Posted Thu Sep 17, 2009, 8:44am Subject: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
I think it is time to give up on my old I-Roast 1 and from what I can see of available options the I-Roast systems fit my needs and available space best. However there seems to be a durability issue with both the 1 and 2. My 1 lasted about 30 months which seems to be par for them. Several others have reported lifetims of only a year. When I went to the I-Roast on-line site, I found the I-Roast 2 was out of stock. Several vendors do carry it but i'd hate to purchase one just before the new improved version finally came out or the company decided to quit making/supporting them. Most are trying to use bigger drum roasters now but I have smoke issues and a tiny kitchen to work in. Also I hear that most of the drums are poor at cooling beans after the roast and elaborate means of removeing and cooling them are also needed. Anybody have any hearsay or better choises for me?
cooncatbob Senior Member Joined: 21 Apr 2008 Posts: 61 Location: California Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Gaggia Carezza Grinder: Rocky DL Roaster: I Roast 2
Posted Thu Sep 17, 2009, 6:37pm Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
I sent I-roast an e-mail several months ago concerning the next generation machine. I suggested that it have a USB port so it could be programed from a PC, the present programming reminds me of a early 80s VCR, I also suggested an accurate temperature read out as the readout on my machine is so far off compared to my probe thermometer as to be totally useless. I received a reply from someone in marketing who said no new model was in the works but they'd forward my suggestions to the appropriate people. I do about 2-3 roasts a week and once I learned to work around it's flaws I get great coffee. I just hope the next generation machine is an improvement.
Posted Thu Sep 17, 2009, 7:43pm Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
I am happy with the iRoast2, once I got around the temperature disparity (low readings) and learned to watch the beans. My roasts are now very reliable and it handles everything from City to French as desired. I roast about once a week, so longevity should get me to the next generation if and when it arrives. The capacity of the iRoast2 is perfect for my single cup needs.
All roasters depend on heating elements, any of which can burn out over time (unless you're using propane). The 'better' roasters have printed circuit boards than can fail as well. Would you rather replace a $189 roaster or a $189 heating element in a $900 roaster when it wears out?
Enkerli Senior Member Joined: 1 Aug 2004 Posts: 711 Location: Montreal, Qc Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: (At cafés, not at home) Grinder: Hario hand grinders Vac Pot: (Moka Pot) Bialetti Brikka Drip: Steep and release pour-over Roaster: iRoast-2
Posted Fri Dec 14, 2012, 6:41am Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
cooncatbob Said:
I sent I-roast an e-mail several months ago concerning the next generation machine. I suggested that it have a USB port so it could be programed from a PC, the present programming reminds me of a early 80s VCR, I also suggested an accurate temperature read out as the readout on my machine is so far off compared to my probe thermometer as to be totally useless. I received a reply from someone in marketing who said no new model was in the works but they'd forward my suggestions to the appropriate people. I do about 2-3 roasts a week and once I learned to work around it's flaws I get great coffee. I just hope the next generation machine is an improvement.
Though I never emailed them, I had similar suggestions. For one thing, I didn’t realize I wasn’t the only one with widely inaccurate temp readings. A dark roast for my machine is around 400ºF. Partly because of this, it was difficult to create appropriate roasting programs. Ended up with two that I use on most occasions. I keep dreaming of a USB- or Bluetooth-controlled roaster. I enjoy logging my roasts and could easily imagine a mobile app which would not only log roasts but control the roaster…
What gets me the most, though, is the fact that everything has to be pre-programmed. Even if programming were easier, we still wouldn’t be able to make adjustments in realtime. Even being able to press a button to skip to the next roasting phase would be useful. Sometimes I wish I had a modified popcorn machine with variac.
I guess homeroasting is to much of a niche to warrant development. At the same time, homeroasting could have a large effect on the coffee world. After all, homebrewing was the main spark in the “craft beer revolution”. Coffee is ripe for its own revolution…
Posted Fri Dec 14, 2012, 9:39am Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
Nothing like resurrecting a dead thread. Hearthware has not been around in terms of roasters for years. I should probably sell my iRoast2 as it just sits in its box. But the iRoast3? Not going to happen. RIP.
Posted Tue Dec 18, 2012, 9:47am Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
This is kind of sad. I've done a bunch of roasts in my hacked HWP. Hearthware at one time had good customer support. They even faxed me a schematic of my machine. This is in stark contrast to an other roaster company I could mention (maybe I have) who wont sell me roast heaters or even drive belts.
The machine which I am holding in the picture is the HWP doing bean cooling of a roast from the un-mentioned machine. Since the other machine had a larger capacity I had to shake the HWP to get good agitation of the load.
Phil
frcn Said:
Nothing like resurrecting a dead thread. Hearthware has not been around in terms of roasters for years. I should probably sell my iRoast2 as it just sits in its box. But the iRoast3? Not going to happen. RIP.
Snaxx Senior Member Joined: 11 Dec 2008 Posts: 115 Location: Northeast Michigan, LP Expertise: I love coffee
Grinder: KitchenAid A9 Drip: Technivorm Moccamaster Roaster: I Roast2
Posted Thu Dec 20, 2012, 3:34pm Subject: Re: Any Rumors of An I-Roast 3?
It might be an old thread, but I would think if someone wants info on this topic, it's better to reopen this one than load up the forum with a lot of other similar ones by starting new ones on the same topic. At least it's fairly recent and not from way back in 2002 or so, besides being something to add at a time of slow postings and replies. Just one good reason to do a search before one posts, to see if a question has been answered and loading up the forum with continual repeat questions on the very same subjects.
I don't think Hearthware is going to be doing anything more with coffee roasters. They seem to have totally abandoned the coffee roaster market. The only way you'll see an IRoast 3 is if you do it for yourself with your own mods and that from others. It appears that the IRoast 2 is still available directly out of China from a couple of sources, but it seems to be only for 220 volts for around $200. This seems to mean that Hearthware only imported the roaster from an existing source for the US, not that they engineered it or manufactured it directly.
I've done a couple mods to mine to bring it up to maybe IRoast 2.2. One of these mods was to remove the fine mesh screens on the top of the exhaust top, which, without a plugging issue, relieves backpressure which was reducing circulation and causing overheating and subsequent opening of the overheat limit, causing the roaster to shut down and cool, always in the middle of a roast.
My second mod was to redesign the chaff collector to increase the capacity of it. I'm now able to roast a consistent 8 ounce or 240 gram load with great results.
I bought a second roaster on Ebay some months back to have a spare, and also to allow me to play with other mods without having the main roaster out of service. I think one change that should be a priority would be to redesign the fan to get less vibration and less noise. The impeller that's in there is just a crude design, not even balanced very well which produces so much vibration and noise. Perhaps a way to reduce these two factors would be with a new controller that would allow for a slower fan speed. Maybe not continuously slower, but somehow cycled throughout the roast. I know that circulation improves greatly when the roaster goes into COOL mode when the load of the heaters is cut off and the fan motor gets more power.
That would be a few thoughts for improvement to get to an IRoast 3, even though IR-2 was the end of commercial production for the US market. I'd like to see or hear of other mods done by owners on this forum to see what else could be done to these things. I know others don't think so, but the one I have, has been fairly bulletproof even though it's gone through roast sessions at least 3 to 4 times a week, even more often like at this time of year since new since mid-2008.
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