Picked one up last week and finally assembled it for a test run over the long weekend. Based on the trend in the reviews, I went to Home Depot to pick one up so I could carefully inspect the box for damage prior to purchase. Didn't help - bottom corner was smashed and I had a 90 min round trip back to Home Depot to open and inspect the only other unit they had in stock in the even more damaged box to ensure I was swapping it out for one in better shape. If you're buying one of these, save yourself some time and unpack it in the store - which is what I did for the replacement.
That said, there's still a small gap/defect in the door weld which I may follow up with Masterbuilt about - there's a half inch gap in the top seam of the main door.
Racks are fixed in place and there are 4 of them; no option to add another pair like I did on my smaller Masterbuilt smoker. The shelves also stick a bit sliding in and out, so I use a combination of extreme care and long tongs to add and remove meat without spilling it all over the driveway. It was nice not having to cut a brisket flat in half to fit, so I'll call that a net win.
I was pleased with how well it held temperature, although the numbers on the dial are somewhat aspirational. I set my iGrill to a range of 215-235, and other than drops and spikes around the door opening, it held temp within the range pretty much perpetually, although I had to fiddle with it a bit at the beginning to hit the range I wanted since the dial isn't entirely on point.
No clouds of smoke rolling out of this one like are on my smaller one, but the chips do char and burn, and the flavor is there. It was a change smelling brisket inside instead of wood smoke.
All in all, I'm very happy with it and was confident enough to try an overnight brisket after an empty burn-out test run over a couple hours, a batch of vegetables for some smoked salsa and some smoked baked potatoes.
That said, there's still a small gap/defect in the door weld which I may follow up with Masterbuilt about - there's a half inch gap in the top seam of the main door.
Racks are fixed in place and there are 4 of them; no option to add another pair like I did on my smaller Masterbuilt smoker. The shelves also stick a bit sliding in and out, so I use a combination of extreme care and long tongs to add and remove meat without spilling it all over the driveway. It was nice not having to cut a brisket flat in half to fit, so I'll call that a net win.
I was pleased with how well it held temperature, although the numbers on the dial are somewhat aspirational. I set my iGrill to a range of 215-235, and other than drops and spikes around the door opening, it held temp within the range pretty much perpetually, although I had to fiddle with it a bit at the beginning to hit the range I wanted since the dial isn't entirely on point.
No clouds of smoke rolling out of this one like are on my smaller one, but the chips do char and burn, and the flavor is there. It was a change smelling brisket inside instead of wood smoke.
All in all, I'm very happy with it and was confident enough to try an overnight brisket after an empty burn-out test run over a couple hours, a batch of vegetables for some smoked salsa and some smoked baked potatoes.
Comment