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[Maynerd]

Hey all,

I’m looking at potentially purchasing a new pellet grill.  I’ve used pellet grills for about 5 or so years, so I’m familiar with how they work and their limitations.  I’ve been researching for a while (too much probably) and have reached a point of diminishing returns on further deep research and now need some people to chime in for me.

[Bentley]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

[Jimsbarbecue]

The issue I see is most members have cooked on one maybe two types of Pellet grills. Bentley has been able to cook on a lot of them due to his performance testing.  I would weigh any input he has heavily.

[Maynerd]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

Tax in my state is 10% and $100 for delivery adds some cost to the Advantage.  I agree that the PG500 is feeling like the right grill.  I do have concerns about the indirect side of the grill though.  Maybe that's not to be of concern.  Also I seem to recall reading about things like a turkey not cooking so great on the indirect side because of the bottom not cooking as fast as the top.  Could be a challenge working the 4 zones.

[Bar-B-Lew]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

Tax in my state is 10% and $100 for delivery adds some cost to the Advantage.  I agree that the PG500 is feeling like the right grill.  I do have concerns about the indirect side of the grill though.  Maybe that's not to be of concern.  Also I seem to recall reading about things like a turkey not cooking so great on the indirect side because of the bottom not cooking as fast as the top.  Could be a challenge working the 4 zones.

Like any grill, you are going to need to use it and gather experience with it in order to have the most success with your cooks.  If most of your time is grilling, I think you need to consider if the charbroiler side of the PG500 is large enough for you.  And, as Bentley has noted, setting the temp of the unit will get you much higher temps on the charbroiler side so you need to learn how to compensate for that.  Good news, is that I am sure Cookshack can tell you and there are a lot of people on here who have the unit that can provide direction too.

[Maynerd]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

Tax in my state is 10% and $100 for delivery adds some cost to the Advantage.  I agree that the PG500 is feeling like the right grill.  I do have concerns about the indirect side of the grill though.  Maybe that's not to be of concern.  Also I seem to recall reading about things like a turkey not cooking so great on the indirect side because of the bottom not cooking as fast as the top.  Could be a challenge working the 4 zones.

Like any grill, you are going to need to use it and gather experience with it in order to have the most success with your cooks.  If most of your time is grilling, I think you need to consider if the charbroiler side of the PG500 is large enough for you.  And, as Bentley has noted, setting the temp of the unit will get you much higher temps on the charbroiler side so you need to learn how to compensate for that.  Good news, is that I am sure Cookshack can tell you and there are a lot of people on here who have the unit that can provide direction too.

Good point regarding the charbroiler size, could be too small.  Will need to think about that.

[Osborn Cox]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

Tax in my state is 10% and $100 for delivery adds some cost to the Advantage.  I agree that the PG500 is feeling like the right grill.  I do have concerns about the indirect side of the grill though.  Maybe that's not to be of concern.  Also I seem to recall reading about things like a turkey not cooking so great on the indirect side because of the bottom not cooking as fast as the top.  Could be a challenge working the 4 zones.

The instance that I can recall with the turkey problem was that he cooked it on a tray with a rack and water in the pan below the turkey.     If you cook a turkey right on the grill grate there is no problem with a turkey cooking uniformly.    I can understand that the idea of 4 cooking zones can seem a bit confusing/overwhelming to think about, but it really is intuitive and becomes your best friend.     It’s the same principle as a gas grill where you can turn off some of the burners or a charcoal grill that you set up with all the coals on one side.    There is a very handy chart that a very dedicated member here made (I forget who) that shows the temperature in each zone at various set grill settings to give you an idea of temperature differentials between zones.     The 4 zones makes it very easy to cook multiple items on the grill at the same time and get the timing correct by being able to speed or slow things down just by shifting where they are located.    I have a family of 4 and the charbroiler is perfect for us, if cooking for a larger group just need to get a little creative.

[rdsbucks]

Did not know the Advantages had gotten that expensive, great pit, but I would have to go PG500 and stay under $2000.  And there is a difference between controller temperature and what the temperature is at the grate.  The Advantage will get over 600° and the PG500 will be 900+° at the grate...when they are set at their Max settings!  The others, not so sure...So keep that in mind if I am reading you right and 70% of your cooks are grilling!

Tax in my state is 10% and $100 for delivery adds some cost to the Advantage.  I agree that the PG500 is feeling like the right grill.  I do have concerns about the indirect side of the grill though.  Maybe that's not to be of concern.  Also I seem to recall reading about things like a turkey not cooking so great on the indirect side because of the bottom not cooking as fast as the top.  Could be a challenge working the 4 zones.

The instance that I can recall with the turkey problem was that he cooked it on a tray with a rack and water in the pan below the turkey.     If you cook a turkey right on the grill grate there is no problem with a turkey cooking uniformly.    I can understand that the idea of 4 cooking zones can seem a bit confusing/overwhelming to think about, but it really is intuitive and becomes your best friend.     It’s the same principle as a gas grill where you can turn off some of the burners or a charcoal grill that you set up with all the coals on one side.    There is a very handy chart that a very dedicated member here made (I forget who) that shows the temperature in each zone at various set grill settings to give you an idea of temperature differentials between zones.     The 4 zones makes it very easy to cook multiple items on the grill at the same time and get the timing correct by being able to speed or slow things down just by shifting where they are located.    I have a family of 4 and the charbroiler is perfect for us, if cooking for a larger group just need to get a little creative.

I had a similar concern with my PG 500 but I have not found either side to be too small for 95% of what I do. And that 95% is so good it would be crazy to worry about the 5%. The key with the turkeys is to turn them once during the cook, or cook them breast down. I have no experience with any of the other smokers and because of how much I love this smoker, I will not be getting any.

[jacksdad]

A few thoughts-
I wouldn’t spend 2-3k on a smoker that’s gonna have 3/4 of its use at 2hrs or less.  I also would not buy a smoker for 500+ degree grilling.  I most definitely would not buy a smoker that didn’t have a second shelf. 

As to space I have the Yoder 480 and it has tons of it.  It’s been flawless for the year and a half or so I’ve had it.  I make the best baby back ribs on the planet with it as well as fantastic pulled pork, hot smoked salmon, duck breast, goose pastrami, jerky and a few other things.  Paid about $1,300 new (picked up from local dealer) and included the upper shelf.  If I use rib racks I could do maybe a dozen ribs at once on it although rotating them would be a chore as the racks can tear off bark.  Can probably fit 6 pork butts with no trouble.

For the cost of some of your options you could get a 480 and a very nice gas grill with infrared for searing.  And maybe even a rotisserie (mmm good chicken and really good tenderloin) for it as well. 

I also looked at the Pitts and spits in person and considered a PG500.  I ultimately didn’t want the limited smoking area of the PG500 and preferred the deeper (front to back) 480 over the relatively shallow comparable Pitts and spits.  Also felt more comfortable with Yoders reputation.  The Pitts was a very heavily built machine though.  I do recall one of the Pitts machines had a pull out bottom rack.  Would love that on my Yoder.

[Maynerd]

A few thoughts-
I wouldn’t spend 2-3k on a smoker that’s gonna have 3/4 of its use at 2hrs or less.  I also would not buy a smoker for 500+ degree grilling.  I most definitely would not buy a smoker that didn’t have a second shelf. 

As to space I have the Yoder 480 and it has tons of it.  It’s been flawless for the year and a half or so I’ve had it.  I make the best baby back ribs on the planet with it as well as fantastic pulled pork, hot smoked salmon, duck breast, goose pastrami, jerky and a few other things.  Paid about $1,300 new (picked up from local dealer) and included the upper shelf.  If I use rib racks I could do maybe a dozen ribs at once on it although rotating them would be a chore as the racks can tear off bark.  Can probably fit 6 pork butts with no trouble.

For the cost of some of your options you could get a 480 and a very nice gas grill with infrared for searing.  And maybe even a rotisserie (mmm good chicken and really good tenderloin) for it as well. 

I also looked at the Pitts and spits in person and considered a PG500.  I ultimately didn’t want the limited smoking area of the PG500 and preferred the deeper (front to back) 480 over the relatively shallow comparable Pitts and spits.  Also felt more comfortable with Yoders reputation.  The Pitts was a very heavily built machine though.  I do recall one of the Pitts machines had a pull out bottom rack.  Would love that on my Yoder.

You make some good points.  I'm still weighing things including going uber cheap on a smoker vs spending big money. 

[sleebus.jones]

A few thoughts-
I wouldn’t spend 2-3k on a smoker that’s gonna have 3/4 of its use at 2hrs or less.  I also would not buy a smoker for 500+ degree grilling.  I most definitely would not buy a smoker that didn’t have a second shelf.

Well I did and I've never been happier.  Just because you think it wouldn't work for YOU doesn't mean it wouldn't work for someone else.  I'd put my PG1000 up against ANY grill, gas, charcoal, wood fire, anything.  Cookshack uses the same design in their commercial Charbroilers, which is a lot more than I can say for any of the other pellet cookers out there.

Not sure what the cooktime metric has to do with anything...who cares?  If you're cooking stuff you want and it comes off like you like it, who cares?

Of course, holding myself to the same standard, it works for me.  YMMV.

[Maynerd]

A few thoughts-
I wouldn’t spend 2-3k on a smoker that’s gonna have 3/4 of its use at 2hrs or less.  I also would not buy a smoker for 500+ degree grilling.  I most definitely would not buy a smoker that didn’t have a second shelf.

Well I did and I've never been happier.  Just because you think it wouldn't work for YOU doesn't mean it wouldn't work for someone else.  I'd put my PG1000 up against ANY grill, gas, charcoal, wood fire, anything.  Cookshack uses the same design in their commercial Charbroilers, which is a lot more than I can say for any of the other pellet cookers out there.

Not sure what the cooktime metric has to do with anything...who cares?  If you're cooking stuff you want and it comes off like you like it, who cares?

Of course, holding myself to the same standard, it works for me.  YMMV.

What's the big difference between the PG500 and PG1000?  It seems like it's pretty close to the same thing.  What justifies the higher price tag?

[rdsbucks]

PG 500 has doors while the PG 1000 has a hood design. The PG1000 is insulated. There’s a bit more shelf space around the cooking area with the 1000. Cooking area is pretty much the same. What’s around it is quite different.

[Maynerd]

PG 500 has doors while the PG 1000 has a hood design. The PG1000 is insulated. There’s a bit more shelf space around the cooking area with the 1000. Cooking area is pretty much the same. What’s around it is quite different.

Ok that's what I was gathering I just wasn't sure if there was anything else I was missing.  I wish it also had a bigger cooking space along with all the other stuff.

[sleebus.jones]

Ok that's what I was gathering I just wasn't sure if there was anything else I was missing.  I wish it also had a bigger cooking space along with all the other stuff.

rdsbucks is 100% right.  Same cooking area, but insulated and with more shelves.