I thought it would be a good idea to list the problems you have encountered with your pit(s)..The purpose is NOT to single out any one manufacturer but enlighten a person wanting to upgrade, get out of a problem area with an existing pit ,or a new person seeking help in making an informed decision.

 Some examples to list would be; maintenance,rusting metal, grease leaks, temperature control,mobiliity,ease of operation,dealer/factory support,cold weather operation. Any thing you deem as a problem or bothersome.

 Problems that have been rectified by the manufacturer may be listed stating so.

 Good attributes should be listed as well.

When working hard I sweat profusely.That is a problem.   

Now as far as my smoker, RTD's are the most common failure. Either allowing the temp to get to high or not cleaning makes this risk higher. I keep a spare on hand. Nothing worse than the er1 code on mine and cannot get the smoker to run when you are planning feeding family.
Merry Christmas Everyone.
MK

After purchasing an early edition of MAK II Star (2010), I felt that the areas of the pit that were powder coated were of less than good quality. Most of these areas did not hold up well at all and were subjected to peeling.

Since that time, MAK has changed the current line of the II Star and most of those areas are now stainless steel rather than powder coated. Very needed change. Great.

I also had difficulty with the igniter/glow plug. To me, the igniter was difficult to get at and the changing was a difficult project.
Now MAK installs their revolutionary "FlashFire" igniter with lifetime warranty. I have one now installed on my earlier edition MAK. Love it.

I have not had any issues with my Memphis Advantage.
I have managed to tip it over a few times (transporting it to another location), and it was rather cumbersome to right back up. But everything survived well.

Other than one auger feed log jam, the only other problem I've had is a combustion fan.   One call to GMG and he diagnosed the problem in about 20 seconds of explanation and my ramblings.   Took longer for me to get down on my back and up again than the actual swap.   Going on 4 years of smoking now.

I had a bit of minor smoke leaks around my YS640 door.  Put Nomex high temp gasket tape, fixed.  Thought I had a fan going bad, they shipped new fans, and high temp gasket goop tube to replace them, but never replaced any fans.  Only made that odd noise once though, that was over 3 years ago.  I have the tiniest rust on a steel allen bolt that holds the door hinge.  Not really rust.  Never spreads.  I do have a spare thermocouple and igniter in case I ever need it.

Soo....   No Yoder problems at all, had for 3+ years now. 

My Cookshack Fast Eddy PG500 was the best choice for what I visualized as my needs about six years ago.  It’s such an excellent pit that a couple of small design errors nag me.

• It’s extremely difficult for me to move—even a short distance.  It came with wheels on the left side and plain legs on the right.  I have difficulty lifting the right (lighter) side to wheel it.  Castors are available for the right side but it makes the pit unleveled from right to left.
• Two pushbutton switches perform several functions depending on whether one is pressed or both are pressed simultaneously and held pressed for varying time periods.  A slight release in pressure during a “Hold for five seconds” operation performs an entirely different function than that which was planned.  The small increase in component cost would be welcome if the multifunction buttons were replaced with conventional single-function buttons.

Having said that, I tolerate the PG500’s quirks because, in the larger view, it’s a great pit.

My Cookshack Fast Eddy PG500 was the best choice for what I visualized as my needs about six years ago.  It’s such an excellent pit that a couple of small design errors nag me.

• It’s extremely difficult for me to move—even a short distance.  It came with wheels on the left side and plain legs on the right.  I have difficulty lifting the right (lighter) side to wheel it.  Castors are available for the right side but it makes the pit unleveled from right to left.

We were given an old Traeger last year and I had the same issue. I found some casters on e-bay that would fit inside the square tubing of the plain legs and then just measured for the extra height and cut the legs off enough to keep the pit level. It has made it much easier to move around the yard.

If the legs on your pit are square tubing this might be an option.[/list]

Had to replace the hot rod this spring, only issue I have had in 6 years with my Memphis Pro

Had to replace the hot rod this spring, only issue I have had in 6 years with my Memphis Pro

Not fair . . . not fair, at all. 

I have a small leak inside the pit where the grease is funneled into the grease trap. From reading other MAK 2-Star owners comments it seems to be an issue with very few units. It doesn't cause an issue as I clean it before each cook, nor is it bad enough to cause me to worry about grease fires while it is running.

I had a phantom flame out while I was smoking the Thanksgiving turkey . . . still trying to figure that one out. Other than that, no worries!

Blaz'n Grand Slam has been absolutely trouble free!! Very happy with the grill.

My Blaz'n Grand Slam has also been perfect. No problems whatsoever.

One of the best purchases I've made.

The only negative is the weight gain from eating so much good BBQ!

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I had a Flame Zone grease leak on my new (2017) MAK 2 Star where I actually had enough grease leaking into the belly of the cooker to the point it was exiting the cooker and running down the lower side wall.  Worked closely with MAK, discovered the issue and MAK was very quick to remedy it. Super happy camper with absolutely no other issues.