Hi there, new here.

I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
Are they better than a water smoker?
I have Brinkman Cookin Cajun on its last leg and was never a big fan.
It had a tough time with consistency and no control of temp.

Thanks for the help.
Ted

Ted wrote:
> Hi there, new here.
>
> I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
> them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
> Are they better than a water smoker?
> I have Brinkman Cookin Cajun on its last leg and was never a big fan.
> It had a tough time with consistency and no control of temp.
>
> Thanks for the help.
> Ted

This is one of those very individual things, personally I like the grill
size on offsets and what I can do on them compared to tower smokers like the
WSM, however temp control and fuel usage is much better on a WSM.

If you are looking for a offset, you might want to be able to grill on it
too, that might be a feature to look for. But it's fairly rare from what I
know. Do yourself a favor and get the thickest gauge steel you can too.

Got a $1,000? Get a Kamado #7, that's what I'd do.

D
--

On Tue, 18 Nov 2003 08:17:06 -0800, "Duwop" >
wrote:

>Got a $1,000? Get a Kamado #7, that's what I'd do.

That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
#7 Textured is $499.


--
Kevin S. Wilson
Tech Writer at a University Somewhere in Idaho
"Anything, when cooked in large enough batches, will be vile."
--Dag Right-square-bracket-gren, in alt.religion.kibology

>
> That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
> #7 Textured is $499.
>
>

I'm considering a K to add to my bbq collection.

Ok, let's say I'm on a budget and don't need a tiled K. Doesn't have to be
purty.

1. Would you go with a #7 or a #9? Not much size difference but a hell
of a lot of weight! Must be that pi thing.

2. Do you need to order a rolling cart of does it come with a standard
stand?

3. What accessaries would you definately need to bbq, grill chickens, and
grill steaks.

4. So what's the total cost to get one set up right?

Freights not a big deal, I can go pick it up.

TIA, Spud

Spud typed:
>> That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
>> #7 Textured is $499.
>>
>>
>
> I'm considering a K to add to my bbq collection.

Great. You won't be sorry

>
> Ok, let's say I'm on a budget and don't need a tiled K. Doesn't have to be
> purty.

My tiled sure is "purty" but that doesn't make it cook any better than either of
my textured ones.
>
> 1. Would you go with a #7 or a #9? Not much size difference but a hell
> of a lot of weight! Must be that pi thing.

How many do you cook for? For 1-4, my #5 was adequate. I bought the #1 so I
could cook at different temperatures at the same time. You might consider this
option. The #3 was at a price that I could *NOT* refuse, or I would *NOT* own it.
>
> 2. Do you need to order a rolling cart of does it come with a standard
> stand?

Standard, they come with feet, similar to "elephant feet". I'm currently thinking
of upgrading my #5 to the wheeled cart. Only $99 IIRC.

>
> 3. What accessaries would you definately need to bbq, grill chickens, and
> grill steaks.

Definately? Not a thing. Recommended? I'd say an upper bracket and grill.
Probably also a lower bracket for a ceramic tile or pizza stone so that you can
cook with indirect heat. Maybe a lower grill so you can et closer to the coals,
but I've never used the one that I have. You can sear a steak on the main grill.
Also, the gas option is nice to quickly light the lump and bring up the temps
fast. Jack Curry also uses his gas for "Lazy-Q" (I'll let him explain)
>
> 4. So what's the total cost to get one set up right?

http://www.kamado.com/Prices.htm

>
> Freights not a big deal, I can go pick it up.

Sacramento, Calif. Why not drive by and visit and meet ant talk to the crew? I
wish I was close enough.
>
> TIA, Spud

You're welcome,

BOB

(Ted) wrote in message . com>...
> Hi there, new here.
>
> I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
> them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
> Are they better than a water smoker?
> I have Brinkman Cookin Cajun on its last leg and was never a big fan.
> It had a tough time with consistency and no control of temp.
>
> Thanks for the help.
> Ted
You will have to do mods on any of the "consumer" offset smokers that
don't have a comma in the price. Have gotten very good results from
the Brinkman SnP offset. Look at the faq for the suggested mods. You
have to do them all-you must not use the existing chimney without mods
or better yet, add a 4" per the instructions, add a baffle between the
firebox and smoke chamber-half of the smoke chamber gets too hot
without it and also add a vertical baffle under the smoke chamber
racks. The grill is too light so more metal helps add thermal
stability-made my under rack baffle out of 1/2" steel plate-cheap and
it extends up to the firebox end of the smoke chamber and to 1/2" of
both sides of the chamber-forcing the smoke to the sides and to the
end. Add another baffle at the end to keep the smoke from going
directly out the chimney. Works very well-easy to maintain 220-225F
temp. Also you need to caulk all the cracks in the beast with high
temp caulk or you can't control the fire.

If you are not willing to do this - either spend lots more or get
something really simple-electric heater type verticals-have a couple
and they do a good job on fish.

On Tue, 18 Nov 2003 15:35:25 -0500, " BOB" > wrote:

>Spud typed:
>>> That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
>>> #7 Textured is $499.
>>>
>>>
>>
>> I'm considering a K to add to my bbq collection.
>
>Great. You won't be sorry
>
>>
>> Ok, let's say I'm on a budget and don't need a tiled K. Doesn't have to be
>> purty.
>
>My tiled sure is "purty" but that doesn't make it cook any better than either of
>my textured ones.
>>
>> 1. Would you go with a #7 or a #9? Not much size difference but a hell
>> of a lot of weight! Must be that pi thing.
>
>How many do you cook for? For 1-4, my #5 was adequate. I bought the #1 so I
>could cook at different temperatures at the same time. You might consider this
>option. The #3 was at a price that I could *NOT* refuse, or I would *NOT* own it.

I recommend the #7. A #9 seems a bit of overkill unless you're cooking
for lots of people a lot of the time. With an upper rack, the 7 can
easily do 50 pounds of pork shoulder at once.

>> 2. Do you need to order a rolling cart of does it come with a standard
>> stand?
>
>Standard, they come with feet, similar to "elephant feet". I'm currently thinking
>of upgrading my #5 to the wheeled cart. Only $99 IIRC.

If you think you'll ever move the 7 or 9, get a cart. I had a new roof
put on recently, and my 7 was right in the path of the demolition. The
cart made moving it as simple as rolling it across the patio (over
paving bricks).
>>
>> 3. What accessaries would you definately need to bbq, grill chickens, and
>> grill steaks.
>
>Definately? Not a thing. Recommended? I'd say an upper bracket and grill.

The upper bracket is handy for doing a big mess of pork shoulder.
Lately, I've been doing four or five butts at a time, giving one or
two to co-workers and vacuumn sealing the rest. You'll have to decide
if you want a Kamado grill to go on it. I just use an $8 grill from
Home Depot.

>Probably also a lower bracket for a ceramic tile or pizza stone so that you can
>cook with indirect heat. Maybe a lower grill so you can et closer to the coals,
>but I've never used the one that I have.

For a heat deflector, I use a pizza stone sitting on an $8 grill
sitting on the lower bracket.

> You can sear a steak on the main grill.
>Also, the gas option is nice to quickly light the lump and bring up the temps
>fast. Jack Curry also uses his gas for "Lazy-Q" (I'll let him explain)

After much thought, I decided the gas option just isn't worth the
trouble of keeping a tank filled. With an electric starter, I can get
my K up to temp quickly and easily enough. Also, Kamado doesn't
recommend that the gas be used for low-and-slow.



--
Kevin S. Wilson
Tech Writer at a University Somewhere in Idaho
"Anything, when cooked in large enough batches, will be vile."
--Dag Right-square-bracket-gren, in alt.religion.kibology

In article >, "Spud"
> wrote:

> >
> > That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
> > #7 Textured is $499.
> >
> >
>
> I'm considering a K to add to my bbq collection.
<snip>
>freights not a big deal, I can go pick it up.
>
shoot, man - go by the plant and witness the beauty first hand. If
you're close enough to pick one up (Sacto Cali) you'd be silly not to
place your order in person.

monroe(wouldve if i couldve)

On Tue, 18 Nov 2003 11:15:05 -0700, Kevin S. Wilson >
wrote:

>That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
>#7 Textured is $499.

+ accessories and shipping.

-sw

BOB wrote a lot of stuff that I agree with and snipped -

>Also, the gas option
> is nice to quickly light the lump and bring up the temps fast. Jack
> Curry also uses his gas for "Lazy-Q" (I'll let him explain)

Thanks for the intro, BOB - I've been away and busier than a cat in a
litterbox.
I do use my gas option for Lazy-Q and it's just a serendipitous plus for my
real reason to have gas, which is for almost instantaneous lighting of lump.
For Lazy-Q, I cut the handle off a small cast iron frying pan which fits
perfectly in the Lumpsaver+ basket of my #7 K. A few chunks of wood in the
pan and light the gas is all it takes. No lump at all, just gas and
smoldering wood does an excellent job on any medium temp cook like
yardbirds, fish filets, turkey. Whatever you want to cook at 350-375°,
'specially when you don't have time for getting a lump fire to settle down
(or you don't have any lump).
Jack Curry

> Hi there, new here.
>
> I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
> them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
> Are they better than a water smoker?

> Thanks for the help.
> Ted


Hi Ted,

I recommend to start w/ the FAQ. It will answer most of your initial
questions.

http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/


Hope This Helps,

Tom

"Steve Wertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue, 18 Nov 2003 11:15:05 -0700, Kevin S. Wilson >
> wrote:
>
> >That's what I would do, too, but it doesn't have to cost you $1000. A
> >#7 Textured is $499.
>
> + accessories and shipping.
>
> -sw

+ long distance phone charges ('Where is it?'). Being a squeaky wheel on a
weekly basis is costly when performed long-distance.

Jack

Ted-

As a fellow Q' er and "rusthead" (a.k.a. owner of a metal offset
smoker) should you purchase an offset smoker I would recommend that
you do follow the mods indicated in the FAQ as others have indicated.
The time and materials are of low enough cost and positive enough
value on the end product.

I must admit that, so far, I have only extended the smoke stack of my
NBBD to cooking grate level. It has improved cooking to a degree but,
the hot spot issue at the firebox is more urgent. So the baffle at the
firebox is next on my "to do" list.

I would also agree that should you purchase an offset smoker carefully
compare the thickness of meterial used among models (even in this
price range) as this will have the most effect on temp stability and
wood/lump charocal consumption from the beginning.

Rob
Q' 4 all!

On 18 Nov 2003 07:28:35 -0800, (Ted) wrote:

>Hi there, new here.
>
>I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
>them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
>Are they better than a water smoker?
>I have Brinkman Cookin Cajun on its last leg and was never a big fan.
>It had a tough time with consistency and no control of temp.

Ted,

You've no doubt gotten plenty of good information from this crowd so
far.

FWIW, most of the "really good" offset rigs I've seen don't seem to be
well set up for switching between grilling and smoking. The ones that
readily do both (like the SnPP or NBBD and the like) do both, but are
not as easy to smoke on than a bullet smoker (like a WSM).

Me? I have a SnPP. Sometimes I do large-scale grilling on it, but not
often, since it involves undoing some of the mods that are very
helpful for smoking. My next smoker will likely be a WSM.

So...one thing to consider would be one of each. A decent grill, and a
smoker (like a WSM). Even together, the price would likely be less
than a "good" offset, and fire control is easier. Oh...and the one
rough thing (unless you have a pickup or a trailer), the offsets are
not as readily transportable...at least not compared to something like
the WSM.

Bob

On 20 Nov 2003 19:19:07 -0800, (Ted) wrote:

>Thank you to everybody's advice, I hope to be cooking on something new
>soon.
>
>I am looking at a New Braunfels Bandera/Brinkmann, $198 at Menards. A
>good starter unit for me to play with.

They're not bad at doing both...like I mentioned previously. Be sure
to check the FAQ and plan on doing the mods for it for smoking.
Improved fire and temp control immensely!

Bob

Thank you to everybody's advice, I hope to be cooking on something new
soon.

I am looking at a New Braunfels Bandera/Brinkmann, $198 at Menards. A
good starter unit for me to play with.

Thanks

Ted

"Ted" > wrote in message
om...
> Thank you to everybody's advice, I hope to be cooking on something
new
> soon.
>
> I am looking at a New Braunfels Bandera/Brinkmann, $198 at Menards.
A
> good starter unit for me to play with.
>
> Thanks
>
> Ted

Bobball pretty well summed it up about the lower priced offsets. What
he
said about the 'mods' is quite accurate. I do most of my cooking on a
NB
Silver which is little brother to the NBBD and about the same as the
SnPP.
The only mod I've done is to extend the smoke stack down to grill
level. I
haven't done the heat baffle because I switch back and forth from
offset
to direct grilling a lot. While the heat differential from one end of
the cook
chamber to the other (while cooking offset) is considerable, I get
pretty good
results by rotating the meat from end to end once during the cook. I
suppose
I'm not as fussy as some. I have a bullet gasser if I want to get
fussy.

Brick (and his cobweb filled ECC)

I appologize, I amy have been a little misleading with my subject
title. I not that concerned with grilling, but would be an added
bonus, I just thought thats what they are called. I have Weber One
Touch gas start charcoal grill for my grilling.

I was at the store last night and was looking at this Bandera, it
would be very easy to modify it better temperature control, plus I
like that fact that you can get to what your are cooking. Unlike the
Water/Barrel Smoker I have.

Thanks again

Ted

I have a Brinkmann Cimarron. It is great! Get a good hot fire going in it
and you can cook anything. I cook brisket, chickens, turkey, and ribs. The
only thing I've cooked in it that I haven't been totally satisfied with was
pork shoulder. But that could have been the operator and not the grill!

PAT


> wrote in message
...
> On 18 Nov 2003 07:28:35 -0800, (Ted) wrote:
>
> >Hi there, new here.
> >
> >I am looking to buy an offset smoker/grill and know nothing about
> >them. What are some things to look for and or stay away from?
> >Are they better than a water smoker?
> >I have Brinkman Cookin Cajun on its last leg and was never a big fan.
> >It had a tough time with consistency and no control of temp.
>
> Ted,
>
> You've no doubt gotten plenty of good information from this crowd so
> far.
>
> FWIW, most of the "really good" offset rigs I've seen don't seem to be
> well set up for switching between grilling and smoking. The ones that
> readily do both (like the SnPP or NBBD and the like) do both, but are
> not as easy to smoke on than a bullet smoker (like a WSM).
>
> Me? I have a SnPP. Sometimes I do large-scale grilling on it, but not
> often, since it involves undoing some of the mods that are very
> helpful for smoking. My next smoker will likely be a WSM.
>
> So...one thing to consider would be one of each. A decent grill, and a
> smoker (like a WSM). Even together, the price would likely be less
> than a "good" offset, and fire control is easier. Oh...and the one
> rough thing (unless you have a pickup or a trailer), the offsets are
> not as readily transportable...at least not compared to something like
> the WSM.
>
> Bob