GroundLevelCoffee

Gimme the Drum

Posted in Roasters by Gary on the July 19th, 2006

After several months of pondering, I’ve finally decided to purchase an RK Drum. Ron will be supplying me with a 4 pound drum and, because I’m in Australia, a commercial motor to spin it around. Should arrive in around 5 weeks time - but I’m in no hurry since I also need to check out barbeques, gloves, and some bean-cooling paraphernalia.

My roasting began 2 1/2 years ago in a popcorn popper or two, moved to an Imex, then I added a few heat guns to my repertoire. I also put together a Stir Crazy/Turbo Oven combo, but I have some concerns about its longevity.

The RK Drum is the last (at least for a few years) in a line of home roasting gear. It reputedly gives excellent results and is built like a tank. The main things I’m looking forward to are improved roasts (particularly for espresso machine use), and the ability for larger batch sizes. I current give away or sell small lots of coffee, but with a roasting capacity of close on 2 kilos, there is greater scope for that.

4 Responses to 'Gimme the Drum'

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  1. NeilA said,

    on July 19th, 2006 at 6:25 pm

    Congrats Gary!
    But unless you get a turbocharged 4 burner grill, you won’t manage 2Kg of beans in a batch… ;-)

  2. Gary said,

    on July 21st, 2006 at 1:47 pm

    I’ll talk to you soon about sources for BBQ’s. If the price differential isn’t too great, it makes sense to go for the higher capacity.

  3. TheArtfuldodger said,

    on July 31st, 2006 at 3:58 am

    The RK drums are great. I have roast well over 500 pounds with my set up. You can see it here or on the GCC site. I have found a grill with a small roasting area works best. You need at least 35000btu’s. The larger grill takes longer to pre-heat and use more gas.

  4. Gary said,

    on July 31st, 2006 at 7:48 am

    Thanks for your suggestions and link, George. You have a neat setup. My drum is on the way; and so I’ll need to begin the hunt for a BBQ in earnest.