I’ve been sitting on this post for a few years actually. I got this roaster 2 years ago. It is very expensive for an 800gr roaster, but in my opinion it is absolutely worth it. Unlike most drum roasters where you really only can use 80% of the rated capacity, the Arc 800 from Showroom Coffee is seriously over powered and can roast the full rated capacity easily – especially with the new 50psi regulator. Depending on your profile, you an roast a full 800g in anywhere from 8 to 12min. And, you can do 300gr sample roasts too. For sample roasts, I have adapted a method I saw in a Mill City video – I set the fan pretty low, and gas at 12.5psi and just let the beans go until 1st crack stops. It’s almost always about 8 min. For full roasts I’ve been using the “soak” method where I charge the beans with gas off and then at the 60s mark, I turn the gas on (that is usually within 20s of the turning point.)

The build quality of the Arc 800 is superb and is basically a scaled down version of a large production roaster. You have complete control over drum speed, air flow, and gas (power) and 3 RTD probes for computer monitoring with a computer. I have it hooked up to Artisan (hard to beat for a free program – but I pay for the Home Roaster inventory system). There is a small LCD that has the BT, ET, inlet temp and a timer if you want to go sans-computer.

The roaster does weigh about 100lbs, so it’s not “portable” – you won’t want to be moving it around a lot. Find a nice home for it, or get a stainless steel wheeled restaurant cart for it. It is definitely something that will need space, probably too big for your kitchen. And, you will need to vent it to the outside if you’re installing it indoors. If comes with a small cyclone and a very powerful exhaust fan and enough insulated tubing to hook up a vent pretty far away from the roaster.

Because this is essentially a commercial roaster, there is a necessary maintenance schedule outlined in the manual. This is not just a toaster oven (not meaning to dig at Behmor, but sorta…I have one too.) The learning curve is steep, so do a few extra seasoning roasts to help you learn how the heat and air settings affect the roast. The manual comes with some starter profiles so you aren’t totally thrown into the deep end.

To quote Ferris Bueller. It is so choice. If you have the means I highly recommend picking one up.