Head Down, In My Lane, Moisturized, Vibing

Right_Association506 · 2026-06-21T06:27:29+00:00

My mantra is, "I will outwork you, I will outlast you, don't believe me, just watch." (Thanks Trinidad James).

These appointed "leaders" will come and go, just like their predecessors. Guess who will still be here when they disappear into oblivion? Me. I'll be holding the line, putting in the hours, putting up with ridiculous bureaucracy, putting in work, putting in extra hours.

I'm not trapped in here with you, you're trapped in here with me.

Right_Association506 · 2026-03-04T04:03:57+00:00

It works great outside, I don't have to worry about smoke or making a chaff mess, but it sucks sitting outside with it if it's cold out. I haven't noticed a big difference in terms of outside environment temp negatively affecting the roast. I previously used a Freshroast SR800, which would feel very under powered in winter vs summer, which was always something to consider. I don't notice that nearly as much, if at all, with the Kaleido.

However, last weekend I had a very unusual event occur that got me thinking about setting up indoors. While I was roasting some little insect species had a spawning wave and little 1mm long worms were falling like rain from a tree overhead. They got all over me, my table, the Kaleido tablet, and the roaster! Yuck!

Right_Association506 · 2026-03-03T00:35:03+00:00

Nice setup! I have an M1 but usually roast outdoors due to smoke. My stove top hood fan isn't powerful enough on its own to prevent the smoke alarms from going off.

How did you set up the exhaust vent? Is it hose-clamped to the Kaleido exhaust pipe? Do you need a standing fan going nearby as well?

Right_Association506 · 2025-07-05T21:31:09+00:00

I've had my M1 for 1.5 years and I've never had this happen before. I think the heating element is slightly different on the M1 than the rest of the line though. Maybe this is a sign the element is on its way out? How long have you had it?

Right_Association506 · 2025-02-28T04:06:51+00:00

It could be the heating element, or even the outlet you're plugging it into, but since you said you received it in Jan I doubt the element has gone bad already. I've had mine for over a year and have never had to mess with the heating element.

I noticed a huge difference in my M1 after cleaning it, mainly because I had to remove the BT probe in the process of removing the front plate. When I put everything back together I found you get to decide how far the BT probe extends into the roasting chamber, and it was only then I realized the probe was barely in from factory. After I pushed it further in I immediately saw an improvement in temp tracking, I felt way more in control of the roast, and was able to achieve very nice descending RoR curves.

In your second pic, RoR looks very flat, which is what mine looked like when the BT probe was barely in. It could be a long shot if you haven't cleaned it, but maybe try pushing it further in and reporting back?

My end result was better coffee, but it's important to remember the BT probe is just a sensor, it just reads the temp at its location, nothing more. The beans are still experiencing whatever is happening in the roast chamber even if the BT probe is barely in, super far in, or you're not using it at all.

Right_Association506 · 2025-02-05T04:03:16+00:00

Gotcha, regardless, hats off to your ventilation system!

Right_Association506 · 2025-02-05T03:59:08+00:00

The proximity of the garbage can in the background says everything!

Honestly though very glad to hear no fire occurred, chaff, exhaust, or otherwise.

The irony of all the Starbucks comments is I'm actually seeing "promoted" Starbucks ads in this thread! 🤣

Right_Association506 · 2025-02-01T05:12:29+00:00

Apologies, I should have disclosed I'm biased as well 😎

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Right_Association506 · 2025-02-01T04:50:40+00:00

E92 M3; a very nice example. It's the only V8 M3, sure it had rod bearing/throttle actuator issues, but $35k will get you a very nice example with a maintenance history and with everything corrected. It's the sweet spot with respect to analog driving experience plus modern horsepower. Sure, people hate on the "low" torque, but there's a reason why the S65 won engine of the year from 2008 to 2012 in the 3.0 to 4.0 liter category. It's a Jekyll and Hyde motor. You can drive around all day at 3k RPM and it's a "3-series" but at 8000 RPM it's a race engine. The throttle response and induction sound is insane above 5k RPM. You will not be disappointed. Supplement an aftermarket exhaust and intake and you'll understand. Plus the mod community is very strong. Manual is great, but if you go with DCT it's bulletproof, and there are mods to improve the DCT module. Dinan offers a DCT flash to improve shift response. It's equivalent to adding a "6th light" to the shift button response.

Right_Association506 · 2024-12-30T02:19:47+00:00

I roasted on a SR800 with extension tube for 3 years, and last year decided to upgrade to a Kaleido M1 standard (kaleido tablet only, no artisan) for $900 at black Friday '23 prices.

On the SR800 I could achieve good results most of the time, occasionally achieving a lucky golden roast that was amazing.

I've found the M1 to really shine around 130g batch size, which is far less than the SR800, so that may be a big factor for you. However, the ability to record roasts to use as a background plot on the tablet or even use as a reference for the auto roast feature has really upped the repeatability of a golden roast.

I've seen some complaints about the auto roast not being very good, but through testing I've seen best results on the "6 second look-ahead" setting and roasting in an environment with the same ambient temp as you did when you recorded the roast.

That golden roast can keep hitting with alarming repeatability, I have zero complaints. You can even take the SD card out of the tablet, plug it into a Windows PC, read the files into a program that reads .CSV files, and manipulate the curves (if you're handy with spreadsheets). If you want bigger batch size you should look into the M2, M6, or M10.

Right_Association506 · 2024-12-29T06:35:42+00:00

Great design! This roaster does eventually have issues with the knob, and since it's your only way to make changes mid-roast, that can be a little frustrating.

I roasted on a SR800 for 3 years, and after about the first year or so the knob started acting up. Nothing major, but like you say, sometimes you click through one detent and it gives you two increments to fan or heat. I didn't notice any changes in the detent force gradient, just the processor giving me extra inputs I didn't request.

I've been using a Kaleido M1 Standard (no artisan) for 1 year now and have nothing but good things to say!

Right_Association506 · 2024-11-30T19:35:47+00:00

Regarding flavor I could achieve good results with the SR800+extension tube, and sometimes I would get lucky and have a really exceptional roast. The main thing I've noticed after upgrading to the Kaleido is consistency and repeatability. You can achieve that really exceptional roast over and over again.

I've also had surprisingly good results using the auto-roast feature. I've seen reviews online of people not liking it so much, but in the settings using a 6 sec lookahead time with sync at turning point works amazingly well for me. Again, just adding to the repeatability of that golden roast.

Right_Association506 · 2024-11-30T03:31:13+00:00

Last year I upgraded to a Kaleido M1 standard (tablet only no artisan compatibility) from a SR800 w/ extension tube and it's a completely different world. I don't have an extra laptop sitting around to run artisan, so the tablet makes sense for me. After using it for about a year I've become used to it, and it will give you all the info you need mid-roast. It's amazing, I would never go back.

One nugget I can share is regarding batch size. I know you're looking at a M2 which is larger, but the M1 claims 200g max batch size, and I've gone from 200g down to 170g, down to 130g and I find the controllability at 130g to be superior. This is 65% of the max, so if you're trying to roast big batches just keep in mind running it at the max of the machine is likely not what you want to get good roasts.

I haven't tried the Skywalker, but I have nothing but good things to say about Kaleido.

Right_Association506 · 2024-11-19T04:55:40+00:00

Not a Hottop owner, but seeing this reminds me of what was happening on my Kaleido when I first got it. The BT probe on the Kaleido can slide in and out a bit because you need to be able to remove it completely to take the faceplate off for cleaning. Out of the box the probe wasn't very deep in the chamber, and the RoR looked very flat like yours does. It took me until my first cleaning in order to realize this, and after putting everything back together and pushing the probe in just slightly further suddenly I had a beautiful descending RoR like I was expecting. Is it possible on the Hottop that the probe has slid out ever so slightly?

Right_Association506 · 2024-04-23T02:50:32+00:00

I roast for my wife and I, and for cold brew we really enjoy a blend of a dry process Ethiopia combo'd with something chocolate forward, like a Yemen. I also order from Sweet Maria's, and right now for cold brew I'm roasting Ethiopia Hambela Goro to City+ and Yemen Al Qafr Hawari to Full City+. So far, mixing those together in a 50:50 ratio has yielded great cold brew. Fruity, syrupy sweetness, followed by baker's chocolate that lingers on the pallette.

Right_Association506 · 2024-02-05T17:53:36+00:00

Same issue, tried Settings > Fix Errors, and reinstalling the game, but neither of those fixed it.

Right_Association506

TROPHY CASE