only got $1200-#1500

[bottomsupbbq]

Next year I plan on entering a few BBQ competitions in my local area. I atended my first comp. a few weeks ago and sampled ribs and pork but from most of the teams. WOW can these guy's cook!!! That said I like how my Q may potentally stack up and I am very excited to give competition Q a whirl next year. Here is my delima. I currently use a #7 kamodo to cook on at home and there isnt a chance in &$# that I am going to atempt to transport that 600 pound cooker. I only want to spend about 1200-1500 on a cooker for these events if possible. I am leaning towards buying a few WSM but would like to here from the Bretheren on how to spend my $$$ and get the most bang for my buck.

Thanks in advance to all that reply.

 

[big brother smoke]

Welp, I was thinking WSMs, before I fully read your post.
You can also check Craigslist for anything that may float your boat!

 

[WineMaster]

For $1000 you could get 2 18" & a 22 1/2" WSM

That would leave $200 - $700 worth of Meat Money

 

[jonboy]

i would watch craigslist over the winter. and the sales section here.
jon

 

[MilitantSquatter]

Given the budget and need to transport, a few WSM's are an ideal way to go..

 

[thull]

Renting a U-haul trailer is cheap. Like $20 a day or so. Plus about that in ratchet straps. Fortunately, I have a cousin with a toy hauler I can borrow. Now, I have no idea about the concern for cracking a Kamado. But I've loaded and hauled my 600-ish-pound Stump's a few times now. I'd take what you've got before investing the cash and time in learning to cook on something else.

 

[bocephus]

yeah I have a stumps clone that I guess to weigh around 800 lbs and lucky me I have access to a trailer. So weight is no big deal. I would say that if you like and are good with the cooker, spend some money to make it more mobile (rolling cart) and rent a uhaul. kinda makes sense to me... more money for food... but also having a new cooker is a great thing, I would imput that I love my stumps clone, and build a Bid ol' one for 1000

 

[bottomsupbbq]

Wsm

Sounds like the WSM is the way to go. I will most likely purchase a 18 inch first to play with before I buy multiple cookers. I am sure it will take some time to get used to but with the amount of people I see using these I cant imagine the learning curve being too long? One question I do have is does the WSM hold enough fuel to cook a Brisket or do you need to ad some to complete the cook? Looks to be bit of a pain if you need to ad water or fuel during the process. Any thoughts on this?

 

[MilitantSquatter]

Sounds like the WSM is the way to go. I will most likely purchase a 18 inch first to play with before I buy multiple cookers. I am sure it will take some time to get used to but with the amount of people I see using these I cant imagine the learning curve being too long? One question I do have is does the WSM hold enough fuel to cook a Brisket or do you need to ad some to complete the cook? Looks to be bit of a pain if you need to ad water or fuel during the process. Any thoughts on this?

90% of the time a full load will cover you for a long/overnight cook.. desired cooking temp/ outdoor temp/water in pan/meat load can be the variables.

typically, when I was using the 18" WSM's, I ran them without water and could get full runs at 240-250 with a brisket or butt on each rack. If you need to add a bit of fuel it's really not that big a deal and can be done in two minutes.

not sure of the efficiency of the new 22" WSM's as I have never cooked on them yet.