Myron Mixon gravity feed vs water cookers

[Mankite]

Any owners of either out there. Looking for feedback as both look interesting.

[Mankite]

Any owners?

[D-Fuse]

I don't own one, but there is a food truck that just started up in town. He has the mixon water cooker, and I really enjoy his bbq. Probably not the answer you're looking for, but that's all I got.

[Mankite]

I guess because of the price they probably are pretty rare.

[Smoking Piney]

I went to Myron's cook class last fall and the food the students prepped was cooked on his water cookers. While the students didn't handle the pits, we did eat LOTS of food coming off of them -some really good Q.

[D-Fuse]

Was that class worth going to? I've been thinking about it and maybe one day would like to go.

[-Chris-]

Originally Posted by Mankite

Any owners of either out there. Looking for feedback as both look interesting.

I have a MMS-36 water smoker that I bought a few weeks ago. I have been meaning to write a review of it, what are your questions?

Thanks,
Chris

[Smoking Piney]

Originally Posted by D-Fuse

Was that class worth going to? I've been thinking about it and maybe one day would like to go.

PM me and I'll fill you in. I don't want to hijack this thread.

[Mankite]

Just how satisfied you are with it. Any negatives so far and what cookers you’ve had before to reference.

[-Chris-]

Originally Posted by Mankite

Just how satisfied you are with it. Any negatives so far and what cookers you’ve had before to reference.

Well, my first "real" smoker was a Big Green Egg I bought 10 years ago. I wanted to cook over wood and I wanted more capacity than the BGE could provide. I live in Massachusetts so I was looking for an insulated smoker like my BGE. My first cook was 20 degrees and breezy and the cook went really well. So far I am really pleased, the water pan is nice, but I have the task of disposing of 3 gallons of fatty water after every smoke. I just drain it in a bucket and dump it in the woods. I may start smoking in trays so the water is cleaner when I dispose of it where the smoker is located. It is clearly factory made and super high quality, all the welds are perfect, the finish is nice and everything fits together perfectly.

No negatives so far, I have cooked brisket, pork butt, ribs, and cheese on it so far. It works great with an A-maze-n tube for cold smoking.

Chris

[Smoking Piney]

Originally Posted by -Chris-

Well, my first "real" smoker was a Big Green Egg I bought 10 years ago. I wanted to cook over wood and I wanted more capacity than the BGE could provide. I live in Massachusetts so I was looking for an insulated smoker like my BGE. My first cook was 20 degrees and breezy and the cook went really well. So far I am really pleased, the water pan is nice, but I have the task of disposing of 3 gallons of fatty water after every smoke. I just drain it in a bucket and dump it in the woods. I may start smoking in trays so the water is cleaner when I dispose of it where the smoker is located. It is clearly factory made and super high quality, all the welds are perfect, the finish is nice and everything fits together perfectly.

No negatives so far, I have cooked brisket, pork butt, ribs, and cheese on it so far. It works great with an A-maze-n tube for cold smoking.

Chris

I looked his cookers over at the cook class. They're seriously well built and the cookers used for the students have seen lots of use and still looked good.

[Mankite]

Has anyone used one without water in it? Wonder how that effects the end result.

[-Chris-]

Originally Posted by Mankite

Has anyone used one without water in it? Wonder how that effects the end result.

The instructions are very clear not to operate the smoker without water in the pan as it could cause it to warp. That being said, the water pan really doesn't start a rolling boil unless the pit is at least 300 degrees. I smoke around 275 so my pan doesn't boil. I use a water pan in my BGE, so I am a big fan of them. I am actually thinking about trying to use my BBQ Guru Digi-Q and charcoal in the smoker so I can let it run overnight. At 225 degrees, there is no chance the water pan would boil, but I would keep water in it anyway.

You asked about things I dislike about the smoker.
1. The casters, while super high quality with grease fittings nice brakes are useless over soft ground. I wish it had pneumatic tires and a pull bar to steer it. It is super easy to move on concrete or pavement, but gravel gets super dicey. I think they use the hard rubber tires due to the fact that the water pan needs to be level during operation.
2. I wish the water pan was stainless and removable. Although the water pan is heavy gauge steel and coating in grease it is obviously going to be the first failure point of the overbuilt smoker. Since it is only attached at the ends and by the water drain, removing it should not be terrible when the time eventually comes.
3. I wish the front shelf/tray was maybe 16-18" instead of the 12" it is. Makes it hard to wrap brisket or ribs.

Another thing I like is it is so overbuilt you can grab and pull it to move it anywhere. The smokestacks are 1/8" steel, the shelf is really thick, the water filler is stupid heavy. You have to move this 700 pound beast? Grab anywhere and pull!

Chris