Hi all, first post here.  I'll start with a quick rundown of my current setup, then talk about what I THINK I'm looking for, and then a bit of background.

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

Welcome to PH and to your soon to be pellet smoke addiction . If it were me, and my money, and I was working with your budget with the ability to “goose it if need be”... 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.  That’s my vote, but I am admittedly biased as a very happy MAK owner...lol. But I am telling you...it’s a smoking machine. I used to have one before selling/buying my 2 Star.

I like what the Camp Chef XXL has to offer but there is little information as far as reviews to be found online.  And, it has been out of stock since about October.  It was supposed to be in stock in Feb, then Mar, now June...something doesn't smell right to me.

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.

Weird, the XXL is not even on the Camp Chef website now.  They must have taken it down recently.  I wonder if they got tired of all of the questions on there asking when it will be back in stock.  There seems to be a lot of demand for that unit.  If they get it right, it could be a big seller.

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?

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 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

look into pitboss copperhead.  3 sizes and middle size is about $500.00

If it were me, and my money, and I was working with your budget with the ability to “goose it if need be”... 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

If it were me, and my money, and I was working with your budget with the ability to “goose it if need be”... 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.

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

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.


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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.

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.

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?

The 680 goes down to 180 but the new models have a different controller.  I'm not sure how low it will go.  The Lo setting runs it at the minimum feed rate.  Might be worth sending them an email. 

The 680 was replaced with the 700.

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