OBS Review

[RFT]

Hi Guys and Gals. I have had my OBS for almost a year now and have smoked  around 70LBS of Beef jerky, 50 or so pounds of Salmon 8) and a few pounds of cold smoked cheese.

I wanted to post a fair and accurate review of the OBS.

First the Bad.  Build Quality and quality control. both  Get 4 out of 10 points.   
The Bradley OBS has the potential to be a great,"bullet proof" smoker if it were not for the plastic parts that are manufactured for these units. For example, the slider face plate could be stamped out of aluminum and the door hinges should be made more durable. Aluminum as well and not plastic that get brittle and breaks. 
So far I have been through 2 heating elements,  first one died the first week I had it.
2 lower faceplates and one new door because  one of the hinges (plastic) cracked.

To be fair I will note that Bradley has addressed the heating element issue and that that Bradley Customer service is top notch

Now the Good.  The Bradley OBS does a great job at what it is designed to do. SMOKE! 
Bradley customer service is T H E  B E S T, they stand behind there product warranty!

Now do I like my Bradley OBS.  Yes I do. so much that I just today ordered a Dual Pid for it and plan on doing the 900W  or Dual  500W element mod.

Would I buy another one.  No. Not unless Bradley addresses the build quality Issue I have mentioned above. 

Again I just wanted to throw a fair review out there.    Happy Smoking everyone.

[moodyfisherman]

I agree with your review.....there should be the :
OBS1---Budget model (plastic parts)
OBS2---All Stainless model for usin and abusin for the "smokin junkies"
;D

[NePaSmoKer]

I dont

I have had all 4 of my Bradleys for years and have not had these problems.

#1 Problem is OPERATOR ERROR and not reading the instructions that Bradley has tested and determine to be best for new use and startup.

This is not a Ron Popeil POS Set It And Forget it item.

[GusRobin]

My input - owned the Bradley OBS since Dec 2009.

If you look at the Bradley overall failure rate, even for these problems you mentioned, it is very small. I forgot the exact numbers but they posted it at one time. This forum represents a small number of the total bradley population. Many people only found this forum because they had a problem and Google sent them here. So while reading the threads it seems widespread, it is actually a small, very small percentage.
Some specifics: Bradley had a bad lot of elements, probably had been in existence for a while but didn't come to light until the units started making it into the system. They jumped on it as soon as they could, but it was a random failure. The criticism is that they should have pulled all the units in the field. That is a nice answer unless you own the business. When it is not a health issue, not widespread (yes it was not widespread regardless of the opinion of many) you would put yourself out of business. This is not the space shuttle where you keep detail records of every serial number of every part that goes into every unit. The only thing you can do is react swiftly to remedy the situation for the customer as soon as possible. In my opinion Bradley is far superior than any other supplier I have ever dealt with ( by the way, I have been in Supplier Management for a large corp. for over 35 yrs so I have some experience). It took a while to trace the problem and find a solution. It is easy to say that the certain supplier screwed up, a bit more difficult to figure out why and come up with a solution. Factor in the reluctance of many suppliers to initially admit that they have a problem, and it is more difficult.
Yes it is easy to say that they should make everything out of stainless steel, but then the price will go up. The plastic issue is another dilemma. Not all units exhibit the problem, and some have been put through some rough treatment. It may be a problem of heat aging, or other aspects difficult to find. I have had the door problem and know for a fact that part of their problem is getting people to quickly return the defective parts for evaluation (even when they offer to pay). I do know they are taking it seriously and trying to find a cause so  they can implement a solution that is permanent but also affordable. In the meantime, they are maintaining their excellent customer service.

I understand your frustration. But for my money, this is one, if not the best, smokers for the money. Some will disagree but many of those are the ones that overpaid by buying from the wrong place. (For example, you can get the OBS for $249 and free shipping, yet some will still insist on paying $350+.)

Each must make their own decisions, but mine is reaffirmed everytime I complete a cook and hear the "oohs and aahhs". Yes knowing all I know I would still buy one and have even convinced a number of family and friends to buy one once they had a taste.

Just my fair and accurate evaluation. I have no affiliation with Bradley nor get any special treatment from them.

[cajunboudreaux]

I dont as well.
Heck I do 70lbs in a month and take my bradley virtually everywhere with it being durable as heck. i agree that the plastic parts should be changed to something a little stronger. I am on my 3rd OBS with the first two lasting over 15 years with not one single problem. the 3rd had a little hiccup and bradley sent out the parts needed right way. yes their customer service is excellent..  To say you would never buy another Bradley????(thats crazy talk ;D)  Sometimes you dont get a good one sometimes you do, kinda like a car. If your a Ford guy you stay a Ford guy.  Bradley Rules Period.. Out of the box you can not find a better unit for that price range in my opinion.

Bobby

[devo]

To review the smoker one should really compare it to other smokers in the same price range. You will not find one with as many features as the Bradley at the asking price of the Bradley. As stated in your post some parts need improving but over all it is a great little smoker. I will be the first to admit that when something breaks on your new smoker all you want to do is vent, been there done it. After a few days I calm down and carry on with the new parts that Bradley sends out ASAP. I had looked at other smokers around the same size but was not willing to pay over a thousand dollars for something I was not sure I would use that often. The Bradley gave me the opportunity to see if I liked smoking food, and dam now I'm smoking twice a week. I know in my job when we get costumer complaints about our product we will try and figure out the best solution in solving it and that takes time.

[TedEbear]

To review the smoker one should really compare it to other smokers in the same price range. You will not find one with as many features as the Bradley at the asking price of the Bradley.

Well, there is but the last time I mentioned the brand name and model in a message my post was deleted without explanation.   ;D

[muebe]

I myself had the issue with the lower plastic front panel cracking. That was cosmetic and did not affect the operation of the unit. The cracking on the lower plastic panel on my door is a different issue. I thought it was also cosmetic until another forum member's posting about his door falling off prompted me to take a closer look. I found a large crack in the plastic where the lower hinge pin is located. This pin is held in place by the lower plastic panel. I found my pin was about to fall out.

Now I took steps to fix the problem myself. I used a square stick of aluminum that I cut to shape and screwed into the lower plastic panel and omitted the hinge pin. The lower hinge is now hooked up with a bolt and nut threaded through the aluminum strip. This fix is working well.

I also replaced the front panel with a aluminum piece. I removed the slider control and replaced it with a on/off switch(I have a PID). This fix is also working well.

I did upgrade my element to a 900W but I still have my old element. I tested it and it was reading 27ohms so it is still good. The upgrade was done because I wanted to and not because of a defective element.

Did I abuse my OBS? No. Did I follow the instructions? Yes. My OBS has been in a cabinet the whole time I have owned it. The plastic was not cracked when I got it from Amazon. I did not overload it or slam/mistreat the door. It has been outside so the cracking may have been caused by the excessive summer heat and cold winters we have in the High Desert where I live. I can live with that reason if that is the case.

I chose to fix the problems I have on my OBS instead of doing a warranty claim. I am sure that Bradley would have sent me out the parts with no questions asked. This was my decision. If I can see a way to improve things I will.

Do I fault people for coming here and complaining? Of course not. Someone goes and spends good money on a smoker and the door falls off or a element goes out of course you will be upset. But Bradley has taken care of every single person with these problems as far as I know.

What to do is call Bradley and they will take care of you. You can discuss the problem in the forum but also be constructive on both sides. The problem IMHO should not be brushed under the rug but at the same time copy/pasting a complaint in every thread will get you nowhere too. Every member in this forum is willing to help but we also love our Bradley's.

[devo]

To review the smoker one should really compare it to other smokers in the same price range. You will not find one with as many features as the Bradley at the asking price of the Bradley.

Well, there is but the last time I mentioned the brand name and model in a message my post was deleted without explanation.   ;D

Oh really  :o
I looked before I bought my Bradley but in my opinion never found one that compared.
You don't have to mention any brand names but can you post their reviews. I mean somebody must have said something about this other product. Good bad the ugly  ;D

[TedEbear]

You don't have to mention any brand names but can you post their reviews. I mean somebody must have said something about this other product. Good bad the ugly  ;D

Check your PM box.   ;)

[Wildcat]

PM me as well. I love my Bradley, but I am open minded and very surprised to hear that there is a comparable machine out there. I did A LOT of research before purchasing mine a few years back and could not find anything comparable in the price range involved.

[GusRobin]

pls PM me  also-thnks

[NePaSmoKer]

Ok he had a problem with his Bradley. I'm sure Bradley and US can help him out.

SMOKE ON DUDE

[TonyL222]

I agree with your review.....there should be the :
OBS1---Budget model (plastic parts)
OBS2---All Stainless model for usin and abusin for the "smokin junkies"
;D

That sounds like a winning idea to me.  Different price points, of course.  Also offer a unit with a 900W or 1000W element(s) from the factory. 

I know there are may long time users here who have never had a problem.  I'm sure that overall, the number of OBS problems over the years have been relatively small.  But it just seems that purchases in the last year had a very high incidence of element failures.  I had three in short succession myself.  I would say that failure rate is "statistically significant" (my speculation, no real numbers).  At the time, it was a 100% failure rate for me.  My recollection is that Bradley did not immediately jump on the problem, but noted that in the big scheme of things it was a small number of failures.  I think it was the power of this board that got Bradley to look deeper into the problem, discover the stock of bad elements, and correct the problem.  That is to Bradley's credit and to the credit of this board.  So there were some QC issues within the last year, but they have been addressed.

I should point out that Bradley replaced all of my elements promptly and without hassle.  The last replacement I got was before switching suppliers, and it has been going strong through several long smokes.  Since then, I've added a 2nd element (post supplier change) and have a spare.  I LOVE my OBS and keep looking for things to smoke (anyone smoked a cake yet?   :D )

[oguard]

I have had my Bradley ten years now. Close to 100lbs of salmon per year, jerky, brisket, ribs, butts, chicken,cheese and many other foods. I have recommended this smoker to many of my friends and family. Customer service is the best I've seen on anything I've bought .

Mike