Smoking in WSM vs. a standard Weber kettle


 
J

John A

TVWBB Member
For the past few years I've been smoking in a charcoal kettle (weber) with an indirect setup and placing my meat in the middle. I have had inconsistant results. Sometimes it's great, sometimes its not.

Can anyone comment on how the WSM is better than a standard charcoal kettle for smoking? In other words, does the size of the bullet allow for even deflected heat all througout whereas the small kettle is more of an indirect heat?

I read that the WSM is very easy to manage (set and forget) and the kettle is the exact opposite, but I sort of enjoy the challenge.

If anyone can share their thoughts on smoking in a bullet smoker vs. an indirect set up in a Weber charcoal kettle I would greatly appreciate it! I'm curious to whether the WSM will be providing a more consistant even heat.

Thanks!

John
 
I read that the WSM is very easy to manage (set and forget) and the kettle is the exact opposite, but I sort of enjoy the challenge.
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That sounds like someone who hasnt enjoyed the benefit of set and forget.
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The WSM is a charm to operate. When doing an overnight cook, or even a longer rib cook etc... the WSM is an easy cooker to operate. I kinda know where to set my vents after the cooker gets going, and then I just check it periodically. If it is an overnighter, I dont get up to check it, I check it if I have to answer the call of nature.

I have never smoked on my kettle, and after having the WSM first, and then a kettle, I probably wont either.

If you are contemplating buying one, I think it will be an investment you wont regret.
 
I've got 3 kettles and my WSM, and won't use the kettles to smoke anything. I had the kettles first, and did a picnic and a brisket on them, and then I got my WSM because I wasn't happy at all with the results. The kttle is a downright pain in the behind to get good smoked results on. By contrast, the WSM is an amazing piece of equipment. The hold temperatures with very little effort on the part of the user, and because of their construction, the flow of heat is very even, allowing you to get results that are consistent. I've done many many overnight butt cooks,, and like Dave said, getting up to check temps just doesn't happen. Mine settles in at 241 without fail, and it will cruise there for nearly 6 hours without budging. Plenty of time for me to get some shuteye. But, there are few things better than going out at around 5:00 a.m. and smelling the porky goodness that has perfumed the neighborhood!
 
Welcome John,

We're really talking about 2 different tools here. 1 tool was designed for smoking, 1 tool was designed for grilling. While both tools can achieve both objectives; there's an obvious choice for each because of the designs involved. The kettle is really meant for grilling. Your meat and coals are never that far from each other even when cooking indirect. I know my kettle isn't as air tight as my wsm, so controlling the heat on the kettle is trickier. With the wsm I can load a whole brisket and 2 butts at the same time; can't do that on my kettle. My wsm will hold enough charcoal for a 10-12 hour smoke; my kettle won't. If need be, I can lift off the top portion of the wsm, add more coals, while releasing very little heat (I've added handles to the middle section). My wsm is designed to hold a water pan which filled with a variety of materials will greatly help me keep temps down for low and slow cooks. A kettle will require bricks to do that, but they compete with the space for charcoal in which case you're adding fuel more frequently. That's my 2 cents.

Paul
 
I use my weber kettles for smoking smaller pieces that require less time. (cottage functions) Even still with that set up I find i have to watch it more and would never think of using it for an overnight smoke. Its not designed as a smoker. My wsm has a water pan, the weber kettle needs you to mock one up. I'm even tempted to think the gauge metal is different ? But a kettle can be turned into a temporary smoker if you have the 22.5 and the smokenator.
 
One word - +++ CONSISTENCY +++

The WSM will give it to ya'
The Kettle will not (or at least, not without a lot of difficulty)

I did smoke some salmon on an old kettle a few times with respectable results, but really needed to tend that fire & screw-around with it a lot.

Bought a WSM and became a believer
 
I have used my kettle with smokenator and the results are great.I do most of my smoking on my ceramic grill now but in the summer if I'm home for the day I will smoke things on the kettle with the smokenator only if its going to be a smaller piece of meat or ribs.
 
Originally posted by D. L. Whitehead:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by simon j: But a kettle can be turned into a temporary smoker if you have the 22.5 and the smokenator.
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Simon, you don't really need a 22.5" kettle or a Smokenator. A Smokey Joe Silver can work just fine as a smoker.

### </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Those smokey joe links are absolutely impressive! That made my whole afternoon. I love my little smokey joe but only have used it for tailgates. I once joked that the prime steaks i put on my smokey joe were more expensive than the little grill itself!!!!

DL Whitehead - do you also use a WSM?
 
well, i have used my wsm twice and have been underwhelmed. i get better results in my kettle with less fiddling. i smoke in my kettle with the coals on one side with the meat on the other rather than the meat being in the middle. i will continue to try the wsm. i'm sure it just takes time to learn. that being said, i would not miss the wsm at this point. so unless you need to cook a lot of meat all the time, i would suggest changing yer method on the kettle and learning a bit more and save the bucks unless you can find a wsm for 50.00 .
 
I guess I've had the opposite experience as George. Last summer I smoked ribs on my kettle for the first time. Cooking time was approx 4 hours and it seemed like it took constant maintenance. I had coals on one side and meat on the other, with an alum water pan in between. Ribs came out OK, but was alot of work - I cut down on fuel quantity for heat maintenance, but then needed to keep adding to it. I'm sure it could be done better.

But then I bought the WSM a couple of months ago - I've only had a couple of smokes (1 @ 7 hrs and 1 @ 10 hrs) but it's so easy to maintain constant temps and the finished product is great. However, I haven't smoked ribs yet, so can't compare methods directly. I am, however, really looking forward to it.

Bottom line - the WSM is much easier to use, and a whole lot more fun. Hope this helps.

Peter
 
Oh, and to answer your question - with the WSM, there is greater distance between heat source and meat, the water pan acts as a heat sink to keep temps down, and the water pan helps deflect direct heat. Also, the vent configuration on the bottom of the WSM does a better job of regulating air (and thereby heat) than the bottom vents on my kettle. I'm sure there are other technologies in play, but I'm still a newbie and am still figuring it out.

Peter
 
I was using the kettle for a while and just recently got a 22" WSM and it's been really nice. Everything's worked great with the help of the instructions here. It's all very straightforward - all the basic concepts from the kettle carry over, you just have nicer air controls and the distance from the coals to the food simplifies things. On long cooks I'm running 6-8 hours without having to touch anything (at some point the temperature drops but poking at it a bit to knock off some ash corrects it. I think a good kick would probably have the same result.)

I still use the kettle of course - anything with a sear step I like the configuration with the coals on one side and you can do direct on the right and indirect on the left. (I use my smokey joe the same way when I'm just cooking something small for me.)
 
I've had both and prefer the kettle (performer). I sold my WSM on CL because I like using the kettle better. I just find it easier to set up and clean up afterwards. I use fire bricks and have gotten over 15 hours without adding fuel. I also find it easier to add fuel to a kettle with a hinged grate than with the WSM. The temperature control is not as tight as with the WSM but it's not been considerably worse than the WSM, and now that I have a guru is a total non-issue.

I really like the WSM, but I think the only substantial advantage over the kettle is capacity. 90% of the time, I can fit everything I need to cook in the kettle and I have a cajun bandit whenever need to cook more.

I guess I'm saying my vote is for the kettle.
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If you are going to cook a lot of food and plan to do it overnight alot of the time, you certainly won't be making a mistake by getting the WSM. I just like the versatility of the kettle.
 
The difference between the WSM and the Weber kettle? Night and day, john, night and day! The WSM is the right tool for smoking and the kettle is the right tool for grilling. Oh, and the kettle is an even better too for grilling with a fat set of cast iron grills on it :)
 
A little late here. I don't check in here often but thought I'd way in.. and also refer you to a thread a while back on the same subject.

http://tvwbb.infopop.cc/eve/fo...750042994#6750042994

I have both a WSM and 3 kettles. A few years back in my first comp I placed in the top 3rd of the group in ribs which were cooked on a kettle.

You can cook with consistency on the kettle. With the kettle you need to learn how to mimic the WSM or offset which comes with experience. With that said, a WSM is easier to maintain temps for longer periods of time so that's what I use.

For example I can get up Sunday am, put on a pork butt on 8am. Come back after church around noon and know that the temps will have been within a consistant range.

With a kettle, more likely than not I will need to add fuel or stay around to fiddle with vents etc. to maintain temps. So although the end results can be similar the kettle may need more babysitting.

But if you like a challenge go ahead to try it out maybe you can develop a workaround that will allow you to have similar temp control as a WSM.

John
 
For shorter cooks like ribs I'll generally use the kettle, but different than you do. More like Justin, but without the fire bricks.

You are using two small fires, whereas I use one fire and put the meat opposite. I also use a foil wall at the fire below the grate, and ABOVE the grate about 6 inches to keep as much direct heat away from the meat as possible.

You may actually be surprised at how long you can hold BBQ temps in the kettle with proper fire management.
 
I use the kettle for high heat situations, and the WSM for moderate to low heat situations. I would bake, and grill on the kettle, and smoke and barbecue on the WSM
 
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