I'm jealous, Hugh! Let us know how the HR-1 works out for you!

The Diedrich HR-1 arrives. One thing I know for sure - I won't be using this puppy in the kitchen. It weighs a ton, well actually about 80 pounds. I arrive home to find a huge wooden crate setting in my driveway. I could barely budge it. Had to get my ATV and drag the thing into the garage. I bought the Diedrich used, on eBay from Scott at Lone Pine Coffee Roasters in Oregon. Scott said it has about 50 roasts on it.
It is a gorgeous piece of equipment and appears to be built like a tank. But man, do I have a lot to learn about using this roaster. Just so you know, I love my Gene Cafe, and my very first initial impression in using the HR-1 was that I which I had bought six Gene Cafe's (about the same price). However, I've got about 15 roasts under my belt with this puppy and just know, once I get the hang of using it properly, it is going to do a fantastic job.

The owners manual, in my opinion, leaves quite a bit to be desired. It doesn't offer a lot of detail regarding the various controls and the effect they have on the roasting process. I would have thought Diedrich would have put together a more comprehensive manual. I've learned more about using the HR-1 from a forum on CoffeeGeek.com.

The whole thing is pretty cool. It has a hopper you fill with greenies and then 'drop' them into the roaster when you hit the temp you want to start the roast. What I'm missing most is not having the visual stimulation of the roast as it progresses, like you have with the Gene Cafe. The HR-1 has a small, 7/8" viewing window, that's it. It does however have a 'trowel' that you can pull out samples and take a direct look-see at how the beans are progressing.

It seems to do a pretty good job of removing chaff and a reasonable job of cooling the beans, which is done external. My homemade cooler does it much faster however. With it, I can get 12 ounces of 2nd crack "popping" beans to less than room temperature in just a little over a minute.

Right now I have the HR-1 set up in a temporary spot in my garage which is working out fine until I get a more permanent arrangement together. I've attached a photo if you're interested.

Cool, that's the real deal just like what they use at a lot of roasters. Enjoy, I will still dream about having one some day.