Pellet pooper?

[Whitewookie]

I’m thinking of adding a small smoker to the Arsenal. Was leaning toward a WSM. Now thinking about a pellet smoker.

Treager is a little spendy. Thinking of a Pit Boss.

This is just gonna be an occasional use smoker. Maybe once a month at most.

Opinions?

VR,
Harold


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[jgbmgb]

Check out the Rec Tec Trailblazer. They have an awesome wifi controller along with some of the best customer service anywhere. We have 2 of them and love them. Super simple to use.

 

[Whitewookie]

Thanks... I will. I have zero knowledge of pellet smokers, so every tip helps.

VR,
Harold


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[jakel]

Rec Tecs are good , Yoder-480 or 640 are excellent with great service also but pricey. Love my YS-480 but wish I had gone with the 640..

 

[Shagbark]

I think once you get a pellet grill it will be more than a once a month cook on it. They are so convenient to use and produce some excellent que.

My suggestion is whatever make you choose go at least one size bigger than what you think you need.
There will many times that extra space will come in handy. Besides that, I believe a smoker provides better results when it is not loaded to the max.

 

[Joshw]

Check out the Rec Tec Trailblazer. They have an awesome wifi controller along with some of the best customer service anywhere. We have 2 of them and love them. Super simple to use.

That's funny. When I was shopping for a pellet grill I ran across a video of the two co-founders talking about what to look for in a pellet grill, and they made fun of the other grills with wifi controllers, and said they would never make one. That was less than a year ago. This video is the main reason I didn't buy a Rec-Tec. I just didn't trust them after this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0q2hnhh5HA

 

[patrickd26]

I think once you get a pellet grill it will be more than a once a month cook on it. They are so convenient to use and produce some excellent que.

My suggestion is whatever make you choose go at least one size bigger than what you think you need.
There will many times that extra space will come in handy. Besides that, I believe a smoker provides better results when it is not loaded to the max.

I couldn't have said it any better. Plan to love it and you'll put it into rotation more than you think.

 

[sleebus.jones]

Green Mountain Grills is another good one. Love mine, and they get used a lot!

 

[lkissell]

Another vote for Rec Tec. I have the mini, which is the predecessor to the Trailblazer. It has been great! I use it much more than I anticipated.

 

[Whitewookie]

Thanks for all the info guys. All very useful.

I will say the wife wasn’t in agreement when she heard “buy more than you need”...

Gonna do more research, looking at this as an early (Think September) Christmas present to myself.

VR,
Harold


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[OklaDustDevil]

I suggest the Mak 1-star, as IMHO it has the best controller.

 

[Richard_]

What's your budget , search Craigslist and find a nice used one for fraction of the cost of a new one !

 

[Richard_]

https://jacksonville.craigslist.org/app/d/traeger-lil-tex-elite-22/6565356411.html Here's a good deal on a clean looking used Traeger ! You could probably get it for about $300.00 , for the price of this one , if you decide it's not for you , you could easily sell it for what you paid !

 

[ewatts2003]

I have a Traeger Texas and a UDS with a pellet pro hopper and love them both. But if I was in the market for a new pellet grill today I would go with a Blazn.

 

[bschoen]

That's funny. When I was shopping for a pellet grill I ran across a video of the two co-founders talking about what to look for in a pellet grill, and they made fun of the other grills with wifi controllers, and said they would never make one. That was less than a year ago. This video is the main reason I didn't buy a Rec-Tec. I just didn't trust them after this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0q2hnhh5HA

After watching those two guys, I wouldn't buy a match from them. That whole schpeel was nothing but marketing bullchit. I come from an engineering background, those guys grew up in marketing.

I am not saying that the rec-tec is not a fine cooker, it may well be. I just don't like hucksters, and those guys are hucksters. They could do well as politicians.

Their first point regarding a PID algorithm gave them away, but further down the line, their comments about metal thickness, heat sinking and being more efficient with thin metal just about made my head explode.

 

[greenmountainsmoke]

Just got a GMG Daniel Boone a few weeks ago and love it. Easy to use for longer cooks, but especially great for above average weeknight cooks. Highly recommend it.

 

[jgbmgb]

That's funny. When I was shopping for a pellet grill I ran across a video of the two co-founders talking about what to look for in a pellet grill, and they made fun of the other grills with wifi controllers, and said they would never make one. That was less than a year ago. This video is the main reason I didn't buy a Rec-Tec. I just didn't trust them after this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0q2hnhh5HA

That vid was (4) years ago. No one had a good wifi controller back then. You should look at more of their vids in more recent years and check out all the their high reviews not only for their grills but also their phenomenal customer service. Their larger model carries a 6 year warranty, hard to beat.

 

[jgbmgb]

After watching those two guys, I wouldn't buy a match from them. That whole schpeel was nothing but marketing bullchit. I come from an engineering background, those guys grew up in marketing.

I am not saying that the rec-tec is not a fine cooker, it may well be. I just don't like hucksters, and those guys are hucksters. They could do well as politicians.

Their first point regarding a PID algorithm gave them away, but further down the line, their comments about metal thickness, heat sinking and being more efficient with thin metal just about made my head explode.

I see you are in Ga. You should take a drive to Augusta and visit their headquarters and store. Been there several times. Everyone including the two owners on that video are super nice, down to earth guys.

We had our 1st Gen Rec Tec for around 3 years when our dog decided he wanted to chew up all the wires and harness under the grill. Made a call to Rec Tec to purchase what I needed to fix and before I got off the phone I had a shipping confirmation for all new wiring harnesses and a new blower motor! NO CHARGE for any of the parts or shipping!! The guys laughed about it with me and just said, no problem we'll take care of you. And after 3 years of use! Cant ask for better than that.

 

[Joshw]

That vid was (4) years ago. No one had a good wifi controller back then. You should look at more of their vids in more recent years and check out all the their high reviews not only for their grills but also their phenomenal customer service. Their larger model carries a 6 year warranty, hard to beat.

I don't need to watch their videos, I believe that they make a good pellet grill. I believe they did when this video was made. I came extremely close to buying one. I was merely pointing out the hypocrisy, that they now make a wifi controller, after saying that they would never make one, and that it was just a gimick. There were many other things in that video that I found very off putting. Like our metal is just the right thickness. If you get another grill, it will be either too thin, or too thick. We know exactly the perfect thickness to make our grill. Obviously trying to sway people from Yoder. Their comment about you don't need different heat zones. Obviously trying to sway people from cookshack. If you have a damper, that means they can't control their heat. Also trying to sway people from Yoder.

That type of marketing doesn't sit well with me, and it cost them a customer. Maybe some people don't find it offensive, and that is great, but I feel that companies should try to sell their product, not try to bash others. Especially when they make up completely false statements, like it will burn 20lbs of pellets in 4 hours. I know they didn't mention any names, but they made it pretty obvious what the point of the video was. Now 4 years later, they are proving they are hipocrites, by selling something that they once said was ridiculous. I bet if I did watch a new video, they would be going on and on about if you don't have wifi, it is junk.

 

[Whitewookie]

I honestly didn’t realize that there were this many different pellet rigs... Also had no idea there was any controversy attached. Learning a bunch.

Quick question. Do the WiFi controllers on these units only monitor, like the Weber iGrill units, or actually allow you to control the cook via WiFi?

Also, in answer to an earlier question,
my budget is ~$500.

VR,
Harold


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