Looking to upgrade to a stick burner

[defiant]

My modified Brinkman Gourmet Charcoal Smoker has served me well but with purchasing a new house and finally having a decent sized porch I am looking at upgrading to a stick burner. I am trying to stay around the 500 dollar mark and have sourced the following three smokers locally for around that cost.

Oklahoma Joe Highland
Old Country Over and Under
Old Country Pecos

If anybody has any experience with these I would appreciate some opinions, also I am having some difficulty finding the information on the thickness of the metal on those three pits.

 

[old sarge]

I had a Brinkmann Smoke N PiT Pro for many years and it worked very well. Very similar to the OK Joe offerings except the fire box was on the left. My only problem was getting old and lazy and not liking adding fuel every hour or two to maintain temp. Other than that, it produced a lot serious Q for many years. Thickness? No idea. Never gave it a thought. But I know for the money, it was a good deal although it was not in the same league as Lang and company.

 

[Out daughtered]

I bought the highland about 2 months ago and with a few modifications it works very well .
The steel is about 3/16 thick
I added two thermostats near grill level on each end as the temp varies about 50degrees without a baffle and/or tuning plates .
I also used gasket tape to seal both lids. Some also used hi temp sealant between the cooking chamber and firebox but I used gasket tape when assembling and have no leaks.
Should be able to find it at Lowe’s or Walmart for 299
Very good price for the quality.
When seasoning the smoker make sure to do the underside of the fire box on the outside as some complain about paint peeling off but I haven’t had any issues yet

 

[hardcookin]

I would go with Old County as I think they are heavier metal.
Also check Craigslist and similar type for sale places. You might be able to fine a used heavier steel smoker "Lang etc" in your price range.