18" WSM vs. 18" kettle plus Cajun Bandit?

[Panatomic]

Anybody have experience with the Cajun Bandit 18.5" Kettle Smoker Conversion Kit?

I'm considering an 18" WSM or the Cajun Bandit kit to put in my existing 18" Weber kettle. The CB kit costs two thirds as much as the WSM so the cost difference is really not that big; however storage space is at a premium for me so there is some benefit to not having another big thing to store.

It looks like the overall internal vertical space with the CB kit is not as great as the WSM so less room for hanging with the CB.

Am also considering PBC for ease of use and all the enthusiastic reviews but I have reservations about hazards of bathing food in a steady flow of byproducts of fat combustion. Possibly that concern is kind of like piously ordering a diet soda with one's Double Bacon Whopper, but I still wonder even as I admire the PBC.

Have even thought some about the less expensive pellet smokers...but every time I'm distracted by some new shiny thing I find myself coming back to the trusty WSM.

I've been grilling forever but only recently have decided to undertake smoking, after a near-religious experience at KD's BBQ during a trip to West Texas.

Thanks to anyone who could share their story. I'm enjoying all the information here and appreciate the very positive community.

Kurt

[jfmorris]

My personal thought is that the Cajun Bandit conversion kit is not worth the $200+ that it costs, compared to $299 for a new WSM 18.5" or PBC.

The knocks I see against the Cajun Bandit are:

- Your charcoal ring is in the bottom of the kettle, and the stacker ring is only 10" tall. This means if you want to use 2 grates, it appears that the lower grate is sitting almost on top of the charcoal ring. Or right on top of the water bowl I guess. I only see mounts for one grate towards the top of that stacker ring. So I question their statement that they double your 18" kettle capacity if you are doing smoking and use the water bowl.

2. You have to remove the bandit from the kettle for refueling - on the WSM you just open the door in the side.

3. Stability. You are making a kettle with its somewhat flimsy tripod even taller and more top heavy.

I just don't see the Cajun bandit as really being as useful or producing as good a result as you will get with the WSM (or PBC), and expect the capacity to be about 1/2 that of either dedicated smoker. The Cajun Bandit conversion kit relies on your kettle lid, which is not nearly as tall as the dome for the WSM. I think you would have more head space for things like a turkey on the WSM.

Just my two cents. I say save you money and get the WSM - or the PBC. The PBC is probably the easier of the two to store and move, since its all one piece, and you can store stuff inside it with the lid on when not in use. The WSM has to be taken apart in 3 pieces to move it around.

If space is truly a premium, and you don't want to grills/smokers, have you considered selling the 18" kettle, and trading up to a 22" plus a SNS? That would be in the same $299 ballpark. The WSM and PBC would still have more smoking capacity than a 22" + SNS.

[Panatomic]

Thank you JF.

Using a single grate the CB doubles the smoking capacity of the 18" kettle because it lets you use the whole grate for low 'n slow instead of only half (sns would be providing direct heat under the other half), but yes there is still the reduced headroom plus the other compromises you pointed out. Agree the lower rack doesn't seem very usable, or at least would require some work to calibrate. I think they do provide supports within the cylinder for the lower grate that raises it somewhat higher than it sits in the stock kettle.

I have considered the 22" kettle+sns combination. Added appeal because while the 18" kettle is great for the two of us, which is most of my grilling, sometimes we want to cook more and then the 22" would be nice to have available. And for smoking, half of the 22" grate is significantly more usable than half of the 18" grate. But I'm still thinking I want more space than that for smoking.

While storage space is at a premium, realistically I'm going to end up storing a couple large cylindrical devices I think, and that's ok.

For now I am going to try a slab of St Louis ribs in the 18 kettle with a shiny new small sns this weekend. That slab (actually two half-slabs) will require some squeezing or trimming to fit all the ribs but I'm looking forward to it.

[BriggsBBQ]

Why not use the WSM as a charcoal grill. Add a grate for charcoal. Phil from Florence has a bunch of YouTube videos doing this. He even tells you the number of inches from the top.

[BriggsBBQ]

Also I do not have a PBC but I do have a 22" UDS. I want to sell it because the WSM is way easier to use because you can detach the top easily. With the UDS or PBC you are reaching in. I just do not like it but many do not mind it.

[Troutman]

I agree with jfmorris. Weber has designed the WSM to be pretty bullet proof at what it does. I don't own a PBC but it's also a great apparatus, just look around at all the folks using them here successfully. Either one is great, if you don't like the fat dripping into your fire then go with the WSM. The water pan catches all the grease.

As far as the Cajun Bandit is concerned I see it as being a little too gimmicky. Kettles can be set up to be smokers but they just aren't designed to be the best at smoking, if that makes sense. Adding a bunch of rings and gizmos to me solves nothing, just get a cooker that is designed to smoke meat properly. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Troutman]

. The WSM has to be taken apart in 3 pieces to move it around.

That's easily solved by drilling holes in the bottom of the legs and installing some cheap castors. First mod you need to do to a WSM. Next is a cheap garage door type handle to grab hold of the whole unit and easily move it. Problem solved !!

[jfmorris]

Panatomic with the 22.5” kettle and Slow ‘N Sear you have about 2/3 of the grate available for smoking. I use a Weber rib rack to smoke 3 to 5 racks of ribs on the kettle with SNS. I can also smoke two 8 to 10 pound butts at once, or maybe one 14 pound or smaller brisket, if that helps know the capacity.

With the WSM you have two 18.5” racks available for use, so double the capacity of the Cajun bandit device. And of course the PBC holds a lot with its hanging technique.

The decision of PBC versus WSM 18 comes down to capacity versus control. The PBC cooks a little faster and hotter, but does a great job, and can hold 2 butts, 4 chickens, or 8 to 12 racks of ribs. The WSM has much more control of temperature, but holds less. I would guess the WSM 18 will hold 6 racks of ribs if you roll them, 2 butts or 2 to 3 chickens.

[surfdog]

I think jfmorris nailed it. For the price, I’d rather opt for the WSM or PBC. I’d lean towards the WSM because I’m more familiar with that and I think it’s a bit more versatile because temps can be adjusted/manipulated with ease. That said, seems everyone that owns a PBC really likes ‘em.

[Panatomic]

Thanks all for the helpful comments. JF thanks for the real-world information on 22.5" kettle capacity, good to know. I think I've ruled out the CB anyway, and am back to the original choices. Sounds like it's hard to go wrong with any of them, and a good result can be achieved after putting in the work to learn how to operate whichever is chosen.

[jfmorris]

Yep, they can all make good BBQ - and you can do it on your 18" kettle too - just in much more limited capacity.

[jfmorris]

I forgot to put in chicken capacity - as I usually direct grill my chicken rather than smoke it. With the SNS, I can fit two 5# spatchcocked chickens. If you split the chickens and do them as halves, or were to do legs or leg quarters, you will fit a lot more. Probably 3 split on the 2/3 of the grate that is indirect, or easily 18 legs or 10-12 leg quarters or breasts.

I have a full set of Grillgrates for my kettle, and use those to direct grill my chicken, and can cook 4 to 5 split chickens at once that way, as the full grate is available. The heat shield properties of the grillgrates work well for making awesome chicken, burgers, brats, etc.

This is what a fairly full 22" kettle looks like! This was Monday's dinner (and Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday!).



Here are ribs with the SNS. At the end when I glaze them (with Blues Hog) I take them out of the rack and rotate them over the SNS to get a little char.

[CandySueQ]

Fine looking grub, jfmorris! Did you dunk that chicken in White Sauce?

[jfmorris]

Haha thanks CandySueQ - I served it with Big Bob's white sauce on the side - you can get it in bottles in all the local grocery stores here. Some in the family like it, some don't. I can't afford a big vat of it to dip entire chickens in like they do at the restaurant in Decatur!

[surfdog]

That all looks tasty.

[Panatomic]

Follow-up report. On Saturday I conducted my first cook, in the 18" kettle with SnS (the small version; no built-in water tray).
A learning experience but the results were fine!
--Cooked two St Louis half-slabs.
--Got them to fit on the indirect side of the grate by curling them around, holding them that way with bamboo skewers, and placing them on edge.
--Used Memphis Dust.
--Neglected to trim the slabs (learned about that after-the-fact, but all was good, they were just kind of confused-looking).
--Followed directions and was able to maintain temp in the 230-270 range for 5 hours before adding coals. Used KBB and a couple small Applewood chunks at the beginning, and a water pan over the coals.
--Left them on more than 6 hours which was too long. The bend test was difficult because the slabs were already curved. Relied too much on the instant read thermometer. Anyway next time I'll know.
--Made some of Meathead's basic cole slaw and it was a hit! I never made cole slaw before, who knew it was so easy and so good!

Conclusions:
--the 18" kettle with SnS works fine! Half of the 18" grate just doesn't hold a real lot of food. But it will be fine for developing techniques. I'm in no hurry to get another cooker.
--Great smoke ring and bark.
--Trim the slabs next time if using St Louis style.
--The smoky flavor was good but has left a somewhat bitter aftertaste. Not sure if the fire smoldered at some point or if this is just how it is with KBB or it's because of how long the ribs cooked; the only wood I put in was a couple small chunks at the beginning. My grill grates were clean but I've never much cleaned the inside walls of the kettle, could that be an issue?
--Next time I'm gonna try baby backs.

Thanks to all for your helpful suggestions!