Wanna do it "real man style" huh? For me, that starts with a FIRE and a FIREBOX - not with charcoal and a charcoal chute.
I'm not saying the BBQ isn't great from a vertical feed - it's delicious! But, does the actual cooking process interest you at all? Do you want to pour a chute full of charcoal and go back in the house for 10 hours and that's your "day of smoking"?
If that's what you want, then yes, get you a vertical smoker.
If you want to be more hands on, cook with split wood, stoke a fire, and enjoy a live firepit, then look at the MANY choices you have in stick burners. Most are made from 1/4" steel and the cold won't even phase 'em.