i'm currently doing the research for my first smoker. at the moment, it's narrowed down to the PBC and Oklahoma Joe's Bronco. would appreciate any comments or direction helping me make the best choice. thanks
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Club Member
- Jun 2018
- 4885
- Brentwood CA
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LSG large insulated cabinet
Yoder YS640
LSG 48" Santa Maria Gill
SNS travel kettle
FireBoard controller and PitBull fan
FireBoard 2 Drive
Thermapen Mk4
Thermapen One
Avid Armor USV32 Vacuum Sealer
KWS 10" slicer
Welcome from the California Delta. Two different types of smoker, both are good. People that have them will chime in soon.
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Club Member
- Jan 2020
- 1428
- Plano, Texas
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Cookshack Smokette 008 (2005)
Weber 18.5” Kettle (moved to Nebraska with Grandson)
Weber 22.5” Performer (drop-down shelf)
SNS Elevated Grate
Pit Barrel Junior (PBJ)
Grilla OG pellet grill
Freedom Grill (for tailgating, (but do not tailgate much anymore)
Grill Grates
Sizzle-Q Stainless Griddle
Weber Rapidfire Chimney Starter
Thermapen (Red, of course)
Smoke Alarm (Likewise)
B & B Briquettes
Weber Briquettes (longer cooks)
Woodford Reserve Double Oaked
Coors Banquet (why bother with light beer?)
Well, I have a Pit Barrel Junior aka PBJ, and I like it fine. Looked at the Oklahoma Joe’s, but ended up with the PBJ. If you look at the number of posts on each of the sites in the cooker channel below, there are about 35x more posts on the PBC site, so theoretically you’ll get lots more free advice here if you get that one.
welcome and good luck.
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Well let's see. I have a PBC and have cooked the heck out of it and love it. I have a OKJ Bronco on my next buy list not to replace my PBC but to add some additional versatility such as a wider cook temp range, actual temp control and being able to configure to use for real grilling. Price points and capacity for either are similar so factor that in (or not). So I guess it just depends on whether you want to tweak and fiddle a bit or just set and forget.Last edited by cgrover60; July 10, 2020, 03:17 PM.
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Charter Member
- Dec 2014
- 7388
- Grew up in New Orleans, 20 years in Texas, 22 years in Mandeville, LA. Now Dallas, TX
I have cooked on bullet smokers in the past but don’t have any experience with either of the above mentioned cookers. However, I think the Oklahoma Joe has a vent tube that goes up the side of the cooker which I think would help protect it from temperature swings due to gusting winds.
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Only done one cook on my OKJ Bronco so far but personally I think it should be more versatile then PBC. In time I think I'll prove that. 😋 I want to be able to control the cook temp. You can also grill on the bronco but I love my weber for grilling. Everything I have read on PBC say they run hot no matter what at 275-300. However, they keep in the meat fog, so high humidity helps with the higher temp cooking? I'll leave that to the scientists to fact check...
Main thing for me was I found the bronco for $124 on clearance at Walmart. Check their website. I had to set my zip code to match the various stores around me, then refresh and some of them would show a small link for 0 other sellers in your area and that would show the store as having it in stock. First one didn't actually have it but the second one had two.
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Club Member
- Apr 2018
- 4925
- Western Mass
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Retired, living in Western Mass. Enjoy music, cooking and my family.
Current cookers Weber Spirit 3 burner. A 22" Kettle with vortex SnS and OnlyFire pizza oven. A Smokey Joe and the most recent addition a Pit Barrel Jr with bird hanger, 4 hooks and cover. ThermoWorks Smoke 2 probe, DOT, ThermoPop and a Thermapen Mk4. Recently added 2 TempSpike wireless meat thermometers.
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Club Member
- Feb 2019
- 1556
- Salado, Tx
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Summerset TRL44 gas grill and side sear
Weber Performer
Weber 70th Anniversary kettle, Hot Rod Yellow
Camp Chef Somerset IV 4 burner propane stove
Camp Chef FTG600
OT QOMOTOP 23-inch Gas Griddle
Pit Boss Ultimate 4 burner griddle
Oklahoma Joe's HD orange Bronco
Oklahoma Joe's Bronco Pro
Oklahoma Joe's Judge
Oklahoma Joe's Rambler
Golden's Cast Iron Grill
Ooni Koda 16
Halo Versa 16
Everdure rotisserie grill
Titan Santa Maria grill
Coyote Pellet grill
Hasty Bake Roughneck smoker
LSG 48" Texas Edition offset
Lots of observations to make, but will narrow it down to only a few that might make the most sense to you. There's an awful lot of cheering for the "home team" out there that will mostly smoke up the air, so proceed with caution.
PBC is a good cooker and been around for a longer period than the Bronco so would appear to have more fans. The counter to that is that almost all the folks that will strongly tell you to go the PBC route have never used an OJB. Conversely, many people who will advocate for the OJB have owned the PBC, or it's half brother, the Barrel House Cooker. The OJB fans will generally speak favorably about the PBC experience, but, as was noted above, are now more in favor of the OJB because it gives them nearly all the benefits of the PBC plus some added ones. The only advantage I would yield to the PBC is portability, at less than 50 pounds and easily separated into pieces, it's much easier to haul to the beach or cabin than the 140 lb Bronco. So if portability is important, PBC hands down on that singular point. After that the OJB has far better temp control over a wider range of temps. It will grill as well as smoke in a near identical fashion to the PBC, without having to do any modifications right out of the box. With the easy addition of a second grate it will hold much more food product, again without any modification. It has a hinged lid which makes it easier to deal with, and that lid is "domed" rather than flat which gives 5ish inches of overhead clearance from the grate that can be useful with certain types of cook. Refueling, if necessary is roughly a push as they each have roughly the same needs/methods, though the ash pan in the OJB is more convenient/spacious than the setup in the PBC.
As for cost, the PBC is now mid $300 and rarely, if ever, goes on sale. The OJB is $300 list, but Wally World will have "clearance" sales on occasion in certain parts of the country. The stores in my area don't even stock them, so I don't get that benefit, but other parts of the country regularly claim the "on sale" for $184, and even have shown displays down to $84. A HUGE value offer. I think they are well worth list, so any of those lesser prices are a bonus.Last edited by Uncle Bob; July 10, 2020, 05:06 PM.
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If they did have them, would you want one? Taking a quick look around Salado, it looks like three stores south of you say they have 1 in stock for $124.. Of course Walmart's site is unreliable and you should call..
Change the zip code to one of the following,
78660
Pflugerville, 1548 Fm 685
512-252-0112
78664
Round Rock, 2701 S Interstate 35
512-310-9024
78753
Austin, 1030 Norwood Park Blvd
512-339-6060
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Thanks Jarin, didn't realize they were so zip limiting rather than offering a "near you" feature. BTW, that would be "would you want another one?", and yes, it's tempting since I do use the Bronco more than any of the other 8 cookers on the patio. MCS is a powerful force though......………...
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WOW! thanks guys fo all the smokey assistance. right now, im leaning towards the okj for cooking versatility ( nothing against the pbc ) , temp management and while it's heavy, i can wheel it around the yard if need be. really dont think either one is a bad choice. will look for one on sale, i did look at one in person at a lowe's this week. what a beast! cant wait to heat it up. thanks for all the helpful comments
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