After almost 4 years, about 600 smokes and probably several tons of salmon, my original bradley has finally bit the big one. (It will survive, however, as a cold smoker).
It went through 2 door repairs, numerous cracks, but finally as I moved it I heard the big CRACK and the bottom panel broke half off.
It will be survived by a replacement 6-rack digital.
Too bad and very sad!
Rich
:'( :'(
Sorry to hear. I am in the process of getting things together to build a cedar smoke house according to the Bradley plans. When mine breaks it will all be switched to the cedar one. Tired of fooling with plastic. To me just not a good enough material. Although I love mine. Keep hoping they come out with a solid insulated metal one. Love their parts just dont really care for the box. If Its still going maybe i'll stick my extra pid and smoke generator and have two. I am also going to make the cedar one taller so I can use all my 12 bradley racks and space a little wider. Just thinking out loud. ::)
All metal and insulated.... Almost perfection!
Would be great with all the Bradley electronics. and probably be well worth the cost. We can dream! LOL!
sorry to hear your loss , then again time for an upgrade??
I know Id like an upgrade too! Just dont consider the 6 rack better then a 4.
Quote from: viper125 on December 11, 2012, 06:13:53 PM
I know Id like an upgrade too! Just dont consider the 6 rack better then a 4.
Yeah, I have a 6 rack too, which I coverted to a 12. Plus, my late departed 4-rack was really an 8.
I really struggled over this. The OBS has more wattage per cubic foot, and I have not been comfortable with adding the extra heat elements. It stretched my limits to add the extra racks!
But, for salmon, the DBS-6 seems to work *almost* as well as the OBS.
Rich
Bought twelve racks for my obs and did the fan and double element mod, dual pid and a maverick and I love it. I just hate plastics and the normal problems with it. Rest of the unit is A1
R.I.P What kind of beer are you serving at the memorial? I might show up
One big fault with this site! They dont have a thumbs up to agree with a post! Makes for a lot of short posts. Thumbs up! :D
OK! The front plate is cracked top and bottom but still hangin'.
The door is unhinged but holds shut anyway.
The poor thing looks like Rocky Balboa when he fought that Russian guy.
BUT IT STILL WORKS!!!!!
After the two turkeys are out,
I will clean it up,
pretend I'm Red Green and apply some duct tape,
and figure out what to smoke next!
Rich
Duct tape and bungee cords!
You can fix anything with duct tape and baling wire ;) Besides, duct tape has a good side and a dark side, and holds the universe together ::)
Well my hinge on bottom the plastics clear off. But turned on a slight angle and it seals fine. LOL! No tape or nothing needed. I think the magnetic gasket is holding it. Have the metal ordered and the guy left for vacation, it was only 8.00 so now with Christmas and new years it will probably be January some time. As long as it keeps smoking im all right. I also keep a couple bungys out there in case of trouble. LOL!
Damn the Torpedos ...... Smoke On!
Quote from: viper125 on December 18, 2012, 09:01:37 PM
Well my hinge on bottom the plastics clear off. But turned on a slight angle and it seals fine. LOL! No tape or nothing needed. I think the magnetic gasket is holding it. Have the metal ordered and the guy left for vacation, it was only 8.00 so now with Christmas and new years it will probably be January some time. As long as it keeps smoking im all right. I also keep a couple bungys out there in case of trouble. LOL!
its really ashame that you would have to bungy cord or otherwise "rig" your smoker so the door doesnt fall off.
Or some of the other things these are known for.
Dont get me wrong I love mine, but they should be a lot more stout.
Buttburner, I think you are generally right. The consensus here over the years seems to be that the OBS isn't all that sturdy. I think Bradley built the Stainless models so they could be more stout. But for entry into the fun world of smoke, I believe it's hard to beat. Especially the price when it is on sale.
In my particular case, I think this thread is almost a testimony to it's durability. I bought it in April of 2009. From mid 2010, I have used it probably an average of 4 times a week. More from May-Oct, less during the other 6 months, as my wife and I smoke fish to sell at a Farmers' market.
So, it may look like Rocky, but golly it still works!
Rich
Quote from: Smokeville on December 19, 2012, 06:59:01 AM
Buttburner, I think you are generally right. The consensus here over the years seems to be that the OBS isn't all that sturdy. I think Bradley built the Stainless models so they could be more stout. But for entry into the fun world of smoke, I believe it's hard to beat. Especially the price when it is on sale.
In my particular case, I think this thread is almost a testimony to it's durability. I bought it in April of 2009. From mid 2010, I have used it probably an average of 4 times a week. More from May-Oct, less during the other 6 months, as my wife and I smoke fish to sell at a Farmers' market.
So, it may look like Rocky, but golly it still works!
Rich
Yes, I agree. The only real complaint I have is that front panel cracking (twice) with the front legs not being designed correctly. As far as the door, sounds like that happens if the wind catches it or its otherwise over extended. Mine is fine, I have had my OBS for about 4 years now and works perfectly.
I just fnished the PID and 2nd heat element upgrades and could not be happier with it now. This is my 3rd smoker, I had a Brinkmann ECB, then a Great Smoky Mountain charcoal that I converted to propane. I like doing sausage and the temp control of the Bradley is great for that. Now with the PID its even better.
It will do me fine until I can fit a Yoder into my bank account!