woodsider
Knows what a fatty is.
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2014
- Location
- Woodside...
Reader for some time – just joined so I could submit this first post.
I have been smoking with sticks in twin Weber 600s for a while. Decided to spring for a quality smoker to increase capacity and reduce amount of fussing so I can smoke more often, throw bigger parties and be a better, less occupied host.
Narrowed it down to Ole Hickory QTS or Cookshack FEC 120 - high quality gas stick burner vs high quality pellet.
Leaning toward QTS due to higher density and quality of smoke flavor (this is what we like about burning wood in gas fired Weber smoke box). However, incredible FEC pellet system with digital set and forget operation and automatic meat probe shut down option is very tempting for reducing workload and increasing multi-tasking capacity. FEC would also be easier for my better half and daughters when they want to do some smoking.
A few questions before making the final call:
* For those who have experience with both gas fired wood and pellet smokers - Can you say definitively whether or not the general wisdom is true that the FEC 120 will have a significantly lighter smoke flavor than the QTS? If you believe the pellet can achieve similar smoke flavor quality and density, what is the trick?
* QTS owners – What is the temperature variation at a given position in the smoke box with the same temperature dial setting? Does the temperature vary much as the wood burns down and as the outside temperature varies through the day?
* QTS owners - Can you comment on the internal temp variation from top to bottom racks in the QTS? If you have a large top to bottom variation, how do you compensate for it? There are posts that say the variation in the QTS from top to bottom is pretty high (as much as 50 degrees?). This requires rack swapping for heavy single-meat loads and seems like a lot of variation since one of the main ideas with the convection fan is to maintain consistent temp.
* QTS owners - How much wood do you burn on a 6 hour heavy smoke? How often do you need to change wood to keep the smoke density high?
* FEC owners – Can you confirm that there is very little temperature variation at a given position in the FEC 120 even with large outside temperature variations through the day?
* FEC owners – Can you comment on the temperature variation top to bottom in the FEC smokers? Would expect the FEC 120 to be more than the FEC 100 since it is taller.
Thanks!
I have been smoking with sticks in twin Weber 600s for a while. Decided to spring for a quality smoker to increase capacity and reduce amount of fussing so I can smoke more often, throw bigger parties and be a better, less occupied host.
Narrowed it down to Ole Hickory QTS or Cookshack FEC 120 - high quality gas stick burner vs high quality pellet.
Leaning toward QTS due to higher density and quality of smoke flavor (this is what we like about burning wood in gas fired Weber smoke box). However, incredible FEC pellet system with digital set and forget operation and automatic meat probe shut down option is very tempting for reducing workload and increasing multi-tasking capacity. FEC would also be easier for my better half and daughters when they want to do some smoking.
A few questions before making the final call:
* For those who have experience with both gas fired wood and pellet smokers - Can you say definitively whether or not the general wisdom is true that the FEC 120 will have a significantly lighter smoke flavor than the QTS? If you believe the pellet can achieve similar smoke flavor quality and density, what is the trick?
* QTS owners – What is the temperature variation at a given position in the smoke box with the same temperature dial setting? Does the temperature vary much as the wood burns down and as the outside temperature varies through the day?
* QTS owners - Can you comment on the internal temp variation from top to bottom racks in the QTS? If you have a large top to bottom variation, how do you compensate for it? There are posts that say the variation in the QTS from top to bottom is pretty high (as much as 50 degrees?). This requires rack swapping for heavy single-meat loads and seems like a lot of variation since one of the main ideas with the convection fan is to maintain consistent temp.
* QTS owners - How much wood do you burn on a 6 hour heavy smoke? How often do you need to change wood to keep the smoke density high?
* FEC owners – Can you confirm that there is very little temperature variation at a given position in the FEC 120 even with large outside temperature variations through the day?
* FEC owners – Can you comment on the temperature variation top to bottom in the FEC smokers? Would expect the FEC 120 to be more than the FEC 100 since it is taller.
Thanks!
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