Many thanks for the uploading help! Of course it is always easier to have someone else do the heavy lifting <smile>, but I really did try. I first tried from my iPad using Safari but I couldn't get the selection in the Attachments and other options box below to stay selected. Then I tried on my iMac, and while I could see images, they would simply not load. That led me to join Photobucket, but still nothing good happened. So I created a public folder and dear muebe saved the day. Don't think it should be quite that hard...
That said, I am totally chuffed (a British term for "excited", "pumped", "thrilled") with the way they've turned out and I'm a pizza newbie, more or less. These are from homemade dough. Frankly, if I'm going to go to the hassle, expense and such to have a dedicated pizza oven, I feel I have to go all the way with making the dough. As you know who do it, it really isn't THAT hard, especially with a decent stand mixer or a sturdy food processor. I think the trick will be to keep a steady supply at hand so I can make a pizza on short notice.
Drholly, you ask about wood vs. propane. I honestly do not think you'll notice much of a difference. I think it is the char, the leopard-spotting and the proper cooking of the bottom of the crust that truly makes the difference, not the source of the heat. After all, we aren't going for SMOKE here, fellas. Look, I know the lure of smoke. I've got men in my family who view anything with smoke is good, and more is MUCH better. I get it.
And I did seriously consider getting the Uuni pizza oven with the cute little wood pellets. But it would have cost me almost exactly what the Groupon offer of this oven, plus incredibly well made cover (no crummy vinyl trash bag wannabe) plus metal peel and I've received so very much more than that cute black box with the smoke. There is a lot of substance to the BS. It is well made and designed, despite the occasional (too often, I think) problem with quality and/or shipping control but the company jumps right on the problem and will ship out a replacement part. So when you have all the parts, you've got an item that will be around for a long time. The Uuni looks like a simple device next to this one. And I've read that it spews ash on the top of the pizzas, and I frankly do not want to eat ash on mine. The woman I spoke to at Blackstone told me that her colleagues were trying to figure out how to add some wood chips and get the balance just right. They went overboard and smoke was ALL they could taste. Exactly how they did this I don't know but I suspect it is possible. Maybe that would be the perfect compromise?
The Pizzeria Pronto costs nearly the same as the BS offer here, once you add in the $49 optional leg add-ons that will be available this summer. But you have no table space and it doesn't turn or have the upper stone and can't easily accommodate any other foods. Whatever you do decide, it is, of course, entirely up to you, your preferences, your space, and your budget. I cannot imagine being happier with this product. And I bought it sight unseen-strictly from photos and online reviews.
FWIW, I did get v1 of the BS, and I quite like having the two shelves underneath as well as the two side shelves. V2 has only a spot for the tank underneath and a small basket for tools, plus the side shelves. I don't know if v2 is yet out on the market or not, generally, but it is the one that Amazon shows.
Some more thoughts:
Despite my checking the parts list for this oven more than once, I found that it isn't complete. Though the box includes a propane tank hose and an AC adapter for the motor, neither are on the parts list. I ended up buying a hose to be prepared without knowing I would be getting one in the box. BS really must update their manual.
A few more suggestions based on my very recent experience, which I've just emailed with Blackstone. You will need a AA battery for the igniter (insert bottom end first - which the directions don't tell you), and you will need two D batteries for the motor. My suggestion is to take advantage of the opportunity and insert the D batteries in the motor before you connect it to the oven. Of course, you'll have to eventually replace the batteries while the motor is on the oven, but at least you'll have a chance to see what's what without getting way down and looking up into the battery compartment later on!
If you've not bought a thrust bearing to help with the rotation of the tray, please consider it. I read about it here and in the reviews of the oven on Amazon. It apparently makes a huge difference and it costs under $12. Look at 51205 Thrust Bearing 25x47x15 Thrust Bearings, Amazon item ASIN: B002BBGW3K. You place it on the horizontal cross member that the stem of the rotating tray goes through (obviously around the hole for the stem) and just thread the stem through the thrust bearing and the cross member, and it rotates so smoothly on those bearings!
After buying one thermometer that only went up to 715'F, I exchanged it for this model-the least expensive model I could find that measures over 1,000'F (to give some latitude). This is the one I got from Amazon and am using:
Laser thermometer, TopG® Temperature Gun Non-contact Infrared Thermometer w/ Laser Sight U.S. FDA/FCC/CE/ROHS Approved
Item model number: TG8550, ASIN: B00ICSYFSA
There are several models on the same page. I got the royal blue one (not for color, just because it met the criteria I had).
The pizza took three minutes and ten seconds to bake once at temperature (which took maybe 5 minutes?). The laser temperature of the stone was about 700' and the air temp shown on the built in oven thermometer was about 400'. I can't imagine using this without the laser thermometer.
BTW, it was suggested to me to have both a wooden peel and a metal one. Assemble unbanked pizzas on the wooden one, remove them from the oven with the metal one. There are a lot of wooden peels out there. I did splurge on the J.K. Adams handmade alder wood one, made in the US. It was about $37, but it is beautiful and has a lifetime warranty. I've read posts in various places of wooden or bamboo peels cracking or splitting. This may be a case of you get what you pay for. I find using semolina flour on the peel to be a wonderful way to keep them from sticking and to have them slide nicely onto the baking stone as it is more granular than regular flour.
The peel is the J.K. Adams 23-3/4-Inch-by-14-Inch Alder Wood Pizza Peel, Amazon item # ASIN: B0032UXSXQ. $37.
I do try to support US manufacturers when I can (just bought a US-made kitchen range too) and this is a family owned company in your neck of the woods, Dorset, VT. 2nd generation. There's a lot of information about the company on Amazon's website.
One of the reasons I chose this oven was to be able to cook other things in addition to pizzas. To that end I also looked for a pan that could handle high heat and would fit in the oven, and that cost as little as possible (given that I just bought a lot of ovens in the past two weeks!).
So I chose the Lodge L9OG3 Pre-Seasoned Round Griddle, 10.5-inch, (Amazon item ASIN: B00008GKDN) $13.79. It is on its way and will be here tomorrow. I plan on cooking salmon, steaks, shrimp, chicken. I think this is relatively new territory here, and we all will learn.
There is plenty of room to create just what you want, no matter what you use to make your pizzas on/in-grill, oven inside, oven outside. After all, isn't eating something delicious what this entire forum is all about?
Thanks guys!
Kris
