Pellet Smoker Research

[phughesjr]

So I’m in the market for a PS. I currently have an xl BGE but I just can’t get enough meat on it for entertaining. I also have 2 kids under 2 and am really wanting a set and forget it type of smoker for this point in my life that could also grill some burgers and dawgs when time arises. So far I have gone in circles making cases for a number of smokers but I have kinda come down to 3 smokers: Traeger Timberline 1300, Yoder YS640, and Pitts and Spitts Maverick 1250.

I just recently read where the P&S and YS are very inefficient because of the thickness of the metal. I’m kinda confused by this. Can anyone explain this to me?

Traeger seems to have gotten a bad rep for their quality, and has attempted to right the ship with the timberline series. I haven’t been able to see any reviews by anyone who has this smoker. The intriguing part to me is it has a lot of the same benefits as the Memphis smokers like the double wall insulation and oven gasket.

Does anyone have general thoughts or personal experience with any of these or make recommendations with justification for anything else?

Thanks Everyone


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[rwalters]

Welcome to the LTBBQ family

I sold 2 Kamado Joe Big Joe’s last year and bought a MAK 2 Star.

This is just my opinion:

I wouldn’t touch a Yoder for 2 reasons.
-The paint quality is horrible.
-The performance (temp swings and tendency to overshoot target temp before settling in) is not something I want to deal with.

The Pitts and Spitts looks very promising IF you are in the market for a smoker only. I wouldn’t want to use it as a grill.

Traeger seems to have dialed the Timberline in since releasing it last year. The 850 seems to be better than the 1350 as far as performance is concerned.  But, it’s still a Chinese made cooker.

What is your budget, how many people do you cook for on a regular basis and do you enjoy entertaining?  Are you looking for a pellet grill that can do a good job at everyday grilling or does it have to have the ability to hit screaming hot lump charcoal like temps?  Will you be doing more low n slow, more grilling or will it be 50/50?

[UWFSAE]

Pitts and Yoder are well built, but the sheer volume of metal requires a ton of energy to heat.  You'll likely see higher pellet consumption, though it will be a bit more obvious with the Yoder due to their wonky controller (it's proprietary, a PITA to update, and doesn't have any significant benefits over the competition).

RWalters is correct on the Yoder paint issues; it's pretty common knowledge and there isn't a fix.  The variance on temps in the Yoder are frustrating ... they market their damper system as a "benefit" when it really is no more than a rough means of compensating for temp swings.

Of the three you list, I think the Pitts is the one I'd choose ... I live in the Houston, TX area (where they're made) and have seen them up close and personal; they are thoughtfully designed and attractive.  Yoder would come in second with the Timberline in third place.

That being said, there are two other brands in the same price range with top tier performance you should take a look at prior to pulling the trigger:  Blaz'n Grillworks Gridiron and the Mak 2 Star.  I went with the Blaz'n Gridiron (WiFi, lid insulator, comp cart, ProShelves) as I'd have over 2200 sq. inches of usable cookspace for wings, ribs, jerky, etc.  I think that both the Blaz'n and Mak are better all-around smokers than the three you mention.

My Gridiron can smoke large volumes of meat with efficiency and a robust smokey flavor, and can sear with the best of them.  I prefer my Blaz'n's double walled construction rather than simple adding to the gauge of metal for heat retention and management.  Blaz'n just introduced a pellet dump option (something I didn't know existed when I bought mine in late December 2017) but beyond that it had every feature I wanted, top tier customer service, is American made, and is built to last.

[teesquare]

MAK....you will never look back.

[sparky]

Mak 1 star.

[phughesjr]

The MAK is a little pricey for me to get the size that I want. I really want something I can load up with wings or ribs or whatever. The grill will almost be dedicated for smoking but having the option for burger and dawgs is huge because I foresee a few bbqs in the backyard with kids and parents. Now having looked at the Blazn Grid Iron I think I’m in love. For around $2000 I can get the stack of grates, Wifi, and the comp cart in case I need to wheel that thing around. Has anyone gotten double wall lid for the Blazn? I know I don’t need it for heat loss in South Georgia but I was thinking it could pay for itself in less pellet consumption...or I’m just overthinking it...


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[teesquare]

The MAK is a little pricey for me to get the size that I want. I really want something I can load up with wings or ribs or whatever. The grill will almost be dedicated for smoking but having the option for burger and dawgs is huge because I foresee a few bbqs in the backyard with kids and parents. Now having looked at the Blazn Grid Iron I think I’m in love. For around $2000 I can get the stack of grates, Wifi, and the comp cart in case I need to wheel that thing around. Has anyone gotten double wall lid for the Blazn? I know I don’t need it for heat loss in South Georgia but I was thinking it could pay for itself in less pellet consumption...or I’m just overthinking it...


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Somebody help him out.

[sparky]

Mak 1 star = $1700.  It's the same size has the 2 star for volume.  I have cooked 10 racks of BB backs at once, 8 pork butts at once and 4 packer briskets at once.  Volume isn't a problem with maks.

[HighOnSmoke]

I own the Blaz'n Grid Iron and have had it since 2013. I also live in Georgia and didn't get the double wall lid so can't help you there. I can
tell you that the Grid Iron is a solid cooking machine and you won't have any regrets if you purchase it.

[phughesjr]

Mak 1 star = $1700.  It's the same size has the 2 star for volume.  I have cooked 10 racks of BB backs at once, 8 pork butts at once and 4 packer briskets at once.  Volume isn't a problem with maks.

Sparky, I am assuming you have the 2nd shelf on your 1 star? I was looking at the 2 Star because that is what was recommended. $2700. I really appreciate everyone's feedback. As you can tell I have done a 180 on what I am considering.

[UWFSAE]

I didn't think I'd use the insulated lid here on the Texas Gulf Coast ... until the freak ice storm in January.  The insulated lid promotes very stable temps in the Blaz'n, and there is ample anecdotal feedback from those living in Minnesota, Nebraska, Utah, etc. who use their Blaz'n grills in the dead of winter with no consistency issues whatsoever.  For Texas, it's just going to give me an efficiency boost on pellet consumption.

I think we've chatted on the Blaz'n Owners Group Facebook page ... HighOnSmoke and a few others are the ones on this forum who gave me ample advice and their experiences before I pulled the trigger on my Gridiron.  There weren't any serious negatives from the owners I spoke with, and that spoke volumes.  Tim Mickey at Blaz'n will answer ANY question you have as well ... he's super patient and never went for the hard sell.

To be sure, the Maks are good products, but 860" of max space just didn't get me what I needed.  In my case, I needed the 2000"+ for wings, ribs, and jerky ... if I'd had the money for the Mak 3-Star General (and the willingness to built an outdoor kitchen around it) I'd have gone with that since it's got the space I was looking for AND it's built to last a lifetime (and has the aesthetic value of a Porsche 911 in your backyard).

I would personally put Blaz'n and Mak above Yoder ... and Pitts & Spitts, while intriguing, raises concerns for me regarding thermal mass.  That, plus the local sales guy for Pitts wanted to charge me a higher amount to locally deliver (Houston metro area) a Pitts to my house as my Blaz'n cost for white-glove delivery going from Nebraska to Texas.  That, plus tacking on sales tax, left a bad taste in my mouth ... they didn't really care if they made a sale, it seemed.

If you're down between Blaz'n and Mak now, you'll make a good choice with either option.

[rwalters]

I own the Blaz'n Grid Iron and have had it since 2013. I also live in Georgia and didn't get the double wall lid so can't help you there. I can
tell you that the Grid Iron is a solid cooking machine and you won't have any regrets if you purchase it.

So, you've had your Blaz'n grill since 2013... you'd be a good one to ask a few questions too.

1) Do you do much grilling on your Blaz'n?  If yes, how does it perform as a grill?
2) In the 5 years that you have owned it, how has the exterior finish held up?
3) In the 5 years that you have owned it, what issue/problems if any have you had to deal with?
4) In the 5 years that you have owned it, have you had any issues with rust on the interior or exterior?
5) In the 5 years that you have owned it, is there anything that you would change about the cooker if you could?
6) How even (or uneven) are temps front/back, top/bottom and left/right when cooking at lower temps and when cooking at higher temps?
7) Have you ever seen a MAK in person (1 Star or 2 Star)?  If yes, how would you compare the quality of a Blaz'n to a MAK?

Why am I asking these questions?  I have a large family and we love to entertain.  Although not an everyday issue, there are times that I could really use a bit more cooking real estate!

[HighOnSmoke]

I own the Blaz'n Grid Iron and have had it since 2013. I also live in Georgia and didn't get the double wall lid so can't help you there. I can
tell you that the Grid Iron is a solid cooking machine and you won't have any regrets if you purchase it.

So, you've had your Blaz'n grill since 2013... you'd be a good one to ask a few questions too.

1) Do you do much grilling on your Blaz'n?  If yes, how does it perform as a grill?
2) In the 5 years that you have owned it, how has the exterior finish held up?
3) In the 5 years that you have owned it, what issue/problems if any have you had to deal with?
4) In the 5 years that you have owned it, have you had any issues with rust on the interior or exterior?
5) In the 5 years that you have owned it, is there anything that you would change about the cooker if you could?
6) How even (or uneven) are temps front/back, top/bottom and left/right when cooking at lower temps and when cooking at higher temps?
7) Have you ever seen a MAK in person (1 Star or 2 Star)?  If yes, how would you compare the quality of a Blaz'n to a MAK?

Why am I asking these questions?  I have a large family and we love to entertain.  Although not an everyday issue, there are times that I could really use a bit more cooking real estate!

Robb, I replied to this in a PM to you.

[rwalters]

I own the Blaz'n Grid Iron and have had it since 2013. I also live in Georgia and didn't get the double wall lid so can't help you there. I can
tell you that the Grid Iron is a solid cooking machine and you won't have any regrets if you purchase it.

So, you've had your Blaz'n grill since 2013... you'd be a good one to ask a few questions too.

1) Do you do much grilling on your Blaz'n?  If yes, how does it perform as a grill?
2) In the 5 years that you have owned it, how has the exterior finish held up?
3) In the 5 years that you have owned it, what issue/problems if any have you had to deal with?
4) In the 5 years that you have owned it, have you had any issues with rust on the interior or exterior?
5) In the 5 years that you have owned it, is there anything that you would change about the cooker if you could?
6) How even (or uneven) are temps front/back, top/bottom and left/right when cooking at lower temps and when cooking at higher temps?
7) Have you ever seen a MAK in person (1 Star or 2 Star)?  If yes, how would you compare the quality of a Blaz'n to a MAK?

Why am I asking these questions?  I have a large family and we love to entertain.  Although not an everyday issue, there are times that I could really use a bit more cooking real estate!

Robb, I replied to this in a PM to you.

Thank you kind sir

[Michigan0626]

Besides the high quality, you simply cannot beat MAK's customer service. There is a reason why they are successful with (sorry to say this) a very substandard website. The word of mouth advertising IS their business model. That only works if you have two things.

1) Thee absolute greatest customer service. The kind of service that makes you feel guilty about how far above and beyond they go. (And I feel guilty as sin)

2) Thee absolute best quality materials to produce the absolute best quality product.