Sample Roaster Inquiry

[argudbrandson]

I am a regular coffee roaster who is looking to begin the process of obtaining a sample roaster. My question is pretty simple; What is the best sample roaster out there? I am looking at obtaining a PROBAT but am open to other opinions and real-world experiences.

I am looking for a sample roaster that is user friendly, affordable and translates well to a full scale coffee roaster. Currently I am roasting on a roaster from US Roaster Corp.

Any thoughts?

 

[wmark]

According to Scott Rao, the only sample roaster that he has found imitating a real roaster is the North 500g roaster.

I am thinking of sinking 3k into one also

btw...........for those of you who don't know Scott Rao, he is an author & coffee consultant amongst many other things (Baristas Handbook, Coffee Roaster's Companion etc)

 

[topher]

I had a Jabez Burns that was built in 1918. It was old but worked like a champ! Ensoluna is correct in saying you can use these for over 20 years

 

[chast]

You have a USRC Roaster and they have a sample roaster that mimics a shop Roaster. I have a USRC sample roaster and they are consistent with each roast. Look at the Ikawa Pro. It is getting rave reviews. Probat single barrel are over 7k. Roaster Dynamics in Fl has a great roaster for samples. San Franciscan is another. Do you prefer made in the US of A Or China.

 

[argudbrandson]

I am open to buying a foreign made machine but I am leaning more towards an American made roaster. I'll look into these options, thanks for the input!

 

[argudbrandson]

Thanks ensoluna! I appreciate all the preliminary research. I've looked at Joper before and agree that PROBAT seems to be a little higher quality...have you had any technical issues with your Joper How long have you been roasting on it?