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wrote:
> Hello all,
> I am going to a pitmaster class in 2005 and I will need to bring my
> own smoker. I have a ceramic smoker at home that is too heavy to
> transport, so I am looking to purchase a weber kettle or weber smokey
> mountain to take to the class. I know that the kettle is cheaper, so
> I'm leaning towards that one. Do you think there is any reason that I
> should choose the WSM over the kettle?
> Thanks for your feedback.
> Anthony
>

I would suggest the WSM. Reason being, with the WSM you can load it up
with fuel and regulate the temperature much more easily than you can
trying to use a kettle as a smoker. Though it does depend on how long
of a cook you want too.

IME, the kettle simply does not let you maintain a temperature very
well. If Q'en something, I like to keep the temp around 300 or less.
Using the WSM, you can use the minion method to get long cook times.
Depending on weather, you can get as long as 10 hours or more before
refueling. The kettle, my guess would be about 3 hours.

For easy Q'en, the WSM is the ticket. Costs about $100 more than a 22
inch kettle, but well worth it. You already own a ceramic, so you
should already know if you want to fiddle with the fire and cook, or
cook without fiddling with the fire.

I own both and think that any serious Q'er/griller on a budget should
have both. They're each designed for different purposes and do them well.

Good Luck.

BBQ