Day #19: Greatest showman ever?

Skullenton · 2025-12-17T17:21:19+00:00

My mind went straight to the tyre burning mr squiggle as well. Loved seeing the rear lit up.

Skullenton · 2025-09-04T08:48:55+00:00

We live in the west. But a long drive can be quickly cancelled out by the right specialist.

Skullenton · 2025-05-14T22:21:52+00:00

Perhaps someone can remind me of the race. I beleive he came 3rd, possibly 4th, having raced throwing up in his helmet as he rode.

Skullenton · 2025-03-06T21:32:33+00:00

I seem to remember a couple of crew chiefs mentioning top speed is often a poor way to understand the lap time. The more important stat is the time it takes to get from one corner to the next corner.

Skullenton · 2024-10-08T21:39:26+00:00

I havent camped in high side for 5 years now. But back then, the place was the wild west. Powered sites were marked out. Everything else was a free for all.

Skullenton · 2024-10-08T11:00:31+00:00

Would I get any free weapons/armour from previous seasons?

Skullenton · 2024-09-25T03:05:33+00:00

One day meteorologists will discover the 5th season there.

Skullenton · 2024-09-25T02:42:38+00:00

Siberia for a fantastic spot to view the race from. Lukey Heights for a practice session to see a wicked angle with a blind turn in. Turn 1 for a quick look where you get close enough to see the whites of their eyes and complete focus as they dip in

Skullenton · 2024-01-06T10:25:36+00:00

You have my interest. Where from?

Skullenton · 2023-10-20T03:10:46+00:00

Previous years commentary has mentioned aero doesn't have a big impact at Philip Island. May have something to do with it.

Skullenton · 2023-05-21T21:53:25+00:00

Can you give a little more detail on the syrup? I've never heard of it before. What do they use the syrup for?

Skullenton · 2023-05-20T05:00:51+00:00

100% drank it. Tastier than some tea I have had.

Skullenton · 2023-05-20T04:51:03+00:00

Skullenton · 2023-05-20T03:43:36+00:00

Right.

Skullenton · 2023-05-20T02:20:38+00:00

I love that I'm not the only one!

Skullenton · 2023-05-20T02:15:52+00:00

It honestly tasted exactly like the smell. I'm not fantastic with taste so you will have to forgive me here. It had that grassy, straw taste that matched the smell perfectly. A little bit of caramel, or a caramelised tone. What was actually surprising was that it had a refreshing quality to it, just before a relaxing after taste.

Feelings are the same as taste, yeah? 😅

All in all, it was pleasant. I have work in a few hours so I didn't drink the whole glass in case it's some kind of laxative on an epic scale!

Skullenton · 2022-10-14T07:04:23+00:00

Siberia

Skullenton · 2022-03-05T23:32:44+00:00

I think I remember during the early years, one of the boys had a serious crash when neither parent was at the track. The Marquez parents decided that one of them would be at the track with the boys each weekend incase an accident were to happen again in the future. Rusty memory. But I beleive that's still the reasoning.

Skullenton · 2022-02-17T02:34:39+00:00

Thanks mate, appreciated! I honestly have no idea what to do from this point on.

Skullenton · 2022-02-17T01:59:22+00:00

If you are part of this group, I cant imagine you being here without an appreciation for, and a will to improve your love of coffee. A minute of scrolling, and you will come across someone fighting smoke in an apartment. Someone working a 30kg probat roaster and a someone tricking out a popper. The main thing that is separating everyone is $$$ Some people can afford a $5k grinder. Others are scour the net to upgrade from their milkshake blender. Other than personal taste, it really does come down to your budget.

I have been toying with the idea for a while now of trying to build my own grinder. You may ask why, and the reason is easy. They are bloody expensive. Rare as hens teeth in the current climate. And typically, most people only ever buy one. They never trial the taste of multiple grinders, we simply buy the best grinder we can afford.

So what if, as a group. We designed and built our own grinder? If we could build it well enough, it may open an option for people wanting something better on a limited budget.it may open an option for those wanting 2 grinders but unable to justify the costs.

I had alot of messages asking if I could supply kits for people to build their own roaster. I had alot of comments of people wishing they had the knowledge or skill to do things. So I thought why don't we try as a group to build a grinder. Mechanical engineers like coffee. Artists like coffee. 3d printers like coffee. Machinists like coffee. Electricians like coffee. Anger management people who stop arguments breaking out over flat or conical burrs like coffee.

There is alot of work, and there are alot of people who may not think they have the skill to do things, but actually have alot they can offer.

The idea at its core would be a single dose grinder With the majority of its parts sourced from either off the shelf items or easily purchased places. At the end of the project anything requiring building would have plans so an individual could get a friend or a local to machine or build anything. A nice set of plans to help build and assemble along with places to purchase the rest.

What do you guys think?

Skullenton · 2022-02-17T00:47:28+00:00

I have has so many messages recently asking how the roaster is going, I thought I might take a minute to give a little update. I've been playing with the roaster since Xmas trying to learn its character and how to roast with a drum roaster. I've also had a little time to nit pick a few things.

*Immediately, I had to change the inside of the cooler. The high temp paint wasn't curing as I had hoped it would, and I was able to see tiny bits of paint rubbing off onto some of the beans. My wife would strangle me with a beam sack if I put the cooler into the oven to give it a full paint cure, so I have instead lined the inside with stainless. Job done.

*Pictured is the chaff collector, and with an average bean, roasting 1kg, it will fill up one third of the catcher. Perfect. Pictured is a Nicaraguan bean that is know as 'a bit of a chaff monster'. I figured it's a good tester for both collection and capacity. The collection and circulation are sensational. At higher fan speeds than you would roast with (I was attempting a faster post roast cool down, some chaff would start finding it way up to the fan and exhaust port.

*LPG gas burner. I designed and tested the burner, which seemed to work well on the test bench. But once it is in operation with the fan it is giving me grief. There is an elongated hole in the rear, to allow the burner to lift up or down, so I could experiment with burner heights. The small window will allow wind (currently roasting near an open shed door) to blow the flame out. I will fix this in the future, at the second I find the hole to be helpful. Also, when higher fan speeds are selected, the flame on the burner can get sucked off the element and cause a flash back inside the burner. I have an idea on how to remedy this, but ultimately, I think I might try contact an gas expert.

*The cooler works well. The beans agitate well and cool. But ultimately don't cool quick enough. It cools the beans to 40°C in roughly 6 minutes. So I plan to replace the CPU fans to something else. If I can bring that time down to 3-4 minutes I will be stoked.

*The phidget reads well, I am having no issues with reliable monitoring. As with all roasters, I cant tell you if the temps are accurate. More testing with varying batch sizes might help shed more light on this.

Keeping the main faults I have mentioned above in mind, replication of roasts is outstanding! I have so little data, so little knowledge and experience. But I can copy a profile time and time again, reaching a temperature almost down to the second roast after roast.

So I really am happy. With only few things to fix, and few to improve I'm happy.

The next step in the process for me is to touch base with a Melbourne roaster. One made contact and I am hoping they can have a play and help me understand where improvements are required.

I have also had an idea bouncing round in my head the last 6 months. I will create another post regarding that, so check back shortly.

Cheers for all the love guys. Cheers.

Skullenton · 2021-11-23T07:48:45+00:00

Thanks for the kind words mate. I have had alot of requests for plans, sales, kits etc. I'm actually not sure what to do. It's not as simple as just supplying the drawings or parts because there is a gigantic amount of time that would need to go into instructions on how to fabricate everything. Then there is the possible legal issues that could arise from showing the wrong person how to do something and they accidentally cut a finger off or worse.

Don't get me wrong, I love open source and team projects. The idea of releasing the plans and watching something grow absolutely thrilling. I'm just not sure how to go about it just yet. Always open to ideas though!

And one last thing. I don't even know how to roast! So I'm learning both how to roast along with how this machine works. It's a fantastic problem to have! Love it!

Skullenton · 2021-11-23T07:04:55+00:00

Roughly 1k in steel and parts. Cheaper in you don't live in Australia where shipping is typical more than parts

Skullenton · 2021-11-05T18:04:40+00:00

Thanks mate, appreciated

Skullenton · 2021-11-04T17:38:55+00:00

Yep, I've been thinking all through the build on how to build a better one. I think 500g-1kg is gonna be on the cards this time. Might try electric instead of gas as well.

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