I have not made the jump to a pellet grill yet. I’d like to have one when I want to do a long cook but don’t have time to manage the fire. I was in Lowe’s and walked through the grill section because…well, just because. I came across a huge returned Pit Boss Wood Pellet Pro Series 1600 1598-Sq in Black Pellet Grill with Smart Compatibility for $499 (regularly $999). After wondering how I would explain it to my wife and how I would get it home, I walked slowly away, hoping I wouldn’t regret it. I don’t know much about the brand and am not quite ready to add a set-it-and-forget-it yet. It had pretty mixed reviews so I feel good about walking away.
oh, I can’t believe it,that cooker was calling you to rescue it and you did not rescue it. You left it there on the side of wherever it was. It’s a sad day in smokeville 😔 it’s only $25 to deliver to deliver at Lowe’s, and yes to exactly what you are thinking, celebrating 4000 😔
Don’t do it. It’s a slippery slope. Next thing you’ll be buying a crockpot because you can just set it and forget it and ignore that beautiful CI Dutch oven.
Resist the dark side. Stay true to your calling. Be a true pit master.
What’s the worst that could happen? Your wife could lock you out of the house and the darned thing won’t work. If I’m going to risk the wrath of a mad wife it will be for something much more substantial than an iffy pellet rig. Besides I’m not sure flowers would work. You might end up buying jewelry to win her good graces back you won’t have saved a dime and still be stuck with a returned grill. Take the advice of an old man who has angered more than one wife. Think this through.
True wisdom. Going on 32 years of marriage so my fear is doing it and being locked in…for a talk…a very long uncomfortable “you were right” talk. Now if I find a great deal on a high quality offset, I can just mull over my sins by the light of some mesquite or hickory.
Honestly, some of these newer pellet grill models have me really considering them. I've got a Yoder YS480, and it is built heavy and awesome, but... I could honestly use some more size (really a LOT more size) and some of the features are just pretty damned cool. My Yoder is probably going to need a new controller soon anyways, so that's going to be a significant investment. And watching some videos on some of the newer models, I'm impressed with the appearance of some of the product they're able to put out, and the content creators claim they have spectacular taste and results. Of course, nothing is going to beat one of my offsets - but... if I can get 90% of the way there with 5-10% of the effort, that is encouraging.
Although, with my new hobby of sausage making, I'm thinking a vertical cabinet might be better (for hanging) and I wonder if just building my own and adding an aftermarket pellet and cold smoke capability would be better...
Argh... ok, I'm talking to myself. Sorry.
Anyways, some of these newer pellet grills have some cool features that really look interesting!
Run back and get it. Ignore all of the "traditional" slings and arrows about pellets vs charcoal. Pellet grills come in handy for more than just long cooks. I love my little Chimp pellet grill. I roast a chicken on it every couple weeks. Better than Costco rotisserie chickens and almost as cheap. It is pretty handy when I get lazy and don't want to fool with charcoal. In fact, I would like to have a larger pelleteer but I am resisting the urge.
Having a Kettle and a Bronco, there are times I wished I had more room on one smoker to cook several items without one dripping on the other. A large pellet smoker seems to be what I
need/want. Also want a flattop. MCS, but it's just me unless family or friends are around.
Cookers:
Oklahoma Joe Offset (older thick steel version!)
Camp Chef Woodwind
OK Joe Bronco
Weber Genesis
Ooni Karu
Weber Kettle
My goal is to eventually have at least one of every style of cooker….. I have work to do. Lol!
Thermometers:
ThermoWorks Thermapen MK4
ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE
ThermoWorks Thermopop
ThermoWorks RFX
ThermoWorks IRK-2 Infrared
Maverick XR-50
TempSpike Plus
Other Gear:
Megaforce 3000 Meat Grinder
Weston 7-pound sausage stuffer
Jerky Gun for making poppers. (Game changer!)
Amaz-N-Tube
Original SnS with drip n griddle
Weber Chimney
Fuels Used:
Splits/Chunks, whatever I can get. Usually B&B competition. Favorites are Cherry, Apple, Post Oak, and Hickory.
Pellets, Lumberjack.
Charcoal, whatever is on sale. Currently have a bunch of KBB. Will eventually try B&B. Use whatever lump is on sale in my Ooni.
Propane, Blue Rhino.
Rubs:
Usually make my own riff’s on Memphis Dust and BBBR. Also use Meathead’s commercial rubs and occasionally try something new. I like a couple from Tuffy Stone and Kinder’s. After several surgeries, I’m very sensitive to “spicy” stuff, so I need to be careful about heat levels.
I too was hesitant to join the pellet rig world. I ended up finding an absolutely steal on a camp chef woodwind on craigslist. $100 and all it needed was a $17 auger motor. Oh, the previous owner had already removed the old motor for me too. At that price I couldn’t resist. Best advice I received about pellet rigs was here in The Pit (no surprise) and it changed my way of thinking about them. I don’t refer to it as a smoker. I call it an oven that uses smoke. I must tell you that since I started thinking of it in those terms, I have been able to turn out some phenomenal products and recognized its versatility. All that said, I do still have my stick burner and my drum smoker for when I want true wood smoke. I say run back to Lowe’s and bring that pellet rig home!!!
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