EOS vs KBQ?

[Anthonyf]

How does the BBQ from a good offset like a lang or a horizon compare with food from a KBQ? This is assuming you know how to cook with the offset decently. And how hard is it to learn how to cook on an offset?

Even though I'm far from getting a stickburner, a guy can dream right?

[EdF]

This should be interesting! I wonder how many people here have both.

I have a KBQ and love it; I have no experience with an offset.

[PBCDad]

I am also interested in hearing other's input. I have a Jambo - still waiting to break it in after a crazy summer and insurance issues (I'll post all that once I get it fired up). When I was deciding between it and a KBQ, I made a feature comparison list. Not sure how well this will show up, but I've tried to copy it below. Costs are rough and include estimated shipping.

KBQ	Jambo
$1,600	$2,900
Portable	500#, has wheels but likely not portable
Needs electricity	Nothing external needed
Open fire - spark hazard	Enclosed fire
Components could break down	Nothing to break down
Stainless steel - no rust	Painted steel - could rust
Cooks faster	Cooks normal
Log every 20-30 minutes	Log every hour
960 sq inches	1152 sq inches
60# of meat capacity	80# of meat capacity
No learning curve	Learning curve but even cook
Quality construction	Quality construction
Amazing flavor	Amazing flavor if mastered
Easily adjustable smoke amount	Not sure how to adjust dirtiness of smoke
Looks like a dishwasher	Looks really cool
Could grill on top of fire box	No grilling ability
No 'mastery'	Mastery, feel like pit master
Can't leave controller outside, could damage	No electronics
Cook in good weather, sprinkling rain	Cook in any weather
Need grease pan	Need grease cup, more work to clean
Nothing to go wrong in cook	Fire management could go wrong
"Different" cooker	Expensive version of what everyone's seen
Cookbox, firebox stainless steel	Have to cover with tarp to avoid rusting
No work space	Stainless Steel workspace in front of cook chamber
Fire spot comfortable, food is down low	Comfortable working height
Quick startup	May need to warm up

[DWCowles]

I have a Lang 48” deluxe and love it. I have no experience with the KBQ but haven’t heard no complaints about it either.

[PaulstheRibList]

Can't wait to hear the responses from folks who have both.

I have the Jambo, and I would not trade it for any smoker. The Stickburner game is super fun! After you get a Kindling Cracker, and procure some at least partially seasoned wood, you will have clean smoke throughout the entire cook after you use it a few times.

I've put food smoked on the Jambo against food we smoked on the Gravity Fed Inslulated Cabinet (wood and charcoal, lots of airflow), against the WSM, and against the Pitmaker Vault Cabinet. Method was cook the same meat on both cookers, same rub, pull at same tenderness. Invite people over and have them taste both. DO NOT TELL THEM WHICH IS WHICH!

Want to guess the results?

[Beefchop]

Whichever makes your heart sing loudest. I researched both and the KBQ would have been a more practical choice for me (smaller footprint, price, etc.) but went with an EOS from Shirley because that's what I really wanted.

[Spinaker]

Okay......I own a KBQ, but I have to admit.......I still want a true stick burner. The KBQ is an awesome rig and it cranks out some amazing food with little effort. I love every minute of owning it. Since I have pick-up, it's portable. The KBQ also has a great capacity. Not mention you can cook just about anything in it, whether low and slow or Hot and Fast, and it is great to sear on the live fire box.

That being said, I still badly want a big EOS. I don't know what it is. I can feel this pull to get down to the basics of fire management and really learn a live fire stick burner. The way the true masters of the flame do in all of the old school places, or like my good Pit friends DWCowles does with his Lang or Steve B with his LSG or Huskee with his Yoder. If I had to do it over again and I had had a place for a big EOS at the time, I would have gone with the offset. I know, I know, I know the KBQ is amazing, right? YES, it is! But there is something about that learning curve that I feel I missed out on. I want to play with the fire, I want make sure the smoke is thin-blue, I want to sit out by the pit and learn the little twerks of the EOS. Plus, who wouldn't love having 1,000 lbs of steel in the back yard? Call me old fashioned but I really want and need an EOS, not to replace the KBQ, but to indulge in the art of BBQ on a deeper level.

I am not saying I am getting rid of my KBQ, I probably never will, but I do wish I had an EOS. Soon, I will have mine and I can't wait to have them both running.

[Ernest]

If I could tow the KBQ I wouldn't be looking for a trailer pit LOL!! I would probably buy a generator

[Anthonyf]

From what I've read here and in other places, it seems like the KBQ is like a cheat code that puts out incredible, top-notch BBQ. For EOS, to unlock that top level of incredible BBQ, you need to really learn how to burn a clean fire and maintain the right temperature.

While I also want that instant gratification of BBQ perfection right away, I think I'm also allured by the challenge of being able to make incredible BBQ on a traditional EOS.

I had been searching all over the internet and YouTube on fire management in an EOS and how to burn a clean fire.

One place said that it is a good idea to pre-burn wood like in another smoker. Then when that wood in the other smoker has caught fire and started burning thin blue smoke, it'd be ready to transfer over to the smoker where you're cooking meat on.

Another video I saw, the guy was started with lump charcoal in the offset, put a log or two on top and let it burn out that white smoke while placing another log to the side near the fire. That log was far enough that it wouldn't catch on fire but it would pre-heat. So it would be pretty hot and ready to catch fore when he rolled on onto the burning logs and embers.

That first method seems like it would be able to create the cleanest fire, but I don't know how common that is among people that cook on offsets.

Would the second method of putting on warm logs still create enough white smoke as to give the meat a bad taste? Or if it does emit some white smoke, what could you do to make it quickly go away? I saw other videos where they keep the fire door open to let the log cat h fire quicker.

[Huskee]

An EOS is a rowboat or a bicycle. The KBQ might be an electric bike or boat with a motor. Sometimes you just want to hear the wind in your ears and not a motor, hear the logs popping instead of a fan. Other times, screw it- let a motor or thermostat & fan do the work! In both cases you get from point A to B with varying levels of satisfaction at the end of the day.

[FireMan]

Hey Spinaker, to summarize things, you just want this Big honkin, black steel, tree burnin monster that you grab with your fist to open, whether it be a log ya want to throw in or a big chunk of MEAT to check on. Yeah, you want one & it will be yours. 🌋

[Ernest]

I came across East Texas smoker company while researching. Seems like more affordable than the big name players.

I'll stick with KBQ. Maybe after my second KBQ then I'll look into an EOS.

[SteveFromLafayette]

I have used both. Give me the EOS anyday.

Most people don't realize this, but you CAN actually burn a fire that's "too clean". Whaaaaaaa?!?!?!?!?! Did he actually just say that? Why yes, I did.

Aaron Franklin does a great job of describing this in his book. In the sections where he dives into how he approaches the construction of his new smokers, he explains in detail how he fine-tunes the fireboxes, the smoke-stacks and finally, the seasoning times of his wood piles.

Regarding the firebox design, he discovered that fireboxes that are not insulated tend to burn through wood very fast. It takes more wood to maintain internal cook chamber temperatures. In other words, they have a very low mpg fuel efficiency rating for his pits. Contrast that with a Jambo. Fully insulated with ceramic wool or something very similar, and an extremely high fuel efficiency rating because the need to add more wood often is greatly reduced. This sounds wonderful in theory! More for less, right? The problem is that you're trapping heat yes, but the lack of constant smoke flowing through the cook chamber ultimately under-smokes your food. Smoke intensity is very subject to the tastes of the person eating, sure. But if Aaron runs the hottest BBQ restaurant in the country as of right now, he must be doing something right. I have tasted his brisket several times. His brisket is everything they say it is. Ultimately Aaron discovered a compromise in firebox design. A "semi-insulated" firebox. A 250 gallon firebox cut in half, with a 24 inch pipe shoved inside and welded together in the front. A sealed air-gap between the two components.

Now, regarding the smoke-stack design...larger smoke stacks tend to pull harder and stack diameter and length greatly influence the rate of said pulling. Use too large of a stack, and the air and smoke escape the cook chamber too quickly, resulting in quickly cooked food but insufficient color (indicative of smoke intensity). Use too small of a stack diameter and the opposite happens. Foods get great coloring due to smoke lingering around for a longer period of time inside the cook chamber. Stack lengths matter because stacks that are too short won't pull hard enough, and smoke stacks that are too long develop a problem with back pressure. The temperature of the smoke and air are dropping on their way up, and cooler air wants to drop back down, against the pressure of the rising air. Ultimately, you have to strike a balance.

Lastly, the seasoning level of the wood you utilize matters a lot as well. Green wood burns slowly and creates huge levels of (often bad quality) bitter smoke. Wood that is so old from long periods of seasoning often fully ignite so easily and cleanly that they burn up fast and you are left with pure heat and very small amounts of smoke flavor.

Ultimately, what does all this nonsense mean? Well, it means that the "perfect" smoke quality could turn out to be a bad thing. It boils down to your personal tastes, really. Sure, the KBQ puts out spectacular food. Much like an iPod, it's clean. It's clinical. It's shiny and polished. Great sound! But.......still not quite the same as seeing the band live. There's just something about stick burning on an EOS that suits many people. It requires skill, patience and attention to detail. I take a lot of pride in the results I've achieved from putting the work in. Are you that type of person? Does it matter to you? That's up to you to decide.

[bbqncigars]

I've run my Klose EOS since '99. One of the first things I did was wrap it with 1" thick ceramic wool with an aluminum flashing exterior. It's almost too insulated. That said, the 'q from both is great. More difference in two cuts of meat that in the respective quality of 'q. The stainless steel wonderpit is definitely easier to run, but it does like its food in bite size pieces compared to the Klose. The former just takes less effort for the same resulting quality meat.

[SteveFromLafayette]

Beefchop Agreed. I feel personally that it's very similar to preburning the wood in a separate burn barrel or burn box. Ms. Tootsie (the pitmaster) of Snow's BBQ in Lexington, TX burns her oak logs down to embers and proceeds to shovel them underneath most of her meat (brisket being the exception, smoked indirectly in a repurposed air tank) and while it doesn't taste bad, it's almost as if there's no smoke at all. The smoke ring is there but it barely penetrates the surface. I could understand the desire to do it her way if the wood of your choice was a very strong wood, like mesquite for instance. But post oak? Oak is probably the cleanest burning wood I've ever used.