Welcome to the Pit from Buffalo. I have a LSG pellet pooper and love the quality of it. They have great smokers.
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Jimmy Lee welcome to the Pit from Alabama!
I've been smoking for 30+ years, and much of that time was on a custom offset. These days I smoke more often on a kamado or Weber kettle than I do the offset, just due to laziness, better fuel efficiency, and a desire for sleep when doing a brisket or butt overnight. With the offset I gotta mess with the fire every 30 minutes. With the kettle I can run for 8 to 12 hours or 18+ on the kamado.
What I think you will find is that MOST conventional offsets are primarily smokers, and at best grills as an afterthought. That means your desire to smoke, sear and grill is hard to achieve with the standard offset, and probably even harder to achieve with a reverse flow offset. Some, like mine, may include a charcoal tray you can put in the main cook chamber to turn it into a giant charcoal grill, but I don't do it except for events, as the amount of charcoal required (30-40 pounds) is pretty wasteful compared to a Weber kettle or my SNS Kamado, which can get the job done with 7-8 pounds of fuel.
The exception would be ones that offer a cooking grate for the firebox. Those I think, with a flip up lid on top of the firebox and cooking grate, could double as a wood fired grill, but again - its not going to have the level of control of the fire and heat that you will get with the Weber kettle you mentioned you have.
If you want to smoke, grill and sear, I think you have two ways to go:
1. Get that offset, and use it for the smoking (indirect), and do your grilling and searing on something else.
2. Go with a large charcoal grill that also can smoke, such as a Hasty Bake, M1, or something like the Lone Star adjustable grill and smoker.Comment
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jfmorris stole every single point I was going to make, almost word for word. Welcome!
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Welcome!
https://kbq.us/ is extremely popular around here and worth considering as well. We have lots of folks here with one.
Some Workhorse threads:
The rest of the smokers you mentioned either have their own dedicated forums here with lots of reviews and advice (LSG, Shirley, Yoder, OKJ) or not super popular (Workhorse, Anchor, Outlaw, 1904).
The key things for offset smokers are:
Do you have access to a cheap and high quality source of wood?
Are you willing to prep the wood (chop to size), tend the fire and feed it every 30-45 minutes for 12 hours straight for a low&slow?
There are many ways to make awesome BBQ without any offset, so you don’t need an offset to do that. However, if you enjoy the process as mentioned above, and have the time, it can be a good fit for you.
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I think for what you'd spend on most of those, you can get a custom built just to your needs and wants for similar pricing.
There're some forums on FB I am a member of, and there are builders all over the country - and a number local to you - who would probably help you out and I bet you'd be super happy with the end product, and you could direct the build however you like.
Just a thought, there are a lot of super skilled folks out there working this industry who aren't big name companies.Comment
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Howdy! I’ll save on my wind & advice!Comment
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Welcome!Comment
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Welcome from the California Delta.Comment
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Welcome to The Pit.Comment
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Welcome! I have a Shirley Patio model. I love it. As noted above traditional offset smokers are not well suited to grilling. The SPM is no exception. There are a few suggestions above that can do both, Hasty Bake and M Grills. Though those are more of a grill first but can also be used to smoke. (I don’t own either so I am assuming). Another option is the Weber Summit Charcoal Grill. Not a stick burner but it functions very well as a charcoal smoker and charcoal grill.
I agree that an offset is sort of a uni-tasker.
Same advice as JFMorris
If you want to smoke, grill and sear, I think you have two ways to go:
1. Get that offset, and use it for the smoking (indirect), and do your grilling and searing on something else.
2. Go with a large charcoal grill that also can smoke, such as a Hasty Bake, M1, or something like the WSCG.Comment
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Jell-O---Yellow---I mean Hello from NW OregonComment
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Welcome to the Pit from the Florida Suncoast. You’ve chosen the right place to ask your questions. I have a Yoder pellet cooker which I like a lot. I don’t know anything about their stick burners, but I can tell you mine is very solidly built. Good luck on your search.Comment
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Welcome from the Pacific NorthwestComment
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Welcome from St. Cloud, FL.
I have a LSG 20x36 pellet and offset smoker. The pellet definitely gets more use as the offset requires tending to the fire. The smoke profile from the LSG pellet is very close to my offset which I use with oak wood. Let me know if you have any questions.Comment
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Hi there & welcome to the Pit from upstate NY! I have a Shirley 24x36 Patio Model. She's a great smoker, but it won't help you with the grilling/searing. The M-Grills mentioned will do that as will the offerings from Hasty Bake. You can find lots of good review on the product review section of this site. Be sure to keep us posted on your journey.Comment
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Welcome!
I have an LSG 20x42 offset and love it. It is made like a tank and the fire box design is great. Very easy to grill in the fire box and it has a griddle on top of the fire box that works very well for searing. You can also get a tray to grill with charcoal in the main chamber. However it is an offset so it is hands on for tending the fire, but for me that is a feature not a bug. I find being forced to sit on my patio playing with fire a great way to relax, but you have to decide what works for your lifestyle I also have a Napoleon gasser that is great for quick grilling.
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