What roaster for beginner looking to sell beans? Small Startup.

[scottryan]

Hey guys/girls,
I am looking for your opinion on a roaster for a beginner. I have been home roasting at home with a popcorn popper and have had interest from people to buy my beans. I would like to have a setup that I can recreate my roasts every time. Any good roasters to start me out? I want to make at 1# batches and I do not have a ton of money to start me up. I plan on selling in 6oz and 12oz to start. Has anyone tried the Java Pro CRC? Look forward to your replies.

Thanks,
scott

 

[champaigncoffeeco]

Behmor 1600. 1 lb drum roaster. $300. Looks like an antique microwave but it's tough to beat when you consider, quality, capacity, and price.

I bought one from Sweet Marias and they even toss in an 8lb coffee sampler for free.

 

[scottryan]

Thanks for the input champaign. Did you start a coffee roasting biz with this? Where are you located? Got a website?
scott

 

[champaigncoffeeco]

We're in the process of getting started now. My story is pretty similar to yours. Started roasting in a popcorn popper for the purpose of better coffee at half the price. Friends and family were beginning to ask for more coffee, so I decided to go slightly larger scale. I don't see myself moving truckloads of coffee in the beginning, but I decided if I'm going to run it as a business, then I'm not going to half-ass it. We should be opening up by the end of November. Website is up, but it's not much to look at yet. We're in Champaign, IL. The forum won't let me post links, but the website is my username with a .com

Good luck to you, stay in touch.

 

[scottryan]

Website is looking good. I sent you a pm.
scott

 

[Larry]

If you're a beginner I would suggest a Toper roaster. When I began roasting 2 years ago my friend advised me on a Toper roaster and it worked well for me. I'm in North America so I bought it off of Robust Roasters. The service was good and the roaster was affordable. I got an e-mail from them a few weeks ago saying that they offered leasing so maybe you can check that out if cash is an issue. The roaster I got was a Cafemino (1 kilo roaster). They give it to you with a cart so you can move it around but I just put it on top of a counter.

Good luck with choosing a roaster and Happy Roasting!

-Larry