Again with the LSG. I didn't get a stick burner but a large Cabinet instead. The build quality is first class. Chris is great to work with also. Shipping was $590 in May.
Someone here has a California Custom Smoker, damn memory, hopefully they will chime in. Good luck and good hunting.
I do have two of them. The builder, Mike Bulen, has retired. His work was phenomenal. I really like the cabinet style from a capacity and consistency standpoint. I had only old COS’ to compare them to. Mike, if you ever want to play with them I’m just a couple hours down the road. My work season is winding down. Fires, the fall and my 960 hr ret annuitant cap have me at 3 days a week.
I just watched the video on the construction of the Lone Star 20" x 42" smoker... seems very well built to me, and not unreasonable for what you are getting. About the only option I think I would add would be a ball valve, and heck - you can get that at the hardware store.
Oh boy, there sure are a lot of excellent choices out there, but the LSG is really tugging at me. I told my wife about my plans yesterday and she said why don't I just go for it now instead of waiting 2 more months. I think she's high on something and I better act fast before it wears off!
Give the Shirley Fabrication 24x36 Patio smoker a look.
I just bought one and love it. A smaller foot print.
I was also looking at the LSG models and the lead time was a bit long
I have a Backyard Jambo like PBCDad . He obviously has cooked for larger crowds than I have since I have never ran out of room on it (8 square feet of cooking area). I smoked three turkeys in pans for a friend and still had room for two more. If you add shelves, even more space.
Pros: 1) Even temps throughout the cooking area. 2) 1/4" rolled steel and double insulated fire box. 3) control temp at the exhaust. Barely push the damper up or down and you will see the temp change. Don't worry about the vents at the fire door. 4) Great smoke flavor. 5) takes very little wood (1/2 split) to keep temps constant for 30-40 min. 6) managing a fire. 7) Offsets will get a lot of oohs & aahs from your guests.
Cons: 1) Can't leave it alone. And can't put an ATC on a stick burner, So if your doing a brisket, get comfortable cuz your going to be there a long time. 2) It can take awhile to master managing a fire, so that you're not going thru these huge temp swings. I'm not smoking on it all the time, but it took me a couple of years to get really comfortable with my Jambo. 3) Not portable, unless you got a trailer. 4) the analog temperature gauge is crap. But I use digital anyway.
FWIW Tips for when you do buy a stick burner:
1) get a double insulated firebox. Especially if you are in a cold area. You won't go through wood so fast.
2) buy a cover. I had one made for my Jambo.
3) Get stainless steel bar grates. Mesh grates are hard to clean.
4) Keep a few logs that your going to burn inside the firebox or smoker. Hot wood burns so much cleaner than ambient temp wood. Clean smoke is all about the flash point.
5) keep your other smokers. Your not going to want to start that stick burner up every time you want some BBQ,
6) Buy a hand crank fan air blower. Throw on that hot split, then crank the blower gently a couple times and that split catches fast.
TripleB what a great comment! I've never thought of warming up wood, stacking some pieces on the warmer shelf in the cooking chamber, for ready to add fuel. You've just upped my game and gave me a great talking point with the neighborhood bbq hackers as well - I am now a super hero!
As promised: (Grab an Adult Bevvie),on accounta this here's gonna take me a while...(multi-taskin.)
i.e.: Will most likely be multiple installments, as time-management permits...Promise Sooner, rather than Later
Here's some thoughts I'll share, based upon my experiences:
As has done been accurately mentioned, multiple times, previous, conceivably might be that ya perceive whole nuther level, or beyond, flavour-profile, wise, I'd reckon would be a minimalistic way of puttin it
First off, an probly foremost: Don't Go Too Dang Dang Small!!! I cain't emphasize this enough...
Yer buyin a Lifetime Smoker...do yer best not to suffer th embarassment, humiliation, frustration, or experience of not havin enough Real Estate. Please, do trust me on this here, Cap'n...
Th initial investment is neglible, proprtionately to what ya gain.
There's previous here beenTons of Great Advice, experience, an knowledge done given, alla which I heartily agree with, 'cepitn fer them ones who's jus plain ol, flat-arsed wrong! (JK, Yall!)
<Pt. 1>
<end>
Happy Trails, Amigo! See ya Soon. with part 2 . Long-arsed day, still tryin to drown / extinguish some pesky remainin brain cells from th week, previous
Last edited by Mr. Bones; October 3, 2020, 04:55 PM.
Now that everyone has taken a trip down MCS dreamland lane, with images of the greatest stick burner ever sitting in our back yards, what have you decided?
I have a Shirley, which is a reverse flow design, but in hindsight I think I would have gone with a traditional model, possibly with tuning plates. Tuning plates give you the option to you cook with hot spots or use the plates to even out the temperature in case you want consistency across the chamber. Consistent cook temps in the chamber seems to be a big selling point for the reverse flow design, but honestly part of the fun to me is cooking different meats and learning to use the hot spots to your advantage. But the RF design delivers. Mine has some variation so I can put meats closer to the firebox for hot n' fast. You also lose a little space in the cook chamber with the reverse flow design, and the baffle is welded in place (another reason to go with tuning plates - you can remove them for easier cleaning). The nice thing about the Shirley is the warming cabinet, which you can draft through directly (like a vertical smoker), use as a warming chamber, or draft through the cook chamber, which gives you all kinds of crazy options. Mine is a 24x48 cabinet model so I get a LOT of space (even with the loss of cook space due to the design), but it's still a pretty big cooker. Probably a bit much for a family of four. Lang is a good alternative to the Shirley if you want RF. If I had $3K I'd probably get something traditional like the Texas 1845 or the GP Stock 2032 from Gator Pits. Neither have the plates, but the Party Gator offers that as an option and you'll come in just under budget with that model.
I got a Yoder Loaded Wichita last June. Very happy with the purchase. Took a little over a year to learn how it wants to cook: which damper adjustment works (fidgeting up with the stack never works on mine, firebox only) how big is the goldilocks fire that isn't so small you'll be left with no coal bed nor too big that it can't get proper air flow, and when to add the next stick to keep it happy and right-sized. It's a lot like my toddler, who's a lot like my wife: give it just what it wants when it wants it and everything's mostly fine, but it's going to do what it wants to do - it will run smoothly at a given temp, which will change a bit on any given day, and if you insist on trying to raise or lower the temp much beyond where it wants to run, you're going to have a fight on your hands and you can forget trying to force it.
):
),on accounta this here's gonna take me a while...(multi-taskin.) 
I cain't emphasize this enough...
(JK, Yall!)
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