EX4 vs EX6


 
G

Gerald Cen Cal

New member
It seems that many of the early issues with the SmokeFire have been worked out with the software and hardware updates, and with the current sale, I am thinking of grabbing one. I have two questions.

First, size. I have a family of 4 (me, my wife, and two sons 10 and 5) and am wondering if the EX4 will be sufficient size. I currently have an 18" WSM and 22" kettles that I rarely max out. Looking at the numbers that means the EX4 should work out fine. Can anyone quantify what fits on the EX4? For example, how many chickens or tri-tips or butts etc? Will I regret not getting the EX6? Money is not a major concern.

Second, I have heard that ordering from Weber is likely to get you an example that has the updated auger and chute. Can anyone confirm if that is correct? If so, I would be fine spending the extra for shipping from them, otherwise I believe my local Ace has them in stock, though likely with the older hardware.
 
Good call on the Weber added fixes, I’d pay shipping just to have the new welded auger (which I’m to busy to install). As for the 4 V 6 I’ll tell you what, I ordered a WSM 22 knowing the 18 maintained temps better and regretted it, but when it came time to order a 4 or 6, it was still a no brainer, I went with a 6.
As for how many butts it what not you can fit, both could handle enough for an army.
 
Bruno said:
Good call on the Weber added fixes, I’d pay shipping just to have the new welded auger (which I’m to busy to install). As for the 4 V 6 I’ll tell you what, I ordered a WSM 22 knowing the 18 maintained temps better and regretted it, but when it came time to order a 4 or 6, it was still a no brainer, I went with a 6.
As for how many butts it what not you can fit, both could handle enough for an army.
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You may not know the answer to this, but does the 6 take appreciably longer to come to temp or use significantly more fuel than the 4?
 
Gerald Cen Cal said:
You may not know the answer to this, but does the 6 take appreciably longer to come to temp or use significantly more fuel than the 4?
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It doesn’t seem like it. I can get to 600 in about 20 minutes on my ex6. I haven’t heard reports of it getting up to temp much quicker on the ex4. I recently went through a 20 pound bag in about 13 hours at 250 on my ex6. Weber estimates 1-2 pounds per hour so that sounds about right. At 600 it does burn through the pellets. The ex4 might burn less fuel but I don’t think it is a substantial difference.
 
Smokin Brothers has capacity info on their grills. The 24 in will hold 5 butts. The EX4 is a 24” grill and should hold the same. My Camp Chef is a 24” grill and I just ordered the EX6 from Lowes. I hope I’m getting the new hardware version and if I read right it’s free delivery. I normally only cook for me and my bride of 56 years but I WANTED the EX6 and the discounts put me in the buy mode. Good luck deciding.
 
As much as I love my 24" Camp Chef I would love to have an EX4 just because it's a Weber. But just can't justify the cost even with the $200 off.
I can say that for a family of four the EX4 would work great, but if you have the room for it and can swing it I would go with the EX6 as you can't have to much room. Here it's just the two of us so the CC24" is all we need.
I would give Weber a call and ask if they come with all the current upgrades just to be sure, if they do well worth the added shipping costs.
 
You will need an EX6. These kids will eat. It is just me and my wife and the EX6 is too small at times when getting ready for the kids to invade. It is a convection oven; thus heats about the same and quicker than my Weber gas grill.
 
Sounds like there is little reason to not go with the EX6 outside of cost and I think I am ok with the cost.

One follow up question. One of the early complaints was the right side being much hotter than the left. Is that still happening? Was there a fix of some sort? Is it even an issue to worry about if you know about it?
 
Gerald Cen Cal said:
Sounds like there is little reason to not go with the EX6 outside of cost and I think I am ok with the cost.

One follow up question. One of the early complaints was the right side being much hotter than the left. Is that still happening? Was there a fix of some sort? Is it even an issue to worry about if you know about it?
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Yes that does happen, I’ve started treating it as a 2 zone cooker.
 
Go with the EX6 it’s a site to behold and I’m amazed how few pellets it uses for a quick grill around 400-500 degrees.
I really hope they work out for you guys.
I would add if I was buying it today I would at least try and give Weber a call, if they put the black auger in, it’s probably worth the shipping.
 
Gerald Cen Cal said:
Sounds like there is little reason to not go with the EX6 outside of cost and I think I am ok with the cost.

One follow up question. One of the early complaints was the right side being much hotter than the left. Is that still happening? Was there a fix of some sort? Is it even an issue to worry about if you know about it?
Click to expand...
Sometimes I think the right side is hotter and sometimes I think the left side is hotter. Others have said it is Durant to the position of the deflector.
 
Hello, new poster here. I hope I'm not millering your thread, and I saw this after I started my own, but I had some questions on which one to go with as well.

I'm debating between the EX4 and EX6. It's just my wife, myself and our daughter so I don't need a ton of room and don't cook for larger gatherings often save for the holidays, family events and Father's Day most recently. I believe the EX4 uses less pellets if I've read correctly? I believe I've also read somewhere that the EX4 tends to blow less ash around the chamber and is a little easier on the cleanup side of things?

Any thoughts or recommendations are greatly appreciated. Thank you and looking forward to getting to communicating with you all as I jump into this.
 
I don't have one of these, but have been looking into them recently. I happened to be at Lowe's today and they had an EX4 on display. My first thought was "wow, that's kinda small". For a bit more money, I'd prefer to have comfort knowing I'll have plenty of space for just about anything I wanted to do.
 
DrewM said:
Hello, new poster here. I hope I'm not millering your thread, and I saw this after I started my own, but I had some questions on which one to go with as well.

I'm debating between the EX4 and EX6. It's just my wife, myself and our daughter so I don't need a ton of room and don't cook for larger gatherings often save for the holidays, family events and Father's Day most recently. I believe the EX4 uses less pellets if I've read correctly? I believe I've also read somewhere that the EX4 tends to blow less ash around the chamber and is a little easier on the cleanup side of things?

Any thoughts or recommendations are greatly appreciated. Thank you and looking forward to getting to communicating with you all as I jump into this.
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I ended up with the EX6. The extra cost is not prohibitive and the amount of fuel usage didn't see drastically different. To me it is worth having the space for when I need it. So far, I have been very happy with the first three uses. Tomorrow will be the big test. Going to do a pork butt and then a chicken and try-tip.
 
Gerald Cen Cal said:
I ended up with the EX6. The extra cost is not prohibitive and the amount of fuel usage didn't see drastically different. To me it is worth having the space for when I need it. So far, I have been very happy with the first three uses. Tomorrow will be the big test. Going to do a pork butt and then a chicken and try-tip.
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I think I may end up with the EX6 as well. How did the chicken and try-tip come out?
 
I forgot to take pictures, but the chicken and tri-tip came out fantastic! Still some work to do on my end. I need to figure out a good searing temp for the tri-tip, but overall I am very happy with the cooker.
 
I am trying to make the same decision now between the EX4 and EX6. I have a Summit S-670 and would use the SF primarily as a smoker and do most of my grilling on the Summit. I just sold my 26" kettle that I used to smoke with. Being busy with work and a newborn I just don't have time smoke like I used to. I'm leaning towards the EX4 because its just me and the wife and daughter so its not like I will be doing a lot of meat at one time. I have a couple questions and if you could provide some insight into your thoughts after purchase that would be helpful.

Question 1:
For those that purchased an EX4, do you find yourself wishing you just bought the EX6 for more space? I use every square inch of the Summit 670 when I make dinner, but the EX4 would be a dedicated smoker and most of my grilling would on the Summit.

Question 2:
For those that intended on using the SF primarily as a smoker, did you find yourself using it more as a grill? The reason I am asking is that I wonder how much I would actually use this as a grill given you can't control the heat with zones. I do a lot of cooking on my Summit with varying temps and I am looking to see if it could be a total replacement. Right now, the clean up looks to be a little clumsy with the ash and grease not contained separately.

Thank you for any thoughts you have!
 
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