Love my Buzzroaster (was Re: What roaster to buy?)

Dave Vanness · 2004-01-03T19:40:54+00:00

(Thomas Reat) wrote in news: I have used Popperies, whirly-poppers, the Hearthware Gourmet and the Zach and Dani's. Of those, I liked the Z&D best -- mostly because its catalytic smoke converter works pretty well for indoor roasting. After upgrading my espresso machine, I was finding myself going through a lot of beans -- and the Z&D's volume was just too small. So, I took the BBQ roaster plunge, and I'm thrilled with the results. Here's the setup:1) The 2lb Buzzroaster ( drum at $125 is very nice,2) driven with a Bodine 1/8 hp, 34RPM right-angle gearmotor ( $60, including shipping); plus about $10 for a power cord, switch and boxes to hold the switch and starting capacitor;3) a Kenmore gas grill (33K BTU with cast iron burners -- really nice quality grill) on sale now for $199 from $349; 4) a $4 4' 1/2 inch cold rolled steel rod for mounting the roasting drum. The whole unit turns very nicely in the grooves on the sides of the grill bowl; but you do need to drill a small hole for a setscrew (see power coupling below) and grind a couple of flat spots where the 2 ends of the drum are attached to the rod. The Buzzroaster uses compression fittings to mount to the rod, and they tend to slip on the round rod once heated. Once I ground flat spots on the rod, I haven't had any slippage since; 5) a $20 3-piece flexible power coupler by Woods (one side is 5/8" with a keyway for attaching to the motor's shaft, the other side is 1/2" with a setscrew for attaching to the plain round steel rod, and there's a wide rubber insert between the two of them, which mate the two ends together nicely, but allows for minor misalignments that would be a PITA with a 1 piece rigid coupler). You can probably also use a 3 piece Lovejoy claw-style coupling from (same principle -- you choose the two ends to mate with your motor and the drum-rod, and an insert -- the lovejoy inserts don't look to be as flexible as the Woods, but would likely work just fine) total cost about $6 --...

Jan 03, 2004 20 Replies

Rate this thread:

BuzzRoaster 22 years ago

Thanks Loring,

I've addressed the issue of the drum rod connectors by fabricating fittings that bolt to the drum ends from the inside with two lock washers. If you want to see a few pics I'll post them in alt.binaries.coffee

--Terry

Vote

Join the Discussion

Have something to add? Share your thoughts — no account required.

Didn't find your answer?

Ask the community — no account required

Love my Buzzroaster (was Re: What roaster to buy?)

Related discussions

What roaster to buy?

Canadian tea drinkers- Red Rose tea - what happened to quality? (2025 Update)

Mead Recipe

Join the Discussion

Didn't find your answer?