Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

Is the WSM double walled or otherwise insulated? I will want a new smoker next year and it will be hard for me to go with anything but an egg style smoker. Curious as to why the WSM would be a better choice for the same money. Looks like the biggest benefit would be access to the fire from the side instead of the top.

 

No and no.

The wsm is a easy to control smoker that produces excellent results with twice the grill surface .

Also it's a Weber, who has excellent customer service and a great warranty.

 

I did a google search. Capacity does seem to be the biggest benefit. And weight, if you're moving it around a lot. Other threads seem to be split about 50/50.

 

I like it , then again my whole fleet is Weber.

They use them in comps, and win. It honestly makes me seem like a better cook to others then I really am

 

The corn was most excellent!

 

Yes, I have a basic Weber kettle but was thinking of upgrading. This one looks to be the entry priced level version of the insulated Kamado grills. But the feed back/reviews I seen so far have been about 50/50. Where as with Weber most all seem to love them - and I like the availability of replacement parts (have had wind storms relocate my grill in the past). Haven't seen a price lower than $299 on the 18" WSM yet.

 

I'm holding out until the end of summer for my 18" wsm. Hope to find a close out deal somewhere around. I love my kettle but it's not the easiest to control temps, and there's not much real estate to work with. Also, check Craigslist, I've seen some really good deals on them there.

On a side note, got the kettle up to temp and throw the ribs on...

 

I see the 18.5s all the time for under $200 at bargain Hunt. The only usual problem is damage on the box. This place does closeouts from Amazon. Amazon won't usually sell things with damaged packaging, especially if it's something they are shipping directly in the manufacturer packaging (that is, not inside an Amazon shipping box).

 

No Bargain Hunts in my area yet. But if these guys are the box store outlet for Amazon - that's a lot of potential merchandise. They should do well.

 

In my humble opinion, the kamado style grills only offer one benefit when it comes to smoking - fuel efficiency. Of course, you're talking a small difference in how much of a $5 bag of charcoal you're going to use. Kamado grills are almost unrivaled when it comes to really high heat applications. If you want something that can be a pizza oven, sear steaks at 600*+ with ease, and is a pretty good smoker, then kamado is the way to go. If BBQ/smoking is your primary need, I'd be inclined to get one of the most well regarded smokers ever made in the WSM and pick up a bunch of extra surface area at the same time. The WSM is going to hold temps just fine for smoking.

 

Not double walled or insulated, but it is pretty easy to build a baffle. The real kamados are ceramic and a lot more expensive than the wsm. The akorns are nice, but they are metal and all reviews I've seen say they'll rust out in around 5 years unless you keep them inside. Weber, otoh, is never going to rust unless you chip the porcelain enamel.

 

You cannot go wrong with a WSM in whatever size you think will suit your needs. Just keep in mind, when you buy one in whatever size, you will then find a reason to justify why you need the other size WSM's as well.

I got my first WSM, a 14, about 3 weeks ago. It is one hell of a fuel efficient setup and keeps temps stable and can cook anything I would normally cook other than brisket. I am now on the craigslist hunt or a good deal on a WSM 22 since I struggled with a brisket on the 14 last week.

 

3.5 hours in, had to add some coals

 

The Akorn does do well with high heat. I've cooked pizzas on it at 650+. And the Akorn does have about 500 square inches of cooking surface when you figure in the extra rack. The WSM 18 has more, but not a lot more.

I think this is year 5 or 6 for mine, but I keep it covered. No real rust issues, but the black paint on the top stack has burnt off. No other complaints so far, just think I'm ready to add something different to my setup. Currently I have an Akorn, a Masterbilt analog electric and a Weber kettle grill, I think it's the 22" standard version.

 

Checked Sam's today. Whole brisket 13.5 lbs $38.

Fuck Publix.

 

Will be going to Costco at some point this week. Need to check on brisket prices

 

$4/lb at mine a couple of days ago.

*sigh* It appears that gone are the days of $2.59/lb USDA prime brisket at Costco. Oh well. It was a good run.

 

If you're lookin' you ain't cookin'



Rolling my ribs for the first time.

 

damn... I'm still hopeful