• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

I Need Coffee

By Coffee Fans, For Coffee Fans!

  • Coffee Brewing Guide
  • About INeedCoffee
You are here: Home / Roasting Coffee / Poppery Hopper Modification

Poppery Hopper Modification

May 1, 2006 by Rama R

Poppery Hopper Modification

Background: Roasting Coffee in a Popcorn Popper

I picked up a 1500 Watt West Bend Poppery on eBay a year ago to roast my own coffee in the backyard (roasting generates tons of chaff and smoke, so if you go ghetto with a popcorn popper, a backyard is a must.) I’m largely pleased with it. The cooler months require a little extra insulation, by way of a giant box enclosing the whole assembly, in order to reach proper temperature.

The hopper/chamber was designed to eject the popcorn into a bowl once it became light enough, which is sort of problematic with coffee. An unmodified Poppery will lose maybe 5-10% of the beans over the course of the roast when roasting 4 ounces at a time. Sitting next to the roaster and quickly tossing ejectees back into the chamber became tiresome, so I cut the top and bottom off a soup can and crammed it in to act as a chimney. Bean-overboard problem fixed, but the friction fit can be ugly and always shifting around.

While cleaning out the garage today, I came across a tin flower pot (the kind you see for a few dollars at Trader Joe’s) I was about to toss it into the recycle bin when I realized it was the ideal shape for a Poppery chimney! A quick dry-fit later showed it was indeed the ideal size and shape- all that was needed was to chop off the bottom and secure it to the Poppery.

In my excitement, I didn’t think to take more photos of the process, but it’s really straightforward. Use tinsnips to remove the bottom of the pot, about 1/2″ above the bottom for this particular diameter tin. Remove the plastic housing from the Poppery. Drill and pop rivet the tin to the chamber:

poppery rivet
Add the rivet into the chamber.

I toyed with the idea of leaving it “naked” since it looks so industrial and cool, but dealing with a 400F+ chamber and having to fashion a new place to mount the on/off switch was enough to convince me not to. Perhaps someday I’ll swing by Tap Plastics and fashion a clear housing. The finished product:

Poppery with Hopper Modification
Poppery with Hopper Modification

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Rama R
Rama R
A software engineer by trade, and a homebrewer of beer and wine, as well as espresso. I find the challenge of making the perfect cup very rewarding.
Rama R
Latest posts by Rama R (see all)
  • Poppery Hopper Modification - May 1, 2006

This article first appeared on INeedCoffee.com. Filed Under: Roasting Coffee

Primary Sidebar

Search

Connect

  • RSS
  • Twitter

Newsletter

Sign up here to receive our newsletter delivered by Follow.it.

Recent Posts

  • Life is Coffee Comics #42
  • Life is Coffee Comics #41
  • How to Brew Vietnamese Iced Coffee
  • Life is Coffee Comics #40
  • Vietnamese Iced Coffee Brewing Tutorial by Inanimate Objects

Popular Posts

  • Coffee Grind Chart
  • French Press Coffee Tutorial
  • The Upside Down AeroPress Coffee Brewing Tutorial
  • Stovetop Espresso Brewing Tutorial
  • How to Brew Vietnamese Iced Coffee
  • Cold Brew Coffee is Not Rocket Science
  • Coffee Brewing Guide
  • Brewing Espresso in a Moka
  • Chemex Coffee Brewing – History and Tutorial
  • Making Green Bean Extract Beverages at Home
  • Making Cold Brew Coffee in a French Press
  • Buying a French Press – Picking the Right One

Sections

  • Brewing Coffee
  • Cafe Culture
  • Coffee and Health
  • Coffee Business
  • Coffee Comics
  • Coffee History
  • Coffee People
  • Espresso
  • Grinding Coffee
  • Recipes
  • Roasting Coffee
  • Tea
Copyright © 1999-2023 INeedCoffee is a project by coffee fanatic Michael Allen Smith. User Sitemap | Privacy Policy