HotTop damage during shipping - safe to use?

[willroc7]

Greetings all. I am looking to get into home roasting and just purchased a HotTop P on ebay. Unfortunately it was damaged during shipping and before I try to use it (or return it), I was wondering if any experts on this board could tell whether it is safe to use or not. There doesn't appear to be any damage to the drum, but there are numerous cracks in the black plastic housing. Pictures can be seen here: imgur.com/a/YlPXt (copy and paste, sorry can't post images yet!)

Thanks for the help!

 

[topher]

 

[JumpinJakJava]

IMHO, I would most assuredly return it promptly. It is not worth the gamble, even though it may be fine.
Whether it was purchased as a used item or new? Send it back.

 

[PinkRose]

I'm sure you were waiting for it to arrive, and you're anxious to get started using it, but you really should send it back. You didn't pay for a broken piece of equipment. Someone needs to accept the responsibility for the damage. Send it back.

 

[namballe]

did you open the package after the shipper left your house? i say send it back too

 

[CoffeeJunky]

I think it is mostly cosmetic damage. I will talk to the seller about it. Let him decide what is fair. If it is not your satisfactory, I would return it. If he is willing to refund partially or pay for the repair, i would keep it. But that is up to you. Good Luck

 

[tazzadiluna]

I would send those photos to the seller and tell him you are sending it back.

 

[willroc7]

In the interest of keeping the thread updated I ended up keeping the roaster and accepting a partial refund from the seller. This is after contacting hottopusa and inspecting the internals for damage. Only the plastic on the base and rear panel suffered any damage during shipping, and those can be replaced if I so desire. In the mean time, I roasted my first batch and it came out amazing! Works just fine.

 

[PinkRose]

Thanks for the update. Have fun roasting!

 

[willroc7]

I've done about a dozen roasts since my last post and I've been experiencing uneven roast results pretty consistently. This happens using auto or manual mode with several different beans (ethiopian, guatemalan, rwandan) and all with 230g batch size. Does anyone have any insight as to what might be causing this? These images were taken of my most recent roast with a rwandan from SM, ejected at the end of first crack, around 394 degrees on the HT display.

imgur.com/a/b6vw2

 

[namballe]

I've done about a dozen roasts since my last post and I've been experiencing uneven roast results pretty consistently. This happens using auto or manual mode with several different beans (ethiopian, guatemalan, rwandan) and all with 230g batch size. Does anyone have any insight as to what might be causing this? These images were taken of my most recent roast with a rwandan from SM, ejected at the end of first crack, around 394 degrees on the HT display.

imgur.com/a/b6vw2

i doesn't look to bad considering utilizing a small roaster. good job :smile:
remeber, "practice makes perfect"

 

[willroc7]

Thanks for the feedback namballe. I forgot to mention the ambient temperature here was 45F (where is Spring?) for these roasts, could that be having an adverse affect?

 

[JumpinJakJava]

Are you roasting in a garage or cold basement? What is the roast time of the Rwanda? I have never used a HotTop,
but 394* seems to early to dump the beans. If you are roasting in a cool ambient setting, you could possibly try to
insulate the machine(by this I mean build a wooden box and set the machine in side to help keep the heat in).
You will be surprised the heat retained. I use to electric roast in the cold garage in New England years ago, it was a challenge,
but a little ingenuity works wonders.

 

[willroc7]

Had success getting a more even roast by lengthening the roast time (drying phase in particular) and ejecting higher, at 412F. The lighter (uneven) roast actually tasted pretty good (black tea!) while it was hot. Once it cooled, however, it was overpoweringly grassy and sour. Dark roast was somewhat unremarkable in taste, but I don't have the best palette.

imgur.com/SHUaK25,1DIcbiD

 

[PinkRose]

Hi Willroc7

Did you try to post an image by way of imgr? It doesn't seem to be working.

Try opening a message window and then click on Go Advanced (bottom right)

Go down to the second row of icons and hover over the little pictures until you find the one that says Insert Image.

Click on that, and follow the instructions to insert your image, either from your computer or by using a URL for the photo (from where you are storing your photos - such as imgr)

Rose