Best smoker for the money?

Onyx oven

We've done very well with 18.5" WSMs. Reliable, lightweight and easily portable.

WSM's are the best bang for your buck...

WSM all the way

Backwoods would be up there on my list

You asked this in the comp forum, so a suggestion: There are things to consider beyond the quality of BBQ produced relative to the money spent. Some of these can/will be dictated by the cooker that you buy, but see if you can answer any of these before you buy a cooker and it may push you in one direction or another:

Do you have a cooking style re hot-n-fast or low-n-slow?

Do you have a target timeline that you want to follow? The previous question will help you with this some, but when do you plan to take meats out? This leads into...

Which meats do you plan to have in the cooker at the same time?

How much of each meat do you plan to cook?

What is your logistical situation? How do you plan to transport your cooker(s) to and from competitions?

How do you plan to load and unload your cookers(s)?

There are lots of different cookers that can be purchased for < $1,000. Some are easier to transport than others, some are more capable of loading up with meat than others, and some are so cheap that you can buy (or build) 2-3. If you know what you are stepping into, I think you'll be a lot happier with whatever you buy. Also, don't forget that a lot of cookers work "better" with ADCs. That can add to your overall cost, and some ADCs can run multiple cookers, some can't. Just some things to ponder.

dmp

we were in the same position as you and we ended up making 3 UDS (double racks w heat shield) & bought a stoker unit to control them with a total under $1,000. so each UDS each self can hold 4 butts or 2 brisket and we have 6 racks so it nice we can just fire up one smoker or all 3 depending on how much we need to cook and now with the stoker unit we can get a little sleep (hopefully) at the competitions

I agree the WSM with a Stoker fan system. Easy to transport and when used right they make some great Q

I must add another vote for WSM's. Hard to beat for the $$$. You can buy them and have enough left over for some sort of ADC - (automatic draft control), like a Stoker or BBQ Guru. You might get lucky on Craigslist and find a used one in good condition that will save you even more $$$.

22.5 WSM with guru or stocker or very high for me would be the backwoods.
I have both and they both rock!

We use 2 22" WSM's and started with a stoker set-up but don't use it now, once you learn them, no need for the stoker.

I've got a Stumps Plat3 in the garage for sale. I'd like to cook on it this year but don't want to haul it around....transporting the WSM's is easy on the fuel tank.

Bang for the buck? WSM.

OK so I'll be that guy, I'm not a fan of the WSM, it has too many moving parts, the ergonomics absolutely suck and its made out of cheap sheet metal. For $1,000 you can find a quality small offset like the Yoder Cheyenne that will do what you are looking for. Dramatic leaps in quality, ergo's and versatility.

Backwoods chubby will be a little over your budget but not much.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

If you don't mind a little work, have tools and a shop to work in, and a few key ingredients hanging around you can just build your own. I built this bad boy with my 77 year old grandpa in just 3 weeks working nights and weekends and spent right at $1000 to get it done. Only thing left to do is bolt on some good handles and she's ready to roll!

Muzzlebrake said:

OK so I'll be that guy, I'm not a fan of the WSM, it has too many moving parts, the ergonomics absolutely suck and its made out of cheap sheet metal. For $1,000 you can find a quality small offset like the Yoder Cheyenne that will do what you are looking for. Dramatic leaps in quality, ergo's and versatility.

Click to expand...

This is all news to me.

G$ said:

This is all news to me.

Click to expand...

I'm glad I could bring it to you:becky: