Masterbuilt Gravity 1050? - First Smoker?

[Snippet9192]

I'm considering ordering a Masterbuilt 1050 from Amazon as my first smoker. I had previously considered going with an electric smoker, but I think I would prefer using charcoal and wood instead. I was drawn to the Masterbuilt 1050 due to the features that make it more "hands off" than a traditional smoker. Frankly, I'd like to be able to just set the temperature and walk away.

For those who have owned a Masterbuilt Gravity for a while, are you still satisfied with it? Does it perform as advertised?

I'm also a little conflicted on what size to buy. I typically meal prep for the week on Saturday or Sunday, so extra space on the 1050 could be useful. I'm not sure if the 800 would be a better choice since it should heat up a bit faster and use less charcoal.

Any thoughts or information would be greatly appreciated!

 

[whistlepig]

I have had a 560 for about three years now. For just the wife and myself it is plenty. The size of the Masterbuilt depends on how many folks you are feeding in one sitting. The Masterbuilt gravity series does use a considerable amount of charcoal. You are smoking with a combination of charcoal with wood mixed in and we much prefer that flavor.
Good smokers are not really hands off. They are not an oven.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I owned a 560 for 2 1/2 years. I was gonna trade up to 1050 before deciding to buy an Assassin GF.

Its not just a matter of meat capacity. I think the 1050 is better built. I looked them over in person at Academy and it " felt " like a heavier build. The lid to the cook chamber was heavier and not just because its larger.

I think you get better air flow around the meats with the 1050.

You can cook on the bottom grate of a 560 but there's radiant heat from the manifold that creates a hot spot out at the end of the manifold. I smoked meats on the middle grate usually. But if I put on three racks of ribs, two on the middle and one on the bottom, I rotated often. What I've seen on the Masterbuilt Gravity Facebook groups is people using the middle grate on the 1050 also.

All that said to say that just measuring cook chambers by square inch is misleading.

There was one other difference between the 560 and 1050 that bugged me and maybe it shouldn't have, but the 560 has this slot across the back of the cook chamber for an exhaust. Its about 1.5" wide and 15" long. And during the cook I could look in the slot and see the meats, in fact, I could use my Thermopen to take temps. I always had to turn the smoker so that the slot was downwind, any strong wind would play around with cooking temps. That said, it created great air flow through the cooker.

There's a mod that makes that opening adjustable and allows for it to be completely shut off, which would help snuff a grease fire. But ya start spending money on mods and you're getting closer to 1050 money.

All last year I watched for sale prices on the 1050. And Black Friday last year, they were on sale at Amazon for $480. That makes the 1050 a no brainer. I missed that sale or I would be owning one now.

And they could be on sale at Walmart now, but ya have to go to Walmarts to find them. Brickseek helps some find a good deal but it never helped me as it never showed in stock around here.

Brickseek

 

[dow]

In answer to your first question, yes I'm still satisfied with it.

On the question of size, I suspect that the charcoal use won't be much different between the sizes, as I believe the gravity fed/firebox component is the same size for all of them.

SmokinOkie mentioned an adjustable damper for the back vent. Regardless of the size you get, just bite the bullet and get one. Klotesmods makes the one I have, and I use it every time I cook. They should have been built with one from the factory. He makes them to for all three sizes. Here's the one for the 1050:

1050 Rear Vent Slide

This is a damper that helps keep the heat in the cooking chamber. This is a 2-piece slide which lets you evenly let the smoke/heat out or you can do cross ventilation (see video). This mod makes the grill much more efficient. It can add up to 4 hours of time to a full hopper of Kingsford...

klotesmods.com

All in all I've had zero problems with mine. A few will disagree and say that theirs were junk, but the MBGF is a good cooker. It's not on the same level as a commercial gravity fed smoker, but it's also not nearly as expensive as a commercial gravity fed smoker. AND you can't grill on a commercial smoker.

If you've got any other questions, then ask away. On, and welcome to the forum.


Edited to add: DO check with your area Wal-Mart's and Home Depot stores. We're entering Smoker Inventory Reduction Season, and you might find a great deal. The best price I've seen was $280 at a Wal-Mart year before last.

One more thought on size. How many people have you heard say, "yeah, it's a good stove, but I sure wish the oven was smaller."

 

[Smokin Okie]

I never ever close off the exhaust on any smoker, never. Its just cutting off your best friend, air flow.

 

[dow]

I never ever close off the exhaust on any smoker, never. Its just cutting off your best friend, air flow.

True, but you can extend the amount of time the smoke spends in contact with the meat. I typically keep mine at about 30-50% once it's running good. And still get good cooking times. It also helps the charcoal last longer.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I never ever close the exhaust on any smoker. The meats get plenty of smoke. Where does this idea come from that the smoke lingering on your meats will improve flavor ?

All you're doing is reducing convection. The meat is getting the same amount of smoke.

Its the same concept as the diff between radiant heat and convective heat.

Take a kitchen conventional oven that uses radiant heat. In a still air environment, the heat is transferred from molecule to molecule until it reaches the meat, where it transferred to the meat. Its like a bucket brigade putting out a fire.

In a convection oven, heat rides the air movement of the molecules to the meat, where its transferred to the meat, and then instantly replaced by another molecule containing heat.

This is why convection ovens cook faster than conventional. Its a faster heat transfer.

And in the case of a smoker, heat is not only transferred by convection but so is smoke with that heat. The amount of time it lingers on the meats has nothing to do with the amount of smoke the meat is taking on.

 

[fxsales1959]

I'm considering ordering a Masterbuilt 1050 from Amazon as my first smoker. I had previously considered going with an electric smoker, but I think I would prefer using charcoal and wood instead. I was drawn to the Masterbuilt 1050 due to the features that make it more "hands off" than a traditional smoker. Frankly, I'd like to be able to just set the temperature and walk away.

For those who have owned a Masterbuilt Gravity for a while, are you still satisfied with it? Does it perform as advertised?

I'm also a little conflicted on what size to buy. I typically meal prep for the week on Saturday or Sunday, so extra space on the 1050 could be useful. I'm not sure if the 800 would be a better choice since it should heat up a bit faster and use less charcoal.

Any thoughts or information would be greatly appreciated!

pretty much agree with lower posts. I've had a 560 for about two years. The only real issue I've had is with the firebox/bin safety switches. I had a switch on the ash bin door get wonky on me not allowing the fan to cut on. I remedied it by taking the leads off the switch and fastening them with a roach clip to provide continuity. Even out of warranty Masterbuilt sent me a new switch kit. I sprayed th switch with contact cleaner, let it sit and mashed it a few timesand it started working again. Inow have a backup switch in case it takes another shit. As far as size. I really only cook for two most of the time. I bought two extra "warming racks, which is where i do most of my cooking.The MB gravities are charcoal pigs. i mean 12 hour cook will require reloading the coal bin. i can't see how the smller would use enough less charcoal in the end.

 

[Mattmilw]

I have an 800 that I've owned for a year and a half. I don't use it for grilling because I think it will wear out much quicker if I did. I typically smoke Butts , ribs, and tri-tip, and salmon. It does a fantastic job on these. Prior to owning this, I had a Smokefire pellet grill. The flavors from the 800 took things up a couple of notches. I've not done more than 2 butts or 2 racks of ribs at a time, but it could easily do more.

The weakest part of the grill is the controller and App. The app works when it wants, so you can't count on it. It isn't required to operate the grill thank goodness. The grill does consume a fair amount of charcoal, so shopping sales is the way to go there. As far as the question does the 1050 use more charcoal than the 800, I'm guessing it does. While the hoppers hold the same amount, the 1050 is heating a bigger space, so should consume more fuel to do so.

As far as being able to set the grill and walk away, it depends. The grill has been known to have grease fires. I've never had one which I attribute to low and slow cooking, using drip pans and keeping the grill clean. I am comfortable running an errand when I've got an all day cook going. The grill maintains it temperature very well.

 

[Smokin Okie]

There's also a misconception that its convenient, ya just start the charcoal and set the temp and start cooking.

But I found if I put chunks in the hopper, I have to empty the hopper and reload it before every cook. All of the chunks become charcoal during a cook, no matter how high they are placed in the hopper. They're good for one cook.

If ya don't reload the hopper, that leaves putting chunks in the ash bin, which will have to be done every 15 to 30 minutes, just like feeding a stickburner.

And I agree with the grease fire threat also, its not a " set and forget " smoker.

 

[ross77]

I've had a 560 for about 3 years now. It puts out some great tasting food. However, it's not going to last as long as say, a Weber Genesis. I used mine as both grill and smoker and IMO it probably shortened its life considerably. Doing a deep clean last week and I noticed the grill body just starting to crumble away in some areas. It's pretty thin metal. My controller also failed about a year ago and was replaced under the extended warranty I bought.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

I thought about a gravity feed, until I read the negative reviews about them. Build quality, and the electronics seem to be sketch at best. I've been lucky with my pellet pooper, but cranking the temp to max back in the day caused the paint to peal off at places. Lesson learned. It's now a dedicated smoker, and I grill on my kettles. To be honest, Having learned what I now know, I would ditch anything that plugs into a wall socket, and go straight charcoal, or wood.