To answer some of your questions: The roaster was not cheap, but I chose to go down the gas fired path after initially considering looking at the 1Kg CCR roaster reviewed on this site recently, which looked like a good price. The Proaster cost $12,870. The Destoner I made myself which cost $80 including the vacuum cleaner from Aldi. :-) The difference between the Hottop and the Proaster is like chalk and cheese for me, which is a big relief after taking the plunge on such an investment. Some of the differences are no doubt just due to the fact I can roast larger batches, and therefore the smoothing effect that has on the profile etc. Being gas fired its much more responsive to heat setting changes, where with the HT I had to anticipate changes to allow the heating element to get up to speed. However I am finding I require less manipulation and end up with a much smoother profile and consistent end result. The airflow heat allows further fine tuning. Graham
