2nd smoker for catering - Rotisserie?

[tony76248]

I love my stumps gf223 for the quality of product I have cooked on it and the no brainer approach to set it and forget it. But..... It is very limited when it comes to large amounts of meat. I am interested in a rotisserie type smoker which actually makes the most sense when cooking for the masses.

I can pack the Stumps full but it impedes airflow and you have to rotate the racks or risk problems. Then you are also taking away the best thing about a stumps. As far as competitions go, I will continue to use this one.

That said.....Who can provide me with info on a rotisserie smoker? I have seen a few online that will hold quite a bit of meat providing you with even/constant temps to all of the racks.

Also, anyone have a used one for sale?

[getyourrubonbbq]

Have you considered Southern Pride? I have a special right now on a SPK-280. They have several models that may be more suitable to your needs. Let me know if you have any questions.

[tony76248]

Originally Posted by getyourrubonbbq

Have you considered Southern Pride? I have a special right now on a SPK-280. They have several models that may be more suitable to your needs. Let me know if you have any questions.

Not practical since they cost what they do. I am a hobbiest caterer and the day it stops being fun is the day I stop. Then I would use one just for comps.

While the Southern Pride is very very nice I think you can get a lot more bang for your buck with the Kingfisher or the Southern Yankee. Those and the American BBQ systems would be more practical from my point of view. The Southern Pride cookers are definitely commercial and definitely extravagant.

I guess I needed to pose this question to fellow caterers/cooking teams and not dealers. I appreciate the input though.

So who out there is using a trailer mount or backyard rotisserie?

[getyourrubonbbq]

I see... I wasn't aware of the size of your operation. I agree that any of the other cookers would more than likely work out better for you. I compete and do catering myself. Not on a huge scale, but I use my DPP FAT 40. Good Luck!

[Balls Casten]

We have a Kingfisher.
http://www.kingfisherkookers.com/pro...ie_smokers.htm

And you can load it up pretty good. The Backyard Bonanza we have is 1,400 sq in of rack space. There are 4 trays, that cook very even. You do not need to turn or rotate anything when cooking. We have had 20 racks of ribs, 3 brisket flats and two butts on at one time with a little room left over.

Only complaint is even temps. To keep temps from spiking I need to add small amounts of coals every 1 1/2 hours rather than loading the box full.

I've got plenty of pics if you'd like them.

[Tinybud]

I have a 6' southern yankee, and I enjoy using it, it does give you nice even temps, and capacity is huge. I found mine used, and picked it up for $1,500. I'd recommend one if you need that kind of capacity. If ya got any other questions , feel free to ask, I'll do my best to answer them. Good luck in your search.

[tony76248]

Originally Posted by Balls Casten

We have a Kingfisher.
http://www.kingfisherkookers.com/pro...ie_smokers.htm

And you can load it up pretty good. The Backyard Bonanza we have is 1,400 sq in of rack space. There are 4 trays, that cook very even. You do not need to turn or rotate anything when cooking. We have had 20 racks of ribs, 3 brisket flats and two butts on at one time with a little room left over.

Only complaint is even temps. To keep temps from spiking I need to add small amounts of coals every 1 1/2 hours rather than loading the box full.

I've got plenty of pics if you'd like them.

Since it wouldn't be my comp pit, I wouldn't mind having to load the coals. How efficient is it other than that? How many bags of charcoal would I need per 12 hour cook?

I did see they have an insulated model which I bet will provide longer stable cooks on less fuel.

Do you use a stoker or Guru with the one you have?

I also talked with one of the local distributors and he has floated me a fair price on a new backyar bonanza and a very good price on a used trailer mount bonanza.

[HoDeDo]

Originally Posted by tony76248

Since it wouldn't be my comp pit, I wouldn't mind having to load the coals. How efficient is it other than that? How many bags of charcoal would I need per 12 hour cook?

I did see they have an insulated model which I bet will provide longer stable cooks on less fuel.

Do you use a stoker or Guru with the one you have?

I also talked with one of the local distributors and he has floated me a fair price on a new backyar bonanza and a very good price on a used trailer mount bonanza.

Dave can jump in here... as I think he has done alot of heavy use in his... I use one as you mention all the time...

You can actually make the kingfisher pretty efficient with a charcoal basket...
I think Paul (Pickled Pig) has his for sale here on the brethren... His is heavily modded with cool stuff like burners, and grill up front, etc. It would be the ideal self contained cater rig IMHO for a 4 tray.

www.kck.com sells the Kingfishers, and I believe several folks here can speak to his customer service level. I'll refrain, as I'm biased, he is a good friend and has given me the shirt off his back more than once.

He offers a discount to Brethren so you might check him out. PM me if you want his cell #, or I believe his 800# is on the webpage.

It will work fine with a guru... we actually took a double walled commercial (CK) and roped the firebox doors, and mounted a guru port on the front air inlet. She purred like a kitten... but if you get it too hot, it takes forever to get it back down to operating range (on the dbl walled model).

You can add a second shelf to these racks and double your brisket capacity... you can add standing rib racks, and get 30+ slabs in a cook... they are very versatile cookers.

[Balls Casten]

Ours is non-insinuated and we went thru 2 18lbs bag of K in 8 hours. Outside temps were in the single digits though.

I purchased a stoker this winter and have been playing around with it. I’m still trying to get the fire box sealed off so that the fan/dampers work better.

As Andy said they are a bit touchy with spiking temps but after you get to know how much coal to toss on every time it holds very steady.

With the upright racks we can get 10 racks of ribs on a tray. So theoretically you could do 40 racks at one time.

[tony76248]

Great feedback folks, I appreciate all of the input. It has me looking.