Decision on Bradley vs the others

[KyNola]

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

[West Coast Kansan]

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

[La Quinta]

It's done...much to my dismay... ???

[West Coast Kansan]

Switching threads, I look forward to your analysis.   ;)

[Xtrema312]

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.

[West Coast Kansan]

Sounds like a good plan with a combination for expansion and cold smoke.  Have you talked with Bradley about the no heat issue?

[Xtrema312]

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.

[Oldman]

You 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.

The 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.

We'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

[Bytes]

Ah, Grasshopper, I was wondering where you were.