Rookie Question: Cabinet vs Offset Smokers

[JiveTurkey]

I have a small Klose (CL score) and a Med Spicewine. My mood pretty much determines what I cook on. If I feel like playing with fire then I use the Klose. If not it's either the UDS or Spice. Although a while back I burned sticks in my spicewine just cuz I wanted to see what it was like, frikkin amazing. The water was bubblin nice and steady, good steam, solid fire, temp steady at 250. Thanks to Poobah for the idea. A stick burning spicewine, who'da thunkit!

 

[thomasjurisd]

What do you mean by this?

Stick burners require you to be hands on. You can't just fire it up and walk away. With many of the more modern cabinet smokers, whether electric, charcoal gravity fed, or pellet, you can literally set it up and let it run till the meat is done. With a stick burner you must keep a close eye on it because you add wood as needed to keep the temp where you want it-"tending" While you are "tending" the pit you can have a beverage, relax with friends, contemplate the mysteries of life...anything you would normally do while killing time.

 

[JD McGee]

Personally...I would go with a cabinet smoker as opposed to an offset. I highly recommend the "Extreme Smoker" being built by fellow Brethren James Stephens...:thumb:

 

[gtsum]

I have had both and both kinds produce great que. Cabinets are more fuel efficient, use charcoal and chunks (usually) and can go a very long time between refueling (my stumps could easily go 24 hours). They generally are not effected by wind, rain, snow, etc. Offsets are much more labor intensive, as you are burning logs and maybe using charcoal. If you use a charcoal basket with an offset, you might be able to get 4-6 hours on a burn before needing to mess with it, but IMO, that kind of defeats the purpose of an offset (when I had mine I used charcoal to get it going and get a base of coals, but then I burned straight oak splits). IMO, the taste of que cooked on an offset is superior - it seems to get the smoke flavor much "deeper" into the meat, but like I said, you really cant go wrong with either style. Just ask yourself if you want to have a hands off smoker and let it do its thing, or if you want to play with fire and fiddle with it every now and then?

 

[Brauma]

Long story short, you need one of each.

Pick one and go with it. Cook on it like you wont eat again next week. Then when you've got your pennies saved up, buy the other type.

You need an arsenal of cookers. There is no one perfect smoker.

 

[Ty_]

Long story short, you need one of each.

Pick one and go with it. Cook on it like you wont eat again next week. Then when you've got your pennies saved up, buy the other type.

You need an arsenal of cookers. There is no one perfect smoker.

I agree with you. Could you please have a chat with my wife??

 

[MeatyOakerSmoker]

Thanks for all the advice. It sounds like for now an offset is right for me so I'll continue to hunt one down. Thanks again.

 

[PorkQPine]

Something a lot of people don't think of is that cabinet smokers require you to pull the shelves out and that causes drips on the surface under the cabinet. This can cause a problem depending on where you are smoking. You can usually spot a cabinet guy by the grease stains on top of his shoes

 

[jestridge]

What about a direct heat??? Would this be consider a cabint smoker, Or a cabinet type with an offset box.

 

[seattlepitboss]

I say build a smoker that's a lot like the ones your buddies use. Then they will be able to help you fine tune it. If you live in an area where hardwood is plentiful and cheap, stick burners make a lot more sense than if you have to buy logs over the Internet. (??? but apparently some guys do it)

It is just an impression, but it seems to me that cabinet style cookers are more prevalent in the Midwestern US, and offsets elsewhere.

I find the grease-droppingness of pullout shelves to be an interesting point. It is not, however, a problem only with cabinet cookers, as many offsets are now built with pullout shelves.

 

[thomasjurisd]

I say build a smoker that's a lot like the ones your buddies use. Then they will be able to help you fine tune it. If you live in an area where hardwood is plentiful and cheap, stick burners make a lot more sense than if you have to buy logs over the Internet. (??? but apparently some guys do it)

It is just an impression, but it seems to me that cabinet style cookers are more prevalent in the Midwestern US, and offsets elsewhere.

I find the grease-droppingness of pullout shelves to be an interesting point. It is not, however, a problem only with cabinet cookers, as many offsets are now built with pullout shelves.

True bossman, the offset I've got ordered from GatorPits has pullout shelves. That was one of the selling points for me. I wear old Nike McEnroe's on BBQ day anyway...

 

[MeatyOakerSmoker]

It seems I have to spend some time reading the UDS thread. I'm unlikely to build one for lack of parts and time but I'm just interested.