Gas Smoker


 
B

Brian Trommater

TVWBB Super Fan
My WSM is getting pretty old and I am wanting to go with a gas smoker this time. I was at Sam's looking at a members mark gas smoker. It looks like a very nice unit but am having hard time convincing myself to spend that much money ($668). They had a Smokeymountain gas smoker ($400) last year that a friend of mine had bought and loves it but I waited to long to get before the end of the season. They said they don't think they will have them this year. Anybody know anything about the members mark smoker?
 
Brian, If I was going to spend $600 on a smoker I'd definitely look at the pellet cookers. I've heard good things about them. They can smoke and high temp cook.
 
Originally posted by Brian Trommater:
My WSM is getting pretty old and I am wanting to go with a gas smoker this time.
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Blasphamy! Have you no idea what forum you're in?
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Actually, I've heard the younger WSM's are one of the best smokers out there. How about a new one?
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JimT
 
I've heard good things about the bradley smoker. It's a pellet smoker for around $300. Pellets ain't cheap though.

I've seen the one at sam's also, I wonder who makes it? Quality seems pretty good.

I'll stick with the fossil fuels though.
 
I've been wondering about pellet smokers. Does anybody have any words about Traeger Smokers? I'll look into the ones mentioned here. Thanks...tom
 
The only smoker I have is a Great Outdoors Gas Smoker. I got it because I live in an apartment with limited space and accessibility so I didn't want to have to deal with starting charcoal, etc. with the WSM. While I've never cooked on a WSM, I got to drool over one at a Weber store and I would say if I had the room, I would want the WSM.
The gas's greatest perk of course is the hands off feature. Mine can handle 8-10 pork butts and can cook up to 425 degrees. The drawbacks are that it is pretty heavy and has a gas tank so it is not very portable. It also struggles to produce smoke when cooking at below 275 degrees, using more wood than the charcoal smokers i have used. It also is not liquid tight so moisture runs out at the joints. All in all, for my situation I have liked the gas smoker, but when I move to a house, I plan on getting a WSM.
 
I know someone that bought one of them Smokey Mountains and loved it. I wish I could help you on on their newer one.
 
My father-in-law has a gas smoker he bought from Sam's, not sure if it's the one you are talking about though. It is stainless steel with a vertical access door. Sort of looks like a refridgerator? Anyway, he likes it, but in no way is the quality of bbq close to the WSM. The one he has works on wood chips (it has 2 trays that you pull out and refill every 1/2 hour or hour). It can hold WAY more food than the WSM though as I have witnessed a cook that consisted of 6 or 8 butts, 2 brisket and 6 slabs of babybacks. It has 4 racks that look like they could easily hold 4-6 butts each! But like I said, it tasted more like a slow cook oven than smoker.
 
Tom, I was at a CBJ class the other day in St Louis and I sat next to a pellet cooker dealer(Traeger) who is located a little south west of Kansas City. He said he used to use an off set. He was intrigued with the pellet cookers and tried one. He said he was so amazed at what it could do he bought the franchise for that area. He said you can cook anything on this from BBQ to Pizza. Now, you have to remember he is a dealer and of course his views are probably skewed but go on some of the other BBQ sites and post some questions about them. From doing some quick research the cost of the pellets are not cheap. They start fast and will maintain temps between 10 and 20 degrees. The pellets are augered in when the thermostat detects a temp drop.They cook faster then the WSM. He was telling me he cooks butts in 10-12 hours.
 
Thanks Paul. I'll keep looking. Traeger's main office is in Mount Angel, Oregon. This is
my wife's home town and we usually visit the area in the summer. I think we will drop in next summer. I've never visited Traeger before....tom
 
That is the model I was looking at Brian. I was wondering if it would put off much smoke. Thanks for the input. I think I will just stick with the WSM for now. Just need to give it a good cleaning. I have not bought a new toy in quite a while. If they get the stainless steel gas smokeymountain back this year I will probably buy it. I have tasted the BBQ from it and was very good. Friend just sets it up before going to bed and it and it doesn't miss a beat. He replaced the cast iron box with a cut down coffee can so it would hold more wood.
 
A friend of mine has a wsm that he modified to electric.

I just checked google and amazon and apparently it is not called a hot plate. When I was a kid growing up my mom had this unit that she brought out of the closet approximately 16" square and the wires/thermostat unplugged from the plate. The only thing I remember my mom using it for was fried potatos. My wife just cleared it up for me. It is an electric skillet. Amazon has one for $20

He picked one up at a garage sale and just sat it on the chacoal grate and puts wood chips on the plate for the smoke. I am sure the pellets would work well also.

I haven't seen his setup but I think he removed the plastic parts from the skillet. He says it is great just set the temp and see ya later. The only thing he smokes is fish.

If you want more info let me know and I will go and get some pics of it.
 
This thing is supposed to convert charcoal smokers to gas. Although it looks like it is designed for a Brinkman, it is supposed to work with a WSM. It is priced at less than $50.

Let us know how it works if you try it.
 
Originally posted by jeff davidson:
Take a look at these about.com articles. I figure the y must know what they`re doing since the wsm is listed as the top < $400. There are gas smokers in both lists with mini-reviews.

best < $400

smokers best > $400
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Those top 10 things are just what they are, an opinion. Where are the gator pits listed? Every site I go to talk about Gators as one of the leaders, and they get no mention there. It does make for some good info and learning though.
 
Originally posted by Brian Trommater:
My WSM is getting pretty old and I am wanting to go with a gas smoker this time. I was at Sam's looking at a members mark gas smoker. It looks like a very nice unit but am having hard time convincing myself to spend that much money ($668). They had a Smokeymountain gas smoker ($400) last year that a friend of mine had bought and loves it but I waited to long to get before the end of the season. They said they don't think they will have them this year. Anybody know anything about the members mark smoker?
Click to expand...

Brian, I was at Costco and saw a propane smoker there made by Grand Hall. It had a fairly large top cabinet for the food, and the bottom cabinet had one side for the tank and the other side for the burner and wood. It was about $350, I think. It was all stainless and looked pretty nice, although I have no way of knowing how well it works.
 
Originally posted by Tom Hinkle:
Brian, I was at Costco and saw a propane smoker there made by Grand Hall. It had a fairly large top cabinet for the food, and the bottom cabinet had one side for the tank and the other side for the burner and wood. It was about $350, I think. It was all stainless and looked pretty nice, although I have no way of knowing how well it works.
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I saw the one at Sam's the other day also. I believe Grand Hall is the maker of Sam's Member's Mark models as well although this smoker is not listed on the Grand Hall website or in their parts area (yet?).

I was also intrigued by this shiny toy and did a google search. Seems you have to refill the smoke wood trays every hour or so and the water tray every 1.5 hours. But other than that, it seemed to be an intersting unit. Double walled and insulated with adjustable flame for temp control. Although stainless is nice, it is a little pricey for my pocketbook.

Besides, the WSM is lots of fun, and once you learn air flow and vent control it's almost a set it and forget it unit on most cooks!!!
 
I sometimes use the Brinkman All-In-One. It's a combination turkey frier, gas smoker, gas grill, charcoal smoker, charcoal grill.

I've only used it as a turkey frier and a gas smoker and was very happy with the results. I paid about 100 bucks for it at Barbeuces Galore but I think Walmart may also carry them.

Here's an Amazon link that has a picture.

All In One at Amazon

Bill
 
I bought an all-in-one smoker from Cabela's. I used it a couple of times and bought a WSM.

It did work good in the sense that you could start the smoke with charcoal and when the coals ran out, you turn the gas on.
 
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