Quality issues ?

[Max]

One more "me too" for you. My smoker has two hairline cracks on the bottom plastic plate. One crack runs from the left-most screw hole down to the power indicator light. The other runs from the right-most screw hole and is working its way down the front side of the plate.

[smokeNcanuck]

quick call to Bradley today and new parts are on there way...NO charge, still warrenty.
The thing is the piece on the bottom of the door is fixed so I'm getting a whole new door.
Nice girl on the phone said she would also send some rear feet for the front. ;D ;D
to prevent the face plate from cracking again.  Gotta love it!

[Gatortail]

I got my OBS 2 years ago for Christmas and absolutely love it. I havent had any issues with the faceplate cracking. I did have an issue with the tab on the top vent snapping off after a year. Then last week I fired up my OBS to do 12 slabs of baby backs for a party we were having. I started the process @ 10 am and had put the ribs on at 11. Everything was going great and my temp was running around 200. Around 3 I decided to do some last minute yard work before guests started arriving @ 5:30. I mowed the front yard and came back to check everything and the temp was @ 150. The light on the front was off. I looked inside and the element was off. I checked the fuse, the power, everything to no avail. I had to scramble to light my charcoal grill, and let the coals ash over so I didn't ruin $150 worth of meat. I managed to save them but they werent as tender (probably from the temp going from 200 to 150 to 300 when I got them on the grill). This was the only time I was let down by my OBS and now I wonder what needs to be done to fix it? any suggestions as to what went wrong?

[classicrockgriller]

You can take your power cord and unplug it from your smoke generator and plug it directly into the back of your Bradley.

This will by pass the smoke generator.

If you elements heat up, then the problems is in the generator.

If not, then the problem is in the smoker box.

Smoker Box:

You can remove the back panel and make sure all the wires are still connected.

You might want to unplug and replug the wires incaes not makes good contact.

You may have an element problem. (I doubt that at 200 degrees you blew the thermo fuse)

Your slider control may have failed. Do you try moving the slider around a little?

Smoke generator:

You may have a wire that worked loose. Here's a link to FAQ's.

Find how to clean your gen and that will tell you how to remove the cover plate.

http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?p=748#post748

[aldelgreco]

I have had to replace my face plate once already and the replacement is already cracking again.

I take excellent care of the smoker, and have had it now for just over 6 months. This is a design flaw that, if not resolved, will cause me to not go with bradley again when this thing finally breaks down. i love the smoker, but all-and-all Bradley sold us out by buying sub standard parts and passing it off as safe/functional. the design of the faceplate is not safe, period and I am surprised they have not been sued for someone burning their hand off by touching molten hot plastic or inhaling fumes.

[classicrockgriller]

I have had to replace my face plate once already and the replacement is already cracking again.

I take excellent care of the smoker, and have had it now for just over 6 months. This is a design flaw that, if not resolved, will cause me to not go with bradley again when this thing finally breaks down. i love the smoker, but all-and-all Bradley sold us out by buying sub standard parts and passing it off as safe/functional. the design of the faceplate is not safe, period and I am surprised they have not been sued for someone burning their hand off by touching molten hot plastic or inhaling fumes.

Easy tonto.

If you feel like you have an issue with your smoker and it is unsafe to use,

be smart enough not to use it till you get it fixed.

They have been making these things along time and to my knowledge no

one has gotten hurt from a crack face plate.

The Bradley rep has stated this is a mystery problem to them too and they are working on it.

If your face plate is hot or putting off fumes, I would not use it till it is fixed.

[Quarlow]

Yes and again I will say that mine goes in and out of the house everytime I use it and have not had a problem with any part of it. So it is a hit and miss problem. It also seems like lots of the smokers are a problem but when you consider how many they sell, the relative few on this forum who have trouble with theirs, the problem is not so wide spread. But seen as we are on here all the time it may seem like a bigger issue than it actually is.

[ArnieM]

i love the smoker, but all-and-all Bradley sold us out by buying sub standard parts and passing it off as safe/functional. the design of the faceplate is not safe, period and I am surprised they have not been sued for someone burning their hand off by touching molten hot plastic or inhaling fumes.

Sorry, couldn't leave it alone.  CRG was being nice.  This is probably one of the most irresponsible and misguided posts I've seen here.

Can the plastic crack?  Yes, mine did.  Does it explode?  No.  Is there a burn hazard?  No.  Does the plastic melt?  No.  Are there noxious fumes?  No.  Where the hell are you coming from?

[Tenpoint5]

I have had to replace my face plate once already and the replacement is already cracking again.

I take excellent care of the smoker, and have had it now for just over 6 months. This is a design flaw that, if not resolved, will cause me to not go with bradley again when this thing finally breaks down. i love the smoker, but all-and-all Bradley sold us out by buying sub standard parts and passing it off as safe/functional. the design of the faceplate is not safe, period and I am surprised they have not been sued for someone burning their hand off by touching molten hot plastic or inhaling fumes.

Tell you what I will give you $50 for that substandard, unsafe, fire hazard, noxious fume creating Original Bradley Smoker that you have. This shouldn't be a problem since that is all the parts are worth at least that's what I am understanding from your post. Send me a PM and I will give you a shipping address to ship it to. When it gets here I will fire off a cashiers check for the full amount of $50 plus shipping. You can ask anyone on this forum taht knows me I am good on my word. Your problems with the Bradley will be solved at that point.

[GusRobin]

I bought my OBS in Dec. I notified them 4 days ago that my faceplate was cracked. I received a free replacement part today. I did not have to provide proof, I did not have to pay to return the part, didn't have to even return it at all. Try getting that service anywhere else. That is the best customer service I have received for a cosmetic issue on a non-functional part from anything I have ever owned.  Yes they have a problem. In the scheme of things it is a very minor problem effecting a relatively few owners. It does not make it unsafe, it does not cause toxic fumes, it does not effect a thing except looks. And even then you have to look closely.
So know what you are talking about before you post.
By the way, as I am writing this I am enjoying a sandwich made with what my wife calls the best pastrami she has had. It was made on my defective OBS. Must be the extra flavor added by the toxic fumes. ;D

[ArnieM]

Please just let this thread die - it's worthless.  I'll send you a PM if I can figure it out.

[car54]

I have had my Bradley for over 7 years. My face plate is cracked and I keep on using it . To me, all it is cosmetic. One of my door hinges broke, I put a nail in it and it keeps on working. It had a grease fire in it which was totally my fault. I do not expect it to like like new but it looks good when I clean it up. It is 7 years old and keeps on spitting the food out. That means it is a durable machine.

Brad

[JT-MO]

Face plate hot and smoken, that is silly.
My face plate is cracked, and it is nothing more than cosmetic, it does not affect it in any other way. No getting hot, smoldering plastic, or toxic fumes, etc.. GET REAL!

But overall the face plate is a quality issue and I can tell you I am sure Bradley is sick of shipping out replacement face plates. I am pretty sure they will fix this and get us all taken care of cause they don't want to be losing money from both shipping face plates, or losing sales because some may be scared of quality like the original poster of this forum.

If you are thinking of getting a Bradley this issue shouldn't discourage you from getting one. The face plate is nothing but cosmetic and the smoker overall is a great cooker. Bradley has top notch service. I got a new face plate in 3 days from the time I sent in an email. No having to send in any old face plate, etc... They just mail it to you, no extra money out of your pocket, no questions asked.

[Habanero Smoker]

Bradley has great customer service, and I am sure they are working hard on resolving the issue. But the cracked face plate is more then a cosmetic issue. The crack is right above the temperature control device, and moisture can seep through that crack and fry your circuit board out. I had to replace both the face plate and circuit board.

If you see a crack developing, you should seal it with clear silicon sealant until you can make permanent repairs.

[chicks]

Hi,

Read the posting Smoke Escaping! Not serious but it is a new unit that I only used once. However I will be doing salmon this weekend.