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***Official Grilling and Smoking Thread*** (2 Viewers)

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Came out dry and meh. Last one I did I took to 195 when I trimmed too much fat off and it came out better than this one. I left more fat on this one and took it to 200. The only difference was I brined the first one for 3 days, this one 20hrs. 

I was less than happy. Told my brother to get back to the ranch and get another one so I can redeem myself lol

 
Costco had prime brisket on sale a while back so I picked one up and cooked it this past weekend. I used to kind of scoff at the notion of prime brisket and never bought one before. This was the best brisket I've ever made. It was on the BGE for about 12 hours then wrapped and in the oven on low for about 18 more, just due to timing issues with family activities on Saturday. Extremely rich and tasty. I followed Chudd's method --> https://youtu.be/-mZAUGUn5Q0
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
In my experience, temperature control is all about airflow control. If your firebox won't seal tight enough it's almost impossible to hold a low temp.

I had a cheap Brinkman vertical offset where the ash cleanout door warped on the first cook and leaked like a sieve. I ended up making a gasket/shield out of heavy-duty foil to block it from sucking in too much air.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
In my experience, temperature control is all about airflow control. If your firebox won't seal tight enough it's almost impossible to hold a low temp.

I had a cheap Brinkman vertical offset where the ash cleanout door warped on the first cook and leaked like a sieve. I ended up making a gasket/shield out of heavy-duty foil to block it from sucking in too much air.
This is true, but a PID controller on a pellet smoker can overcome that. In fact, many pellet smokers just pull the air they need from the gaps with no real inlet vent.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
In my experience, temperature control is all about airflow control. If your firebox won't seal tight enough it's almost impossible to hold a low temp.

I had a cheap Brinkman vertical offset where the ash cleanout door warped on the first cook and leaked like a sieve. I ended up making a gasket/shield out of heavy-duty foil to block it from sucking in too much air.
This is true, but a PID controller on a pellet smoker can overcome that. In fact, many pellet smokers just pull the air they need from the gaps with no real inlet vent.
True, I was referring back to the earlier comment about a cheap stick/charcoal burner. I discovered when I got mine that I could either spend $400 or $1000 with almost no options in between. And the lower end is really hard to control due to leaky construction.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
In my experience, temperature control is all about airflow control. If your firebox won't seal tight enough it's almost impossible to hold a low temp.

I had a cheap Brinkman vertical offset where the ash cleanout door warped on the first cook and leaked like a sieve. I ended up making a gasket/shield out of heavy-duty foil to block it from sucking in too much air.
Yeah the door on the firebox didnt seal super tight on mine. I think the major problem on mine was that the cooking area was small. So it was hard to keep the meat away from the heat. The body was made of rather thin gauge steel and the firebox, besides leaking air, was also tiny. Overall it wasnt a very high quality product.
 
Anyone use a vertical pellet smoker? Walmart is clearing out their lawn and garden section to get ready for Christmas. They have the Pit Boss Brunswick vertical smoker on sale for $359 in my local store. I've not done alot of smoking but when I have its been a struggle with an offset. Wondering if a vertical like this would be better for a novice like myself.
I think just about any modern PID controlled pellet smoker is going to solve temp control problems whether vertical or offset. Totally different ballgame than a stick or charcoal burning offset, especially in the cheap range.

Thanks. These pellet grills/smokers are all new to me. I've had a stick/charcoal burning offset, an inexpensive one. Just wasnt good at controlling the temps and getting consistent results. And the jump in cost to a higher quality offset and the time required to get good at using it doesnt seem worth it. Based on how often I'll use it. But the price of this unit makes it attractive to me as I can get it and a good quality griddle for less than what a good quality offset smoker/grill would cost.
In my experience, temperature control is all about airflow control. If your firebox won't seal tight enough it's almost impossible to hold a low temp.

I had a cheap Brinkman vertical offset where the ash cleanout door warped on the first cook and leaked like a sieve. I ended up making a gasket/shield out of heavy-duty foil to block it from sucking in too much air.
This is true, but a PID controller on a pellet smoker can overcome that. In fact, many pellet smokers just pull the air they need from the gaps with no real inlet vent.
True, I was referring back to the earlier comment about a cheap stick/charcoal burner. I discovered when I got mine that I could either spend $400 or $1000 with almost no options in between. And the lower end is really hard to control due to leaky construction.
You are absolutely correct. Which is why I am looking at the Pit Boss vertical pellet smoker. For as often as I cook and as unskilled as I am. I just cant justify the jump to $900-$1000 for an offset. When I can get one of these right now for sub-$400. Not to mention the difference in the amount of space taken up on my patio. Planning on getting this vertical smoker and a griddle. Should be able to do everything that I want to between them. And for about the same cost or slightly less than a good quality offset smoker.
 
Finally broke in my smoker after 1.5+ years of getting it as a gift. Wanted to start easy to get to know it (Weber Smokey Mountain).

Used this recipe exactly and followed all the instructions. 10/10 on the results. Both my wife and I loved it and have plenty left.


I know it isn't anything crazy, but I had to start somewhere.
 
Got roped into cooking for my BiL's wedding tomorrow. Our wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat. Small, backyard affair with about 50 people. Smoking two 8.5lb shoulders overnight on the BGE, then grilling about 15lbs of tri tip on site. All rubbed yesterday and chilling in the garage fridge currently. I'm second guessing myself on whether or not I bought enough meat, but I guess we shall see ....
 
Got roped into cooking for my BiL's wedding tomorrow. Our wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat. Small, backyard affair with about 50 people. Smoking two 8.5lb shoulders overnight on the BGE, then grilling about 15lbs of tri tip on site. All rubbed yesterday and chilling in the garage fridge currently. I'm second guessing myself on whether or not I bought enough meat, but I guess we shall see ....
Have fun! I think that'll be about right. I usually figure on 10 people per shoulder. And 1/2 pound per person on the tri tip. So it ought to be good.
 
Got roped into cooking for my BiL's wedding tomorrow. Our wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat. Small, backyard affair with about 50 people. Smoking two 8.5lb shoulders overnight on the BGE, then grilling about 15lbs of tri tip on site. All rubbed yesterday and chilling in the garage fridge currently. I'm second guessing myself on whether or not I bought enough meat, but I guess we shall see ....
Have fun! I think that'll be about right. I usually figure on 10 people per shoulder. And 1/2 pound per person on the tri tip. So it ought to be good.

Thanks! That eases my mind a bit. I've read 1/2 lb per person is usually about right. I sort of used that my my guide going in. Total I have about 32 lbs. BiL is a big dude and a big eater, so he won't mind leftovers in his fridge one bit. :-)
 
Got roped into cooking for my BiL's wedding tomorrow. Our wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat. Small, backyard affair with about 50 people. Smoking two 8.5lb shoulders overnight on the BGE, then grilling about 15lbs of tri tip on site. All rubbed yesterday and chilling in the garage fridge currently. I'm second guessing myself on whether or not I bought enough meat, but I guess we shall see ....
Have fun! I think that'll be about right. I usually figure on 10 people per shoulder. And 1/2 pound per person on the tri tip. So it ought to be good.

Thanks! That eases my mind a bit. I've read 1/2 lb per person is usually about right. I sort of used that my my guide going in. Total I have about 32 lbs. BiL is a big dude and a big eater, so he won't mind leftovers in his fridge one bit. :-)
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Leftovers go to the cook! Your wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat for the wedding, not providing him with a week's worth of lunches!
 
Got roped into cooking for my BiL's wedding tomorrow. Our wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat. Small, backyard affair with about 50 people. Smoking two 8.5lb shoulders overnight on the BGE, then grilling about 15lbs of tri tip on site. All rubbed yesterday and chilling in the garage fridge currently. I'm second guessing myself on whether or not I bought enough meat, but I guess we shall see ....
Have fun! I think that'll be about right. I usually figure on 10 people per shoulder. And 1/2 pound per person on the tri tip. So it ought to be good.

Thanks! That eases my mind a bit. I've read 1/2 lb per person is usually about right. I sort of used that my my guide going in. Total I have about 32 lbs. BiL is a big dude and a big eater, so he won't mind leftovers in his fridge one bit. :-)
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Leftovers go to the cook! Your wedding gift is buying and cooking the meat for the wedding, not providing him with a week's worth of lunches!

:ROFLMAO:

Everything went well. It's just my wife and I at home, so trust me, we nabbed all the leftovers we wanted. But there was plenty
 
I finally tried a pork shoulder on a gas grill and it worked out way better than I thought. I have a 4 burner so I turned the two outside burners on high and the middle two burners off. I bought a roasting rack for my grill and put the shoulder on the roasting rack over top the middle burners that were turned off. This setup kept the temp at the roasting rack right around 300 which was perfect.

I didn't season overnight or anything like that. I simply sprinkled on a mix of kosher salt, coarse black pepper, and granulated garlic. I also made 2 tin foil packets of hickory chips and cut a few small slits in the packets. I put the 2 packets over the grill sections with direct heat... one on each side. After the 1st hour I put the shoulder in a roasting pan on top of the rack to capture the juices.

I've never made pulled pork on a smoker, and I would imagine that a pellet or charcoal smoker would beat this set up... but this was way better compared to cooking in the oven or a crock pot. I'm still considering a smoker of some sort, but after this experiment I feel like I would rather just go with the gas grill + wood chip packs and leave more room on my patio for lounging.
 
I'm still considering a smoker of some sort, but after this experiment I feel like I would rather just go with the gas grill + wood chip packs and leave more room on my patio for lounging.
I did this for a few years and then decided I wanted to get serious and bought a charcoal smoker (weber). That was great until I decided I was too lazy to use a charcoal smoker and bought a pellet. I typically use it every weekend and sometimes during the week. The pellet smoker is like a big convection oven so I use it for pizzas and whole chickens and other stuff outside of the typical things you’d smoke.

If you aren’t sure how much time and effort you wanna put into smoked meats, I wouldn’t spend the money until you are sure.

YMMV
 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?
 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?
I would look at pellet for the ease of use and flavor. A big drawback has been searing and high heat cooking but there are some options out there now that solve that. I'm a big fan of Rec Tec and have had one of their smokers for a few years now and love the ease of use and quality. If I was looking for a new "do it all" I would look at their new 380X model.

 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?
I would look at pellet for the ease of use and flavor. A big drawback has been searing and high heat cooking but there are some options out there now that solve that. I'm a big fan of Rec Tec and have had one of their smokers for a few years now and love the ease of use and quality. If I was looking for a new "do it all" I would look at their new 380X model.

Appreciate the input! One issue if I get one of these is location and access to electricity. Where my grill currently sits (which is really the ideal location) there isn't a close by power outlet, so I'd either need to run an extension cable (annoying to do every time, and tripping hazard as I grill and enjoy a few beers), or pay to have an outdoor rated electric outlet installed nearby. If I'm doing something like this purely to replace my smoker, it's not as big a deal as it's used less frequently and in a location where there's already an outlet somewhat nearby.
 
Do you keep your Weber covered? Troubling that its rusting inside. 8 years old for a Weber isn't THAT old. Heck, mine is getting up there and I've replaced only the flavor bars. I plan on getting 20 more years out of this thing. LOVE it.
 
Do you keep your Weber covered? Troubling that its rusting inside. 8 years old for a Weber isn't THAT old. Heck, mine is getting up there and I've replaced only the flavor bars. I plan on getting 20 more years out of this thing. LOVE it.
Yup, generally speaking it is covered. I mean occasionally (like now) it might go a day or two where I forget to cover it, but I'd say it's covered 85% of the time or more.

ETA - since you brought it up, I just emailed Weber to see if it's still in Warranty or not. Maybe this grill still has some life left in it after all.
 
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Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?

I some similar experience, so I'll chime in. I used to have a Genesis, WSM, and 22" Weber kettle cart thing. The kettle is the only thing I still have. I replaced (or I should say my wife replaced) the WSM with a large Green Egg as a birthday present a few years ago. It's overpriced and excellent, but it won't make better food than the WSM. What is will do is cook for a very long time because it is just so efficient. I've gone 18 hours without adding fuel. But there is a drawback to efficiency. Once that 200lbs of ceramic is at temp, it takes very little air to keep it there ... which in turn mean less smoke produced. That said, I wouldn't go back. It's just fun for me to find that sweet spot and watch if hold temp for hours on end. It's impressive. You can get it hot as hellfire as a regular grill too, though mine is primarily just for smoking.

I gave my old Genesis away just a few weeks ago, because I've wanted a better grill for years now, and knew I wouldn't pull the trigger until a had to. So I'm currently in the market for a gas grill as well. BBQ guys is nice ... but it'll make you feel poor. There is some nice stuff out there if you feel like dropping 10k. Since I didn't hit the 2 billion powerball, that option is off the table for me. I'm looking for something under 5k, though the TEC infrared could make me break the budget a little.
 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?
I would look at pellet for the ease of use and flavor. A big drawback has been searing and high heat cooking but there are some options out there now that solve that. I'm a big fan of Rec Tec and have had one of their smokers for a few years now and love the ease of use and quality. If I was looking for a new "do it all" I would look at their new 380X model.

Appreciate the input! One issue if I get one of these is location and access to electricity. Where my grill currently sits (which is really the ideal location) there isn't a close by power outlet, so I'd either need to run an extension cable (annoying to do every time, and tripping hazard as I grill and enjoy a few beers), or pay to have an outdoor rated electric outlet installed nearby. If I'm doing something like this purely to replace my smoker, it's not as big a deal as it's used less frequently and in a location where there's already an outlet somewhat nearby.
Masterbuilt gravity smoker is basically a charcoal based version of a pellet grill. Still need power to control it but may be an option if you want the charcoal taste still.

Another option is something like the camp chef woodwind with the sear station. You can use tge sear station to do small quick grills if you want vs smoking. Can probably do 6 or so burger’s at a time and it’s great for reverse sear.
 
Char Griller has a gravity smoker as well. I have it and love it. 980 square inches and can get up to 700 degrees quickly to sear and holds all temps very well.
 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?

I some similar experience, so I'll chime in. I used to have a Genesis, WSM, and 22" Weber kettle cart thing. The kettle is the only thing I still have. I replaced (or I should say my wife replaced) the WSM with a large Green Egg as a birthday present a few years ago. It's overpriced and excellent, but it won't make better food than the WSM. What is will do is cook for a very long time because it is just so efficient. I've gone 18 hours without adding fuel. But there is a drawback to efficiency. Once that 200lbs of ceramic is at temp, it takes very little air to keep it there ... which in turn mean less smoke produced. That said, I wouldn't go back. It's just fun for me to find that sweet spot and watch if hold temp for hours on end. It's impressive. You can get it hot as hellfire as a regular grill too, though mine is primarily just for smoking.

I gave my old Genesis away just a few weeks ago, because I've wanted a better grill for years now, and knew I wouldn't pull the trigger until a had to. So I'm currently in the market for a gas grill as well. BBQ guys is nice ... but it'll make you feel poor. There is some nice stuff out there if you feel like dropping 10k. Since I didn't hit the 2 billion powerball, that option is off the table for me. I'm looking for something under 5k, though the TEC infrared could make me break the budget a little.
I bought the TEC 44 infrared earlier this year off BBQDirect.com. IIRC, it was about $1k off list price and delivery was quick if you want to check them out. Love it and gets to impressive temps in 10 minutes.
 
Looking for some general advice from all you fine folks. Current setup is a Weber Genesis 3-burner (4 if you count the sear burner) on a natural gas hookup. That grill is about 8 years old or so and declining. Rusting away on parts of the inside, and the burners need some attention to try and get back to even heat - if I can get there.

Also have an old WSM that I smoke with a decent amount. Though less so recently as I'm having an awful time keeping the temps low. All three dampers on the bottom have gotten banged around and bent enough that they aren't truly blocking things off much. heck, I can have all three closed and the temp still keeps rising. Plus the side door needs to be replaced and the actual middle portion doesn't sit cleanly on the bottom bowl. Basically it's leaking air everywhere it can. After 15 years I guess that's not a shock.

So as I begin to ponder replacing these, I know there's so many options out there. First thing I need to have is something that is easy for my wife to grill on when she wants to. (OK, and when I want an easy grilling session as well.) I'm partial to another Weber on the NG line, but am open to at least hearing other options. As for the smoker, I'm simply spun dizzy with all the options to consider between pellet smokers, replacing with another WSM, looking at a kamado-style smoker, or something else entirely. Don't mind the "extra work" of using charcoal since I love the flavor, but it would be silly to totally ignore the ease of some of these other technologies today.

For the smoker I'll do the typical stuff - butts, racks of ribs, brisket, chickens, salmon, and the occasional turkey. Not usually cooking for a huge crowd, but would like the option to fit in (close to) a full brisket if possible, or a 12-14 lb turkey.

How would you guys start to break all this down?

I some similar experience, so I'll chime in. I used to have a Genesis, WSM, and 22" Weber kettle cart thing. The kettle is the only thing I still have. I replaced (or I should say my wife replaced) the WSM with a large Green Egg as a birthday present a few years ago. It's overpriced and excellent, but it won't make better food than the WSM. What is will do is cook for a very long time because it is just so efficient. I've gone 18 hours without adding fuel. But there is a drawback to efficiency. Once that 200lbs of ceramic is at temp, it takes very little air to keep it there ... which in turn mean less smoke produced. That said, I wouldn't go back. It's just fun for me to find that sweet spot and watch if hold temp for hours on end. It's impressive. You can get it hot as hellfire as a regular grill too, though mine is primarily just for smoking.

I gave my old Genesis away just a few weeks ago, because I've wanted a better grill for years now, and knew I wouldn't pull the trigger until a had to. So I'm currently in the market for a gas grill as well. BBQ guys is nice ... but it'll make you feel poor. There is some nice stuff out there if you feel like dropping 10k. Since I didn't hit the 2 billion powerball, that option is off the table for me. I'm looking for something under 5k, though the TEC infrared could make me break the budget a little.
I bought the TEC 44 infrared earlier this year off BBQDirect.com. IIRC, it was about $1k off list price and delivery was quick if you want to check them out. Love it and gets to impressive temps in 10 minutes.

That thing is intriguing to me. I've never cooked over infrared, but everyone seems to love them. Also, American made, which is difficult to find. Well difficult to find anything under 10k anyway.
 
Last two times I made ribs I used a simple salt, pepper, and a touch of garlic powder rub rather than my usual more complex rub. I don’t think i will do ribs any other way again.
I agree. So many guys get carried away making these complex rubs with so many different spices. Ultimately all the flavors just mask each other.
 
Great suggestions in here. I’ve researched pellet grills for quite a long time. Oddly enough I decided not to get one and put $ into a nice natural gas grill instead. I saw that @FatMax and @baymen mentioned TEC infrared grills. They look amazing and I was definitely considering them, but in the end I didn’t get approval to spend that much money from my wife… so I kind of bought the poor man’s TEC which could also be an option.

I bought a SABER Deluxe Black 4 burner. It is not the same as TEC but is described as “Infrared” so there are some similarities. If you have a Weber 3 burner, a comparable model would be a Saber Deluxe Black 3 burner. You can get them in NG. You mentioned you wanted something that would be easy to use. The greatest feature of the infrared style grill is that it doesn’t flare up. There is literally no way for the grease and food droppings to hit the open flame. You'll have to look at the grill grate design to see what I mean. I'll just tell you that it does work. If ease of use is important then infrared would be a great consideration, and the Saber can do it for a more reasonable price compared to TEC. I also smoked a pork shoulder on it for the first time using a roasting rack and foil packets of wood chips and was really surprised at how well it turned out.

In regards to the endless amounts of researching and youtube videos I’ve watched about smokers… that I never really used:

I definitely agree with @Ron Swanson on the RT-B380X Bullseye Deluxe. In fact I did not know the Deluxe version existed. I love that it has the ash cleanout drawer. I had been looking at the standard Bullseye but in general didn’t like the need for a shop vac to clean out the burn pot.

I saw you asked about the Pit Boss Pro Combo Grill. There is a good chance I may have purchased one of these but I didn’t for the same reason you mentioned. Pit Boss doesn’t have an NG hookup. If you have NG it is so convenient. I feel like they are missing opportunities. And to my knowledge there is no pellet / gas combo that has NG available.

I saw @snore mention the Masterbuilt gravity series. I was taking a serious look at these and they look great. You get the charcoal flavor with automatic temp setting electronics. I have a friend that has a RecTeq pellet and a Masterbuilt gravity series and he told me the flavor you get with charcoal can’t be matched with pellet… but yeah, the pellets are easier to deal with.

@SteevieG mention the Char-Griller Gravity 980. I watched a ton of videos of the Char-Griller Gravity 980 vs. the Masterbuilt gravity series and the Char-Griller always won. Mainly because of better quality of components. The chimney part and internals are more heavy duty. But the 980 definitely have a bigger footprint, and both had great flavor. The Masterbuilt is more vertical compared to the CG980. You might want to check out the Char-Griller Auto-Kamado. It’s literally a Kamado style grill with the pellet smoker electronics and a lot smaller footprint.

The smokers that I have been considering as a ‘maybe’ for the future is the Pit Boss vertical smokers. There is one you can get a Wal-mart (Pit Boss Brunswick) and one you can get at Lowes (Pit Boss Pro). Reason I like them is they are affordable, they have an easy ash cleanout system (no shop vac needed) and since they are vertical they have a smaller footprint which can be a factor on my patio.

Last thing I’ll leave you with is… if you just want to give pellet smokers a try but don’t want to spend a ton of $$$ the Pit Boss Lexington at Wal-Mart gets good reviews and comes in under $300. It’s very simple, which I feel could be nice. And if you go to Wal-mart at the right time you may find these discounted even lower.
 
Last two times I made ribs I used a simple salt, pepper, and a touch of garlic powder rub rather than my usual more complex rub. I don’t think i will do ribs any other way again.
I agree. So many guys get carried away making these complex rubs with so many different spices. Ultimately all the flavors just mask each other.
I will 3rd this. I got the idea of using a simple rub... exactly the same combo you mentioned... from a local cable show about a guy that has a BBQ restaurant. He was making a brisket and that's all he used. I tried it on pulled pork and loved it. Good to know it works on ribs too.
 
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We're having alot of family over for Thanksgiving and I'm thinking of throwing an extra bird in my (Camp Chef) pellet smoker just to make sure we're covered with the added bonus of not taking up room in our oven. Looking for suggestions to make improve the chances of it coming out well without spending a ton of time on it. What would you suggest for a simple brine, rub, baste, etc? And what type of pellets would you suggest? I should still have time to order stuff in time. TIA!
 
I am doing turkey breasts for a Friendsgiving this weekend. Bulk of the cooking will be Sous Vide, and looking to do my smoker-approximation sous vide + smoke finish combo since my stupid outdoor kitchen pieces are all STILL on backorder.

I have a "smoke stick" where i put pellets in it and it'll smoke up the normal grill, that I have been using for finishing pork shoulders and briskets for like a year now to pretty great results.

Thought I'd check with some of my most trusted iFriends here for advice:
  • What's your favorite hardwood to smoke it with?
  • Particularly given the recent discussion in here, thinking of a simple salt, pepper, garlic powder rub
  • I've got two bone-in breasts; advice on how to handle the bones? Should I be trying to take them out?
 
We're having alot of family over for Thanksgiving and I'm thinking of throwing an extra bird in my (Camp Chef) pellet smoker just to make sure we're covered with the added bonus of not taking up room in our oven. Looking for suggestions to make improve the chances of it coming out well without spending a ton of time on it. What would you suggest for a simple brine, rub, baste, etc? And what type of pellets would you suggest? I should still have time to order stuff in time. TIA!
The key with poultry is to cook it hot and fast. Slow smoking has no benefit as there is little to render and the skin won't crisp. You also want it to be as even and dense as possible. So, flat. I recommend spatchcocking poultry, brining in a 1:1:1 brine (pure water, salt, sugar) for a maximum 24 hours (dry brine also works fine) and then cooking with a leave in thermometer at about 375 until the breast is 160 ish and the thigh/legs are 180 ish. If the legs or wings start to get too dark, they can be foiled.
 
I am doing turkey breasts for a Friendsgiving this weekend. Bulk of the cooking will be Sous Vide, and looking to do my smoker-approximation sous vide + smoke finish combo since my stupid outdoor kitchen pieces are all STILL on backorder.

I have a "smoke stick" where i put pellets in it and it'll smoke up the normal grill, that I have been using for finishing pork shoulders and briskets for like a year now to pretty great results.

Thought I'd check with some of my most trusted iFriends here for advice:
  • What's your favorite hardwood to smoke it with?
  • Particularly given the recent discussion in here, thinking of a simple salt, pepper, garlic powder rub
  • I've got two bone-in breasts; advice on how to handle the bones? Should I be trying to take them out?
Post Oak, Live Oak, Pecan are my favorites
S&P rub, especially for beef is perfect. Turkey doesn't need anything more than S&P either.
Leave the bones in for cooking and then slice the meat off them when done. Search for Aaron Franklin's method for turkey breast and you will be very pleased.
 
Last two times I made ribs I used a simple salt, pepper, and a touch of garlic powder rub rather than my usual more complex rub. I don’t think i will do ribs any other way again.
I agree. So many guys get carried away making these complex rubs with so many different spices. Ultimately all the flavors just mask each other.
I will 3rd this. I got the idea of using a simple rub... exactly the same combo you mentioned... from a local cable show about a guy that has a BBQ restaurant. He was making a brisket and that's all he used. I tried it on pulled pork and loved it. Good to know it works on ribs too.

And then the majority of people just put a sauce on them anyway.
 

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