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Suggestions for a new roaster contest.
boyntonstu
Top  #1 Print Post
Posted on 08/17/2007 3:09 PM
1> Performance.

From a cold start, how long to second crack for 1/2 pound of a given coffee.
Which we could all get together and have a roast off.
Perhaps a 'homeroaster' witness, or a video?


2> Size and weight; What is the lightest and smallest volume roaster.

This is important for storage and for portability.

Can you easily take it outside for chaff removal.


3> Energy efficiency: How many KWH to roast 1/2 pound?

4> Cost. How cheap can you make it?

5> Ease of build. The easiest way to build from scratch or modify existing equipment.


Just my $0.02


BoyntonStu
Edited by boyntonstu on 08/17/2007 3:10 PM
 
ginny
Top  #2 Print Post
Posted on 08/17/2007 4:50 PM
Stu:

Thanks for the input. We charted new waters with this contest; it produced some great work.

Yes, we will be having another Roaster Building Contest most likely to start sometime in the of 1st quarter 2008.

Lots of time and effort went into this contest and we, as a group, need to work out the kinks.

I appreciate your input; please continue to post your ideas.

Without you, or members and contest entrants, we could not support these great competitions.

Thanks Stu,

warmest regards,

ginny

always s:8s:8s:8 B)B)B)GrinGrinGrinGrin
 
Dan
Top  #3 Print Post
Posted on 08/17/2007 6:02 PM
Thanks, BoyntonStu, I see that some of your ideas are mutually self-exclusive.

#1 describes something that we talked about early on, but decided to nix it because it involved having the roaster in hand to test it. Similarly, we nixed the idea of 'quality' since that would require sending beans for cupping to all the judges.

#2 and #3 are really two, different constests. #4 and #5 were qualities we used in this contest.

Keep the ideas flowing, we hope to repeat this again. Dan
 
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seedlings
Top  #4 Print Post
Posted on 08/17/2007 9:53 PM
ginny, there were "kinks"? Seemed pretty seamless to me. I thought the admin gang put on quite a show.

Maybe the three-hundred-some-odd of us members could put on a contest for the Admins!!!!!!!!

muhwaahaaahaaaHAAAA <cough> <cough>
CHAD
Edited by seedlings on 08/17/2007 9:55 PM
 
boyntonstu
Top  #5 Print Post
Posted on 08/17/2007 11:39 PM

Quote

Dan wrote:
Thanks, BoyntonStu, I see that some of your ideas are mutually self-exclusive.

#1 describes something that we talked about early on, but decided to nix it because it involved having the roaster in hand to test it. Similarly, we nixed the idea of 'quality' since that would require sending beans for cupping to all the judges.

#2 and #3 are really two, different constests. #4 and #5 were qualities we used in this contest.

Keep the ideas flowing, we hope to repeat this again. Dan


Interesting!


Perhaps you could publish the points given in each category.

This would be similar to an evaluation for a new automobile:

Ride
Comfort
Acceleration
Cargo room
etc.


Each entry is evaluated in categories.


In this past contest, which entry was the cheapest and easiest to build?


What other criteria were used?


BoyntonStu
 
Dan
Top  #6 Print Post
Posted on 08/18/2007 6:29 AM
We are putting together a description of the contest process now, so I'll ask you to wait for that instead of repeating it here. OK? Dan
 
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Coffeenut
Top  #7 Print Post
Posted on 08/18/2007 10:21 AM
I too thought you folks did a great job of running the contest. The rules seemed pretty clear to me and well thought out. There's always room to improve things, but the contest was well crafted especially understanding that it was all run electronically.

Having roasted for over 7 years now, there are things that I've experienced that are important to me (to improve the roast process). I have not been resourceful enough to invent some of them, but they are still in my mind. The neat thing about building a roaster is the variety of ways it can be done. Cost is always important, but for me there is some latitude in what I'm willing to spend depending upon what I'm trying to achieve with the roaster.

I like the open atmosphere the contest provided. You could enter any configuration of roaster that your mind could envision and that it what is neat about the contest. For me, the greatest thing that came from the contest was reading all the entries and seeing the variety of ideas employed. It gave me new ideas and thoughts about mods to my existing roaster. Maybe you need to change some things about the way the contest was run...and maybe you don't. ;)

Rick
 
Dan
Top  #8 Print Post
Posted on 08/18/2007 11:45 AM
Rick, the primary purpose of the contest was to encourage people to divulge what they did, how they did it, and provide enough information that someone else could build one, too. A lot like giving patents, it encourages people to disclose what was formerly kept as a trade secret.

The secondary purpose was to acknowledge good designs.

Taken together, we thought it was a good way to promote homeroasting, which is a main mission here. We thought the contest was a great success!

Dan
 
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David
Top  #9 Print Post
Posted on 08/18/2007 6:33 PM

Quote

Coffeenut wrote:
I like the open atmosphere the contest provided. You could enter any configuration of roaster that your mind could envision and that it what is neat about the contest.
Rick


That was Dan's idea.

He kept making sure we didn't limit imagination by being overly explicit in our Rules or by giving too many examples of what we were looking for. s:2
 
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