I'm having just so much fun trying to figure out the right smoker for my husband and me.
I've decided on electric. That's about it. Well, I've probably decided on square vertical.
Here are my observations on some brands I have seen with my own eyes, and questions about how they might compare to Bradley in a particular way. I'm not mentioning Weber's Smokey Mountain because I hate everything about the Weber company, including their "grill expert" telling me that the way I like my food cooked is wrong and not recommended (He was not referring to the degree of rareness in steak that I like, which admittedly is extreme). End rant.
STABILITY:
1. Masterbuilt will tip over towards the front when the door is open. I went into a Sports Authority and put a lot of heavy stuff in it, which the CS lady had said would prevent this issue, and I could still make the shelves slide out practically just touching the open door.
2. Bradley. I have not ever seen a Bradley, but my Wisconsin-visiting husband went to a Gander Mountain the other night as a special favor, and communicated with me by mobile about the OBS he saw there. He thought it probably would not easily tip over in the same way. Bradley informs me the units are made in China, but designed in Canada.
3. Kenmore makes two electric square smokers, the 30 inch sold at Sears currently on sale for $150 and the 24" sold at KMart currently on sale for $105. They have the huge stickout legs like Brinkmann because Brinkmann makes them (in China) and insulated side walls. Here is a link to the Owners Manual section of the Brinkmann web site. It has the Kenmores on it too. http://www.brinkmann.net/Customer%20Service/OwnersList.aspx?category=Charcoal+Grills+%26+Smokers
(http://www.brinkmann.net/Customer%20Service/OwnersList.aspx?category=Charcoal+Grills+%26+Smokers)
VENTING:
1. Masterbuilt has a damper at the top of the box part.
2. Does Bradley have a damper in the box part? If not, then what?
3. Kenmores have a stupid little air hole in the back of the box, towards the top. It is fixed and only about a quarter inch wide. That's it, plus the stupid little grease drip hole. How would the wood stay lit? Is this a really good thing or a really bad thing?
SETUP OF WATER/ELECTRIC/WOOD & GREASE:
1. Masterbuilt takes up a LOT of space with its arrangement of pans and chip holders. In fact, their 30" unit only has 16" of food space. From top to bottom, you get racks, water bowl, slide-out wood holder, concealed electric element, and full-size drip pan. So as I see it, grease will drip into the water pan.
2. Bradley - I have no earthly idea how grease dripping is handled, or where water goes. The web site gives cubic inch sizes for available smoking area which are about a third of the total volume of the cabinet. Seriously, it comes out to 10" of height for all 4 shelves. What am I missing? (This is consistent in all their listings, for 4 and 6 rack).
3. Kenmore small has 13" of space for 2 provided racks, and large has 19" for 4 provided racks. Arrangement top to bottom is racks for food, a single rack which holds a water pan and a punch-hole covered chip pan, and then the element. There is a small hole in the very bottom of the actual unit and you hang the drip cup on it. So this also seems like grease will hit either the open water pan or the wood pan first, though they are not as huge combined as the Masterbuilt water pan. Then grease will sit on the bottom of the unit. There is no slant to the bottom to make the grease head towards the hole.
More stupid questions. Why doesn't the grease from, say, a top rack of ribs, just settle on the 2nd rack of ribs?
The manuals say to season or cure your smoker before using it for the first time, but not how to set the temperature for the curing process (ie high or low).
I am going to try to include a picture of the interior of the Kenmore. This is of the small one. Frankly, for the money and the highly cute smallness of it, I would be leaning this way. (Ok, that didn't work. Anything has to be already on a web site? Can't just attach? )
Oh. Another question. Assuming you have a constant amount of meat to smoke, and it fits easily into smoker A, is it very inefficient to put that same amount in smoker B which is much bigger? Another way of putting this is why doesn't the Bradley 6-rack have diluted smoke and take more time to smoke. Or does the 6-rack burn the pucks more quickly, say, in 15 minutes each?
Thank you, anyone and everyone.
I'm a newbie so won't offer any advise other than to say that I too did quite a bit of research into getting a new smoker before decising on a Bradley. What sold me was the fact that you don't have to mess with soaking wood chips and such. I have owned both charcol/wood and electric somkers and they tend to take bit of tending to keep the smoke going and the temp right. I have a friend with a Bradley and a much more expensive electric and the effort to get to the finished product with the Bradley is simpler and more consistant. So, if you're not oposed to the cost of bisquettes than I don't think you can make a better choice. I'm sure some of the more experienced folks will chime in. I've heard nothing but good regarding after sales support which is important of course. Obviously if you post this kind of question on any name brand smoker forum, the responses will tend to favor what they own and support, and it's obvious that the folks who post here really like their smokers!
Thanks, Coherent! Did I understand correctly that there is a more expensive electric smoker than a Bradley? For plain old regular residential use? Do tell!
I found some more Bradley documents, like a manual, and enlarged a picture of a Bradley's innards and went over it with the CS rep. Those aren't little sausages in the back of the bottom on the left; they're the bisquettes coming in. I had thought that they were ignited in the left hand piece, which she informed me is strictly a delivery device, and controls. This misunderstanding had made me wonder why people were not enthusiastic about offset smokers (little and big drum) when the Bradley itself was offset, albeit high-tech.
So there are two drip pans. Nice touch! And the burned bisquette goes into the water. Did I understand this correctly? Doesn't this tend to fill up or overflow, and require attention, which would negate the whole set and forget thing? Ah, I called CS back; 'never leave it unattended', she asserts. Empty that water bowl! Does anyone really go to sleep, set the alarm for 3am and get up to empty the water bowl? I thought someone said he left it on all night.
She also gave me the usable cooking space dimensions as 15 x 11.5 x 19 which multiplies out to 3277, but the web site says 2288, and she is going to look into that.
I can tell you one thing, I love my Bradley SS. I bought this magic box about 3-4 years ago and how no idea how to smoke anything but cigarettes. I only started using the smoker about 2 years ago due to some health issues. After my first smoke I was hooked and with the help from this forum things just get better. I tried with a Brinkman a few years back with no success. I smoke with my Weber and have some success but when push comes to shove the Bradley is boss. I still haven't invested in the pid like others here and I still don't own a maverick 73 to make life a little easier, but at least I get excercise running back and forth the the box. :D The cost of the biscuits aren't that expensive either, you can get them on amazon for a song.
bytes,
the bradley 4 rack is 15 inch wide by 12 inch deep and 28 inch high inside. as how the grease is delt with the bradley has a v drip tray that channels the grease to a center location and into a metal cup which is also used to catch the bisquetts.
I have had my bradley 4 rack for 18 months and love it.. i was much like you looking and looking and looking and finally decided on the bradley.
also depending on what you are going to make is how much you can fit into the smoker. if you do full sides of ribs you will have to cut them in half just to get them into the smoker and the most that i could get in them was 7 -8 full racks of ribs and it was full...maybe 17 to 20 lbs. and a 2 hour smoke and 10 hour cook.
have also done 40 lbs of tri tip that took 20 hours to cook all the time rotating the tri tip from top to bottom and front to back
also sprayed them with orange juice jus for added flavor and glazing.
I believe that you would be very happy with a bradley smoker. i would recomend that you buy the obs and add a pid to controll the tempture it is well worth the time and effort.
Bytes,
Over the years I have owned just about every type of smoker there is, including one offset that was so big and heavy that they used a forklift to set it in my truck. In my humble opinion, nothing compares to the simplicity and repeated consistent success of the Bradley Smoker. Among other things, because you are using the bisquettes, the smoke is a "purer" smoke and thus much more concentrated. For example, traditional offset smokers doing a pork butt will pretty much be putting smoke to the butt the entire time, say 18-24 hours. With the Bradley, 4 hours of smoke time is all it requires. Total cooking time will take much longer but once you have completed the smoke time in the Bradley, it is just another oven. In fact many times once I have completed the smoke process, I take whatever I am preparing to my house oven to complete the cooking process as I can control the heat more consistently there.
You inquired about the stability of the units. As they sit directly on the surface with 4(?) small flat rubber feet, they are extremely stable. I have never had mine to even remotely begin to tip over. You had also inquired about venting. The tower, box, oven whatever you wish to call it has a fairly large round adjustable vent in the top. As for the water pan, many on the forum have opted to substitute one of the rectangular foil roasting type pans as their water pan. It provides for additional space to help prevent the build up or overflow you inquired about. Also would require less attention to which you referred.
You obviously have done a lot of research. It is my opinion that should you choose to go with a Bradley, you won't regret it. The HUGE plus is the members of this forum are more than willing to welcome you and help you with whatever questions you may have once you start smoking with a Bradley. As with everything worth doing well, there is a learning curve. These guys teach me something almost everyday.
KyNola
QuoteThis misunderstanding had made me wonder why people were not enthusiastic about offset smokers (little and big drum) when the Bradley itself was offset, albeit high-tech.
This statement really tells me you are truely lost in the world of smokers. Which is not a bad thing, but then folks who are lost often only hear those who speak loudest.
Quotei would recomend that you buy the obs and add a pid to controll the tempture it is well worth the time and effort.
I totally agree.
If it is out there I've owned it, stole it, or built it. For the home smoker nothing can compete with the Bradley. I don't care how much cheaper or bigger it is.
Olds
Bytes
I have been smoking for 30 years, Have had all sorts of smokers from many different makers. Gas, wood, charcoal and electric. I have even made many of my own home built smokers.
BTW I work at Cabelas and am in charge of the smokers, grills dehydrators and jerky areas. I sell 4 Bradleys to every 1 of the others including Cookshack, MasterBuilt, Cook Chef and Cabelas vertical.
IMHO the Bradley smoker is the best electric box smoker I have ever used.
Whichever BS you choose you wont go wrong.
I think most here have the 4 rack either SS, Original or Digital. I myself have the original, 4&6 rack digital and the propane.
All except the propane have an adjustable vent at the top. The door stays closed. Unlike the MB that has a very cumbersum latch and is not very good because it breaks easy. The MB cannot stack the racks like the BS can (invert one atop the other) which means you can turn your 4 rack into an 8 rack or your 6 rack digital into a 12 rack. We do this when we do alot of jerky or fish or alot of small things. You do have to buy extra racks for this.
The BS vent is located smack in the middle of the unit where as the MB is lacated in the corner. This makes it difficult to place a power CCR fan on the MB.
There are alot of tricks you can do to customize your BS.
Hope this helps some and Welcome to the BS forum family.
nepas
Bytes,
I am also pretty new to this smoking thing and I have three friends that have three different smokers. One is a home made and the other two are some other kind than Bradley. They all make really good end products, but after seeing my new DBS they were just amazed how easy the pucks work and you don't have to be right on top of it babysitting it. After making a pork tenderloin in there for my daughters baptism I some how seem to be an extremely popular guy all of the sudden. My father in-law already wants to borrow it for some chickens and my brother in-law claims that he will be bringing his venison over. All in all after doing some research and talking to my friends I believe I made the right choice by purchasing this model.
Ole
Quote from: Bytes on August 06, 2008, 08:27:46 AM
Did I understand correctly that there is a more expensive electric smoker than a Bradley? For plain old regular residential use? Do tell!
Oh ya... like most things in life, you can pay as much as you want. I have a friend with a smokeshack electric smoker (don't get me wrong, they make great smokers and he's produced some terrific stuff with it), but it cost more than twice what an OBS cost and he says it's twice the work and at best par with his Bradley... but costs are more per smoke. I'm not lazy but usually look for the right tool to make things easier when I try to accomplish something... thats what kinda swayed me in the direction of the Bradley smokers. Some folks relly enjoy messing with the wood chips and temps etc and thats the hooby/fun to them. I can't debate that, but I'm out to smoke food to enjoy and share... that's the fun for me!
Hey Bytes....first off...welcome to the forum...whether you buy a Bradley or not...I have an OBS (black) not stainless...because I live in a baaadd place...ok it would get blasted by sand...soo....My hubby and I have been totally thrilled with the unit. For, really no other reason, then, the simplicity and reliability. Load the pucks, turn the sucker on...walk away (well...put the food in!!) ...drink a bevie...go out and check on it (if you feel like it) and viola...deliciously smoked products.
Put the drip pan and water bowl in the dishwasher...cover the unit up...eat...and go to bed!! :)
I have had many smokers...this one I can walk away from and entertain or whatever and feel fine about it. We do tend to party. It's a diamond in the rough. Love it.
Whatever you decide to buy...stick around...a lot of real cooking/smoking folks here!!
Bytes,
You've received some pretty strong testimony here today. Time for you to weigh all of the information you have gathered and make an informed decision. If you choose the Bradley, we will all be here for you and if you choose another smoker, we will still be here for you.
KyNola
Nicely Said KyNola.
The southfork is a nice looking unit, similar to what my kid uses...but is a differnt beast all together. On electric for the money, quality, food it is bradley... for flexibility to cold smoke it is a bradley, for customer service it is bradley, to hang out on this forum - no place like it. An OBS for 300 and a plug and play PID for 130,,, smoking like it always should have been for under 500.
Bytes.
Welcome here.
Im still saving up for my Bradley. Been smoking for almost a year, and researching hard, the Bradley has way to may pro's and no con's from all I have reviewed. Including the overall cost effecancy of the wood pucks over chunks and sawdust, and cold smoking features you cant even think of with most other smokers.
Not to mention, if you read through the older posts, you will be pretty amazed on how hard core most here are about smoking. Yet it would be easier to take away a 6-shooter from an old western outlaw then it would be to take away their Bradley.
That says alot there too.
I like my current bullet style smoker because it at least allows me to smoke. But the idea of haveing a vault style smoker to hang bacons hams and rope sausages, with an auto feed for wood, with the smoke generator on the side so I can rig it up like some members here to do ultimate cold smoking, not have the mess like wood chunks or sawdust; I honestly can't wait until I purchase mine.
Also, no other company that makes smokers has a forum with such interactive knowledge base to my knowledge. If there is I haven't seen it. That's just one more piece of class and quality IMHO
Welcome and enjoy Bytes
Nicely put Stargazer! And very accurate! We are a family of smoking/cooking people here!!
What can be said on this thread that hasn't been stated already ?
Nothing that I can think of, but here's my $0.02 anyway:
I had a Brinkman charcoal smoker a long time ago. It was a pain to use. I used to look at the Cabelas catalog at the Bradley's and think, I wish I had one of those! Last year I stopped wishing and bought one.
We have produced some simply amazing food in that smoker. And it's easy. And consistent.
You guys have been so great. I will inflict this whole thing on my husband this weekend upon his return, and also hear in detail about his field trip to Gander Mountain (I couldn't persuade him to visit a second one in Madison).
I'm still unclear on a couple points. What does a spent bisquette look like? Has it collapsed? The reason I ask is because I wonder if they pile up in the water bowl, or in a bigger roaster pan substituted for the bottom drip pan, and then do they hit the electric element and THEN what?
The second thing is procedural, I suppose. The CS lady said you do not need to smoke food in a Bradley for the entire time it is IN the Bradley. This is because the smoke is better/purer/denser/whatever than in other smokers. So you smoke for half the time and then stop the bisquette conveyor belt. Then you leave it in, or move it somewhere else. I've read a lot of recipes here, but I don't think I saw anything about stopping the smoke function. Comments? Again, ribs are our thing.
I know I want a Bradley. My issue is that it's still a bit pig-in-a-poke, for me, having never seen one. I could probably drive to any of my local Gander Mountains, each about 90-100 miles away, and maybe I just should. There are 3 about the same distance, Middletown, NY, and Scranton and Harrisburg PA. (They say that deer season is starting, so no big sales are predicted :) Sigh.) I keep thinking that I would have loved the Masterbuilt, if I hadn't seen one. If there's anybody in the Delaware Valley who would be willing to spend 15 minutes with a couple of real newbies, showing off their Bradley, I would sure appreciate it.
Digression: By the way, if you think I'm anaaalytical (I am purposely misspelling that word because I used it in my first post, and the Forum Police, probably an automated subroutine, removed the DIRTY PART OF THE WORD!!! :) :) :) ) my husband is doubly so, by training and inclination. There is a picture of him at age 8 months, looking skeptical. Seriously. Anyway, if I use the formal English word for hi (starts with h, then has an e, then has a double L, ends with O), will it police that? Let's try it. HELLO EVERYBODY!!!
Ok, again, much thanks, for now.
Welcome to the forum Bytes!
I think everyone else has got ya covered! A spent bisquette (mesquite of course) is basically just charred not completely burnt to ash and yes they can pile up in your water bowl. I've used both the water bowl that comes with smoker and the foil pan both work fine, but you'll want to check it after 2 hours and dump and refill. The smoke is much purer with the BS, each bisquette burns for 20 minutes and then a new one is pushed in place, most everyone agrees 4 hours of smoke is all you need, so at 3 an hour total of 12 bisquettes at this point your smoker becomes an oven to finish the cooking process. I've had many a smoker through the years and never thought about an electric one till a gal I work with mentioned her father had one, not a BS though, and I started poking around for one. The OBS had the most bang for the buck, and then added a pid and quite honestly this group of fine folks like the commercial says 'Priceless'.....Keep us posted!
C
Bytes,
I don't know anyone who removes the smoke generator after the smoking time. Some leave the smoke generator heating element on even after the smoking period has lapsed as an additional heat source, particularly in the winter. As for the pucks building up in the water pan, I have had as many as 12 in the pan at one time after a 4 hour smoke and have never had them to stack up to the extent you are talking about. Not saying it can't happen, just never happened to me. After the pucks have been in the water pan for a while, they have a tendency to begin to fall apart.
KyNola
Sorry - I meant move the food, or leave the food in, after turning the smoke generator off. Not removing the smoke generator itself.
I just found that I own the oldest smoke cooking book in the Library of Congress, 1967 (the authors say there was no other registered before they wrote this one), and it bears absolutely almost no resemblance to current thinking! Not just about smoking. Example, this book predates the popularity and prevalence of raw fish, and of hi-volume factory type poultry production, and smoking meat at temperatures less than 325. On the other hand, there are tons of recipes, including 10 different ones for a NEW DELICIOUS FOOD, called Chinese Roast Pork.
Just a matter of choice, some finish in the BS others like myself finish in the house oven!
C
You can leave it in the Bradley, or you can take it out. I've done it both ways. It will still come out great. Sometimes you have something else you want to smoke. If you take it out of the Bradley to finish in the house oven, there will be less mess in the Bradley to clean up, particularly with pork butts(shoulder).
As the Wife says, "don't over-think it, just do it!"
I bought my OBS just based on online review without ever seeing it before and I'm glad that I did. It makes smoking food real easy. I just bought a PID and it will be even easier. No more guess work in setting the temperature.
Now my friends keep asking me to smoke some baby back ribs. Thanks to the OBS, they said they had the best baby back ribs ever :) Seriously, you can't go wrong with Bradley Smoker. It can fit more meat than you may think, it is easy to use, and the food comes out great.
As for the smoking time, 3-4 hours is plenty enough. Anything longer than that could make the food too bitter. When I make baby back ribs, I smoke them for 3 hours and then move them to my house oven for another 5 hours. The meat has plenty of smoke flavor. In fact, when I make some chicken the other day, I only smoked it for 1.5 hours and I got plenty of smoke flavor from the chicken.
As for the used bisquette piling up in the water bowl, it could happen after 3-4 hours of smoking. But then again, you're usually done smoking after that anyway. You'll need to empty the water bowl and refill with water if you going to continue cooking in the OBS. If you're moving the meat to your house oven then you'll be cleaning up your OBS. So personally I don't think there's a big problem of used bisquette piling up in the water bowl.
So Bytes...did you decide?
Very kool about your smoking book! WOW! How facinating it must be to read about smoking today versus 1967!! :) I have a Good HouseKeeping cookbook of my Mom's from 1964...it's a trip. But the staple recipes...I use them all of the time!! :) Mac and Cheese, meatloaf, meatballs! Sometimes I just sit down on a Sunday afternoon and read it! Amazing!! :)
First a couple followups. Quinta, who I presume is related to the hotel chain :), I have the Settlement cookbook, 5th printing from 1965 and the New Settlement Cookbook, 4th printing from earlier, which makes no sense, so I assume the copyright date is not what I should look at. They still are useful and interesting. I think there was nothing but well-done then, though. :)
Second, sorry to not keep this thread up in realtime. I had root canal done, LOOK!!! THE FORUM POLICE ARE AT IT AGAIN. I LOOKED AT THIS IN PREVIEW, AND HALF OF THE WORD HAS BEEN EXPUNGED!! and a local New Hope luminary died, and the Olympics started and they are actually showing the SPORTS, 10plus hours a day, unlike every year since NBC took over that I can remember since 1993, so this has been a real couch potato week. Example, I fell asleep during the live women's beach volleyball last night and awoke at 1am to find live men's gymnastics still being broadcast!
Third, Bradley confirmed that the bisquettes are made from the tree they say the flavor is. The flavor thing was really disturbing me. I had a nice couple emails with Moses Dalton, who sells kiln-dried barkless woods for smoking on ebay, and he cleared up some confusions I was laboring under, like, just in principle, if you cold smoke at 85 degrees, that must mean the wood is smoking at 85 degrees, and if so, how come wood in a pile in the backyard in the sun doesn't spontaneously start to smolder.
Ok, here goes. Perry came home. (The plane was only 2 hours late on a 2 hour flight!) He had noticed things I hadn't. Handles. The Bradley has no handles we could find. He really thought we should have handles, since we probably would have to move the smoker around quite a bit, even when warm. And he was concerned about the leg thing too. And the reviews, here and there, complaining about quality issues in the bodywork. (Not pertaining to the digital model, with its +- 40 degree swings. ) He also thought there was a chance this little project might become more a fling than a lifelong addiction, so to speak, and not to mix metaphors too badly. So why not test it out as cheaply as possible.
SO and I am scared to admit it, we bought the teeny little Kenmore electric at KMart, for under $100, hereby named Kenny. Amazingly, Brinkmann has a special phone number for its Kenmore customers, and they actually answer it. Assembly was easy, and there was nothing missing or broken out of the carton.
First attempt was spareribs, the on sale ones from Shoprite, two racks, (well, big pieces) each with a different rub, which I kept pretty good track of, but not perfect. Thank goodness one had mace in it; we could taste the difference. (In fact, strangely, neither rub had much taste at all, after cooking. I had copied 30 or so recipes off the web. I can email the document to anyone who wants. ) I was having so much fun, and the temperature control was working really well, I thought, that after about 3 hours of smoking, we ran out to buy more ribs on sale, and got home an hour later to find 260 temp, and definitely done ribs. Maybe a tad overdone. :) There was no apple juice left in the water pan, and the mesquite chips were charcoal. (I'm assuming they should have been replaced.) We tried my own special bbq sauce on them, as well as Big Ed's too, the defunct NJ restaurant which started this whole thing. (Actually only our local one closed; the original in Matawan is still doing a business, and I don't know why; fatty ribs, not capable of cooking them well-done, and prices 3-6$ higher than ours. We did think of purchasing them to go and finishing them at home, but they're over an hour away, and THAT's why we decided to get a smoker. )
Day 2, I spent an hour preparing the ribs, and that's why they had only had an hour of smoking before the rain hit. Removed the controller, put a real big tile on top of the smoker so no water could get thru the door seam, and when it got down to about 110, removed the meat and put it in the fridge. For the rest of the day it rained off and on. Ah, yes, the handles. We were able to move Kenny to the side (though nothing is fully covered on the deck) easily. The next day, we finished the ribs on the Meco (NOT AUSSIE!) bbq, and while they tasted good, the smoke we thought we smelled in the refrigerator had gone away.
So the next attempt will be actual baby backs. Also, I found my (huge) 25 year old metal rib rack, and Perry sawed it down to two usable pieces in Kenny, so that should help with either kind of rib. Though I trimmed the spareribs, after that day 2 first hour, there was melted fat sitting on them (ick). I would have turned them, I guess.
Wondering if the 'air hole' in Kenny would be big enough for 1, or 2, of the wires in a Maverick (a local NJ company!) thermometer. Their web site description of the et-73 is terrible! Nowhere do they actually say (as they do for the et-7) that both probes are used at once. They barely say that there ARE two probes. The manual shows a picture of two receptacles in the back. But they still don't say explicitly that you can used them simultaneously, like they do on the et-7. And of course, then what is the difference? The only thing I can figure is that the et-7 is two FOOD probes, and the ET-73 is one food, one cabin. And, scarily, they seem to sell a replacement higher quality probe. Kenny loses some smoke thru the top door hinge too, so there's plenty of draft. This is the one with no damper.
Ok, well, if anyone has had the fortitude to read this far, please accept my thanks. I gotta go watch more Olympics. You see, there's a chance I'm related to Mark Spitz. Seriously.
Hi Bytes;
I usually don't give advise on what smoker one should buy, but some of the information you were given (not by anyone on this forum) was incorrect, and you still seem confused about the Bradley.
It is very easy to cold smoke with the Bradley Smoker by detaching the generator from the cabinet. Even with the generator attached it may be possible to cold smoke by placing ice in the cabinet. The person you consulted was not familiar with the Bradley smoker.
The smoker is so light you really don't need handles to pick it up, and it is so well insulated that the outside never gets too hot to touch.
Good luck with your new smoker.
Just a quick comment on handles.
We have had so much friggin' rain this summer that I can't tell you how many times I've had to urgently unplug the smoker, run the food into the oven or onto the gas BBQ, and then pick up the smoker and practically sprint it into my shed before ruining the electonics. It's the electronics that are the biggest disadvantage. Of course they are also the biggest advantage and those advantages far outweigh the manual labour disadvantages of stoking a charcoal fire or trying desparately to get the foil pouch of wood chips smouldering.
The smoker is so light, and so well insulated, that the handle thing is a non-issue. It's a glorified beer fridge rather than a big metal Q.
On another note, I just finished some leftover Bradley Smoked Apple City Baby Backs for lunch. Mmm Mmm Mmm!!! 3 hours in the Bradley with Apple. 2 hours in the Oven. Half an hour FTC. 10 minutes on the Grill with Sauce. I can't stop smelling my fingers. ;D
We'll gladly welcome you back Bytes once you realize the error in your ways.
Carter
I can't read (to myself, not out loud, I promise) til then? :'(
Bytes,
I truly wish Perry, "Kenny" and you all the best and truly hope that you are happy with your purchase but we're not splitting atoms nor building a rocket here. You have researched smokers to the point that you are never going to be truly satisfied.
I will remain happy to assist you in any manner possible and please understand I speak only for myself and for no one else on this forum.
KyNola
Speaking only for myself and no one else on the form here as well... does anyone know if La Quinta has picked a number yet :D :D :D
It's done...much to my dismay... ???
Switching threads, I look forward to your analysis. ;)
I have a masterbuilt and a Bradley.
I got the masterbuilt first because of the price and control feature. The masterbuilt is heavier construction for sure. Much better heat run up and recovery time. I have an older one before they got the vent in it. I just gap the door, but will cut in a vent one of these days. I have mostly done fish, jerky, and some birds. I love the cheap wood I can use and if vented right I don't see any real problem with the smoke flavor, but creosol build up on the cabinet is more apparent. The control is not the best and I get errors some times that shuts it down or temporally delays its function. I have been told this is due to the remoteness of the unit from my main power location and that the unit it temperamental with very low temps and extension cords. Most of the time is not a big deal, but I don't let it run all night on long smokes or anything. Due to the probe location I use a Maverick to check box temp and then adjust my settings. Overall it has been a good smoker and I have gotten lots of good stuff out if it. My Bradley friends have even been impressed with product.
I wanted better control for overnight smokes to do pork butt and briskets, cleaner wood burn and a vent so once I found the Auber control I decide to go for a Bradley original and an Auber for programmable PID type control. I love it, but my Auber had a problem and now may Bradley doesn't heat up right. Auber is fixed, but now I need to figure out the Bradley. The combo worked fantastic before the problems started. Found the buy 3 get 4th free disquiet and free shipping at Amazon so the price of smoke is not so bad now. I often get a puck or two that don't burn all the way even with preheating the generator. I wish the box, racks, and pans were made as well as the masterbuilt, and that it had a larger heat element. Overall I like the Bradley designs and hope to get a lot of good smoking out of it.
One of these days i may make up a vent in the masterbuilt and a smoke inlet so I can use the Bradley to smoke and then pump the smoke into the masterbuilt to double up on volume. I also keep the mastrbuilt around because if the Bradley has problems heating up this winter i will use the Bradley to smoke and do the low temp stuff and then run the Masterbuilt for the higher heats to finish. I am going to look at making a bypass connection on the masterbuilt controls so I can run it full on when I want and plug it into the Auber. I have to check it out a little more and make sure the Auber will handle the higher wattage of the masterbuilt heating element, but I think it will. That will give me a lot of options including cold smoking using the two cabinets.
Sounds like a good plan with a combination for expansion and cold smoke. Have you talked with Bradley about the no heat issue?
After my problems with heat again yesterday with my salmon smoke I e-mailed them, but no reply yet.
Another minus with the Masterbuilt is that in hot weather it can be tricky to get a load of wood going. First load is no problem. If you're up to temp it doesn't want to turn on the heater for you're next load of chips and you need it to fire up the wood. You need to adjust your smoking for warm weather so you smoke by starting low and step up temps with extra venting to keep the wood going until your done smoking. Sometimes you need to really vent it out to drop the cab temp and start smoking again. Mid fall to mid spring in MI with lower temps it works very well.
A Masterbuilt plus with the heating system is that I don't have near the hot spot low and back side of the unit like the Bradley. The large water pan and other heat shields with the more central heating element spreads the heat better. The bottom is warmer, but nothing like the Bradley with the very hot low back position. I used to do one top to bottom and middle rack rotation and was set for quite even cooking for jerky and fish.
The Bradley original with a PID is the way to go in my mind now that I have used it. At the time I got the Masterbuilt I didn't know about the PID's, Auber didn't have one and the Bradley digital was not out yet. I did like the control feature on the Masterbuilt and it was less effort than playing with the slide on the Bradley, but more effort with the wood and venting.
QuoteYou have researched smokers to the point that you are never going to be truly satisfied.
Amen to that~~! There are good and not so good points for all smokers. What I like about the Bradley is it is almost a plug n' play unit. Givin' I've now been smoking foods for well over 49 years with just about every type of unit out there I believe you can take my statement about the bradley to the bank.
QuoteThe Bradley original with a PID is the way to go in my mind now that I have used it.
Totally agree. I've never understood why the digital was not outfitted with a PID controller. IMO the controller in the digital may be ok for pulled pork, but that 10F plus minus does not get-er-done when making sausage when the temp must stay on spot.
As far as heat goes I guess it is location location. My unit will hit 300F plus degrees in a short time.
QuoteWe'll gladly welcome you back Bytes once you realize the error in your ways.
I sure this was posted tongue n' cheek. You are more than welcome to post here, and you may use our recipe site anytime you like.
The important thing is smokin' and being happy with your results.
Olds
Ah, Grasshopper, I was wondering where you were.