A few newbie questions

Chez Bubba · March 12, 2005, 12:49:16 AM

No Habs, I don't see them as "negative" reports, just personal opinion. It's a personal choice as to whether the cost justifies the convenience or quality of the finished product.

Right now I am a member of the no crowd, but that could change in the future. All the guys & gals w/Raptor units are not "wrong" in their thinking, they just have personal preferences different than mine. I think it's a great unit, but at this stage of my game, not right for me.

I wouldn't want a newbie to think they HAD to have one in order to turn out great food. I think they should try it without a few times before deciding if that's the setup they would LIKE. We're all liking our Bradley's, just some prefer different options.[8D]

Kirk

http://www.chezbubba.com
Ya think next time I check into a hotel & they ask "Smoking or Non?" they would mind?

ChefBill · March 12, 2005, 01:51:40 AM

I have to agree with Kirk, Nice add on but not needed to produce a great product.. My Ol'Gran Pa had one of them old smoke houses that I spent a lot of my childhood eating goodies out of. He could smoke a ham or bacon to perfection and all he had was an old CokeCola thermometer hanging in it..
I spent a lot of time checking & Tending the fire for that sucker. Hauled a bunch of Hickory & Oak for him.. At this point and time, I feel $200+ will buy a lot of meat for the Bradley.. [:p] Bill

If you can eat it, you can smoke it.

Habanero Smoker · March 12, 2005, 11:11:29 AM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Chez Bubba
 No Habs, I don't see them as "negative" reports, just personal opinion. It's a personal choice as to whether the cost justifies the convenience or quality of the finished product.

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I am all for personal choice, but personal choice can be positive, negative or neutral; towards a certain product, subject and/or idea.

I think that many are not giving today's consumer enough credit of doing their research on an expensive product and making intelligent choices. Part of that process is that the consumer be correctly informed about the product, accessories that are available for a product, and how the accessories can enhance the product. Then the consumer can make an informed decision of the purchase, what accessories they may want now or in the future, and then make a smart decision on whether cost justifies their budget and needs.

Maybe it just me, but I find it difficult to believe that someone who wants to buy a BS would come to the conclusion that they HAD to purchase a Raptor/Guru to make great food. It's like assuming that the consumer feels they need the stainless steel model to make great food. To me knowing that a product has a variety of add-ons and other accessories would enhance sales, whether one picks to purchase the accessories now or at a later date.

When I purchased my BS, the Raptor/Guru did not exist. If this option was available at the time I purchased the BS, I probably would not have bought the Raptor/Guru until I had experimented with the BS. [8D]

gotbbq · March 12, 2005, 11:43:19 AM

Strider-

Olds is exactly right. The raptor is a great toy but not at the expense of the BS itself. It is a wonderful smoker, cold and hot, without any additions.[^][^][^]

gotbbq

SMOKEHOUSE ROB · March 12, 2005, 01:59:08 PM

str1der, you will enjoy the bs, and so will all your friends you will be smokeing so much meat you willbe giving it away, the guru is a nice toy, but you dont need it, some of us are accessories junkys, you know you can take a $20 fishing pole and a $300 fishing pole you are still going to catch fish with both.[:D]

nsxbill · March 12, 2005, 03:49:43 PM

I used the BS for about 2 months and 8 smokes until I got the competitor...another month or so with the Competitor then I ordered the Procom4. It was on sale. No regrets, but definitely not needed to smoke meat.

The factors that influenced me were amongst others, remotely controlling the smoker, walk-away capability to automatically control the smoking process, the capability of controlling more that just the BS.

I am ultimately going to buy a larger charcoal wood smoker and install a fan on that charcoal model that the Procom4 will also control for the times I use it. The Procom4 or competitor can be used to control cooks in pretty much any BBQ from Weber to trailer mounted smoker.

I admit, I am a smoke head as well as a toy junkie. After I retire again, I want to start doing bulk smokes of jerky and hit some of the smoking/bbq events as a vendor. The versatility and capability of the Procom4 makes sense to me, and it is available to anyone who wants one...but not for everyone, either because of depth of pocketbook or desire to be more of a purist.

I am lazy, and the Procom4 is right for me. If the Maverick ET-73 works for you with a baby alarm to alert you to the alarm going off to extend the range a little...go for it. I choose not to.

My wife would give me all kinds of hell if she found out how much I paid for it. It sounds an alarm when I need to do something from 200 yards away, and since I am a little hearing impaired, it is great. I love it. I have retired twice and besides liking what I do for a living, continuing to work allows me the financial freedom to indulge myself with this kind of toy...most know I do like those toys.

I learned how to use the BS before I bought a controller. The Maverick ET73 was a necessity before I picked up the Guru. The Procom4 is quite expensive, but versatile, useful and a necessity for me. It goes well beyond the capability of a Maverick with features I am still learning to use.

I would buy it again, even if it were no longer on sale at an introductory price because I think it is that valuable to help me do what I like to do when I turn meat into tasty offerings.

Bill

There is room on earth for all God's creatures....on my plate next to the mashed potatoes.

str1der · March 12, 2005, 04:38:25 PM

Thanks for all the info on the subject. It's something I will keep in mind for the future. I'll try my hand without it to start out. Something just doesn't sit right when the accessory costs more than the original unit. Heck you could buy a second smoker for that price. I guess it's kind of like today you can buy a very good PC for $400 then to get a good video card for it you have to spend another $400. Just curious about temp swings though. After the first hour or though does the temp stay somewhat steady anyway. Is it unreasonable to think that I could put in a pork butt before I leave for work and finish it up when I get home that evening. I know that's not the perfect situation but I didn't think you need exactness when it came to smoking.

SMOKEHOUSE ROB · March 12, 2005, 04:46:20 PM

i have the mavrick and the guru, but for some reason the mavrick dont work well threw my house, i think my house is made of lead, LOL . I have sent the mavrick back and they replaced it, still have problems, so what i did was found was the grill alert from brookstone, which you cant set it for your set temp you want will give you the current temp,no smoker temp, all i wanted was to know my meat temp. but the bad thing is if you are doing a butt or anything ove 170 this thing goes off and talks to you, they sell for $75 , i found one on ebay for $30, and then i did a mod on it and wired in a switch to the speaker so i can turn it off and on , when on it will alert me for useing it on my grill or bs for doing chicken or fish , turn it off to do higher temps the rang is 300 feet,

will post later some pic . to make an easy mounting bracket for you guru guys, to mount your guru to your bradley.

Oldman · March 12, 2005, 06:35:13 PM

Habanero Smoker perhaps you are correct. Maybe I have read too much into the past postings. To that end I apologize to you and everyone that has one.

<hr noshade size="1">str1der you said: I guess it's kind of like today you can buy a very good PC for $400 then to get a good video card for it you have to spend another $400.<hr noshade size="1">Did you see this review on the ATI
X800XTPE AGP? ATI Shoot Out Review My 9700 Pro card that cost me $500.00 a couple of years back or so is second from the bottom in performance... makes a body want to cry.

Halo:
9700 pro card score @ 1024 x 768: 23.3
X800XTPE score @ @ 1024 x 768: 93.17

Going price for the X800XTPE AGPis 815.00 to 885.00 depending upon what flavor you get~~~! That make a Raptor look cheap.

I've got a XP3200 box and it has not yet hit the wall..My next box I've priced out is close to 5K and frankly I wondering if it is going to be worth it. (The v-card in it is only the X800 Pro AGP. Cost around $400.00.)

Again in closing if I have upset anyone concerning the Raptor I sincerely apologize!

//SIGNED//
Olds

http://rminor.com

MallardWacker · March 12, 2005, 10:15:39 PM

Man I'm not steping in this one, I'm still trying to scape the stuff off my shoes from the last go around on this subject.[8D]

SmokeOn,

mski
Perryville, Arkansas
Wooo-Pig-Soooie

If a man says he knows anything at all, he knows nothing what he aught to know. But...

Habanero Smoker · March 12, 2005, 11:54:40 PM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Oldman
 Habanero Smoker perhaps you are correct. Maybe I have read too much into the past postings. To that end I apologize to you and everyone that has one.

//SIGNED//
Olds

http://rminor.com
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Olds,
I was not directing my comments soley to you, several have posted about the Guru. Enough said on that subject.

I am looking into upgrading my ATI Radeon 9800 and turning my second PC into a multi-media center. But that needs to wait until August [:(]

Kummok · March 13, 2005, 02:15:30 AM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by SMOKEHOUSE ROB
 ....you know you can take a $20 fishing pole and a $300 fishing pole you are still going to catch fish with both.[:D]
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

SR
I LOVE it when you talk in MY native tongue[;)][:D][8D]

35 years of extinguishing smoking stuff and now I'm wondering WHY!
Kummok @ Homer, AK USA

Oldman · March 13, 2005, 03:18:02 AM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Olds,
I was not directing my comments soley to you, several have posted about the Guru. Enough said on that subject.

I am looking into upgrading my ATI Radeon 9800 and turning my second PC into a multi-media center. But that needs to wait until August <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Did you check out that review and the pricing... that is just flat out crazy~~! You could purchase two console units and 4 $50.00 games for the price of that V-Card.

Olds

http://rminor.com

Habanero Smoker · March 13, 2005, 09:49:50 AM

Just got a chance to check out the price this morning.

Ouch! I may have to wait until next August [:(]

Oldman · March 14, 2005, 02:20:18 AM

I will tell you right now I might just skip this next upgrade and wait another year. Maybe in the future I will purchase that Raptor to check out so Bill can have a laugh on me.

I can understand having the latest and greatest if you going to build out a super multi-media center; however, you are talking to someone who just never watches the Box except for 3 hours on the Sci-Fi station per week. Exception to this rule are those home improvement shows my wife drags me to once and awhile... [;)]

I just can't see 800 plus bucks for a V-card that in 6 months is going to be yesterday's news anyway! You know NVIDIA is not going to be sitting on their backside and allow ATI to rule the day.

BTW, I think the year was 1995 or 96 and my first 3D card was a Voodoo with a whole 4 megs LOL!

Olds

http://rminor.com