Welcome to the pit! I'm a PBC owner and love it, we use it at our hunting camp. When I want to add some more wood flavor, I bury the wood chunks under the coals, it minimizes the flare ups. But, really, I find that they are not needed, it provides great flavor without.
Also, I owned a Traeger for 10 years, they are quality cookers and put out great food. But, the reason I moved away from them is they are mechanical and will cause issues eventually. Good luck and welcome again.
My toys:
Weber Summit Charcoal Grilling Center (WSCGC) aka Mr. Fancypants
Pit Barrel Cooker (which rocks), named Pretty Baby
Weber Summit S650 Gas Grill, named Hot 'n Fast (used mostly for searing and griddling)
Weber Kettle Premium 22" named Kettle Kid, eager to horn in with more cooks in the future
Camp Chef Somerset IV 4-burner outdoor gas range named AfterBurner due to its 30kBTU burners
Adrenaline BBQ Company Gear:
SnS Low Profile, DnG, and Large Charcoal Basket, for WSCGC
SnS Deluxe for 22" Kettle
Elevated SS Rack for WSCGC
SS Rack for DnG
Cast Iron Griddle
Grill Grate for SnS
Grill Grates: five 17.375 sections (retired to storage)
Grill Grates: six 19.25 panels for exact fit for Summit S650
gasser
Grill Grates for 22" Kettle
2 Grill Grate Griddles
Steelmade Griddle for Summit gas grill
Fireboard Gear:
Extreme BBQ Thermometer Package
Additional control unit
Additional probes: Competition Probes 1" (3) and 4" (1), 3 additional Ambient Probes. 1 additional Food Probe
2 Driver Cables
Pit Viper Fan (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
Pit Viper Fan new design (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
Thermoworks Gear:
Thermapen MK4 (pink)
Thermapen Classic (pink too)
Thermoworks MK4 orange
Temp Test 2 Smart Thermometer
Extra Big and Loud Timer
Timestick Trio
Maverick ET 73 a little workhorse with limited range
Maverick ET 733
Maverick (Ivation) ET 732
Grill Pinz
Vortex (two of them)
18" drip pan for WSCGC
Ceramic Spacers for WSCGC in Kamado Mode: 2 sets each 1/2", 1", 2". The 2" spacers work best with the 18" drip pan. The 1+1/2 inch spacers work best with the 14 inch cake pan.
Two Joule Sous Vide devices
3 Lipavi Sous Vide Tubs with Lids: 12, 18 and 26 quarts
Avid Armor Ultra Pro V32 Chamber Sealer
Instant Pot 6 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Instant Pot 10 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Charcoal Companion TurboQue
A-Maze-N tube 12 inch tube smoker accessory for use with pellets
BBQ Dragon and Dragon Chimney
Shun Classic Series:
8" Chef Knife
6" Chef's Knife
Gokujo Boning and Fillet Knife
3 1/2 inch Paring Knife
You can't go wrong with a PBC for the sheer fun of cooking on such a simple setup and getting consistently great results.
Customer support is amazing too, but you won't need it, most likely.
There are many of us PBC users on this site, so you'll get a ton of tips and help as you get your sea legs during your first cook or two. Then you'll be off and running.
I also have a Weber Summit Charcoal kamado/kettle smoker, but the PBC still gets its share of cooks as well. Once you smoke a chicken on it, you will think you've discovered the chicken promised land.
Welcome to The Pit from Madison, WI. I have a PBC also. It is a chicken and rib cooking machine. I seldom use wood. And fzxdoc is being modest. She did not invent the PBC but she pretty much perfected it. She has peppered this site with unbelievably helpful posts on using a PBC and IMO is the PBC Goddess.
Wow, thank you, RustyHaines . I do love my PBC and love to join in with others here who share tips and suggestions for making the PBC sing. The sharing from so many here has made me a better PBC cook over the years.
Agree that the PBC is a great cooking machine. I also use a little wood, chunks that I split up a little smalle for smoke. Don't fixate on temp control, "brisket must be done at 225*" not with the PBC. Read the PBC posts here under the Channels Page.
Welcome to the Pit!
Last edited by HawkerXP; February 4, 2019, 02:25 PM.
Welcome from SW Washington. I’ve had a PBC for several years and love it. I use mine exclusively for baby back ribs, chicken and tri tip. I don’t use wood chunks and get amazing flavor. Highly recommend for your arsenal!
Wow. The responses have been amazing. And yes, I will be buying one within the next few days. I will keep you all posted. Thanks again for all the replies.
I'll preface my comments by saying I do NOT own a PBC. But I do own an offset that I've been using for more than 30 years, and the problem with all offsets, and even more so the cheap leaking ones (COS), is that you spend a LOT of time managing the fire, adjusting it up and down, and its a lot of work. I cannot go to sleep and leave 8 butts smoking and sleep for 8 hours for example.
I stumbled into a Weber Performer Deluxe used from a friend for $100, and with the addition of a Slow 'N Sear in 2017, that grill has become my go-to smoker of choice, unless I am smoking more than I can fit on the kettle, in which case I still fire up the offset. With the Slow 'N Sear, and recently I added a Party Q temp controller, I can go 12 to 14 hours on a load of charcoal. If I am smoking a bunch of ribs or a dozen butts, sure - I'll still fire up the offset, but I love having a smoker I can go to sleep and not worry about on long cooks.
I've spent a LOT of time window shopping and researching, and if you like the idea of set it and forget it, and like the taste of a charcoal and wood fire, then I don't see you going wrong with the Pit Barrel Cooker. Another option to consider is the Weber Smokey Mountain. If you really do not want to worry about exact temperatures or fire management, the PBC is probably the way to go. If you want the ability to control temperature but still run a long time on a load of charcoal, you might want to consider the WSM as well.
My next cooker may be a Grilla (original round one), as it purports to have a better smoke profile than most pellet smokers, and would be ever more hands off. What can I say? I've spent since 1985 managing fires, and poking the fire and feeding it sticks has lost some of its attraction to me at this point in my life!
Yeah, jfmorris , I wish I could justify the purchase of that same Grilla that you want. Still working on a justification that would satisfy my husband. In the meanwhile, my gasser, PBC, and WSCGC will just have to step in and take up the slack.
Yep fzxdoc while it may not be a Summit gasser like yours, I look forward to getting a lot of use out of that Genesis II 4 burner I picked up for $399 on clearance a couple of weeks ago. I already outfitted it with GrillGrates, now pondering a rotisserie. Do you use a rotisserie on your summit gas or charcoal grills? it's much easier to sneak in accessories than entire new grills, haha.
I don't have a PBC, but my dad does and the food that comes out of it is as good as anything I've had from any other grill. One of the best pork butts I've had, and the turkey this year at thanksgiving was outstanding.
That said, if you want a true "smoker" ... neither of the options you mention are truly smokers, though they do both offer you the hassle-free cooking that you desire. The PBC cooks too hot and doesn't play particularly well with wood smoke. The smoke comes from the food dripping onto the coals, which as someone stated previously, isn't quite the same flavor profile. Pellet cookers are more like wood-fired ovens and take some modification to gain a smoke effect. Both will cook some fine food, but if you're looking for a legit smoker, you might be better served looking elsewhere like the Weber Smokey Mountain or a kamado style.
I have a PBC and cook with and without a variety of woods. It is a great cooker that turns out awesome food. There are a bunch of friendly folks here who are happy to assist with any type of cook. You'll love it.
Well, speaking about beatin it to death, I guess we almost have. There was a comment about burying a chunk of wood for the smoke flavor. It is what I do cuz I like the flavor. The neat thing is, just a chunk & no flare up if it’s tucked in charcoal. Lemme see if there is anything to add so’s this thread is beat to death ceptin, Kathryn ( fzxdoc ) is the PBC Whisperer. Over.
I love my PBC. Nothing much I can add to what others have already said. It’s a true set and forget smoker. Just don’t monitor temps. The PBC hates it when you do that. Trust the PBC and it will reward you.
Former PBC owner here. A couple things stand out from your first post:
1. You had trouble controlling temps.
2. You like cooking with wood.
The PBC was not set & forget with me (on L&S cooks.) I did the research and knew this wasn't a 225 cooking machine, it runs hotter & faster. For me temps would slowly drop (even below 200) and I'd have to keep cracking the lid. When you do that temps can climb fast so you have to be careful...I could however average 275 with constant monitoring. I've read that some just cook with a twig to crack the lid just a teeny bit to keep temps up.
With that said it is a fantastic, set & forget poultry cooker. Follow fzxfoc's posts and you're golden. It does give off a nice, unique flavor and there is a cool factor.
In order to get the performance I wanted I'd have to drill a hole, attach a fan and find some way to divert airflow under the coals. Too much hassle so I sold it. Bought a PK and haven't had a bad cook since.
To me though it sounds like you should consider a WSM. More versatility...you can go traditional or hack it to run PBC style, cook with wood to your hearts content and it would be easier to attach a fan to control temps.
Finally, not everyone seems to experience the problems I had. Not sure how to explain it, elevation or ???
Last edited by Larry Grover; February 4, 2019, 03:52 PM.
Same here Larry.
Had a disastrous attempt at hanging a rack of beef ribs yesterday. Figured I might add a controller to the PBC, then remembered my first smoker, my 18.5 WSM.
The PBC is perfect for poultry, and prime rib, but returning to the WSM for other meats, and I use the DigiQDX controller/fan
The PBC is an awesome cooker. It makes the best turkey, chicken, and prime rib that you can sink your teeth into. I do agree with lemayp about the wood chunks.
I to maS looking about 3 years ago and didn’t know if everyone would like the smoking process so I was looking at a Pettit Cooker and the Pit Barrel. After much thinking I said 300 is not a lot so I went the Pit Barrel route. I love mine and it does give a lot of smoke flavor. I came across a used pellet burner about 2 1/2 years ago and got that too. The pellet doesn’t add as much smoke so it is a perfect balance between smoke and propane. You won’t go wrong with the Pit Barrel
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