Cooker/Smoker Recommendation Please

SC_Dave · Jul 2, 2013

I have a $3000.00 budget. I have looked at Meadow Creek, PitMaker, Stumps, Lang and Mixons. I will use it for large family gatherings, some catering less than 25 people. It will need to be mobile but I have a utility trailer that I could load a non-trailer unit.

I like to learn from people that know more than I do so hopefully I can buy once. Lay some knowledge on me!
David

smokinit · Jul 2, 2013

Here is a link to some Brethren made smokers.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=110

BBQ Bandit · Jul 2, 2013

There are several quality made smokers you listed. Each has their own personalities and hot and cold temp zones. Out of them - will be 2 common facts.

Stickburners require often temp monitoring... feeding the fire every 30-45 minutes. Factor that into your overnight scenarios.

Buy the thickest steel you can afford.
Klose pits offer 1/2" thick firebox and Jambo pits has the insulated firebox for efficiency.

If you value an evening's rest and will not tend the fire thru the nght... you might be disappointed in an offset smoker.

dwfisk · Jul 2, 2013

BBQ Bandit said:
There are several quality made smokers you listed. Each has their own personalities and hot and cold temp zones. Out of them - will be 2 common facts.

Stickburners require often temp monitoring... feeding the fire every 30-45 minutes. Factor that into your overnight scenarios.

Buy the thickest steel you can afford.
Klose pits offer 1/2" thick firebox and Jambo pits has the insulated firebox for efficiency.

If you value an evening's rest and will not tend the fire thru the nght... you might be disappointed in an offset smoker.

^ Really good points but IMHO there is just something special about cooking with wood and it is really hard to beat a quality RF offset stickburner. You might also want to read up a little on hot-n-fast cooking. I'm a convert and have not been up all night tending my RF stickburner for months; brisket to butts in less than 8 hours (you still have to monitor your fire but not necessarily overnight).

PS: you might want to take a look/search for fellow brethren TuscaloosaQ's pits.

Dex · Jul 2, 2013

I would suggest a Backwoods Fatboy

oldbill · Jul 2, 2013

SC_Dave said:
I have a $3000.00 budget. I have looked at Meadow Creek, PitMaker, Stumps, Lang and Mixons. I will use it for large family gatherings, some catering less than 25 people. It will need to be mobile but I have a utility trailer that I could load a non-trailer unit.

I like to learn from people that know more than I do so hopefully I can buy once. Lay some knowledge on me!
David

Check out Lone Star Grillz out of Conroe, TX. They make a quality product and are quite reasonable on pricing. Here is the model that they're making for me as an example, it has a 4000 sq. inch capacity which is more than most trailer pits that I've seen. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IEuoAM-GAs"]Lone Star Grillz 24 inch vertical smoker.MTS - YouTube[/ame] They also have trailer pits, insulated smokers and smaller pipe smokers. My smoker will include a widened cabinet and a warmer/oven which will increase the capacity of the standard unit by 2000 sq. inches yielding a total of 6000 sq. inches. With a 2 ft. x 4.5 ft. footprint it will have more capacity than a Lang 84! Along with the above mentioned upgrades, a half inch firebox, gas assist starting and a charcoal basket my build will come to about $3,200! Not bad for all of that cooking space!

gmag · Jul 2, 2013

If I had to choose one pit in that price range I would get a BWS Fatboy or an Assassin.

oldbill · Jul 2, 2013

Here is the video for the warmer/oven and it is mounted on the vertical smoker, so what you see in the video will be primarily what I'll have. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGhSn4UkQ_k"]lone star grillz warmer box 2 - YouTube[/ame]

buttburnersbbq · Jul 2, 2013

I am particle to a reverse flow smoker , so I would get a used Lang .

mep · Jul 2, 2013

I chose the Assassin. It is a gravity fed smoker with four 23.5 x 23.5 shelves and it comes with a BBQ Guru. This gives you a lot of capacity and it is right in your budget including shipping.

Mine should be arriving in a couple of weeks. Here is a link to their site: http://www.assassin-smokers.com/sit...08/home?url=http://assassin-smokers.com/#2729

JohnnyP · Jul 2, 2013

I don't know how these cook but i like the layout. It was made by HBT Welding in Section Al.

ironmanerik · Jul 2, 2013

Lang 60 patio 2800$ and your close enough to go get it, no shipping. I love my 48 and have never seen a negative comment.

caseydog · Jul 2, 2013

This question comes up all the time on the forum. From my experience on the forum, asking the brethren what cooker to buy is like asking what car to buy on a car forum. There are so many good ones out there.

I would pick one, or maybe a couple out, and ask the brethren their experiences with those units. Find out the pros and cons of of those particular units.

Check out the suggestions on here, narrow your options, then run those options by the brethren. IMO, you will get more usable information.

CD

TuscaloosaQ · Jul 2, 2013

here is a couple from TuscaloosaQ....that would be me.....

jmoney7269 · Jul 2, 2013

Pitmaker Bbq safe, ball valves option, BBQ guru diqiQ dx2. You can get whatever color you want. You load the charcoal basket up once and cook for up to 12 hrs. The heck with splitting wood, adding it every 45 min. Plus all of your friends will wanna know how it works, so you get to tell the story of your pit often. A Lang is a heck of a pit also if you want to add wood all the time.

IamMadMan · Jul 2, 2013

caseydog said:
This question comes up all the time on the forum. From my experience on the forum, asking the brethren what cooker to buy is like asking what car to buy on a car forum. There are so many good ones out there.

I would pick one, or maybe a couple out, and ask the brethren their experiences with those units. Find out the pros and cons of of those particular units.

Check out the suggestions on here, narrow your options, then run those options by the brethren. IMO, you will get more usable information.

CD

I agree with Casey Dog here, everyone loves the smokers they have and they all feel their smoker is best, mainly because it suits their needs well. People are individuals and needs change from person to person like anything else.

My suggestion to you is to figure out what you need, not what you think you want.

Start by deciding what you wish to use for fuel, do you want a stick burner that may require a lot of attention, or a well insulated charcoal cooker that can burn all night on an eight pound load of lump charcoal. Consider and calculate your fuel costs then move on to other needs.

After that you can decide size, adjustable shelving, vertical or horizontal, reverse flow, and so on....

The last thing I want to do is try to persuade you to purchase something just because I like my unit. Here is the reasoning on how and why I chose my smoker that I recently purchased... How I chose my smoker Maybe some of this selection process can help you find your needs?

Also added was to the fact was that it was a $1000.00 cheaper than another unit of similar design I was considering.

These can be purchased on a cart or with castors.

.

mikeleonard81 · Jul 2, 2013

I own the one johnnyp posted. After some slight mods and some practice I'm really satisfied with it. You can now get a warmer box over the fire box still under your 3 large mark i believe.

JohnnyP · Jul 2, 2013

mikeleonard81 said:
I own the one johnnyp posted. After some slight mods and some practice I'm really satisfied with it. You can now get a warmer box over the fire box still under your 3 large mark i believe.

I found some youtube videos if anyone is interested.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxzYLUNCESU"]Howard's Smokers with Rib Box / Warming oven - YouTube[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXOo16dqNn8"]Howard's Smoker Video II - YouTube[/ame]
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyEJf-64IFs"]Howard's Smoker Video I - YouTube[/ame]

CarterK · Jul 3, 2013

Mike - I've been thinking about heading down to Georgia to look at one of those. Do you mind sharing what mods you are talking about? Thanks.

TheBourbonBear · Jul 3, 2013

mikeleonard81 said:
I own the one johnnyp posted. After some slight mods and some practice I'm really satisfied with it. You can now get a warmer box over the fire box still under your 3 large mark i believe.

JohnnyP said:
I found some youtube videos if anyone is interested.

How do y'all like these units? He's practically in my backyard and I have been considering getting one of these as a starter trailer-cooker. Any pros/cons that you've unveiled after some cooks? TIA

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