Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 04:24:52 PM
Currently, I use a Masterbuilt electric smoker that is being used for heat only, I get my smoke from an Amaze-N-Pellet Smoker and I absolutely love the results - no more feeding chips every 45 minutes, I can smoke overnight if I need to, and the smoker itself is insulated so I can smoke year-round.
I'm looking to take that sort of setup to the next level. This pellet thing is freaking great, so I'm definitely posting in the right place, that's a hard requirement. I like the form factor I have versus the offset grill-esque smokers as it takes up less room and it seems bloody difficult to get much real-estate in an offset without spending numerous multiples of my budget - that said, if one exists that meets my needs and budget I'm open. I need to be able to smoke year-round in southern Michigan, so if it's not insulated itself I should be able to reasonably insulate it on my own (I'm not terribly handy, but I am enthusiastic) or it should be sufficiently beefy as to render such unnecessary. I'd like one that can go down to ~150 degrees so that I can make jerky, but if that's not possible it's not necessarily a deal-breaker. I don't need it to be able to get anywhere near grilling temps, as I am going to be using this exclusively for smoking delicious, delicious meats - I have a serviceable grill already.
My budget is about $1500, but I don't mind goosing it a bit if need be.
I've been looking at the Camp Chef Smokepro XXL (which their support people tell me not to expect available until late May at the earliest) because it's huge, has the temperature range I want, and the manufacturer makes an optional insulated cover (magnetically-attached no less!) for winter smoking. The whole not-available-until-functionally-June thing is killing me though. Can anyone help point me at devices that are similar? I couldn't find anything comparable at under like $3000.
About me: My day job is IT, I own an online collectibles business, and I have a wife and two little boys. My youngest son has a rare autoimmune disease that means he has a boatload of food allergies - but he LOVES meat. So, a few years ago I bought my Masterbuilt and learned how to smoke. These days, I'm still learning, but I make an amazing pulled pork that wins departmental pot-luck contests at the office, but I still can't quite get brisket to turn out. I love to make barbecue, and will regularly have 30 pounds going in the wee smoker I have. If y'all could help me get the equipment I need to keep my game going, I'd greatly appreciate it.
Thanks in advance,
Jamey
Post by: rwalters on March 03, 2018, 04:55:18 PM
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 03, 2018, 05:25:24 PM
I have a Memphis Elite, MAK 2 Star, Traeger XL, and Blazin Grand Slam; and that Camp Chef interested me for jerky due to its low temps. The MAK runs in the 160°-170° range on smoke. Memphis goes down to 180°. I make jerky on both but need to pay close attention to it and can only get 4-6 pounds of meat done at a time for jerky on either unit. I am not sure how low my other two grills will go but doubt they would get as low as 150°.
You may want to look into a Pit Boss vertical unit. Buy the least expensive one to try it. If you like it, then buy their biggest one. It is similar to the Camp Chef, but I think the Camp Chef has a better adjustable rack configuration from what I have seen.
In fact, I have the Camp Chef XXL saved in my Amazon wish list hoping it gets back in stock and I start to see some good reviews. I may pull the trigger on it as my next smoker exclusively for jerky.
Let us know what you end up doing, stick around here and share some of your cooks and recipes with us.
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 03, 2018, 05:35:02 PM
Post by: Bentley on March 03, 2018, 05:46:50 PM
Currently, I use a Masterbuilt electric smoker that is being used for heat only, I get my smoke from an Amaze-N-Pellet Smoker and I absolutely love the results - no more feeding chips every 45 minutes, I can smoke overnight if I need to, and the smoker itself is insulated so I can smoke year-round.
I'm looking to take that sort of setup to the next level. This pellet thing is freaking great, so I'm definitely posting in the right place, that's a hard requirement.
Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 06:16:32 PM
I have nothing to sell, so I guess it is easy for me to ask this! Why change? You love your current results, and I really am not trying to be a Richard. I do not know this Masterbuilt, is it a size issue? Again asking...what is the next level?
That is a great question! I'm finding that the size of the Masterbuilt is the primary issue, but I also would rather something that is more a turn-key solution than what I currently use. Starting the AMNPS and keeping it lit is also a bit of a PITA, and while I've got the hang of it the difficulty means that my beautiful wife can't easily smoke, and she likes to do so. What I've got is very nearly as set-and-forget as I'd like, but that startup and the size are the killers.
As an aside, I got the smoker I did because it was provided an inexpensive platform to learn and get the hang of it to find out if this would work for my son and I - if it did, great, I could upgrade later, and if not my expenditure wasn't very high. It's later, and it works for my family, so it's time to make a real investment in real equipment. I'm a firm believer in purchasing quality tools and equipment, so that's what I aim to do here.
Plus, once I've upgraded I plan to sell my old smoker to a coworker who is looking to get started - sort of pass it along.
Jamey
Post by: wilpark on March 03, 2018, 06:31:48 PM
Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 06:40:06 PM
If it were me, and my money, and I was working with your budget with the ability to “goose it if need beâ€... and I wanted a SOLID performing smoker that pretty much can’t be worn out, there is no question in my mind that I’d pick a MAK 1 Star with a full upper grate. That’ll give you 858 sq†of cooking space, enough for 8 butts 2 MONSTER briskets or 4 medium briskets.
Thanks for the recommendation. My current Masterbuilt has 730 square inches of space, and I'm finding that restrictive more often than I'd like. I'd have to blow my budget completely out of the water to purchase a MAK and get a significant capacity upgrade. That said, those that have them do seem inclined to recommend them frequently and heartily, so I'm sure they're amazing devices.
Jamey
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 03, 2018, 06:42:47 PM
If it were me, and my money, and I was working with your budget with the ability to “goose it if need beâ€... and I wanted a SOLID performing smoker that pretty much can’t be worn out, there is no question in my mind that I’d pick a MAK 1 Star with a full upper grate. That’ll give you 858 sq†of cooking space, enough for 8 butts 2 MONSTER briskets or 4 medium briskets.
Thanks for the recommendation. My current Masterbuilt has 730 square inches of space, and I'm finding that restrictive more often than I'd like. I'd have to blow my budget completely out of the water to purchase a MAK and get a significant capacity upgrade. That said, those that have them do seem inclined to recommend them frequently and heartily, so I'm sure they're amazing devices.
Jamey
I don't think you will get near the vertical cooking space you are looking for with a MAK from a guy that owns one. I think I can only go one more jerky rack higher than this and I am not 100% sure about that.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4355/35997615843_54bbdca3e3_c.jpg)
Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 07:03:09 PM
You may want to look into a Pit Boss vertical unit. Buy the least expensive one to try it. If you like it, then buy their biggest one. It is similar to the Camp Chef, but I think the Camp Chef has a better adjustable rack configuration from what I have seen.
Let us know what you end up doing, stick around here and share some of your cooks and recipes with us.
Thanks for the tip, I hadn't seen those before. They look sort of like what I'm looking for, but without the insulation. They might make a nice alternative to the Smokepro XXL if it doesn't come back on the market for some reason.
My recipes are probably going to be a bit weird - my son's allergies dictate a lot of my ingredient decisions. Here's one I like though - if you're making a rub that calls for a substantial amount of seasoned salt, try Old Bay instead. I've used it on my own pork and the results were fabulous, but it's probably pretty great on old things too. I've actually had to gin up a recipe for homemade Old Bay as the stuff you buy in the grocery store contains something my son is allergic to, but the result is equivalent.
Jamey
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 03, 2018, 07:49:21 PM
Another option is to Get a Mak 1 Star or Camp chef woodwind with sear box and then spend $200 on an Excalibur dehydrator for jerky and call it good. The Mak should be more than enough capacity for your bbq food for your size family, and even though I’ve owned big offset smokers, gravity feed cabinets, ceramics, yoder pellet cooker and now a Memphis...I know I make better venison jerky on my Excalibur than any of the cookers I have owned/own.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Interesting because I was disappointed in the jerky in the dehydrator without the smoke flavor profile. Like I said in another thread, I think I am going to make a batch in the smoker when it warms up and smoke for 2 hours and then put into the dehydrator to finish. What temp do you set your dehydrator to for jerky. The batch I did was set to 160° but it never went above 140° on the display as my garage was in the 40's. I have a Cabela's 12 tray pro series dehydrator that I got for $160 during their holiday season sales.
Post by: Ross77 on March 03, 2018, 09:48:58 PM
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 03, 2018, 09:58:12 PM
Have you considered the RecTec 680 or 700 with a 2nd shelf? The main cooking area is 702 sq in. The optional second shelf adds 352 sq in.
does it hit a low temp of 150?
Post by: Ross77 on March 03, 2018, 10:14:45 PM
The 680 was replaced with the 700.
Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 11:23:03 PM
Have you considered the RecTec 680 or 700 with a 2nd shelf? The main cooking area is 702 sq in. The optional second shelf adds 352 sq in.
I hadn't, but that could potentially work. It's not exactly what I'm after, but I'll consider it - thanks for the recommendation!
Jamey
Post by: Jamey on March 03, 2018, 11:24:25 PM
Have you considered the RecTec 680 or 700 with a 2nd shelf? The main cooking area is 702 sq in. The optional second shelf adds 352 sq in.
does it hit a low temp of 150?
Good point - I just looked, and it quotes its temperature range at 200-500 degrees. That's not necessarily a deal-breaker, but I'm going to keep looking for now for sure.
Jamey
Post by: Ross77 on March 03, 2018, 11:25:28 PM
Post by: Mrhdvrod on March 04, 2018, 09:54:09 AM
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 04, 2018, 09:56:56 AM
Have you tried pans of ice to drop the temps?
I don't think that will work for an extended period of time over direct heat. It seems to work for some in an indirect heat area where there is some sort of separate chamber from the heat source.
Post by: SJeP on March 05, 2018, 04:00:48 PM
Like you, I started on a Masterbuilt electric smoker with an Amazen pellet maze/tube. It made good food and allowed me to find a new hobby.
I jumped into the pellet game last summer with a Blaz'n Grillworks Grand Slam. It does everything the MEB did, only better!
One advantage of a horizontal type smoker geometry that I didn't realize until I got the GS is the ease of accessing the meat. It is much easier to open a lid and have full access to the meat. You just can't get that with a vertical type smoker. Makes loading, turning, spritzing, and saucing things much easier.
I only have experience with my GS pellet grill, so I can't compare it to any others. It's in your price range and can be equipped with an insulated lid and additional shelves. But there are many grills on the market that have the features you want. So the research you are doing will pay dividends.
Good luck and be sure to let us know what you decided on.
Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
Post by: Bentley on March 05, 2018, 11:15:27 PM
One advantage of a horizontal type smoker geometry that I didn't realize until I got the GS is the ease of accessing the meat. It is much easier to open a lid and have full access to the meat. You just can't get that with a vertical type smoker. Makes loading, turning, spritzing, and saucing things much easier.
(https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/f8178603-96c5-4f30-9321-7b34186c8772_1.f857b010610d0d5e895ab7e6bc131da1.jpeg?odnHeight=450&odnWidth=450&odnBg=FFFFFF)
Post by: Lantern on March 06, 2018, 05:49:28 AM
Best part... I see it's $699 with free shipping.
Post by: SJeP on March 06, 2018, 07:00:00 AM
Not trying to be funny here...what am I missing?In a vertical smoker with meat on all the racks (which often happens because of the small rack size) you can only see the front edge of the meat when you open the door. To check for even cooking, to spritz it or sauce it you have to pull the racks out. Then you are spritzing or saucing with nothing under the meat to catch the overspray and drips.One advantage of a horizontal type smoker geometry that I didn't realize until I got the GS is the ease of accessing the meat. It is much easier to open a lid and have full access to the meat. You just can't get that with a vertical type smoker. Makes loading, turning, spritzing, and saucing things much easier.
(https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/f8178603-96c5-4f30-9321-7b34186c8772_1.f857b010610d0d5e895ab7e6bc131da1.jpeg?odnHeight=450&odnWidth=450&odnBg=FFFFFF)
Not to mention the possibility of pulling a rack out too far and have meat on my deck. Yes, I've done that
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Post by: Bentley on March 06, 2018, 11:00:44 AM
In a vertical smoker with meat on all the racks (which often happens because of the small rack size) you can only see the front edge of the meat when you open the door. To check for even cooking, to spritz it or sauce it you have to pull the racks out. Then you are spritzing or saucing with nothing under the meat to catch the overspray and drips.
Post by: bregent on March 06, 2018, 04:06:37 PM
Post by: Jamey on March 09, 2018, 07:50:18 PM
Sorry if I missed this in one of the replies, but if you really want a vertical smoker, have you looked at the Masterbuilt XL / Elite pellet smoker?
I did - the ease of use and build quality issues I'm seeing reported by multiple users have turned me off, otherwise it was on the short-list. It looks like there aren't a ton of manufacturers making vertical pellet smokers, especially sizable ones. For now I'm leaning towards waiting for the SmokePro XXL to return to the market or going with the Copperhead, slight edge (mainly related to temperature range) going to the XXL.
Jamey
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 09, 2018, 09:11:12 PM
Sorry if I missed this in one of the replies, but if you really want a vertical smoker, have you looked at the Masterbuilt XL / Elite pellet smoker?
I did - the ease of use and build quality issues I'm seeing reported by multiple users have turned me off, otherwise it was on the short-list. It looks like there aren't a ton of manufacturers making vertical pellet smokers, especially sizable ones. For now I'm leaning towards waiting for the SmokePro XXL to return to the market or going with the Copperhead, slight edge (mainly related to temperature range) going to the XXL.
Jamey
I think you are spot on for your needs based on what we know so far about those grills. You should consider going in the $10 raffle for the Copperhead that starts soon here.
Post by: Jamey on March 10, 2018, 03:48:51 PM
Jamey
Post by: Bentley on March 10, 2018, 03:50:49 PM
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on March 10, 2018, 04:22:52 PM