For years I've been playing around with an older Weber kettle that I had inherited. It mostly works fine, but I have a difficult time getting it to hold steady at 225-275 because the bottom vents have corroded out and no longer seal properly. I want to upgrade to something that can do low n slow cooks, but my wife isn't too keen on me having multiple cookers consuming space on our small patio. I really like what I've been reading about the PK 360, in terms of temp control, durability, and build quality. For those of you who know the PK 360, would you have any reservations about making that your sole cooker for both smoking and searing?
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PK 360 as their only cooker?
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Club Member
- May 2017
- 3248
- North Central Washington
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KBQ C-60
PK360
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I wouldn't, but I also have a KBQ and access to copious amounts of wood, so I use it for smoking. Polarbear777 and Larry Grover both use their PKs for smoking, and have quite the temperature control setups. Hopefully they will weigh in.
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Club Member
- Apr 2016
- 18055
- Near Richmond VA
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Weber Performer Deluxe
SNS
Pizza insert
Rotisserie
Cookshack Smokette Elite
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Dot
lots of probes.
Fireboard
The cheapest solution would be to call Weber and see if they have replacement vent covers for your cooker. Then get an SnS. The Kettle and an SnS will allow you to cook just about anything you'd like - low and slow to hot and fast. If you like chicken, add a Vortex and you have a chicken cookin' machine. All for a lot less than a PK.
It's easier to control temps using the SnS too.
Oh - and welcome to The Pit.Last edited by RonB; September 27, 2020, 01:49 PM.
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Club Member
- May 2017
- 1847
- La Crescenta, CA
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Jambo Backyard Smoker
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Weber Smokey Mountain (22" & 18.5")
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PK Original Grill
Pit Barrel Cooker
Weber "Brownie" Circa 1978 22"
Weber 70th Anniversary model 22"
Weber Genesis
Weber Gas Grill, Silver A
Santa Maria Attachment for PK360
Vortex
Favorite Beer: Peroni
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Jfrosty27 nailed it...."Heck you can buy a NEW kettle, an SnS, and a Vortex for far less than a PK360!"
I have a PK360 and Weber Kettle and to answer your question, I would have no reservations on making my PK360 my sole cooker for smoking and grilling. But you would not be able to smoke a lot of meat on it. A little less than the Kettle.Last edited by TripleB; September 27, 2020, 05:19 PM.
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I could get by with the pk360 as the only one. Only issue is capacity. You aren’t doing a huge event with just the 360. It’s about the same capacity as a 22†kettle but rectangular so some things can fit better. I can still split a 17lb packer brisket in half and fit it in there.
here’s a link to some of my testing.
18.5 hours at 225F. Did short ribs for he first 7 hrs. Left it running. Ambient temps around 30-40F. No refuel at all. pk360 with fireboard and pit viper control. Guess I can’t
kick ash and "the burn shop" both make nice baskets to help with fire management in the pk360 AND the Weber adapter that’s bbq guru makes will press fit into the front of one of the lower vents so you can block the back of that tube and the fan can have total control.
after three years of heavy use m, I finally cleaned my 360 interior (I usually just scrub the grates).
it is a very nice cooker. I leave it out in the elements and don’t worry.
nothing wrong with lots of other options either.
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Club Member
- Feb 2018
- 2816
- Northshore MA
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Home:
XL BGE
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PKGO
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Up at Camp:
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While it will rock 225-250 all day long, space is the biggest issue with a PK360. Due to the left right setup it's tough to smoke ribs without cutting the rack in half. I did pork butts on mine and it was awesome for reverse searing steaks, however, I found it hard to maintain temps at 350 for hotter cooks like chicken, for any length of time.
I sold it and bought a Weber Summit Charcoal Grill. I liked the PK but have no regrets. The WSCG is the most versatile grill I have ever used. It is both a Kamado and a kettle grill.Last edited by Old Glory; September 28, 2020, 05:49 AM.
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Club Member
- Jul 2016
- 9361
- Virginia
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3 Weber Performers
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Look at your lid vent. Normally there is a two digit code for its age. Use this to find out how old. If less then 10 years old the metal parts are still under warranty. Also, show us a picture. Some of us are into old stuff.
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Club Member
- Jul 2017
- 1408
- Southeast Illinois
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Cookers I have:
Weber S-335 gas grill
Weber 26†kettle
Weber 22†kettle
Camp Chef XL Smoke Vault
Camp Chef 3 Burner cook top
Camp Chef Woodwind 36 Pellet grill with sidekick burner
PBC
Accessories:
SnS XL
SnS standard
Vortex
Weber Rotisserie for 22†Kettle
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2nd gen FireBoard
Griddle for Camp Chef cooktop
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Set of Grill Grates
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I got rid of my beat up Weber 22†and my Akorn Kamado, replacing them both with the PK360 this spring. I was also considering the Weber 26†and with an SnS I’m sure that would have been a fine option.
But I’m loving the PK—it excels at two zone cooking and searing, and still does great at low and slow. I’m usually cooking for four, and never more than eight, and capacity hasn’t been an issue for me. But I do have to shorten rib racks, and you’d have to get creative with a full packer brisket.
It’s more work to clean out the ashes than a Weber (but what isn’t?), but the rectangular shape is more practical for the cooking I do.
I recommend it.Last edited by JackJ; September 28, 2020, 08:14 AM.
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More work to clean out the ashes than a Weber???? I think this is one of the advantages over a Weber. Just pull the plug and sweep the ashes into a pail with a paint brush. The Weber I got to pick up and dump. The Weber is faster to clean out (scrap and dump), but the PK360 more work? Maybe more tedious. But then the whisking of a paint brush back and forth is rather therapeutic for an old man like me. 😊
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Club Member
- Nov 2017
- 7089
- Huntsville, Alabama
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Jim Morris
Cookers- Slow 'N Sear Deluxe Kamado (2021)
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Personally, I really like the construction of the PK grills, both the original and the 360, but find their capacity to be limiting. If you want to get a set of Grillgrates, fill it up with charcoal, and do full grill 1 zone cooking, its almost as big as a Weber 22" kettle. But if you like to do indirect or smoking, that is where I see it as falling short. The setup of the PK360 is rectangular, and if smoking, you get about 1/2 of the grill area, with their charcoal basket taking the other half. With the grate only being right at 14-15 inches deep, front to back, you will ALWAYS have to cut ribs in half, cut a brisket in half, and so on. And use a rib rack to stand stuff on edge.
With the 22" Weber kettle and a SNS, I get about 2/3 of the grill area for indirect smoking space, and its wide enough to where I've never had issues fitting several racks of ribs flat, or 5 racks of ribs in a rib rack, without cutting the ribs down. And I've been able to fit 2 butts or a full packer up to about 18 pounds on the kettle, many times. Not to mention a 20 pound spatchcocked turkey (was tight!). At times I put a Hover Grill in there (elevated grate), and fit a TON of food. I've gotten to where I rarely use my much larger offset, even when feeding a crowd.
You would think that a rectangular grate would hold more food, but when you can only use half of it, its a 14x14 square grate for indirect use. On the kettle with the SNS, the rounded area is not always a great fit, but I have an indirect area that is 22 inches across, and about 16 inches deep.
I think I would look hard at a new kettle, or better yet, the SnSGrills kettle, which has a handy side table, as it will cost a lot less than the PK360, and hold a LOT more food.
That said, if you only ever cook for 2, and don't plan to smoke much, by all means - the PK360 is a solid grill for sure.Last edited by jfmorris; September 28, 2020, 02:57 PM.
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Have to get creative but you can fit most things.
Of course a barrel or large cabinet is less work overall if you are cooking for a crowd, which is why I have those too.
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Polarbear777 if I do buy a new charcoal grill, now that I cook more for 2 than I do for 5 to 8, the PK grill is certainly one to consider if my Performer gives up the ghost.
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Looking at old threads, noticed you have the Burnshop Coal basket. Do you still have your custom basket? I also noticed how clean your 360 is. How, and How often do you clean the top and bottom shells? Mines less than a year old and the interior is covered with soot and creosote! Thanks.
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This was after a pretty aggressive cleaning session. I my rarely looks this clean.
I still have both baskets. Tempe burn shop one rusts but is so thick it really doesn’t matter.
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Club Member
- Nov 2017
- 5079
- Virginia
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Grilla Silverbac
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I have never owned a PK, but always found them to be very solid and for those who use them no one really has many negatives except the size. I wonder why they have never released a larger version?
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