Nesco CR-1010-PRR Coffee Bean Roaster, 800 watt
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List Price: Our Price: $159.95 You Save: $30.04 (16%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Nesco CR-1010-PRR Coffee Bean Roaster, 800 watt
Customer Review: Enjoying My Nesco
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased this machine in August 2010 and have used it steadily since then, typically doing two back-to-back roasts (with a cool-down between), which yields me around seven ounces of roasted coffee. I bought it, in part, because it was made here in the U.S.
I have found that I typically run the cycle for 28 minutes (23 plus the five-minute cool down), and am very happy with the coffee I get. The Nesco has done a great job of removing the smoke that is inherent in coffee roasting. I do, however, run the kitchen exhaust fan on low (with the roaster next to the range) and turn on ceiling fans in the house, just in case.
One thing to watch out for with the Nesco: small bean size. I have had the machine get stuck twice, and in both cases, I am certain that a small bean had lodged between the augur and the grate at the bottom of the roasting chamber. In one case, I opened the lid (the machine will shut off), grabbed the handle of the chamber, and dumped the beans into a waiting colander. In doing so, the stuck bean was dislodged. I actually put the beans back in the chamber, inserted it, and closed the lid, starting the roast back up and again. The beans came out fine.
I believe that too-small beans may be the cause of the problems some people have had. When the instructions say NEVER to leave the machine unattended, this is why. One place where I buy my green beans will actually say that some varieties are not recommended for use with the Nesco because of their smaller bean size.
As others have mentioned, also, the cool-down cycle is much noisier than the roasting cycle, which I find to be extremely quiet.
Chaff collection is adequate, but you will need to remove more. I do this by pouring the roasted beans back and forth between two stainless mesh colanders, which also helps cool the beans down more quickly. By doing this I am able to remove nearly all chaff. TIP: Buy wet-processed, rather than dry- or natural-processed, beans, and you will have much less chaff for the machine to remove.
As to cleaning, I take the machine apart (the removable pieces, which include the top, the glass roasting chamber, and the chaff screen and collector) and soak them in water with Simple Green (or actually the ZEP version available at big-box hardware stores, which doesn't have as strong a fragrance). After a while, you will not be able to remove all the oils, especially in the glass roasting chamber, but this method does a good job of cleaning the machine. Rinse very well, dry thoroughly, and put the machine back together.
Having had the machine for about six months, I am still quite happy with it. I would say my biggest wish could be a larger capacity and less sensitivity to small beans. The jury is still out on the Nesco's longevity, but I am still enjoying it at this point.
Customer Review: The ideal indoor roaster - just let it COOL DOWN FULLY between roasts
Summary: 5 Stars
As you see, I have given this machine the highest possible rating. I'm sorry to say that many of the people who have given it lower ratings have probably been using it incorrectly, as I'll explain below.
The Nesco's ability to fully filter all the smoke produced by the roasting process makes it ideal -- and almost unique on the market in this respect -- for indoor use. I always use mine near an open window, since even without the smoke there are a lot of roasting smells produced, but essentially all the other models I've investigated are impossible to use indoors because of the smoke produced.
Many reviewers on this site complain of parts wearing out quickly, but though they may mean well, they've been doing something wrong that is no fault of Nesco's. After many roasts, I have never had any trouble with parts wearing out for one very good reason: I let the machine COOL DOWN FULLY for 20-25 minutes between roasts. The inside of the machine gets very hot and stays hot for some time after the outside seems cool. If you use the machine when the parts are still hot, they will (not surprisingly) wear out quickly. It takes a good 20 minutes for everything to cool down to normal, after which the machine functions perfectly.
I also never use more than the recommended quantity of beans, which could overload the machine.
If you're impatient roasting only a quarter of a pound of beans and then having to wait 20 minutes before the next roast, you may be happier just buying roasted beans outside somewhere. If you live in an apartment, though, this machine is a godsend. There is no comparison between freshly roasted beans (even counting the 2-7 days needed for their post-roasting chemical processes) and what is usually purveyed on the market.
There is good information about the strengths of this machine (particularly the long period of time between first and second "crack") on the Sweet Maria's website.
Customer Review: Great Idea... Abominable Engineering... Poor Investment
Summary: 1 Stars
Like many other people here, I was excited by the idea of a coffee roaster that was "smoke free" and offered a chance to roast beans in small batches. I liked the idea of a smoke free coffee roaster so much that when the first one failed (it was a remanufactured product) I bought a new one thinking that the problem with the first one was just a fluke.
Not a fluke... both machines experienced the same "catastrophic failure" within one year of weekly use. The pulley mechanism is poorly designed. It is coated in plastic and eventually fails; the auger stops moving, the beans overheat, which can potentially overheat and melt the control components, making the machine a fire hazard.
My experience with customer service also has been similar to others' experiences described here. You cannot order spare parts to fix the machine yourself, the machine must be returned to the manufacturer. You have to pay for shipping (both ways) and you also have to pay for the repair.
Performing a Cost Benefit Analysis, I discovered that it costs almost as much to return the machine to the manufacturer for them to replace the failed pulley mechanism (providing you caught the malfunction in time before it melted the other components) as it would to buy a new one.
"Fool me once, shame on you... Fool me twice, shame on me..."
Since I have about 10 pounds of green coffee beans sitting in my cupboard (and I am tired of drinking stale bean coffee) I am looking for a similar machine with a higher margin of safety and a low to zero a failure rate, that performs the same fit, form and function (time controlled, produces small batch, and smoke/chaff free) for around the same cost.
So... if there are any unemployed inventors who are also home-roast coffee aficionados ... you have a "niche" market here, and, by the way, if it was made here in the USA that would ROCK! :)
Customer Review: What the...
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this roaster when it was still under the name "Zach & Dani's". It performed well for about 2 years. I had to replace the chaff filter a couple of times, but this was no big deal. I ended up moving and, in the process, put my home roasting hobbie aside for about a year. I decided the other day that it was time to take up my honored hobbie and pull the machine back out. Admittedly it was a bit dusty, but nothing bad, so I cleaned it up, bought some green coffee beans, and prepared to roast. The anticipation was great. I recalled the smell of roasting beans, the taste of freshly roasted and ground coffee, and the art of it all. I plugged in the machine and the digital read-out turned on: "20". I hit the "recall" button just to see where I had last roasted. It worked - "24". Then, with the happiness of a child on Christmas morning, I went to hit the START button... and NOTHING happened. What the... so I took it apart to make sure I had everything put together correctly: the safety switch was depressed when I closed the lid, everything seemed in order. I plugged it back in and tried again... nothing. Frustration started to overcome me - what was wrong with my beloved machine that never had any problems in the past? Could it be that leaving it alone for so long made it not work properly? Certainly this could not be the case. I found the customer service number for NESCO (which took some hunting down) and they said that since the machine was over a year old I would have to ship it to them, pay for the cost of the repair, and pay to have it returned. I'm not sure how much all that would cost, but it's probably pretty close to what I paid for the machine in the first place. They offered trouble-shooting tips, but it was all very basic stuff that I had already tried.
I am sorely dissappointed. I want to buy another machine and, guess what... it won't be one of these.
Customer Review: Mediocre as long as it works
Summary: 2 Stars
I purchased this item about a year ago and have had decent results. The motor surges so the beans are roasted consistently inconsistent. Despite soaking and cleaning the screen filter regularly, it is hard to clean and once somewhat clogged will force the smoke into your house (watch out smoke detectors). The glass canister cracked and when I called customer service, I was introduced to the worst service I have ever experienced with a company. We ordered a new canister and filter ($60!!) and 2 weeks later never arrived. When I called I was told the credit card info was not entered correctly so the order was cancelled. So I ordered again. Three weeks later no product. I called customer service again and they said that they entered the wrong product number and when it didn't match the order cost it was cancelled again. When I called for the third time, I was told I would have to place an order again. I asked if they would be willing to help me by sending it out 3 day mail. I was told simply 'No'. I asked if there was anything they could do to help get it here more quickly and Joy (ironically that was her name) said, "I could lie to you and tell you it will get there quicker if that's what you want me to do". I told her I was disappointed with the service and will cancel my order and find a different product. She said, "That's your choice".
This is great in theory, works mediocre and for the price you can find machines of much more consistent quality. And if you find you have a problem with the machine (as many seem to) you will not find worse customer service.
I would consider this a mediocre machine, but if you don't want to gamble with your $150 I would go with the I-Roast or for a little more go with the Behmor.