Masterbuilt GF owners ..............

[Lynn Dollar]

I don't see much discussion about these smoker/grills. Are you still using it ?


I've had the 560 since last January. I think its a smoker and not much of a grill. A two zone fire on a Kettle is far superior when it comes to grilling, IMO.


I've grilled thick porterhouse pork chops, rib eye , and burgers. I can't get the crust I want with indirect heat. I thought it should work well for reverse searing, but with the chops and rib eye, I got grease flare ups when I cranked the temp up.


But it does a good job as a smoker. I've smoked brisket, yardbird, and ribs and was happy with what it produced. But its not been my primary smoker, that was my OC Brazos till I bought a Franklin offset. The MB560 was gonna be my set and forget smoker, but I've yet to find a time when I prefer it over an offset.

 

[Nuco59]

When they first hit the market, my interest was piqued. Then Chargriller came out with theirs and my attention was thoroughly aroused.

I started to plan and scheme to own one or the other. I hit every YouTube review I could find and convinced myself that I "needed" one- and I never did.

I think what "talked me out of it" was threefold: The searing looked more like a barely contained grease fire. The charcoal usage seemed to be higher than I thought allowable. And I flat do not have more room for another cooker.

I hope that more improvements will be made in that design- more companies offering their products. I'm ready to get interested all over again if the the right model /$ come along.

 

[Lynn Dollar]

I put some burgers on the 560 last night. I feel like its high heat baking, not grilling.


Yes, there are some searing with a grease fire. I don't think that's wood fired cooking, but hey, whatever floats a guy's boat.


It does use a lot of charcoal. When the coals are " fanned " its gonna burn more.


I'd been reluctant to use the 560 due to the grease fire issue. I put some more money into it with a mod that is suppose to help keep the grease fires down. I've not used it enough to know if the mod works. And also, this mod should make it easier to cover the manifold with foil.



And to get out in front of those who say I'm not keeping it clean, I line the grease tray with foil and use a drip pan. It's very much like a pellet pooper, it takes constant cleaning. And ash has be vacuumed out of the inside of the manifold on a regular basis.


Which makes it not nearly as convenient as one would think. Its not a matter of just lighting a fire and setting a temp.

 

[jzadski]

I keep going back to my Rec Tec. That being said I do enjoy the 560. It may require more time attending if you decide to add wood chunks every 45 min or so. To ease fire (had one) I implemented a cheap fix of foil to mimic the steel cover on the manidfold for around $100. It works fine. I have never had a better pizza then off of my 560. If I am wanting a charcoal flavor then it's my go to smoker

 

[rexster314]

I had a 1050 up until this past April. (Long story) I had one grease fire when I first bought it during a brisket cook that was my fault. Never had another one, doing high temp grilling or low smoking using a drip pan. One of the best mods I bought was the manifold cover with the raised lips that prevent grease from dripping into the manifold. Had a lot of good food come off that grill. After losing that grill, I've since moved on to the Weber Smokefire with great results.

 

[Lynn Dollar]

Another question for Masterbuilt owners............ I'm thinkin of doing something like Chef Tom at ATTBBQ is doing here, for T-Giving.


He's put a turkey on a roasting rack over what looks to be a good sized tray, maybe 11 X 15. If I did this on my MB560 that has a 22 X 15 grate , using roughly an 11 X 15 tray , will it block too much of the heat ?



https://youtu.be/3D6pVMgGb_o?t=654

 

[Eckie]

I like my 1050, don't get to use it as often as I'd like. Had an inferno grease fire with some beef ribs pieces after I cranked up the heat whenI added a meatloaf (225 to 285)... quickly learned a drip pan is a must for such pieces.

Can someone explain or link to the mod(s) that are referred to?

 

[Chester]

I am curious on how these things grill as I have never seen one grilling. My GF can get up to about 400 degrees. I have never cooked above 325. Does the flame get exposed at all on the Masterbuilt to the food? On mine, there is no way for the fire to enter the cooking chamber, so it’s never a direct cook. How hot have people gotten the Masterbuilt Gf’s up to?

 

[Lynn Dollar]

I like my 1050, don't get to use it as often as I'd like. Had an inferno grease fire with some beef ribs pieces after I cranked up the heat whenI added a meatloaf (225 to 285)... quickly learned a drip pan is a must for such pieces.

Can someone explain or link to the mod(s) that are referred to?

Its a manifold cover and frankly, I'm not sure how its suppose to work.



https://www.lss-mods.com/product_details.phtml/800_manifold_cover_anti-flare_lip


I wanted the ability to put a drip pan under the lower cooking grate, so I bought these brackets first and did not read the part about the cover being necessary for the brackets , so I was already in and went ahead and bought the cover



https://www.lss-mods.com/product_details.phtml/drip_pan_brackets_holds_1_pan


And I've not cooked on it enough to test these out. I've not smoked any meats.


I liked this setup, because I could use a drip pan that was no wider than the manifold. And sitting directly on top of the manifold, it would not interfere with air flow. That's what I was after.

 

[Lynn Dollar]

I am curious on how these things grill as I have never seen one grilling. My GF can get up to about 400 degrees. I have never cooked above 325. Does the flame get exposed at all on the Masterbuilt to the food? On mine, there is no way for the fire to enter the cooking chamber, so it’s never a direct cook. How hot have people gotten the Masterbuilt Gf’s up to?

Some people talk about cranking them up to 700*. Just me, but I think that's how ya shorten the life of these things. They are not heavily built. I would not leave it at 600 or above for very long. Maybe a few minutes to cook a pizza, but that's about it , for me. Although, I've never done that.



There's not a direct opening between the " firebox " and the cook chamber. Heat goes into a manifold. If ya go that link for the cover , you can get an idea of the shape. Its sort've like a house. Heat comes out both sides.


But flames can shoot into the manifold depending upon amount of wood in the ash bin, that's not uncommon at 500* + temps. Ya can get an open flame in the ash bin. But IMO, these are not built for the high heat of open flame.


You can get embers from lit coals/wood enter the cook chamber. Which if they come in contact with a grease puddle ......... flames.



These are not direct heat grills. They use indirect heat. They have a cast iron lower grate, which if ya get it heated up will sear and provide grill marks.


Grease management is a problem, its not a deal killer, but at higher heats there's gonna be flare ups if not grease fires. I'm still not sure about having a drip pan setting on top of the manifold, it might get hot enough to ignite the grease in the pan.


I think the Char-Grillers have a better grease management design.

 

[Tontotom]

I have an 800 for grilling and smoking. I really like it and the flavor of my cooks. Chicken and Pizza are outstanding. Still use my Recteq 340 and Weber gasser for different cooks.

 

[onemanlan]

I used to use mine as a primary smoker & grill when I was away from the other 2 in my sig. Now that I'm back home with access to all I've used it less. Specifically for short grilling jobs & use the Weber + SnS. The charcoal consumption is lower & the start up is quicker. That said I still use the 560 for smoking & reverse searing when my Battle Box IVS is too much trouble to get started or for shorter cooks. In general it lacks the efficiency of either of my alternative grills. It does however put a good bit more smoke on the food than the IVS if I'm around to feed it chunks into the ash-bin. Again less efficient on that, but better smoke flavor on the food.

If I were doing a brisket I'd consider doing it on the MB 560, but probably settle on the IVS for ease of use. If I had the whole day to kick around I might consider the MB 560 for the job. For smoked and seared steak? MB 560 all day. If I had fish to smoke I would do it on the 560 to avoid tainting my BB with fish odors.

I think it's a better smoker than it is a grill. It can function well doing both, but dear lord don't go from smoking jobs to searing jobs without expecting a potential grease fire.

 

[Fishwater2002]

I have a 1050 but have only used it a handful of times because I bought a Weber Summit Kamado less than a month after purchasing the 1050. Honestly I wish I would have just bought the Summit first then I wouldn’t have had any desire for something else. I’m at a crossroads of probably selling the 1050, keeping the Summit & bringing my old Camp Chef pellet pooper back into the rotation when I want to do an overnight smoke.

 

[jkief]

I have the 1050. It’s a great smoker low heat or high. If you’re looking for the charcoal fire to kiss your food, it’s definitely not the one you want to get. I did a prime rib on mine the other night and it came out amazing. Even at high temps, you still get that charcoal flavor. No fire though.