Pop corn doesn't pop

your problem is in the instructions.. you need to make it a little hot, means run it on empty for a few min. stop the machine, and add 2 tablespoosn of veg. oil your fav. oil, not olive. add enough pop corn to fill the inner circle surface of the bottem plate, then run it again until the bowl is full.. maybe 5 min. You should have perfect bowl full of pop corn.
enjoy :-)

Generally you want a 3 to 1 ratio of popcorn to oil (for example, 1 cup corn to one third cup oil). The oil is what transfers the heat to the kernels to make them pop. The batch of corn should pop in about three minutes. If it takes longer, then put less corn and oil in and vice versa.

There are several possible culprits for your Kernel Caper.
1) You may need to add a little more oil to the kettle. Let it come to full heat--just as soon as the oil starts to smoke.
2) The corn you are using must be reasonable fresh and have sufficient moisture to pop the kernel. You can try putting 1 tsp/1 lb of corn in a ziploc bag or screw top bottle. Leave for 24 to 48 hrs to let the corn absorb the moisture.
3) Finally, due to the small size of the popping kettle some kernels will be thrown from the kettle from other kernels popping open.
This is a great little popper. You might have some luck decreasing the size of your batch--reduce your oil and corn by 1/4 each.
Good Luck

http://www.concessionpalace.com/concession-tutorials/P-60_60_Special_Uncle_Walts-1866_2085_2086_2656-popcorn-machines.pdf

If you are using the Cuisinart pop corn poppper, don't use olive oil. Use vegetable oil. Two teaspoons is enough with 1/3 cup of premium kernels. That is it. Turn on the machine and wait til it stops popping. I LOVE my new pop corn popper. I will not do the hot air one again. I always had kernels flying all over my kitchen and popped popcorn everywhere, The Cuisinart popper is the best....

single layer of popcorn on bottom of entire maker...no oil is needed but you can use a tablespoon if you like...butter melts through the hokes in lid....Place butter pats over top holes in lid before popping starts if you want butter to drip down on the corn ( it does pop better with a little oil!)

Hints for getting the best popped corn: Don't pop popcorn in butter as the butter will burn before it can get hot enough. Popcorn pops best in temperatures of 400-460 degrees F. If your oil starts to smoke which happens at 500 degrees F, you've got it too hot. Any oil will work. Use enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. For your health, you should choose a light cooking oil or better yet, skip the oil all together and use an air popper. The movie houses use yellow dyed coconut oil which does a great job of popping the popcorn although there are healthier oils you can use than coconut oil. To see if you have the oil hot enough, drop a couple of kernels into the hot oil. If it's hot enough, they should pop in just a few seconds. If you don't have a popper, any thick bottomed, high walled pan will do. Popcorn can even be easily made in a Dutch oven over a camp fire. When your oil is the right temperature, pour in your popcorn, shaking the pan to cover all the seeds in oil. Do this with the lid on to prevent burns should the hot oil try to splash out of the pan. Using a lid helps the kernels to heat more evenly and keeps the popping corn from flying all over the place. (If you are using a popcorn popper, shaking it isn't necessary because of it's rounded bottom.) As it begins popping, it's important to continue to shake a flat-bottomed pan. This helps any un-popped kernels to settle to the bottom of the pan where they can pop. As soon as you hear the popcorn stop popping, pull the pan off the heat and pour the popcorn into another container. It will burn if you leave it in the hot pan.

What can you do if you've done everything right but your popcorn still doesn't pop very well? As mentioned above, popcorn must have about 13.5 to 14% moisture to pop properly. This is because as the popcorn kernel is heated, the moisture inside the seed is turned to steam creating a huge inner pressure. As this pressure continues past the shell's strength to keep it in, the skin ruptures and the inner starchy layer of the kernel greatly expands and turns itself inside out. If the moisture isn't there, this pressure build-up can't happen. If you find your popcorn has excessive old maids (un-popped kernels) in it, the problem might be that it lacks moisture. Place 3 cups of un-popped popcorn into a quart bottle. Add a tablespoon of water, put the lid on and shake it to get water on all the kernels. If the water puddles in the bottom of the bottle, shake it again every 10 minutes until enough of the water has been absorbed to prevent puddling. Now let it sit for two or three days while the moisture is evenly distributed into the kernels. If it still doesn't pop correctly, repeat this process but add no more than 2 teaspoons of water the second time. Yes, it's also possible to get it so moist it won't pop, so definitely, don't add water a third time. Lastly, you can even take your old maids that didn't pop, rejuvenate them with water using the above process and re-pop them. (With a measurement of three cups un-popped popcorn, 1 tablespoon of water will increase the moisture content 2.5%. A teaspoon of water will increase the moisture level almost 1%. Air dried popcorn will probably never get below a 10% moisture content on it's own, so adding even two tablespoons of water would be pushing it, raising the moisture content to 15% - that is if it started out at a moisture level of 10%.)

I have the directions for this; send me your address and I'll mail you a copy or I could probably just I have a Presto Caramel Corn'r. These are the directions:
You need a large mixing spoon, wax paper and the following ingredients:
2 T cooking oil
¼ c popcorn

¼ c butter or margarine
½ c brown sugar
2 T light corn syrup
¼ t salt

1/8 t soda

Then follow these steps
1) Pour cooking oil and popcorn into the unit base. Place cover on base. Plug cord into base and then into wall outlet. The signal light will glow when unit is heating. When popping is completed, the signal light will go out indicating that the heat has shut off automatically. Unplug the cord from the wall outlet. Tip unit upside down so popped corn falls into cover. Set cover with popped corn aside. You may want to use a paper towel to remove excess oil and unpopped corn or hulls from the base before making caramel sauce. NOTE: I pop corn for all the batches I intend to make first then do the next steps because you don’t have to clean it each time to make a new batch.
2) To make caramel sauce, combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and salt in the base. Plug into wall outlet. Heat mixture stirring constantly until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally for three minutes. Unplug cord from outlet and unit.
3) Place the mixing band on the base. Add baking soda and stir until mixture is evenly colored, light and foamy. Add popped corn, stirring to evenly coat with caramel sauce. Remove mixing band. Pour caramel coated corn onto wax paper and separate kernels. Let stand a few minutes before serving. Wash unit before popping more corn.

Method One

1. Pour a quarter cup of popcorn kernels into a paper bag.
2. Fold the top of the bag three times.
3. Place the paper bag in the microwave.
4. Set the timer for 40 to 60 seconds. (mine took 3-4 minutes)
5. Wait and have fun.
6. Remove the bag and pour the popcorn into a dish.
7. Cook unbaked kernels for about 15 to 20 seconds.
8. Add the extra popcorn to the other batch.
9. Pour melted butter and salt onto the popcorn.
10. Serve.

Method Two

1. Take a frying pan and a fitting lid.
2. Put some grease (canola oil for example) in it to make sure your corns won't stick to your pan.
3. Wait until the pan is hot--you can add 1 or 2 kernels to the pan as it heats up... when they pop, the pan is hot enough to add the rest of the corn
4. Put in the corns, make sure you use corns which are meant to use in a pan.
5. Put on the lid fast! Make sure no corns flip out. Shake your pan a few times to make sure all corns are loose.
6. Now you hear a lot of pops, just wait until all sound is gone.
7. When nothing happens quickly take of the pan and put your corns in a bowl.
8. Put on salt/sugar.
9. Serve.

Method Three

1. Buy some microwave popcorn.
2. Follow the instructions.
3. Serve.

From: www.wikihow.com

What size kettle?
It is probably the thermostat