Let's be honest here. The name UGLY drum smoker is cute but essentially does not accurately describe what UDS is. It is an UPRIGHT Drum Smoker. UPRIGHT. When we describe someone what UDS.... the U really is for Upright. The word Upright, allows us to properly categorize this smoker, what makes it unique and what it is capable of doing.... which essentially its claim to fame is not that it is ugly, or easy to make, but capable of efficently cooking bbq at a VERY stable temp, over a long period of time WITH ALMOST NO INTERACTION (electronic or otherwise) between the equipment and the operator. That last thing in bold makes the UDS unique and it is tied closely to the fact it is upright.... something its horizontal counterpart cannot do. In addition, it does this in a relatively SEALED environment (by bbq standards). So the term UPRIGHT is really what makes these item tick, it gives them their wonderful cooking properties.... therefore, any smoker sharing that one trait, no matter whether you hang or not, have horseshoes or obsteric stirrups for handles, are fresh steel or made of old drums that previously held dung, none of that matters as much to the operation of these types of smokers. The beauty of the PBC is that it is an UDS UPRIGHT DRUM SMOKER, less ugly maybe, smaller and more compact, cleaner and less hassle, cheaper probably than you can make yourself with a lot less hassle.
And woe be those that try and hinge the PBC's worth on NOT being a UDS and that it is revolutionary... patent or no. No... I am not sayign ANYONE has said that. The reaosn why is because eventually all our UDS's are going to rust out and so are we. As we get older we will probably just want to buy our next version of the UDS..... we are potential customers in essense. Saying its not a UDS is just silly.
