Honest Review of Gateway

[ILMsmoke]

After about 25 cooks on the Gateway I'd like to give some honest feedback.

It's very well built. Being an OG PBC owner there is no comparison to build quality. The fact that you can buy two PBC's and have money left over doesn't make it worth the extra for a better build though. If you want a drum that'll last 25 years this may be it.
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It has more ability to control intake and exhaust than the PBC, but does it matter? I've found the PBC and Gateway want to cook at 300 regardless of what you do. SO, does the ability to adjust these things matter? I think its nearing diminishing returns though.

The paint on the higher temp version is horrible. It'll literally wipe off when cleaning or chip from an encounter with a fingernail. The low temp paint is more durable, but will stain from higher heat.

It has multiple cooking levels that the PBC doesn't have that you'll never use once you try it and realize you gotta unload the grill to flip meat. the lower levels work great for diffusers though.

Hot & Fast is nothing more than a marketing strategy on large fatty cuts likes brisket and butts. It will not deliver the results of pellet grill or off-set smoker cooking low and slow. I know they have championships to prove it, but I don't see it. I think people subscribe to this method because they bought into it and can't be wrong.

It will cook the sh%t out of ribs and chicken. You need to flip the ribs every 15 minutes at 300 on the dial, but it'll pump out some amazing chicken and ribs fast! Not faster or better than the PBC for $400, but it'll do it.

The Gateway user group on FB isn't very friendly or helpful. If the answer isn't "turn and burn" or "Needles up" don't even ask the question there because you'll get called stupid real fast by the mob.

All in all it does what a drum is supposed to do very well so I don't want to bash it too bad, but I do regret not looking into the OK Joe a little more. Not sure I would get a better cook, but I wouldn't have spent $1200 and got the same cook. I've learned in this that drums are drums and will cook like drums so don't get caught up in marketing and over spending when it isn't needed. If you're on a budget the Gateway is not worth it. If you want build quality over all else, buy the Gateway. Other than that drums all deliver very similar results.

[Huskee]

What a great review! Such a shame the FB groups are like that. Grown up junior high kids is all many of those groups are. Personally I can't stand that behavior. I've asked questions on vehicle forums about my car or my truck and I've been met with similar juvenile responses and it beyond frustrates me. If I was blessed to know it all like these idiots clearly claim to then I wouldn't be asking the question, so why have a forum if you treat questions that way.

Anyway, we're glad you're here and thank you taking the time to post all of this great info. Sounds like for now I'll stick to my my PBC, it's a chicken MACHINE!

[Brisket Syndicate]

That's the problem with social media groups that aren't moderated properly...Keyboard Cowboys tend to gravitate to them.

[CaptainMike]

Yeah, that even happens on AR's FB page. Enough so that I unfollowed it.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

I somehow got suckered (I don't mind since I have the time honestly) into moderating a FB group for a specific car, some of the people are complete jerks. But it's not my group so I just slow down posts when things get heated and only ban spammers... I wish I could ban all the turds. There's some quirky stuff with the cars, and yes one could read the owners manual for some of them... but people are VERY RUDE about people asking questions. Like it's the whole point of a FB group specifically for a single product... to um like ask questions and share content I thought

As to your review I think it's quite fair from what I've seen elsewhere

[Huskee]

Panhead John Yeah, if the site mods are jerks like everyone else then it's simply the blind leading the blind and in such a case what value do you have... We try to enforce our rules of civility and kindness.

[CaptainMike]

I can assure you Panhead John IS sucking up.

[FireMan]

Ditto to Cap’n Mike.

[Panhead John]

ILMsmoke Sorry it hasn’t worked out for you as planned. I’ve never owned a PBC or a Gateway, so I have no experience with them beyond what I’ve read here. One of the comments I have heard a lot of though, is something you mentioned. " it wants to run at 300* no matter what you do" Now, I know we have lots of PBC and other UDS owners here who love them and swear by them. After having my OJ Bronco for about a year now, I know that I wouldn’t want a smoker that only runs at 300*.

I’m sure you’re aware of all the neat features of the Bronco compared to other drum smokers so I won’t rehash those. But, 2 of the Bronco’s features I absolutely love is the hinged lid and side shelf with the ability to add a second shelf. But I think the main feature you’d love is how well you can control and maintain temps. From 225-375 or converting it to grill, it’s all there.

Have you considered selling the Gateway and using the proceeds to buy a Bronco? Just a thought…….

[Northern lights smoke]

I have to agree with Panhead John. Did ribs on Bronco a little while back and had it dialed in at 225 for 40 minutes to get good smoke. I then raised it to 275 for the remainder of cook and it held perfectly. Not all PBC's are made the same.

[klflowers]

+2 on the bronco.

[Uncle Bob]

Some interesting observations. You may well have had a different perspective had you ended up with the Bronco Pro. I'll agree with the temp comments Panhead John mentioned, my Pro will operate with a good bit of control. I can't help but wonder if the central bottom intake has an affect on that. It was one of the questions I had in mind about the Hunsaker, which is in direct competition with the Gateway for price and appearance though differing in detail. I posted up a thread a couple days ago about the Bronco Pro being on sale for just shy of $600 on Amazon, it still is............................your commentary underscores what an outright deal it is by comparison. I suspect some folks see that and think "too good to be true"..............hmmmmmm.

[Brisket Syndicate]

I built my own drum back in 2008, and it runs like a champ. It is my go to for chicken and pork. If I put the Guru on it, it can run low and slow or hot and fast. Not counting the Guru, I have about $130 invested in it.

[SavageSmoke]

Gateway owner here. I love mine. I can dial it in to 275 but not much lower. This is fine with me. It cooks great on anything I have ever put on it. I love cooking directly over fire. I think the smoke and campfire profile is amazing, but that is just my preference. I have cooked on almost every variety of smoker and this is my second favorite - off-set being Pitmaster Club Hope you find one you like.

[CaptainMike]

Great review! I think your summation sums it up nicely, drum cookers will cook like drum cookers no matter what you pay for them.

[jfmorris]

Good review, and its interesting to see that you get pretty much the same results on a $1200 barrel as on a $400 barrel. It's just unfortunate pricing is up to what it is right now on what should be one of the simplest and cheapest type of smokers.

As far as FB groups go - I am in the SNS group on FB, and the Grillgrates group, but that is about it. The moderators on those groups help keep things reasonable, and most folk in the SNS FB group seem decent, but I spend most of my time here, and only look at that stuff on occasion.

[Panhead John]

Cheatin’ on us are ya?

[jfmorris]

Hey Panhead John considering I won a free SNS by entering the weekly giveaway on the SNS FB page, it was worth it. I won it last summer, after getting the January 2021 great giveaway and getting the SNS Kamado. So 2021 was my "winning year", and I doubt I will win anything ever again.

I ended up giving the SNS I won to a friend for Christmas, as I knew he was a kettle guy, and he and his wife are now big time SNS converts, and have sold some of their family members on them.

[CandySueQ]

The "Insane Can Posse" of Gateway Drum users has always been a bit over the top! They love their Gateways. I have two of them. I won a large one all decked out with Blues Hog logo at the Blues Hog contest back in 2017 (I think). It is miserable to get in and out of the back of the van, so I bought a small one. It's okay for chicken and ribs cooking flat, but too short to hang a whole slab of ribs. Honestly, I don't remember the last time I cooked on either one! Good sign that I should sell them.

[HawkerXP]

..., ..., ...!

[FireMan]

Excellent review. Yeah, every so often a member wanders off & checks some other forum & we get the same report, it’s crazy out there. Just solidifies my notion of never botherin goin anywhere but here.

[Jfrosty27]

Yup. What he said. 👆👆

[dtresca]

Excellent review! As a PBC owner myself, I've often wondered about Gateways and whether or not I should invest in one sometime down the road. The funny thing with this post is that I was just having a conversation with a buddy of mine about how I almost never use my PBC anymore. Ever since I bought my Grilla Kong, I've found I do almost all of my cooks on it. Maybe that is a sign...

Thank you for sharing!

[bbqLuv]

Thank you for your honest review.
You done good.

[ILMsmoke]

Thanks for the response pit masters! I don't want it to seem like I hate my drum. I do enjoy it cooking on it, but I don't feel it was money well spent in hindsight.