Lone Star Grillz Vertical Insulated Cabinet Smoker-For the new Owner

Should be fine then, just needs to go in the front door and out the back, clear shot in between. I haven't measured mine but it looks like a standard door is 36" wide.

And yeah, I'm expecting moving that sucker to be a 4-man job. It's got to go up my driveway which is going to be a heck of a push, even though it's not *that* steep.

These things are crazy heavy. Be careful!

Anyone have a pic of the "cork" for the water filler?

I was going to transport it through the house as well, then changed my mind on that idea, as 850lb would have cracked my ceramic tiled floor.

Be careful and build some make-shift ramps. Good luck with it, and would love to hear your experiences as well if you end up buying one.

That's a good point. I have tile on the way in too. Not sure it would crack though, remember the weight gets divided among the wheels. You can also lay plywood if you wanted to spread the weight around a little more.

I'll get a pic when I get home.

DaveAlvarado said:

Thanks!

I'm kicking around the idea of having him make a XL version. I'd like it tall enough for one more rack, everything else the same. Basically room for 10 full-size pans.

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Really? This thing is a beast. I asked them to make a smaller one but they said it would not cost much less because the real cost is in the labor (bends, welding, etc) and not the materials. I would see about adding a rack. I think there is plenty of room for 1 more rack. Really nice guys to deal with on the phone.

Yeah, really. One of the big selling points to me is the space between the racks. I know I could get another added, but then I couldn't necessarily fit more pans.

The current size is what I'd need today. I'm going off the "buy one size bigger than you need" theory when spending that amount of cash. 10 briskets / 20 butts is the general size I'm looking for. And not crammed together, spaced out so they cook right.

DaveAlvarado said:

Yeah, really. One of the big selling points to me is the space between the racks. I know I could get another added, but then I couldn't necessarily fit more pans.

The current size is what I'd need today. I'm going off the "buy one size bigger than you need" theory when spending that amount of cash. 10 briskets / 20 butts is the general size I'm looking for. And not crammed together, spaced out so they cook right.

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I hear you. The one I just bought will only fit 5 or 6 briskets but the most I cook are 2-3 at a time. I was also thinking about get it right the first time and only buy it once like you are. I would say get 2 smaller cookers but that would end up costing more than a single bigger one. Based off what they told me about the size not making much of a difference the price should not increase too much. They did say it would take extra time since it was not a standard model. I can't wait to see how much that thing is going to weigh!

DaveAlvarado said:

Thanks!

I'm kicking around the idea of having him make a XL version. I'd like it tall enough for one more rack, everything else the same. Basically room for 10 full-size pans.

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Glad you brought this up, I was thinking the same thing.

pjtexas1 said:

Really? This thing is a beast. I asked them to make a smaller one but they said it would not cost much less because the real cost is in the labor (bends, welding, etc) and not the materials. I would see about adding a rack. I think there is plenty of room for 1 more rack. Really nice guys to deal with on the phone.

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We can defiantly build any size but it is going to be much more than the standard price because its going to be a "one off" item. There are plans in the works to build a smaller version but nothing concrete yet on size, # of racks, or price. I think that's likely later in the year if we can get on the ball.

A 3/4'' bolt will fit in the pipe (the water fill pipe is not threaded so it will just slip right in) we may look at making a cover similar to the smoke stack cover in the future, we do get asked from time to time so it may be worth looking into.

It is not a reverse flow, when we set out to build this smoker we researched and R&D many different configurations. With testing, trail and error, and some expensive computer software we settled on our current design. In theory the reverse flow sounds great, heat enters at top and exits at the bottom creating a convection. Problem is that once up to temp these smokers use so little air that you end up with no convection at all and since heat rises there is a big difference in temps from top to bottom and its harder to control at lower temps. We found that the single pass from bottom to top is most efficient, provides us with the most even grate temps as well easily controllable through out its entire cooking range.

So I was looking back at the pictures and now I'm wondering, how many butts can really fit on a shelf? It looks like you could maybe go 3 wide and still have room between them? I'm not talking about how many fit if you jam them together, I mean with an inch or two of spacing in between.

I have not cooked on mine yet, but examining the cooking space...it looks like you can comfortably fit 3x10lb butts staggered. Maybe even 4 total on each rack.

I am sure the other guys who have cooked on it can comment on cooking capacity.

DaveAlvarado said:

Yeah, really. One of the big selling points to me is the space between the racks. I know I could get another added, but then I couldn't necessarily fit more pans.

The current size is what I'd need today. I'm going off the "buy one size bigger than you need" theory when spending that amount of cash. 10 briskets / 20 butts is the general size I'm looking for. And not crammed together, spaced out so they cook right.

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You must be going to cook for an army???

jrben1 said:

You must be going to cook for an army???

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Seems like it sometimes. :thumb:

I do a lot of BBQ parties, and I think I'm going to take after my stepdad and do holiday butts for friends and family. He's up to doing 20 butts and doesn't have the smoker space. If I'm doing my own plus his overflow, I need a *lot* of room.

For reference, a cook I did last weekend was 2 butts, a 16lb brisket, 3 racks of St. Louis spares, 4 pork sirloin tip roasts, and 2 whole chickens. That completely filled my two WSMs or I would have tossed in some sausage also.

Edit: I just looked up the rack size. At 27 x 24, that should be room for 6 butts per rack. A butt easily fits in a 9x9 foil pan. Looks like I wouldn't need an oversized version after all.

Somebody make my pennies multiply faster so I can order one!

DaveAlvarado said:

Seems like it sometimes. :thumb:

I do a lot of BBQ parties, and I think I'm going to take after my stepdad and do holiday butts for friends and family. He's up to doing 20 butts and doesn't have the smoker space. If I'm doing my own plus his overflow, I need a *lot* of room.

For reference, a cook I did last weekend was 2 butts, a 16lb brisket, 3 racks of St. Louis spares, 4 pork sirloin tip roasts, and 2 whole chickens. That completely filled my two WSMs or I would have tossed in some sausage also.

Edit: I just looked up the rack size. At 27 x 24, that should be room for 6 butts per rack. A butt easily fits in a 9x9 foil pan. Looks like I wouldn't need an oversized version after all.

Somebody make my pennies multiply faster so I can order one!

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Ya, if you look at the last picture on the web page it shows plenty of space on the racks.

Do it, Do it, Do it....

Hi Guys.
I'm new to the forum, but I have my eye on the LSG Insulated vertical smoker - I just have to sell my ABS Pitt Boss Rotisserie first. I currently have the ABS and a Good One 42" horizontal offset.
Question - I see lots of people talking about going to bed and letting their meat cook overnight. With the insulated cabinet and water pan, does that eliminate the need to baste your meat. Do you still foil or pan you meat halfway through the cook?
I'm enjoying the thread, look forward to eventually having this cooker.

I typically only smoke briskets and butts overnight. I cant speak for this smoker yet (just got delivery) All my experience has been on 22" WSM. Having said that, the only meat that I "baste" is ribs.

I never do anything to the brisket or butts. Just smoke them until the bark/temperature look good, then wrap them. Brisket in butcher paper and butts in foil. Then continue the cook. The water, for me, is a preference to control temperature and cooking environment, thats all.

I time my cooks so I wrap after a good nights sleep, most cuts that I cook low and slow dont need touching for atleast 12-14 hours anyway. I typically cook 16lb to 18lb briskets. Ribs are cooked during waking hours and need attention.

This is one of the reasons I focused on a "set it and forget it" type smoker. I love bbq, but dont have the patience to babysit a stick burner. Everyone has different style and methods to achieve the end result.

Good luck in your quest for a smoker, took me several months of research and reading to find something with the right features for me...

dpuryear said:

With the insulated cabinet and water pan, does that eliminate the need to baste your meat.

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Uh...you don't *need* to baste your meat anyway. Or if you feel you need to, you'll feel you need to in any smoker.

I am going to season tomorrow morning. Do you guys have pointers on

1. How much charcoal?
2. Run with or without water?
3. Smoke wood or not?
4. How long?

I already read up on the whole oiling part and recommended temps, but they rest is all not that clear.

Thanks!