# Might be looking to buy a new smoker



## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

So we had some serious wind gusts here in Salt Lake the other day. Not good for my backyard.










I'm really glad it didn't damage the garage, or any good cars. What a mess. One thing that may or may not be damaged is my old offset barrel smoker.










I won't really be able assess its condition until the professional tree guys get that huge thing out of here. I was planning on giving it a good refurbish this summer, but if it is bent and busted might just go with a new one.

So, same style? Or something like a Traeger pellet smoker? Perhaps an upright type like the Weber Smoky Mountain?

What I did like about the old offset was its versatility. Build a fire in the firebox, hot smoke food in the barrel. Room for a lot of food in there. Or you could fire up some charcoal in one half of the barrel for indirect cooking something placed in the other side. And of course, direct heat grilling was an option as well. And putting an electric hot plate in the firebox, keeping some wood chunks at a slow smolder allowed for cold smoking in the barrel. That last batch of stilton and Tillamook cheddar I did were a couple of really tasty things.

Anyway, I'll be browsing the web looking at various options. Any opinions on what to look for or be wary of?

mjb.


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## sgsvirgil (Mar 1, 2017)

Whatever you do, keep the wood!


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I like my Traeger but it lacks some versatility.

I Like the hands off nature of the cook though. Set a temp, it holds it pretty well for barbecue temps. Mine struggles for higher temps and recovery time is up to 30 minutes above about 350. Weather impacts that too of course. 

They say it should get hot enough to grill but mine refuses to.

The burn system burns hot--not that the smoker gets hot, but that it's a bit low on smoke production. So a pellet smoker tube is a good addition. Then you can cold smoke as well, assuming the weather supports it being cold. 

Being a cheapskate, I burn Walmart Pit Boss brand pellets as fuel and put high grade pellets in the smoker tube. It's a bit higher ash production than the recommended pellets. But it seems to work fine otherwise. But could be a violation as far as warranty work goes.

You have to keep your pellets DRY or the feed auger will jam. Unless you empty out the feed auger and the supply box EVERY time, you shouldn't store it exposed to the elements in my opinion. Some versions include an emptying port on the feed hopper to make emptying it easy. Mine does. Otherwise you're scooping by hand. Mine lives in my garage and I wheel it out onto the driveway as needed. It does require electrical power to run the auger and fan driven burner. Not much power draw needed though.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

sgsvirgil said:


> Whatever you do, keep the wood!


I don't think boxelder is a very good choice for smoking food. Too bad it wasn't a hickory tree!

mjb.


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## butzy (Jan 8, 2010)

It will still make a nice fire ;(

You are going to get lots of opinions about smokers. I use the small WSM because it is big enough for me and I can take it with me on holidays etc. Very often, I just use tthe bottom section for grilling.
If you cook for more tgan 4-5 people, it will be too small.
I would recommend checking meathead's website: Amaxing ribs, for some extra info.
I think I would go for something similar to what you had


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

Looks like I was mistaken about smoking with boxelder:

"Silver maple, red maple, and *boxelder* are called soft maple. These maples make for excellent *smoking* and cooking *woods* producing beautiful even coloring and a moderate flavor level."

mjb.


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## sgsvirgil (Mar 1, 2017)

teamfat said:


> I don't think boxelder is a very good choice for smoking food. Too bad it wasn't a hickory tree!
> 
> mjb.


Au contraire mon frere'. Boxelder is a considered a soft maple and excellent for cooking and smoking. They produce a moderate smoke flavor that some call "slightly sweet." Not quite as sweet as hickory but, on a similar scale as applewood.

The gods of grilling have tossed a peach into your lap, my friend.


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## sgsvirgil (Mar 1, 2017)

Ha! I wrote that without reading your second post first. :lol:


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## millionsknives (Apr 25, 2014)

If I'm cooking a smaller amount of food I love my big steel keg kamado but I think if you're getting a smoker you want the option to feed a crowd.

I really like my pit barrel cooker. https://pitbarrelcooker.com/

It burns a lot of coal compared to my kamado, but you can save them by killing the air in ash bucket. It's portable (40 lbs?) and if you take out the hot coals it cools down immediately for transport (matters to me I do events). The capacity is great. I can do 8 racks of ribs or 4 racks, some corn and sausage. I fit two turkeys in there on thanksgiving. And the fact that you're hanging meat makes it great for peking duck.

Very similar but comes with more accessories on the base price is oklahoma joe's bronco drum. You can see them at walmart and lowes. I haven't used one pesonally but it gets good reviews on bbq brethren and when I saw it in store the build quality seems pretty good. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Oklahoma-J...-in-Black-Charcoal-Vertical-Smoker/1000713122


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## arevi (4 mo ago)

Sorry for you loss, probably it will a medium level danger to your life. Don't be panic, Your God will help you. So be patience and do more work to recover the accident. Please keep the trees wood and plant more trees.


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