Hottop P - Back in Bidness

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chas
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Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by chas »

I was just roasting a batch in the Hottop when it died in mid-roast. Now I have to wait a few hours for it to cool down before i can crack the covers. I am hoping I will find that it just blew an internal fuse and that there was no particular underlying cause.

With the various upgrades and maintenance replacements I have performed on it over the years the motor is probably the only only major thing I haven't replaced, so I couldn't feel too badly if the fuse blew because the motor is starting to draw too much current. After almost 5 years of use it has to be loaded with coffee goo.

Over the last couple of weeks I've replenished my coffers with about 40lbs of new greens. This is no time to have to revert to the 3.5oz I-Roar! :cussing:
Last edited by chas on Tue Dec 30, 2008 5:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Endo

Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by Endo »

Time for a Behmor. :grin:
JohnB

Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by JohnB »

Endo wrote:Time for a Behmor. :grin:
He's already been there! Time for one of these?? http://www.sweetmarias.com/sm.probatL12.html

Did I read somewhere that home roasting SAVES you money?? I don't think so.
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by chas »

Right you are. My Behmor is on permanent loan to the county dump! I'd love to try something different and better but less than a grand. Unfortunately, I think my only viable choices are between the Hottop B and the Hottop P. Depending on just want is wrong with my current HT, I might be able to purchase the B and upgrade it to a P with used parts from my current machine.

I see that the new B claims to include voltage regulation so that the a Variac is not required. So I could get some of my money back by selling my 20A Variac on eBay!
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by Niko »

Sorry to hear about the Hottop.
I think you'll be up and running with the same machine soon ;-)
It sounds like the motor finally got tired.
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by chas »

The fusible link opened up. I was going to buy two in case the first one popped again right away, but it was $20 incl. shipping so I decided to try my luck with one. Should I end up still needing a new motor, they're 90 bucks but still <10% of the cost of a new HT-P.
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by Niko »

chas wrote:Should I end up still needing a new motor, they're 90 bucks but still <10% of the cost of a new HT-P.
'tis True...not much else can go wrong with these roasters.
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by chas »

I got a reply back from Michael at HT that the fusible links are back ordered until next Monday so I probably won't see a replacement for at least 10 days.

I have already devised a work around. I have several glass fuse holders with wire "pigtails". I plan to put crimp connectors on each end, insert a 10A fuse, and plug the crimp connectors into the power board where the fusible link goes. If that fuse blows then I'll have some time to track down the cause and order any other needed parts so I can have them by the time the fusible link arrives.

I already tried clipping a jumper wire across the fusible link terminals and the HT was back alive and kicking! However, I didn't go so far as to start a cycle so that the heater element would turn on.

If only the link had waiting another minute or two to blow, I could have salvaged the roast. That was some good stuff!
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Belly Up

Post by Niko »

chas wrote: If only the link had waiting another minute or two to blow, I could have salvaged the roast. That was some good stuff!
That's right, folks :grin:
...the man has his priorities in order!
After all, it's all about the beans ;-)

So it seems like the motor is fine, right Chas?
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by chas »

I just finished my first post-repair roast. It was a thing of beauty! I sat and watched the current draw on the Kill-a-Watt device and it never went over 5.9A or about 690W. No problem with those numbers. I guess it was the just the fusible link's time.

I did take the opportunity to vacuum out the inside, especially around the fan and motor and replace the filter, in case there was any airflow issue. The fusible link is mounted against the back side of the roast chamber so it can melt due to either excessive current draw or excessive heat.

An interesting thing I learned is that the original HT had both the fusible link and a fuse on the power board. However, the newer B and P model dropped the fuse and just have the fusible link.
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by Niko »

Great news, Mr. Coffee Zen Master, Sir!
I also noticed the thread title changed. ;-)
Another great reason to own a Hottop.
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by chas »

As John Cameron Swayze used to say, "it takes a licking and keeps on ticking"!

Showing my age with that one, eh, Niko? Which reminds me, thanks for the birthday note yesterday.
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by Niko »

No prob :grin:
I noticed that the forum lists me at age 100, something went awry when I typed in my b-day some time ago. Maybe I'll fix it....but at least the day is correct.
I suppose I should've said "young man"...
Endo

Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by Endo »

I like my Behmor a lot, but I can see how the market realy needs a high capacity roaster for $1000. Maybe Joe will design a Behmor Maxi for 2 lb roasts. :bounce:
Niko

Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by Niko »

I like the Behmor a lot, the only beefs I have with it is the lack of better controls and the cooling is a bean killer. I sometimes manually remove the drum immediately after a roast :blob6: and then cool it on a Vornado Fan.
I don't recommend this since there's a chance for a trip to the emergency room.
I still let the roaster go through its entire cooling cycle so the circuits don't melt and besides, it's ready for the next batch right after.
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by chas »

I just received an e-mail from Michael at Hottop with new instructions on how to replace the redesigned fusible link to replace the one that blew in mine. It is now a two part solution. They have a short jumper wire which appears to have a glass fuse inside a shrink tube that goes between the leads where the current fusible link goes. This is virtually identical to the kludge I came up with albeit a neater looking solution that mine. However, mine has a user replaceable fuse and their solution does not!

The actual fusible link replaces the wire that goes between the power board and the heater element. This is supposed to be a safer solution and it appears to be. With that new design, if the fusible link blows, the heater element will turn off but the cycle will complete so that the drum continues to turn and the fan continues to run and the beans dump normally at the end. With the previous fusible link design, when it blows, the unit just goes dead.

If I had this design previously and the fusible link blew there probably would have been enough residual heat to get the roast far enough along to be usable!
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
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chas
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Re: Hottop P - Back in Bidness

Post by chas »

Michael at Hottop comes through for me again. Recently I noticed that a couple rows of pixels have gone out on my Hottop "P" display. I checked the HT website and new panels go for $200. I shot off a letter to Michael and got a reply within an hour that he would send me a replacement at no charge.
Chas
LM GS/3 & LaSpaziale Dream v 1.25 (US 120V)
Mazzer Kony E, Customized Rocky
Hottop P/B
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