I of course love smoked meats of all kinds, but also like quick cooks like chicken portions, pork tenderloins, steak and fish. Really into cooking of all kinds.
My outdoor kitchen has a Lone Star Grillz Adjustable and it is wonderful. There also is a Pit Boss 5 Burner Ultimate Griddle and a Pit Boss Copperhead pellet grill.
There is an outdoor fire pit that has grilling capability and limited Santa Maria-style grill raising and lowering.
I'm sure most of you got the email from Thermoworks this morning saying they've brought back the pocket IR thermometer and that it's only $19. I'm torn. I want an IR thermometer, but I've been drooling over the big ones on the site and patiently waiting for them to be on sale.
So, does anyone have the pocket version? Is it worth having? At only $19, I wonder if it will be accurate and if it will last.
I have a smaller one at work, different brand. It's within 1 degree of our more expensive calibrated ones. My bigger one I have at home rarely gets used for cooking, I do stupid things like measure my dogs, measure my wife, measure the wall, the TV, try to hit the random fly in the house. Probably the dumbest purchase I've ever made according to my wife, but I'll go on sprees where I randomly measure everything So for 20 bucks, heck yeah I'd buy one.
I have the $69 model, but the pocket one intrigued me. I went online to look at it, and unless I am misunderstanding something it only measures temps up to 230F. If that is the case I am not sure why anyone would want one other than it fits in your pocket.
Last edited by LA Pork Butt; March 17, 2020, 08:43 AM.
Oooh. Thanks. I hadn't even gone to the site yet, as I was really dubious something at such a low price point would be useful. Yeah, that upper limit is a dealbreaker. I'm mainly looking for something that will give me info at temps above where I'm willing to risk my pit probe.
We use them for surface temperatures during snow season, so our interested range is between 40 and 20 degrees, so the range on the little guy we have doesn't really matter. I'll try to find the brand but I thought it went to 300F. I know we have to use the big boy for hot mix asphalt since the placing temp is higher than what the pocket unit can do.
Weber Summit Kamado with SnS and Vortex.. Broil King Baron, Primo Oval Junior. Primo XL. Love grilling steaks, ribs, and chicken. Need to master smoked salmon. Absolutely love anything to do with baking bread. Favorite cool weather beer: Sam Adams Octoberfest Favorite warm weather beer: Yuengling Traditional Lager. All-time favorite drink: Single Malt Scotch
I of course love smoked meats of all kinds, but also like quick cooks like chicken portions, pork tenderloins, steak and fish. Really into cooking of all kinds.
My outdoor kitchen has a Lone Star Grillz Adjustable and it is wonderful. There also is a Pit Boss 5 Burner Ultimate Griddle and a Pit Boss Copperhead pellet grill.
There is an outdoor fire pit that has grilling capability and limited Santa Maria-style grill raising and lowering.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
That Pocket IR is not for cooking, but might be good for checking for leaky insulation around windows and doors, and hot/cold spots, stuff like that. A max of 230F makes it useless for cooking or grilling.
What I use is a Maverick IR that is rebranded and sold by Grillgrates, and I like it a LOT better than the comparably priced Ryobi IR I got my son-in-law for Christmas (he asked for it specifically on his Christmas list). The Maverick IR has a max range of 1200F, which is "grate" for grilling:
The Flir One Pro helps you find invisible problems faster than ever, whether you're inspecting electrical panels, troubleshooting mechanical systems, looking for HVAC problems, or finding water damage. This Flir One Pro-Series camera offers 4x the native resolution of the Flir One, for sharper image clarity that's further enhanced by the revolutionary Flir VividIR™. Measure temperatures more than 3x higher than any Flir One model—up to 400°C (752°F)—with a sensitivity that detects temperature differences down to 70 mK. Packed with powerful measurement tools, the Flir One Pro will work as hard as you do.
The FLIR is for looking at products we are developing, for hot spots on displays and circuit boards, etc. It has a max of 400C/752F, and I have not thought to take it out to the grill, but I will have to do that now that I Think about it.
Last edited by jfmorris; March 17, 2020, 08:47 AM.
Smoker:
Landmann Smoke Master Series Heavy Duty Barrel Smoker (COS) - With mods including 2 level rack system with pull-out grates
Masterbuilt ThermoTemp XL 40" Vertical Propane Smoker
Weber Smokey Joe with mini-WSM Tamale Pot modification
The Good One Marshall
Gas Grill:
BBQPro (cheap big box store model) Stainless steel 4 burnerswith aftermarket rotisserie.
Brook King Regal S490 Pro
Charcoal Grill:
Weber Smokey Joe Charcoal Grill 14"
Thermometer:
2 x Fireboard 2 with Drive cable and 20 CFM fan and Competition Probe Package
ThermoWorks Mini Instant Read
Lavaworks Thermowand Instant Read
ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S Industrial Infrared Thermometer
ThermoWorks ThermaPen Mk4 x 2
ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE
Govee Bluetooth Thermometer with 6 probes
Miscellaneous:
Anova Sous Vide Immersion Circulator - 1st generation
Anova Sous Vide Immersion Circulator - wifi/bluetooth connected
Favorite Beer:
Anything to the dark side and malty rather than hoppy. Currently liking Yuengling Porter and Newcastle Brown Ale. In a bar or pub I will often default to Guiness
Favorite Spirit:
Bourbon - Eagle Rare for "every day"; Angel's Envy for special occasions, Basil Hayden's, Larceny
Favorite Wine:
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Super Tuscan Sangiovese (Including Chianti Classico Riserva) Brunello di Montalcino
Favorite Meat(s):
Pork - especially the darker meat. I love spare ribs and anything made from shoulder/butt meat
Chicken - Mainly the dark meat and wings
Beef Ribeye steak
Favorite Cuisine to Cook:
Can't list just one: Indian, Chinese, Thai, West Indian/Carribean, Hispanic/Latin American, Ethiopian, Italian, BBQ
Favorite Cuisine to Eat:
Indian, followed closely by BBQ.
I have the ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S Industrial Infrared Thermometer. Actually, I have 2 of them - one in each house. I use them constantly for cooking, though much more indoors than outdoors.
Unfortunately Jim White that one only seems to go on sale about once a year...when they clear out a bunch of "open box" stuff that aren’t normally big sellers it seems.
Still, it’s a decent 12:1 IR gun and useful for pizza stones & griddles. Crazy accurate 30-100:1 aren’t necessary for that sort of thing.
So for 20 bucks, heck yeah I'd buy one.
Comment