Barbeque/Smoker Advice

[Clark Addison]

Seems to be a good number of folks from barbeque country around here, so I thought I'd throw this out.

I'm in the mood for homemade barbeque, and am looking at my options that don't require me to lay out a ton of money. Many people seem to like the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, which is basically a better version of the Brinkman bullets you see around quite a bit.
weber.jpg
http://www.amazon.com/Weber-2820-Smo...4956122&sr=8-1

My other option would be a simple offset smoker, along the lines of this.
offset.jpg
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...aiggoldwync-20

I don't know that the offset smokers in my price range would be any better than the Weber, other than it feels more authentic to me.

So what do you think? Any pit master here who can give me some guidance and allow me to stop making my pulled pork in an oven?

[MikeWaters]

I would get an electric one if I were you. You just add the wood bits for the smoke flavor.

Easier to regulate temperature, less work.

[jay santos]

You guys have me really jonesing for a smoker. I love to bbq but I need to add a smoker to the repertoire after reading some of the posts on smokers here the last year.

[ewth8tr]

Originally Posted by Clark Addison

Seems to be a good number of folks from barbeque country around here, so I thought I'd throw this out.

I'm in the mood for homemade barbeque, and am looking at my options that don't require me to lay out a ton of money. Many people seem to like the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, which is basically a better version of the Brinkman bullets you see around quite a bit.
Attachment 40
http://www.amazon.com/Weber-2820-Smo...4956122&sr=8-1

My other option would be a simple offset smoker, along the lines of this.
Attachment 39
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...aiggoldwync-20

I don't know that the offset smokers in my price range would be any better than the Weber, other than it feels more authentic to me.

So what do you think? Any pit master here who can give me some guidance and allow me to stop making my pulled pork in an oven?

This is the one that I have and I love it.
http://www.chargriller.com/shop/grills/smokin-pro.html

I bought it at Lowes. It's got a big cooking space and the grill is cast iron grates, so there is plenty of room.

[Goatnapper'96]

Originally Posted by Clark Addison

Seems to be a good number of folks from barbeque country around here, so I thought I'd throw this out.

I'm in the mood for homemade barbeque, and am looking at my options that don't require me to lay out a ton of money. Many people seem to like the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, which is basically a better version of the Brinkman bullets you see around quite a bit.
Attachment 40
http://www.amazon.com/Weber-2820-Smo...4956122&sr=8-1

My other option would be a simple offset smoker, along the lines of this.
Attachment 39
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...aiggoldwync-20

I don't know that the offset smokers in my price range would be any better than the Weber, other than it feels more authentic to me.

So what do you think? Any pit master here who can give me some guidance and allow me to stop making my pulled pork in an oven?

I have a Weber SMC and it is the bomb. I put on a 7 lb pork butt last night at 10:30 pm and that bad boy has held a decent 230-240 degree heat with only one vent about 25% open for 11 hours. I just went home to check on it and the fuel is about 1/2 used up. The one issue with it is that the water bowl is too small for cooking beyond 6-8 hours, so I did have to replenish the water this morning when I awoke. I highly, highly recommend it.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I had an electric smoker for years, but it went belly-up on me a couple of months ago. I bought this one to replace it:

http://www.amazon.com/Great-Outdoors...5205431&sr=1-1

I love the features (thermometer, temp dial, vents, easy access to racks, etc. I did a pork roast and some ribs and they came out just fine. But I did some chickens and they came out a little tough and dry. Perhaps I need to play with the temp settings. My old electric smoker was foolproof.

[jay santos]

Originally Posted by Jeff Lebowski

I had an electric smoker for years, but it went belly-up on me a couple of months ago. I bought this one to replace it:

http://www.amazon.com/Great-Outdoors...5205431&sr=1-1

I love the features (thermometer, temp dial, vents, easy access to racks, etc. I did a pork roast and some ribs and they came out just fine. But I did some chickens and they came out a little tough and dry. Perhaps I need to play with the temp settings. My old electric smoker was foolproof.

Jeff, are you still liking this smoker? I think I'm going to get one. Should I get electric or gas? I like the idea of putting it on Saturday night for a meal after church on Sunday.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Originally Posted by jay santos

Jeff, are you still liking this smoker? I think I'm going to get one. Should I get electric or gas? I like the idea of putting it on Saturday night for a meal after church on Sunday.

I like it and I have learned how to manage the temperature just fine. I like the size and the ease of access. But I am thinking I may want to go with one of the higher-end electric ones with a digital thermostat.

If you want to go with a propane smoker, I could make you a great deal on mine. Board mail me if interested. Still in pristine condition.

[Surfah]

You want something that is cheap and creates amazing meat, google trash can turkey or smoker.

We did this over Christmas. 15lb turkey cooked in an hour and a half. It was the best turkey ever. Moist and juicy. My father has used it to do brisket and ribs too. Ridiculously fast cook times.

There is a commercial product out there here: Orion Outdoors that can be bought at Home Depot for about $139.

Well worth it. My dad uses this over his couple hundred dollar offset smoker now.