Welcome!


This is a membership forum. Guests can view 5 pages for free. To participate, please join.

[ Pitmaster Club Information | Join Now | Login | Contact Us ]

Only 4 free page views remaining.

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

EOS vs KBQ?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    #16
    I started stick burning probably in the early 90's. I was always commanding the Weber for grilling before that. Then my kids bought me a new Brinkmann Smokin' Pit for fathers day. I think they were like $89 at Wal Mart at the time. I used charcoal and some splits and it was a bear to manage a fire in it. I mean it was frustration to the limit! Then I started reading up and finding all the mods you could do to help improve fire management. I did all the mods and it was still a battle at times but I smoked that way for probably 5 years.

    What I didn't realize at the time was the foundation of experience I was laying down for myself going forward.
    I graduated from that into a 24X36 1/4" steel patio pit. Man what a difference!! I was startled how much easier fire management became! It didn't make me a better cook it just made it incredibly easier. Now that I didn't have to focus so much on fire management I was able to focus more on the cooking process.

    I have never considered using anything other than a stick burner. Truthfully I had never heard of a KBQ until I ran across this thread. I bought a 22" WSM off of Craigslist about 4 years ago for $200 brand new in the box.
    Got it home and was assembling it in the garage. My son stopped down and helped me finish the assembly. When he left the WSM was in the back of his truck and it never came back! That's as close as I got to cooking on something else.

    I always get a smile when I read about someone wanting to take up stick burning. I pleases me to see someone want to keep the art alive. And that's what it is to me it's a art. There is so much for someone to choose from when it comes to this hobby. Electric, gas, charcoal. pellets and any can be hooked up to computers and blue tooth to your phone. It's nice to hear people are still drawn to the stick burner.

    I truly enjoy the input and effort I have to put into working my stick burners. Tending and fussing with the fire, looking at the exhaust and being able to know if I need to add a stick or just stir the fire it's all almost a kind of therapy which my wife tells me I need!

    This is my horizontal stick burner that I call Wreckless. The name of a extremely talented fabricator who built it.

    Click image for larger version

Name:	wreckless_snow.jpg
Views:	61
Size:	61.3 KB
ID:	417674

    Nice blue from the red oak that I normally burn as it is available by the truck load up here.

    Click image for larger version

Name:	thin_blue.jpg
Views:	50
Size:	259.8 KB
ID:	417675

    Comment


    • SteveFromLafayette
      SteveFromLafayette commented
      Editing a comment
      Stickburning satisfies a part of the soul. Loved your post, thanks!

    • Spinaker
      Spinaker commented
      Editing a comment
      Very well said! Thanks!

    #17
    Originally posted by SteveFromLafayette View Post
    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.
    The purists will tell you a burn barrel is true wood smoking. I made a burn barrel some years back and used it a few times. I didn't notice much difference in taste or meat appearance or texture but what I did notice is the amount of wood that is needed to be used. It takes a lot of wood at the outset to create enough coals to keep you going for awhile. Then it's a learning curve of how much wood do you add during the cook. You don't want a barrel full of burning oak logs going when your food is done nor do you want to be scraping the bottom of the barrel when you have 2 or 3 hours left on a brisket.
    We have wood in abundance but I'm still having to pay for it. I just didn't see the benefit so I went back to my traditional way of stick burning.

    Comment


      #18
      After a few months anyone ever end up doing a side by side comparison with a KBQ vs EOS? I've joined the ranks of I'm sure many who are now on the fence of the two. The thing is that I have a rectec, which is obviously the ultra convenient way of getting some great smoked food. The appeal of the KBQ is actually playing with fire etc, but I'm afraid I'll end up regretting it and wishing I'd gone for the EOS for the true challenge and satisfaction of mastering fire and food.

      Comment


      • EdF
        EdF commented
        Editing a comment
        I'm getting older. The "elegance" of great results for little pain appeals to me more these days. KBQ for me.

      • JakeT
        JakeT commented
        Editing a comment
        I can definitely respect that!

      • kmuoio
        kmuoio commented
        Editing a comment
        I'm a newb with a KBQ. I think to myself "I should have gone EOS" but then realize that I can hardly set aside enough time for KBQ (even with its reduced cook times and learning curve). I read the EOS posts (like the recent one on the Englebrecht) and watch EOS YouTube videos and drool, but I'm very happy with my KBQ results. KBQ fits me and my smokin' hobby better than an EOS would.

    Announcement

    Collapse
    No announcement yet.
    Working...
    X
    false
    0
    Guest
    Guest
    500
    ["pitmaster-my-membership","login","join-pitmaster","lostpw","reset-password","special-offers","help","nojs","meat-ups","gifts","authaau-alpha","ebooklogin-start","alpha","start"]
    false
    false
    {"count":0,"link":"/forum/announcements/","debug":""}
    Yes
    ["\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1157845-paid-members-download-your-6-deep-dive-guide-ebooks-for-free-here","\/forum\/the-pitcast","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2019-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2020-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2021-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2022-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2023-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2024-issues","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here"]
    /forum/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here