant =
part of my overall coffee experience.  I ordered some beans & to my good =
fortune found two original West Bend Poppery's for a total of $5 (one at =
a garage sale & one at a thrift store).  I got home from work today to =
see my beans waiting for me & I ran outside to try it out.  My first =
batch (3 oz) was a little lighter than I wanted but after 6-7 minutes =
wasn't even getting to 2nd crack - the next batch (4 oz) turned out a =
bit better but still couldn't seem to get it quite as dark as I wanted.  =
It turns out it may have been the popper, because the next batch with =
the other machine turned out perfect.  Back to a 3 oz batch & 1st crack =
was at around 3 min with 2nd crack around 6-7 min... I let it roast for =
another minute & beautifully dark beans was my result.  I'll try those =
for an espresso first thing when I wake up.
I let the popper heat up for approx 3 min before starting my 1st =
batch... is this correct?  I also let it cool down between for approx 20 =
min & then started the process all over again.  I did it outside in my =
backyard as I was worried about the smoke in my house - it was a bit =
cool outside so I had the popper sitting in a box to try to recycle the =
warm air (this seemed to help for the next batches).  Also, my plastic =
cover & butter tray got quite hot & warped... is this normal?  Are the =
modifications floating around the net fairly easy to do for a non =
electrically incined guy?  Any other tips out there for a new "roaster"?
It's hard to explain what an incredible experience this just was.  My =
back yard smells like heaven & I have some fresh coffee just waiting to =
be ground up & french pressed tomorrow morning for me (I can't believe I =
have to wait until tomorrow to try it)!  Sorry if this is a bit wordy =
(and my appologies to fellow alt.coffee users who may have already seen =
this)... I'm just very excited I had to share my experience with others =
who understand (my wife thinks I've completely lost it)!
Jason Epp
Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada)

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Welcome to a whole new taste experience

Welcome fellow roaster. Your real WOW is not until tomorrow when you taste
the result.
I don't always wait till next day,  sample 10g in a small press pot
straight out of the roaster to get a feel for how it will develop. 
At 11:21 PM 7/29/2004 -0500, Jason Epp wrote:
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On Fri, 2004-07-30 at 00:21, Jason & Loraleigh Epp wrote:
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Congrats!  It is pretty exciting, eh?
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It could be the popper, easily.
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I don't.  But, I'm not as detail oriented as many of the people here.
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That is another thing I don't do, although I know I should.
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The smoke isn't bad, if you don't have smoke detectors.  I had to
disable mine.  I roast inside year around, but go outside in the winter
to cool beans.  When I start to get cold in a t-shirt, the beans are
cool enough.
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Right.
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Yep.  When it dies, you can have the joy of rigging a new top from
screen, soup cans and other esoteric items.  Eye of newt is optional.
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I haven't done any mods (besides new tops) because I've had too many
shocking experiences with electricity.  
Basically, enjoy, experiment, and unless you really enjoy writing down
every variable, creating charts, graphs and reports, just wing it.  I've
been winging it for, gods, must be going on 7 years now, and I've only
created a couple undrinkable batches.  Just have fun.  If it is getting
to be a chore, something is wrong.
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You don't.  There are a few beans that are actually best right away. 
How long you let the coffee rest is another thing to play with.  My
partner is actually pickier about rest than I am, but when it is a
choice of going without, or breaking into that horrible pre-ground
coffee from Harrod's that a misguided friend brought me from London, I'm
going to drink what I've just roasted.
It is my experience that the Pacific coffees are most tolerant of short
rest periods, and I've had a Java or two that really needed to be drunk
within 24 hours of roasting.
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She probably won't think that after she's tasted it.  One of the highest
compliments I've gotten was from a friend who normally drinks cream and
sugar in his coffee.  But, if it is my beans, he refuses to have
anything else in it.
Besides, as hobbies go, this one is pretty harmless, and can be done
cheaply.
Be well,
Lissa
refusing to total up the cost of beans, 8 poppers, 4 other roasters, a
heat gun, 3 vacuum pots, 2 drip, 1 moka pot, 3 ibriks, 1 espresso maker,
5 press pots, the special thermos, espresso and cappuchino cups, gold
filters, 2 Chemex pots, Chemex filters, 3 Melita pour-throughs, coffee
scoops, the balance measuring set, cannisters, burlap bags and whatever
I'm forgetting...
-- 
Around the same time that the use of the word religion was undergoing
change, cities were incorporated, investment ventures were incorporated,
and religion, which onces referred to acting piously, became known
instead as an identity.  Religion changed from something you did into
something that you were.
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, _What's Right With Islam_

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With a popper to roast darker, you want to increase the load, not decrease it.  I normally roast 165 grams in my poppers when I want to go dark and tilt them at the beginning of the roast to keep them moving.  My normal weight is 150 grams.  By increasing the weight, you make the fluid bed more dense thus increasing the temp.
Les

On Jul 29, 2004, at 9:21 PM, Jason & Loraleigh Epp wrote:
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over 
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appologies 
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Welcome. Tell your wife to prepare herself - you're at the top of a 
very slippery slope...
Was the roast smoke any help in keeping the mosquitoes away? :-)
-mike
(grew up in Winnipeg and still visit regularly)=

At 11:21 PM -0500 7/29/04, Jason & Loraleigh Epp wrote:
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Welcome to the list!
It is ok if it takes longer than six or seven minutes to get to first crack -- in fact, in my opinion, the roasts are richer if they take a bit longer. As Les mentioned, more beans will cause it to heat up faster and more. But I actually strive for second crack to hit at about 10 minutes -- it just seems like the overall complexity of flavors and balance of 'darkness' with varietal flavors is easier to achieve (for dark roasts) if you can extend the time between first and second.
So, you might have simply given up too early. My recommendation is to allow yourself the possibility of overroasting by letting it go until the beans get shiny and noting all of the stages on the way there. You do run the risk of burning the beans but more likely than not you'll learn a lot about the stages that a roast goes through.
If you do that, you get a chance to find out how long it takes to get to second crack AND how long second crack goes for your machine. For instance, you will read a lot about Vienna being 20 seconds into second crack -- well, that might be the case with some roasters but with some of my air poppers it takes longer than that to get to Vienna. I have done roasts that were a minute into second that were just getting there.
That's my .02,
Edward

Way to go Jason, your life will never be the same!
ginny
At 09:21 PM 7/29/2004, you wrote:
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