Advice for an Offset Smoker

[philpom]

I had no idea Buc-ees sold smokers; I thought they were just a gas station/convenience store. There is one coming to my area sometime, I think. I have put a deposit on a used Lyfe Tyme for dirt cheap, but the owner is out of town until the first week of May, so, In the meantime, I am smoking on a 22" Webber kettle.

Awesome, hope the smoker comes through and works out!

Buc-ees sells everything, cast iron, smokers, pits, deep fryers, bacon wrapped stuffed Pork loin (raw), deer feeders, feed, hunting gear, super coolers, real fur rugs, soaps, nicnacks and all the stuff your wife and kids might like also. Oh, and gas station stuff too. A nice variety of rubs and sauces. Good for you if ya get one, I've got one 2 miles away, it's $100 trip minimum if I take the family and don't buy gas at one of the 100 gas pumps. Lol

 

[golfpro2301]

I've been using a Masterbuilt Gravity smoker for the past 4 years. I have enjoyed some great food, but it's day seems to have come. I nearly burned it to the ground. The control board went out, the replacement doesn't read the temp to control the fan, and I really can't see investing $350-$400 for a Fireboard controller for a smoker that I bought used for $200 4 years ago. In my mind, I can double or triple that and get a decent offset. In the meantime, I'll get by with the Webber Kettle.

So, I am not 100% sold on the Old Country Brazos DXL, but it seems like a great deal for the money. Academy Sports is at $1500. The Solution offset would be great, but it's $2500 and probably not an option. So, any ideas on a better offset in that $1000 - $1500 range? I like the idea of the 1/4 steel and slide-out grates. I don't like what I've read about the hot spots on the Brazos. Open to ideas and willing to buy one used if anyone has a lead on one. I'm in North Carolina.

How close to NE FL are you? Have a 250gal offset id be willing to let go.

 

[FoxmanNC]

How close to NE FL are you? Have a 250gal offset id be willing to let go.

We're a solid 8-10 hours from you. That'd be a haul for sure.

 

[Chasdev]

They should call it Buc-ees planet or Buc-ees universe, that place is plus size for sure.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I owned a Brazos, I guess it could today be called an original because it had the short stack and the baffle. I made some good barbecue on it but it lacked.

The baffle really messed with the air flow through the cooker. It greatly restricts air entering the cook chamber. Without making this post a long story, I ran it with a minimum of air intake.

Extending the stack to improve draw through the cooker was negated by having to reduce the air intake on the firebox. Its also restricted by a very small exhaust port.

So bottom line its a low air flow offset. There's a lot of other cookers that are low air flow that don't require feeding splits.

But it appears to me OC has solved the problems with the Brazos with the G2. The baffle being optional is a good idea. And they've opened up the exhaust end.

If I were purchasing, I'd spend the extra on the G2. Cause at some point you will be unhappy with the Brazos and want to improve it.

 

[FoxmanNC]

I see two ways (mods) to overcome the airflow concern on the Brazos, which has been well-documented on YouTube, addressing the same issues as the Pecos. Cut the baffle out altogether and create a difuser by pushing the heat up with a metal plate, but using holes in the plate to allow heat into the lower chamber. Or, by drilling holes in the baffle to allow better airflow. Neither are ideal, but they have produced a better airflow and more consistent temps (at least according to the YouTubers). Of course, this also requires a proper exhaust height to increase airflow.

I'm far from being an expert or a scientist, but in my research, it seems that there will be limitations and compromises made for almost every smoker. The key to satisfaction appears to be finding a workaround to those limitations that yields the best possible results, given the limitations of the smoker, the individual, and the budget.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I bought the Brazos in 2018.

I was trying the stack extension on my Brazos before it became popular.

Saw the same problems with the baffle. At that time, no one was cutting the baffle out. I was not gonna be a guinea pig and cut mine out. I did not want to hurt my resale value.

I also arrived at the conclusion that if ya open up one end of the cooker, the other end also had to be opened up.

Spring of 2021, I was talking to welders about rebuilding the stack end with a collector and a new stack. I made a post in the " wood smoker " forum here asking for opinions and got nothing. No one was doing that, at the time.

And at the same time, I got an email from Franklin that said their smoker was available. I said to hell with dealing with welders and bought the Franklin.

 

[MBBG]

There are some big smokers for sale pages on FB. Think going used 1/4” construction is going to be the best bang for your buck. I bought a Gator Pit Party Gator for $1100 a couple years ago online and it’ll survive the apocalypse.

 

[FoxmanNC]

There are some big smokers for sale pages on FB. Think going used 1/4” construction is going to be the best bang for your buck. I bought a Gator Pit Party Gator for $1100 a couple years ago online and it’ll survive the apocalypse.

I actually found a "used" but never even seasoned, never so much as a fire in the firebox, Brazos DLX on Facebook marketplace, and saved a ton on it. Just brought it home yesterday.

 

[Newglide]

Welcome from NC, I don't think you can go wrong with that. Now you gotta get some wood..

 

[Smokin Okie]

I actually found a "used" but never even seasoned, never so much as a fire in the firebox, Brazos DLX on Facebook marketplace, and saved a ton on it. Just brought it home yesterday.

Excellent !

 

[FoxmanNC]

Welcome from NC, I don't think you can go wrong with that. Now you gotta get some wood..

I'm in High Point, what part are you from?

 

[Smokin Okie]

I bought my Brazos used. Fella said he's used it 3 times. It looked it. Paid $600. Cooked on it for 3 years. Sold it for $625.

 

[Newglide]

I'm in High Point, what part are you from?

Right up the road in Kernersville

 

[FoxmanNC]

Right up the road in Kernersville

Very familiar with KVegas! Great place.

 

[Elf@shore]

Off set smoker: Too fast to reply !
I saw a Meadow creek 36SQ , that was immaculate last Night for $600! But a 2 Hr drive ?
Woke up this morning it was gone !! GUESS SO?
Damn!

 

[FoxmanNC]

Hang in there. People apparently make decisions to buy something they shouldn't have, and cannot wait to lose money selling it

 

[Smokin Okie]

I think the fella I bought my Brazos from, only kept it a short time because the cook chamber door had sprung. And he had 3 other smokers, so maybe an offset was just not his thing.

This is common on pipe smokers. When the pipe is formed, and they join the edges, it may be a little off and it puts tension on the steel. They cut the door out and it releases the tension on the door, and it springs, usually out.

The door did have a large gap in the lower left corner. It was at least 1/2" and ran along the bottom edge of the door. When I did biscuit tests, the edge of the cooking grate along the door, was quite a bit cooler.

But I fixed it with RTV sealant and clamps. The sealant solved most of the problem but the gap was so large, I needed the clamps to completely close it. I put these on both corners