Got a little touchy freely with the new Timberline XL today

[glitchy]

We were out furniture shopping today and close to an ACE with a large BBQ section, so we stopped to see some of the new grills this year. They had a lot of the new stuff on the floor, the new Genesis grills, all 4 MB Gravity grills including the new portable. What I really stopped to seriously look over was the new Traeger though.

I actually have to say I’m impressed. The beast is huge and pretty solid. Maybe not as thick of steel as most of the US made pits, but definitely appears thicker than all their others. The feel of things is solid. The main grates are absolutely beastly and it’s good they split them up in sections.

After a few minutes of looking at it, I had to tear it open. It’s very different than anything I’ve seen inside a pellet grill before. It’s going to be absolute trash at searing. However, it could smoke and bake well. The design could give it a chance to have a better smoke profile than a lot of grills. It has a unique firepot, downdraft exhaust, and deflectors in multiple layers that could push smoke to the middle of the grill, while pretty much having zero chance for a grease fire.

[bbqLuv]

Got to love it, but not the price tag.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

For the price I'm glad they thickened the steel a bit. Hopefully I'll get my hands on the new toys soonish, gotta go to Sams Monday, maybe I can talk my wife into swinging by Lowes.

[Jfrosty27]

Yes I looked this one over at my local Ace Hardware as well. Bottom line for me: nice cooker but not $3,800 worth. But time will tell. Maybe I don’t have a clue.

[DavidNorcross]

Like others it needs to be good for the money. Thanks for sharing.

[Bogy]

I was in my local Ace today. They are in the middle of a complete remodel, which I think may be part of a change in ownership. Not sure, because the only employee there late on a Saturday afternoon was a teenage kid. They had two of the Timberlines in their BBQ section (the only department which is still where it used to be). But I couldn't see anything because they were still in the boxes. Maybe when the remodel is done they'll unpack one of them. My wife was relieved on the way home when I was telling her about them, and reassured her I had no desire to add one to the collection.

[HawkerXP]

Ha ha ha! did she actually fall for that?

[BBQPhil]

That's the first step toward buying!

[Bogy]

All my pellet burners were made in the U.S. I'd need a really good reason to change course. Haven't seen it yet.

[jwkieta]

I own a Memphis Pro ITC3 and am not completely satisfied with it -- so I decided to give the Timberline XL a shot. Both are now in my back yard. One will be sold soon (yes, I have a problem LOL).

I'm about four cooks in on the XL and I have to say it is an absolute smoking beast. The comment above by Glitchy is spot on -- it smokes and bakes very well. Low temps, high temps ... it doesn't matter, the thing smokes and smokes and smokes. It must have something to do with the design of the firepot and how ash is expelled from it. On the Memphis and other pellet cookers I've owned, it's difficult to see a wisp of smoke at temperatures above 275 degrees. I can see smoke on the XL through 400 degrees. If creating more smoke flavor was a goal for Traeger, it's mission accomplished.

The Memphis is way better at searing with the direct-flame isert. But for smoke flavor, the XL is next-level. My first cook was a tri-tip and the smoke flavor was noticeably more pronounced than what I get off the Memphis or any previous pellet smoker I've owned.

The Traeger's induction side burner is a nice addition and I've used it for a cast-iron pan sear. I still prefer the flame sear of the Memphis.

I have not had any of the glitches/problems some of the new Timberline owners have reported. Fingers are crossed. I can't say the same about the Memphis, which I purchased in late December of last year. The handle fell off the hood; they sent me an entire new hood. The igniter threw an error in the middle of a long smoke and shut the whole thing down; they sent me a new igniter. A few wires apparenlty got loose when I replaced the igniter and that prevented the unit from turning on at all; customer service told me to wiggle a few of the wires going to the side-mounted screen and -- voila! -- that did the trick while inspiring no confidence that this issue will not return at an inopportune time.

I realize both the Memphis and the new Traeger are complicated units filled with the latest tech. That's why I like them .

[STEbbq]

Wow! Glad to hear an actual user review!

Why did you pick the Traeger over say the LSG or MAK?

[jwkieta]

I didn't want to wait for an LSG. And for whatever reason I've never had much excitement for the MAK, despite the positive reviews it receives.

[FireMan]

Hey there jwkieta , howdy! How about gittin yerself over to the intro-duce yerself section & do so. Welcome aboard!