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[Canadian John]

  As our pellet grills are so efficient at burning pellets, there is for the most part, little visible smoke at  higher temperatures. That is unless the pit has a smoke setting. The smoke setting is as far as I know is @

 the low end of the temperature range. The smoke produced can vary. Some pits are better than others @ producing good smoke.

 I was curious if anyone had tried placing wood chunks on the defuser. The defuser being the part that covers the fire pot and is under the drip tray. Some pits differ from this set-up. By doing this, there

 should be a continuous amount of additional smoke produced no matter what the controller is set to dependant on the size of the woo chunk(s).

 The space between the diffuser + the drip tray would dictate the max thickness of wood chunk(s) that could be used.

 Just thinking out loud!

[Bar-B-Lew]

I remember reading where a few people had tried this, but I do not recall the results so I suspect it was either for naught or not enough to interest me to try it.

[okie smokie]

Been there done that. My RT590 has a diffuser with a raised area around the top (I guess to discourage warping) that can accept small wood chunks.  I did that on one occasion, but did not notice much difference.  On setting of 170 to 220, my unit has an alternating fan and produces much smoke. So I really have no need for extra. Since it is really the "blue" smoke that gets the flavoring done, I think it is produced even at higher temps as well. Hard to see it but it is there.  Some of the old commercial pits produce so much mixed smoke that the Q is often over-loaded with smoke (creosote?) taste.  Not my favorite taste. My old Blaz'n GS did not produce as much as the RT.  I suspect it is a matter of how the algorithm for low slow is entered into the PID. They both had alternating fan action, but apparently not the same timing  ??

[rdsbucks]

I have been curious about the difference between pellet smoke vs. wood chunk smoke. As I understand it pellets are sawdust pressed together with some kind of binder that makes it a pellet. Obviously, sawdust comes from places that cut wood. The blade of a saw always burns some of the sawdust it creates. And I would guess that turning wood into sawdust has an effect on the wood. In my opinion, there is a different taste to pellet smoked meat vs. wood chunk smoked meat. Maybe you think it tastes the same, I don't know. But if there is a difference, is that difference caused by the binder, the impact of cutting the wood to make sawdust, or the burning of the wood caused by the blade? Or is it the pellet cooking process that makes it taste different? I must say I prefer the taste of wood from a stick burner but not enough to go back to a stick burner. But I am curious about why it tastes differently.

[Bar-B-Lew]

I think it has to do with the efficiency at which the wood pellets burn in a small fire that is controlled via timeliness of more wood and the addition of more consistent flow of air into a small space, but I'm not a scientist by any sense of the imagination.  From what I read somewhere, I believe the cleaner the burn the less likelihood of the creation of the things that create creosote creating what is perceived as a heavier smoke taste.

[02ebz06]

I have been curious about the difference between pellet smoke vs. wood chunk smoke. As I understand it pellets are sawdust pressed together with some kind of binder that makes it a pellet. Obviously, sawdust comes from places that cut wood. The blade of a saw always burns some of the sawdust it creates. And I would guess that turning wood into sawdust has an effect on the wood. In my opinion, there is a different taste to pellet smoked meat vs. wood chunk smoked meat. Maybe you think it tastes the same, I don't know. But if there is a difference, is that difference caused by the binder, the impact of cutting the wood to make sawdust, or the burning of the wood caused by the blade? Or is it the pellet cooking process that makes it taste different? I must say I prefer the taste of wood from a stick burner but not enough to go back to a stick burner. But I am curious about why it tastes differently.

Can't swear to it, but I don't think there are any binders used in the making of pellets, just high pressure.

A long time ago, I had a box with a cast iron box grate in it for smoking wood chunks. Used it in a gasser.
Don't  know if that is still made or not.
A lot of people, including myself, use smoke tubes or smoke boxes with pellets in them to add smoke.

[Canadian John]

 The " binder" is lignin. It is in the wood. Heat + pressure form the pellet and the lignin, woods natural binder, holds it together.

 Pellet pits are very efficient due to the fuel size being relatively uniform and a constant supply of forced air. Think blacksmith forge.

 Stick burners on the other hand have larger and irregular fuel shapes and the air supply is convection.

 Stick burners top my list for a best cook as well.

[pmillen]

Stick burners top my list for a best cook as well.

Stick burners with an attendant that has fire-tending skills make excellent BBQ.  My favorite, too, I think.  But that combination isn't fool proof.  Pellet pits offer consistency but a somewhat different flavor profile.

Here’s the background on the owner of a BBQ restaurant near my house–over 130 competitions and counting, 85 top 10 finishes, 22 Grand Championships in 9 different states, 7 Reserve Grand Championships, 2016 KCBS National Grand Champion – Team of the Year, 2016 KCBS National Ribs Champion, 2017 American Royal Open World Champion, 2017 American Royal Open Brisket Champion, 2017 King of the Smoker Grand Champion, 2017 King of the Smoker Brisket Champion, Multiple KCBS “700”s”, Multiple KCBS “180’s”, Multiple KCBS “Perfect – Perfect” Scores in Chicken, Ribs, Brisket and Pork, Pro Member of National BBQ League – NBBQL.

I had less that stellar pulled pork there last week.  It didn’t have smoke flavor at all.  I thought about suggesting that a pellet pit might require less attention while generating an unvarying product.  But, of course, I didn’t.  (I regularly see him in my favorite BBQ store.  He’s seen their pellet pits.)

[02ebz06]

 The " binder" is lignin. It is in the wood. Heat + pressure form the pellet and the lignin, woods natural binder, holds it together.

 Pellet pits are very efficient due to the fuel size being relatively uniform and a constant supply of forced air. Think blacksmith forge.

 Stick burners on the other hand have larger and irregular fuel shapes and the air supply is convection.

 Stick burners top my list for a best cook as well.

My bad, I wasn't clear, I meant "added" binders.

[rdsbucks]

Lew, Ebz, CJ, and PM...you all contributed to my education today, thank you.To me, there is just something about a stickburner that is hard to duplicate. But there is not enough upside to it to compensate for the ease and consistency of a pellet smoker, which still makes some delicious, smoky food.

[02ebz06]

Not the one I had years ago, but it is for large chunks of wood.
I might have to get one of these, got plenty of oak for pizza oven that I should be able have no problem getting chunks for this.

https://www.amazon.com/Char-Broil-Cast-Iron-Smoker-Box/dp/B0001B50B2/ref=sr_1_3?_encoding=UTF8&c=ts&dchild=1&keywords=Grill+Smoker+Boxes&qid=1600977566&sr=8-3&ts_id=13638734011

And another, but it takes up more real estate in grill.
https://www.amazon.com/DiamondKingSmoker-Stainless-Propane-Charcoal-Provides/dp/B07G2MR24R/ref=sr_1_11_sspa?_encoding=UTF8&c=ts&dchild=1&keywords=Grill+Smoker+Boxes&qid=1600977566&sr=8-11-spons&ts_id=13638734011&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEySlc0NENPSjZHOEhHJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwOTMwMTA2MlhCVkRXTzBDMFJZSiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTY0MTgxMUsyWlQ5Q1VNR0lKUSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX210ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

[dk117]

one of my favorite youtube personalities, Mad Scientist BBQ, has been dissing on pellets lately.  He made a comment along these lines in a recent video.

It was an off the cuff remark about the potential greatness of any given BBQ setup. 

• Aaron Franklin 100
• back yard large stick burner 95
• Pellet Grill 75
• Local BBQ restaurant 50

I know I can do better than 75% of even the best.   But I inferred from his comments that it was about the smoke.  Volume of cooker was also in his commentary, but the smoke flavor just couldn't be matched with pellets.  I know he's not wrong, but I disagree on the thought that we cannot make 100 level BBQ with Pellets. 

[Free Mr. Tony]

https://smokedaddyinc.com/product/the-heavy-d-stick-burning-heat-diffuser/

[02ebz06]

https://smokedaddyinc.com/product/the-heavy-d-stick-burning-heat-diffuser/

Limited to certain grills though, but should work nicely.

But thanks for the link, they have replacement heavy duty deflector plates.
I've been wanting to replace mine with a heavier one and it says it will fit my CampChef.
Will measure mine to make sure and will order one.
Thanks again for the link.

[Bar-B-Lew]

https://smokedaddyinc.com/product/the-heavy-d-stick-burning-heat-diffuser/

It's amazing how many different things that Dennis designs for all types of smokers/grills.  When I live in NE IL, I did visit his shop, but it was to buy Orange pellets because that was the only place I could find that had them.  He was a very nice guy during the short time that I interacted with him.  Personally, I don't think all of his ideas/products work for what I want, but I gotta give the guy credit for keep plugging away at solutions for what people think they want/need. Hats off to him.

If I recall correctly, he was in the metal fab business and after he retired he got into the metal fab for grills business only.  I believe he has other family members involved in the business so I think he is a solid option as a vendor with many more years of being in business.  I also am pretty sure that the owner of cookinpellets.com had started a design for a less expensive (to Traeger) pellet grill that he turned over to Dennis to finish design and production from China.  Great to see those guys from the Upper Midwest partnering together.  Both great guys in my opinion in my limited interaction with them.