John Redcorn
Is lookin for wood to cook with.
I saw the previous thread but was unable to reply as it was too old.
First post here, longtime lurker.
I have been using an New Braunfels Bandera for 10-12 years. As much as I liked the thing, it was literally a pile of rust with holes in all the wrong places so had to be put down.
I have been in the market for something better than a $200 charbroil, but also was not interested in spending 2k on a custom pit. So, after looking around I found the Old Country Over Under at Academy. I did some research here and found mostly positive reviews so I pulled the trigger.
I seasoned it up this weekend and then cooked some ribs and chicken. Worked well for my first go round, so far so good. I know the build quality was questionable on some of these pits, but I inspected mine closely and it seems decent, especially considering the price.
On my seasoning fire, I used quite a bit of coals. It got up to 300 quickly and remained in that range for 3-4 hours with minimal intervention. I added one large log and it lasted the entire time I seasoned.
However, when I went to cook on it the next day, my plan was to use less coals and wood to keep the temp more in the traditional 225 range. This was not a good idea as the pit really struggled to get to temperature without a large amount of coals / wood. In the future, I will load it up and have more fuel and use the dampers to bring down the heat if needed. I believe that the size of the firebox and chamber requires a bit more fuel than I was accustomed to using.
Live and learn, looking forward to honing it in on future smokes.
One thing to look out for is there are sharp edges in the firebox and chamber. When cleaning or seasoning, real easy to get stitches if not careful.
First post here, longtime lurker.
I have been using an New Braunfels Bandera for 10-12 years. As much as I liked the thing, it was literally a pile of rust with holes in all the wrong places so had to be put down.
I have been in the market for something better than a $200 charbroil, but also was not interested in spending 2k on a custom pit. So, after looking around I found the Old Country Over Under at Academy. I did some research here and found mostly positive reviews so I pulled the trigger.
I seasoned it up this weekend and then cooked some ribs and chicken. Worked well for my first go round, so far so good. I know the build quality was questionable on some of these pits, but I inspected mine closely and it seems decent, especially considering the price.
On my seasoning fire, I used quite a bit of coals. It got up to 300 quickly and remained in that range for 3-4 hours with minimal intervention. I added one large log and it lasted the entire time I seasoned.
However, when I went to cook on it the next day, my plan was to use less coals and wood to keep the temp more in the traditional 225 range. This was not a good idea as the pit really struggled to get to temperature without a large amount of coals / wood. In the future, I will load it up and have more fuel and use the dampers to bring down the heat if needed. I believe that the size of the firebox and chamber requires a bit more fuel than I was accustomed to using.
Live and learn, looking forward to honing it in on future smokes.
One thing to look out for is there are sharp edges in the firebox and chamber. When cleaning or seasoning, real easy to get stitches if not careful.
