Pit Barrel Junior . . .

[JeffJ]

As for portability, my problem with this is the height. It is the same height as a regular PBC. When I've transported the PBC the lid handle was too high so I had to hang the lid on one of the side handles. To me, it seems the 14.5" WSM has better portability and I can personally attest that it's an excellent cooker with a surprising amount of capacity (except for ribs). The smallest WSM is also $30 cheaper than this product. Yes, this product has better capacity for ribs, but that's it. The WSM has better capacity for Brisket/chuck/butt/short-ribs if you prefer not to wrap (2 grates vs 1 for the PBC). Now, if PBC were to produce a bigger-than-standard drum....

[jecucolo]

My first thought was why would I need a small one when I got the real deal. But if you can reduce the charcoal you use and cook a smaller amount without effecting quality it might be worth pondering. Something for us empty nesters.

[RobertC]

I use less fuel and don't feel bad about cooking just one tri-tip, or one chicken -- and still have enough capacity to cook a large pork butt, or brisket, or turkey. The size works well for us. Cook times and temperatures and procedures and results are about in line with my expectations.

[PappyBBQ]

This is an interesting conversation. My wife and I are empty nesters now that both of our kids are in vet school. My wife isn't big on smoked meats so it boils down to me. We eat far less meat than we used to, plant based during the week, so when I do fire up the barrel it's usually for small quantities of high quality meat. I'm intrigued by the smaller barrel and can't wait for a review of it and for stories to begin appearing here. I've learned to adapt to smaller cooks (usually by shrinking the volume of the coal basket so it's still deep, just not wide) so I'm still perfectly content with my "PBC standard". However, the MCS IS twitching...

[RobertC]

Here's my early summary on my 14" BHC: https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...810#post296810 . It has some refinements that can make life a little easier, but it appears not really all that different in terms of the quality of the final product.

[w0nq]

I like the idea of a little smaller capacity. I'm a kettle / SNS guy from the get-go. I did however get a buddy to order a PBC and so far, it's great. I'll be interested in seeing how the crowd takes to it. I understood the 32 gal barrel or whatever it is was key in the results they achieved with the PCB. If this does as well as the original, I'd find it useful.