I've looked at a couple of similar posts but thought I'd ask for myself. Nothing more than 1K, preferably less. Don't need anything large, it's just my wife and I, kids grown and out of the house. Looking closely at camp chef smokepro SG. Pros; pellet and ash clean out system, dual probes, not too large for my space. Daniel Boone green mountain, on sale with Wi-Fi for $684, digital controller with 5 degree increments. Rec Tec Trailblazer, dual probes, Wi fi, temp. Control, very popular company, maybe a little smaller than I was looking at but can add an additional shelf. Grilla silverback, gets a lot of positives on this site but may be large for my space and needs.
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Welcome to this site. I have pit boss 700 since Christmas it dose a Awesome job there are many out there which are better then mine and the price tags reflect that. But mine has been flaw less with very little learning curb. It has been truly a point and shoot
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In the Pit Boss line, look at the "Classic" model 700 inches at Walmart. $399, dual probes, digital, exceptional fit & finish with the copper-like top, very solid construction, and holds temps nicely. Your only problem will be finding pure pellets unadulterated with Alder, etc. This cuts your smoke taste considerably. Plan to buy a LizzyQ Smoke Tube which will help.
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I have the Rec Tec 680. It's primarily just me and the wife as well. If you just absolutely don't have the space then that's that. However, a full size cooker is not a waste in my opinion. I'd rather have it for the get togethers when you're cooking for more people. We also like to do 2 smaller turkeys for the holidays. Not sure if you can do that with the Trailblazer. I also like to have the extra room for smoke tubes, grate therms and the like.Comment
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I know you mentioned the silverbac but the Original Grilla is pretty awesome too and definitely in your price point and has a very small footprint because of design.Comment
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I second Nate that if you are wanting to stay small in footprint, consider the original Grilla. Potkettleblack got one recently and pretty sure he really likes it. CandySueQ also seems to swear by the original Grilla (or swear at it - I don't know!) I don't think you need a pellet smoker with a sear feature at all, since you have the Weber gas and charcoal grills.Comment
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my daniel boone has operated flawlessly and has been easy to cleanComment
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I have the Original Grilla, which is smaller than the Silverback, and a bit more expensive at $799. As JF said, I love it.
Since you you already have the Weber Spirit, you don’t need a sear station. You already have one. I do my low on the Grilla, then sear on the Genesis. If I’d have known I was gonna go pellet, I would have gotten a Spirit like you for searing and for hot and fasts. OG has a lot of room, but won’t really fit a full packer brisket, intact. But two racks of spares, no problema.
I cant speak to build quality versus the RecTec. But my OG is a tank. Thick metal everywhere that counts. And small footprint.Comment
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Interested in this thread because I'm pretty much in the same boat as Jefft54. Just 2 of us, most of the time, although I want to be able to cook for everyone when the whole family is home, so I don't want to go too small. I have a Weber Genesis, and I'd like to keep the footprint down. I'm also looking at the same price point. The original Grilla is at the top of my list. Still open to other options, but especially with the optional grate the Grilla holds a lot of food. Biggest difference between Jeff and myself is location. Since I'm in Iowa the double wall construction is a big plus for me.Last edited by Bogy; July 16, 2018, 10:32 PM. Reason: Cleaned up the typos spellcheck insisted on when I posted this from my phone in a hospital waiting room.Comment
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So no love for CampChef?Comment
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Jefft54 its not that no one likes Camp Chef - the SG24 or whatever their new slide-and-grill model is looks interesting. I think more chiming in have used or considered Rec-tec and Grilla. Red-Ted makes some great gear, but unless you get the 700, it appears to only have a 2 year warranty. Not sure how that compares to GMG and Campchef, but it’s definitely shorter than the Grilla warranty.
If you can make the space, I would go bigger rather than smaller, just so you can do the occasional large cook. For the price the Silverbac (new model) has a good bit of space. So does the new Campchef SG model. And considering I just cooked a 13.5# full packer on my Performer you ought to be able to do the same on the original round Grilla.Comment
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I don't think you could go wrong with the Rec Tec Trailblazer. I have one and I'm really pleased with it. It is not really that small - i cooked three good sized racks of ribs from Costco on mine - all flat on the grill. You could fit more if need be with rib rack. Like you, it is just my wife and I. I think this grill is near equivalent size to Weber 22" diameter which calculates out to 380 sq inches verses the 340 sq inches of Trailblazer (perhaps shaped better).
As for the pros on Camp Chef (which I seriously considered buying); the ash generated in Rec Tec seems so minimal, and does not all collect down in one place, that it is easy to vacuum out - I've even used a handheld battery powered vac for this. Unless you cook nearly every day, I don't think this would be an issue for you. The pellets in Rec Tec are not too hard to change either... I simply scoop them out with a very small (about 1 pint) bucket, leaving just what remains in the auger tube. I don't worry about that bit of pellets - use them to get things going and then let the new pellets take over.
The Rec Tec controller, in my opinion, is awesome. Perfect temperature control. The WiFi app is simple and straight forward.
Warranty of two years, seems OK to me - compare to other grills, not to the 6 year warranty of RT-700.
The stainless steel construction of Rec Tec is nice - should last way longer than others. I just find myself cleaning it after several cooks to keep its nice appearance. Oh, and doesn't hurt to keep it clean so I can take it with me on outings - another thing to consider - it is portable.
Consider size for this reason also: a small size used less pellet fuel, and can get hotter; my Trailblazer reaches 600 degrees, and with GrillGrates makes wonderful seared meats.
I also made jerky on the Trailblazer, and it gets a nice low temp with lots of smoke.
Whatever your choice, I'm sure you will enjoy having a pellet grill. IMHO they are wonderful.Comment
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My nephew bought a CC based on its good reviews for its lower price point and he loves it. Personally I haven't had the chance to play with it yet so I can't tell you what I think. But Max rates a couple of their models highly: https://amazingribs.com/grill-smoker...ear-box-review and https://amazingribs.com/smoker/camp-...-smoker-review Definitely do not overlook them for quality at a lower price tag.Originally posted by Jefft54 View PostComment
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