B&B Lump

[TheQuietOne]

Just a wild guess, but very likely anything you find in lump charcoal: stones, flashlights, DB25 connectors, bits of barbed wire, are all found in briquettes. They're all finely ground and compressed into the briquettes so you can't see them.

[kelton]

You should try B&B XXL Lump, its better than their traditional bag but its pretty expensive. However you can use it multiple times so there is a trade off. I believe it's the same type of "axe breaker" wood that Jealous Devil uses (Which is also very good). I go between the two lumps, but I only use them for long cooks since they are both pretty expensive.

[DPM]

I've used B&B and RO. Prefer the B&B - more uniform size, burns clean and hot. I use a MasterBuilt 560, and break the larger chunks into smaller, more uniform pieces. No rocks or junk so far!

[IFindZeroBadCooks]

I think B&B lump is solid. Not the greatest but certainly much better than average. Since it for the most part easily available and a good value, one could certainly do well giving a few bags a shot to form their own opinion.

[ColonialDawg]

I used to love B&B lump but my last 2 bags have been horrible. Too much ash, which has suffocated the fire in my PBC. Never had this problem before.

[Michael_in_TX]

I totally forgot about Ace....there's one fairly nearby, too.

[Oak Smoke]

Have you checked your local Ace hardware? Ours carries B&B, Rockwood, and Kamado Joe big block. There’s also Cowboy lump there, but I won’t use it. The prices are competitive too.

[JohnPaul]

O man I forgot about Cowboy. Talk about teeny tiny pieces and extra crap in the bag. I just bought a giant bag at Costco this year to give them another try. NOPE! it's the worst. I'm just saving it for my next whole hog cook I can burn it up then.

[Attjack]

Cowboy had lots of rocks in my experience.

[Attjack]

B&B is what I use. I've never found any rocks and general like the size and quality of the lump. I guess it's possible you got a lemon of a bag.

[JohnPaul]

Every brand I have tried so far after a fashion has rocks in the bag at some point. Royal Oak I have found the most, But I have had them in B&B, Fogo, Jealous Devil, Blues Hog. I remember a thread somewhere about all the stuff found in bags of lump and one guy found a working flashlight. LOL

[Michael_in_TX]

I'm going to try B&B on my next direct grilling cook on my kettle. Royal Oak works fine, except it seems to have so many little pieces. The problem with those itty bitty pieces is that they fall through the charcoal grate and clog up the air intake vents at the bottom.

I don't need B&B to be large, just larger than my charcoal grates.

As shipping charcoal is expensive, locally I'm stuck with Royal Oak or B&B for economical options -- or at least options priced close to Kingsford briquettes, or jumping to $30 a bag for Jealous Devil.

[bbqLuv]

The Rocks are there for balance. Besides, it sold by weight not volume, The branches serve as a supporting role.
Perhaps the rocks are actually starter cubes. Have you tried to light them?

[LA Pork Butt]

I have used it recently, and it seems to consistently have larger pieces than the Royal Oak I used for years. It is also cost competitive with Royal Oak when I purchase it at Academy.

[tstalafuse]

I use B&B and have been pretty happy with the product. I would contact their customer support and see if I could score a few bags for free (sans rocks of course).