jsmorrow2s
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- Jun 18, 2015
- Location
- Auburn, Il
So..... back in April I broke down and got myself a hunsaker 55 gal cooker with the hanging rack and an extra grate. Flat black high temp paint on the outside. And let me tell you this thing ain’t no joke!
I’m coming from a family of Weber’s (22” kettle, 26” kettle, 22” wsm) and just wanted to upgrade. I cook from my garage, well the driveway. Everything is stored in the garage. So I need my coolers to shut down. It took almost all night for my wsm to shut down and I was just tired of it. I got tired of dealing with leaks. I got tired of dealing with inconsistencies in temperature. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the food the wsm produced, but I felt like it was time to buy a drum. I thought about building a uds, but from what I gathered, in order to help prevent rust, the intake needed to be welded on. And I’m not a welder.
So I started shopping. I was stuck between a gateway and hunsaker. After putting together spread sheets, and having a pin board with tacs and string going all over the place, I went ahead with the hunsaker. My selling points were the vortex basket. Could be a gimmick, could work, but at least I had the option. Another was the hinged lid. That’s something I always wanted to do with my wsm, but couldn’t get myself to drill a hole into it. With the inclusion of a hanging rack with a web purchase, that was definitely a plus. The last, and most import, was the air inlet. Super simple. Long term, it more than likely won’t rust out that bad. Plus, from what I gathered, it’s less effected by wind than the gateways fat boy controllers.
So when it came, it was missing the bolts to put the handle on. After a quick email, they got sent out and it was put together. I sprayed her down with beef tallow to season it. So far, it is everything I have wanted. It’s rock solid and yet responsive to inputs. Fuel consumption is also a plus. I’ve smoked for probably 12 plus hours total on about 2/3 of a basket of B and B lump. Whereas I was running through a minimum half a bag per cook on my wsm.
So let’s get down to taste. Now in comparison, I don’t use the water pan at all in my wsm. The food drips directly onto the fire in my wsm. In the hunsaker, I do have the vortex plate inserted. I’ve only used the grate to smoke steaks for a reverse seat. I’ve done a couple of chicken cooks too.
So what are my initial impressions?
1) this thing is a tank and everything seems overbuilt. However, my only comparison is the wsm which is noticeably thinner
2) the easing if fuel cost is great
3) I enjoy the ease of use as well
But really, is the food different than that if a wsm???
I was always told that there is a difference, but no one can put there finger on it. After having my family over and them comparing what I’ve cooked for them in the past, we have come to a conclusion.
There IS a difference in taste. It’s more of a ‘cleaner’ smoke taste. Idk if it’s bc of the vortex plate or what. But the smoke flavor is not as powerful. Everyone says it’s for the better. And no, I did not run dirty fires in the wsm. I feel that hanging food also cooks more evenly and quicker.
Below are from one cook. A chicken cooked rotisserie style to be used later. A bbq bird. And an amazing Alabama white chicken.
I’m coming from a family of Weber’s (22” kettle, 26” kettle, 22” wsm) and just wanted to upgrade. I cook from my garage, well the driveway. Everything is stored in the garage. So I need my coolers to shut down. It took almost all night for my wsm to shut down and I was just tired of it. I got tired of dealing with leaks. I got tired of dealing with inconsistencies in temperature. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the food the wsm produced, but I felt like it was time to buy a drum. I thought about building a uds, but from what I gathered, in order to help prevent rust, the intake needed to be welded on. And I’m not a welder.
So I started shopping. I was stuck between a gateway and hunsaker. After putting together spread sheets, and having a pin board with tacs and string going all over the place, I went ahead with the hunsaker. My selling points were the vortex basket. Could be a gimmick, could work, but at least I had the option. Another was the hinged lid. That’s something I always wanted to do with my wsm, but couldn’t get myself to drill a hole into it. With the inclusion of a hanging rack with a web purchase, that was definitely a plus. The last, and most import, was the air inlet. Super simple. Long term, it more than likely won’t rust out that bad. Plus, from what I gathered, it’s less effected by wind than the gateways fat boy controllers.
So when it came, it was missing the bolts to put the handle on. After a quick email, they got sent out and it was put together. I sprayed her down with beef tallow to season it. So far, it is everything I have wanted. It’s rock solid and yet responsive to inputs. Fuel consumption is also a plus. I’ve smoked for probably 12 plus hours total on about 2/3 of a basket of B and B lump. Whereas I was running through a minimum half a bag per cook on my wsm.
So let’s get down to taste. Now in comparison, I don’t use the water pan at all in my wsm. The food drips directly onto the fire in my wsm. In the hunsaker, I do have the vortex plate inserted. I’ve only used the grate to smoke steaks for a reverse seat. I’ve done a couple of chicken cooks too.
So what are my initial impressions?
1) this thing is a tank and everything seems overbuilt. However, my only comparison is the wsm which is noticeably thinner
2) the easing if fuel cost is great
3) I enjoy the ease of use as well
But really, is the food different than that if a wsm???
I was always told that there is a difference, but no one can put there finger on it. After having my family over and them comparing what I’ve cooked for them in the past, we have come to a conclusion.
There IS a difference in taste. It’s more of a ‘cleaner’ smoke taste. Idk if it’s bc of the vortex plate or what. But the smoke flavor is not as powerful. Everyone says it’s for the better. And no, I did not run dirty fires in the wsm. I feel that hanging food also cooks more evenly and quicker.
Below are from one cook. A chicken cooked rotisserie style to be used later. A bbq bird. And an amazing Alabama white chicken.
