Phil Hartcher
TVWBB All-Star
Has anyone any experience with these. What do you think? would this be any good as a grill?
Char Griller
Cheers
Char Griller
Cheers
Char Grill Duo
- Thread starter Phil Hartcher
- Start date
Walter Eugene BrookerJr.
TVWBB Member
Well I have one , I will say this much I am impressed with the gas grill end of the cooker, easy to maintain and clean after using. As for the smoker part temps jumped all over the place , it is not very well sealed. I will stick to my 22 1/2 WSM for sure for smoaking actually thinking of add a second or maybe even a 3rd for competitions.
Tim L.
TVWBB Pro
I own one myself. Personal recommendation: good for Joe Average. Meaning, for the guy who isn't super into bbq, but is into convenience. Because convenience wise, it's quite nice. The wife gets the gas side for when she wants to bbq or when you're in a rush to get food on the table, and you get the charcoal side for when you have the time to be a bit more "authentic". It also has a side burner that is nice for getting the chimney starter going or maybe cooking some beans. I smoked/indirect a turkey in the charcoal side last year and it turned out great. Price was decent as well.
But....
Knowing what I know now and being as into bbq as I am now, I likely would not have bought it. I like having it, b/c the gas side does come in handy and b/c I don't have a kettle at the moment, but I would have rather spent the money on a Weber kettle. It's already got some rust even though it's almost always covered, and I can just tell the construction is not as good as a Weber. As I've said before, my mom has a Weber Genesis from 1991 that looks almost as it did the day we got it. I can't even say that about this unit and it's only been a year.
Just my two cents...
But....
Knowing what I know now and being as into bbq as I am now, I likely would not have bought it. I like having it, b/c the gas side does come in handy and b/c I don't have a kettle at the moment, but I would have rather spent the money on a Weber kettle. It's already got some rust even though it's almost always covered, and I can just tell the construction is not as good as a Weber. As I've said before, my mom has a Weber Genesis from 1991 that looks almost as it did the day we got it. I can't even say that about this unit and it's only been a year.
Just my two cents...
Tim L.
TVWBB Pro
Oh, and if you do go this route, don't even bother with the add-on wood box you can buy. I bought one and it had parts missing, I replaced it only to find out that it's nowhere near an easy assemble. Which really p'd me off. They sell it as an add-on, but you need to bust out the drill and tools. An add-on should simply attach. It came with no directions and internet searching showed it to be more of a jimmy-rig than a legit extra part.
Urghhh that was annoying.
Urghhh that was annoying.
John Ford
TVWBB Pro
I have two friends with these & had a char griller horizontal smoker as my main cooker for several years. They are a manufactured version of the homemade barrel cooker manta of us old farts learned to cook on.it's cheaply made but works surprisingly well as a grill but it doesn't function well as a smoker. Go to The " barbecue bible " forum for more info.
John Ford
TVWBB Pro
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by John Ford:
I have two friends with these & I had a char griller horizontal smoker as my main cooker for several years. They are a manufactured version of the homemade barrel cooker manta of us old farts learned to cook on.it's cheaply made but works surprisingly well as a grill but it doesn't function well as a smoker. Go to The " barbecue bible " forum for more info. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have two friends with these & I had a char griller horizontal smoker as my main cooker for several years. They are a manufactured version of the homemade barrel cooker manta of us old farts learned to cook on.it's cheaply made but works surprisingly well as a grill but it doesn't function well as a smoker. Go to The " barbecue bible " forum for more info. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
John Ford
TVWBB Pro
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by John Ford:
I have two friends with these & had a char griller horizontal smoker as my main cooker for several years. They are a manufactured version of the homemade barrel cooker many of us old farts learned to cook on.it's cheaply made but works surprisingly well as a grill but it doesn't function well as a smoker. Go to The " barbecue bible " forum for more info. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have two friends with these & had a char griller horizontal smoker as my main cooker for several years. They are a manufactured version of the homemade barrel cooker many of us old farts learned to cook on.it's cheaply made but works surprisingly well as a grill but it doesn't function well as a smoker. Go to The " barbecue bible " forum for more info. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Phil Perrin
TVWBB Hall of Fame
My nieghbor has one. He likes it,but he doesn't cook on his as much as I cook on my equipment.
And he also got the smoke box addition for Fathers day this year. He enjoys it.
But I doubt he could get anywhere near the performance levels of my Webers.
And he also got the smoke box addition for Fathers day this year. He enjoys it.
But I doubt he could get anywhere near the performance levels of my Webers.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by BrianPS:
I just sold my Chargriller w/side box. I did all kinds of modifications to it. I loved the cast iron grates. But I never liked using it as a smoker. It used fuel like stoking a boiler. I don't miss it. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Ditto - wore one of these out before getting the Performer/WSM combo years ago. I liked it as a grill because of the space and cast iron grates. Also liked the ability to raise/lower the coal grate for temp control.
Another convenience as a grill - was the overall space and layout. There are 4 grates. You can lift one out and set it aside. This allows you to move or slide a loaded grate off the fire, etc.
Very nice as a charcoal grill, especially for the money.
Very leaky as a smoker and tough to control temps. With mods they can perform well. I had a lot of good cooks with the side firebox. Yep - uses lots of fuel. I also liked being able to do all wood cooks. It was intense to use though to keep things controlled unless you did the mods. Not good at all for over night cooks.
A "real" horizontal smoker for home use (typically called a "patio smoker") starts at about $750-$1000, and there really isn't much in between IMHO.
I got ripped off after ordering a custom horizontal. Bought the WSM/Performer as a "work around" until that was resolved and decided what I wanted to do. Realized the work around is all I really need at this point, especially after adding the CI grates to the Performer (I was on the pre-order list). The only thing I still miss is the ability to raise/lower the coals or food grate on the Performer, but not that hard to work around.
Frankly if I ever change anything and want to spend some money again - knowing what I know now I would spend it on the best combination grill/smoker I could find fired by charcoal. Still that comes at a $$$ To me at this point it would be a Hasty Bake Continental
Hastey Bake
I'd still keep the WSM though
The dual fuel Char Griller all though the concept is cool - seems to be a bit of a waste to me, since the charcoal side is really not a good smoker at all without some mods or serious fiddling. At least not at the quality level/price point they are trying to hit. And the quality level of the grill side doesn't really hit a good mark as far as quality/longevity. They are a great company to deal with though. I ordered stuff directly from them.
I'd rather just buy a small quality gas grill (Weber) if I really felt I needed the "convenience" of gas. But - in my experience, I haven't missed propane for grilling/smoking since I went back to all coal a long, long, time ago.
I just sold my Chargriller w/side box. I did all kinds of modifications to it. I loved the cast iron grates. But I never liked using it as a smoker. It used fuel like stoking a boiler. I don't miss it. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Ditto - wore one of these out before getting the Performer/WSM combo years ago. I liked it as a grill because of the space and cast iron grates. Also liked the ability to raise/lower the coal grate for temp control.
Another convenience as a grill - was the overall space and layout. There are 4 grates. You can lift one out and set it aside. This allows you to move or slide a loaded grate off the fire, etc.
Very nice as a charcoal grill, especially for the money.
Very leaky as a smoker and tough to control temps. With mods they can perform well. I had a lot of good cooks with the side firebox. Yep - uses lots of fuel. I also liked being able to do all wood cooks. It was intense to use though to keep things controlled unless you did the mods. Not good at all for over night cooks.
A "real" horizontal smoker for home use (typically called a "patio smoker") starts at about $750-$1000, and there really isn't much in between IMHO.
I got ripped off after ordering a custom horizontal. Bought the WSM/Performer as a "work around" until that was resolved and decided what I wanted to do. Realized the work around is all I really need at this point, especially after adding the CI grates to the Performer (I was on the pre-order list). The only thing I still miss is the ability to raise/lower the coals or food grate on the Performer, but not that hard to work around.
Frankly if I ever change anything and want to spend some money again - knowing what I know now I would spend it on the best combination grill/smoker I could find fired by charcoal. Still that comes at a $$$ To me at this point it would be a Hasty Bake Continental
Hastey Bake
I'd still keep the WSM though
The dual fuel Char Griller all though the concept is cool - seems to be a bit of a waste to me, since the charcoal side is really not a good smoker at all without some mods or serious fiddling. At least not at the quality level/price point they are trying to hit. And the quality level of the grill side doesn't really hit a good mark as far as quality/longevity. They are a great company to deal with though. I ordered stuff directly from them.
I'd rather just buy a small quality gas grill (Weber) if I really felt I needed the "convenience" of gas. But - in my experience, I haven't missed propane for grilling/smoking since I went back to all coal a long, long, time ago.
I think these have the same sort of powdercoat finish that the other Chargrillers do. Longevity is probably highly influenced by climate.
I had a Chargriller Smokin' Pro and it went thru fuel like nobody's business. And I found myself using wood in the side firebox to get decent temps in the main chamber. But it is a very versatile grill/smoker.
Now the Duo may not be quite the same, and it may make sense for someone - at the right price. But after a few years with my Chargriller I was happy to start cooking on Webers.
I had a Chargriller Smokin' Pro and it went thru fuel like nobody's business. And I found myself using wood in the side firebox to get decent temps in the main chamber. But it is a very versatile grill/smoker.
Now the Duo may not be quite the same, and it may make sense for someone - at the right price. But after a few years with my Chargriller I was happy to start cooking on Webers.