Amazen or other brand tube smokers?

[hangmanli]

fellas,

I’ve got a 4 shelf digital Bradley smoker

Someone recently mentioned the A-Maze-In smoke tube in lieu of the Bradley bisquettes. I’ve seen some other brands of smoke tubes online.

Are they all comparable to each other?

Or is the A-Maze-In brand smoke tube a better or superior design?

 

[SmokyMose]

It’s the one most of us use, probably because it’s a known quality. I’m sure there are others that work as well. Do you want to take a chance?

 

[crazymoon]

HML, The service from Amazen products is the best out there. I have a maze ,a tube and some Q-mats from this great company and they are outstanding.

 

[chef jimmyj]

Todd, A-MAZE-N owner is a long time member and had many of us test his designs before release. Additionally, Todd's customer service is second to none and the equipment is indestructible. We are pretty loyal to Todd and would never even think to go elsewhere to save pennies...JJ

 

[petehalsted]

What they said. It may just look like some metal with holes in it, but there is a lot of thought that goes into the shape, holes sizes etc. which dramatically effect how it performs. So of the knock offs might be good, some might be cheap tin that is going to warp, clog, and otherwise give you fits.

Add to that that Todd as posted his direct # on this site and told folks to call him if they are having an issues even on the weekends, and you can't go wrong with Amazen. Also a lot of folks report issues with a lot of the other pellets out there and have good luck with Todd's

 

[biaviian]

I never found a good use for the tube (too much and inconsistent smoke) but I have two of each type of maze from A-Maze-N

 

[pc farmer]

I have the AMNPS tray which is great. Went to get a 12" tube off Amazon and saw another brand that was $12 which is half of the amazen tube cost and I just couldn't see spending $24 when I could get it for half. The cheap tube works just great. Decided I wanted a 6" tube an here again I found them on EBay for $6 which is again half the cost of the amazen.
Now I realize that the cheap tubes are from China or some foreign country and they don't jump on this forum to help out like Todd dose and an extra $6 to $12 isn't a whole lot of cash but in this day and age with internet shopping it's just to easy to find lower priced items and save some money. I had priced out the stuff to make a tube myself which would have cost about $15 for a 12" tube.

Did your cheap tubes come filled with pellets???? Anything extra in the package????? Super fast shipping??? Made in America??????

 

[mossymo]

I agree with what has been previously posted, just adding my two cents...
- The A-MAZE-N tube smoker is the original, other are mere copies capitalizing on someone else's concept and idea.
- A-MAZE-N Products is a sponsor of this forum.
- Supporting small business in America just makes sense, many copy cat products sold in the United States come from other countries.

 

[chef jimmyj]

A-MAZE-N products are patented original designs. ALL others are knockoffs or like the triangle tube, a twist on a proven product...JJ

 

[chopsaw]

Did your cheap tubes come filled with pellets???? Anything extra in the package????? Super fast shipping??? Made in America??????

Amen . Support where you sleep when you can . I bought from Todd . Never any question .

 

[SmokinAl]

Stick with Amazen!
It's a quality product as are his pellets.
And the owner is a moderator on here, but most importantly he is a real stand up guy!
Customer service is second to none!
Al

 

[biaviian]

Stick with Amazen!
It's a quality product as are his pellets.
And the owner is a moderator on here, but most importantly he is a real stand up guy!
Customer service is second to none!
Al

I bought another brand of pellets and it causes the fire to jump rows. Now I have about 20 pounds of pellets I probably won't use.

 

[dr k]

I bought another brand of pellets and it causes the fire to jump rows. Now I have about 20 pounds of pellets I probably won't use.

It may take awhile but use the pellets for single row short smokes or in the grill to cold smoke burgers etc. an hour and a half outside temps are <90*F. Maybe burning the two outside rows at the same time with nothing in the middle row for about the same amount of smoke as the Amnts. That's why the maze design is where It's at. It's versatile. Sometimes with Hickory I fill the rows 3/4 full. Depending on the flavor.

 

[dr k]

On a FB page for Mes users the Wedgie is a supported product. The design has two holes for lighting but the triangle design after lighting one hole allows the burn to progress/grow like a wildfire, leaving most Mes users with windows a heavy dense smoke so you can't see the food. And it's marketed for heavy dense smoke. It's not what I want. I can't imagine anyone lighting both holes with that open triangle burn design.

 

[biaviian]

I doubt that another brand of pellets caused the fire to jump row as I have used Lumberjack, Camp Chef and Smokehouse pellets in my tray without having the fire jump rows. I would hate for someone interested in an Amazen tray or tube to read this and decide not to purchase one because they think that the only pellets that will work in them are the Amazen pellets as I would figure that the vast majority of people using the trays and tubes are burning other pellets since its easy to purchase pellets in any sporting goods store and a lot of hardware stores. The casual couple times a year smoker probably isn't interested in ordering $49 worth of pellets from Todd to get free shipping when they can pick up a 5 or 20 pound bag locally for $6 to $15. Sportsmans Warehouse sells the empty Amazen tube smokers but don't sell there pellets.

I wonder does Todd make his pellets or rebrand pellets made by another company.

You can doubt all you want but my experience shows that this brand causes the rows to jump unless I am just imagining it. I have tried several brands successfully but this one has issues.

EDIT: When he started Todd found an outside source for his dust and pellets. I assume he still uses an outside company.

 

[biaviian]

It may take awhile but use the pellets for single row short smokes or in the grill to cold smoke burgers etc. an hour and a half outside temps are <90*F. Maybe burning the two outside rows at the same time with nothing in the middle row for about the same amount of smoke as the Amnts. That's why the maze design is where It's at. It's versatile. Sometimes with Hickory I fill the rows 3/4 full. Depending on the flavor.

My plan is to use it for cheese and other cold smoking.

 

[SmokyMose]

I doubt that another brand of pellets caused the fire to jump row as I have used Lumberjack, Camp Chef and Smokehouse pellets in my tray without having the fire jump rows. I would hate for someone interested in an Amazen tray or tube to read this and decide not to purchase one because they think that the only pellets that will work in them are the Amazen pellets as I would figure that the vast majority of people using the trays and tubes are burning other pellets since its easy to purchase pellets in any sporting goods store and a lot of hardware stores. The casual couple times a year smoker probably isn't interested in ordering $49 worth of pellets from Todd to get free shipping when they can pick up a 5 or 20 pound bag locally for $6 to $15. Sportsmans Warehouse sells the empty Amazen tube smokers but don't sell there pellets.

I wonder does Todd make his pellets or rebrand pellets made by another company.

I use the Amazen tubes in a mailbox, so I don’t know about jumping rows in trays. I love the different “flavors” available in Todd’s pellets, but frankly, I have problems keeping them lit, especially in colder temps. I found a 20# bag of Chargriller brand at Lowe’s a couple of years ago ($16) that always burn and smell pretty good. I mix some in with the Amazen pellets now and no problems.
That being said, I like that the Amazen products are made in the USA.
It’s hard to find anything that is, now. When I wanted a “Vortex” I found a Chinese product for half the cost, but I went with the American made one. I do that when I can, but sometimes the difference in price is just ridiculous....

 

[Bearcarver]

Looks like all the Great Things about Amazing Smokers & Todd's Customer Service has been covered here.

However, I was one of the guys helping Todd with some testing of a few of his AMNS & AMNPS units, starting back in 2009, and I can tell you he logged in Thousands of hours testing all of his Smokers & a mess of Prototypes that never made it to market.
Even his Prototypes are made better than most of the Knock-offs that are out there.
Also, You'll never find a nicer guy than Todd.

Bear

 

[oddegan]

I use the 5 x 8 maze in a mailbox for all my smokes. I couldn't even tell you where the chip tray for my MES-30 is. Never had any problems. I work in an industry that constantly is dealing with cheap foreign knock offs. I have no issue paying more for made in USA.

 

[SonnyE]

I'm rather appalled and surprised at some of the responses I read here. They smack of blatant attack for a dissenting opinion. WTF?
This is the sort of thing I've been kicked off of forums for, standing my ground based on my personal experience that varies from others, and mostly Admins and Moderators. Completely different circumstances, but standing my ground.

What is the title?
Amazen or other brand tube smokers?

fellas,

I’ve got a 4 shelf digital Bradley smoker

Someone recently mentioned the A-Maze-In smoke tube in lieu of the Bradley bisquettes. I’ve seen some other brands of smoke tubes online.

Are they all comparable to each other?

Or is the A-Maze-In brand smoke tube a better or superior design?

My thoughts, based on yesterdays experiance....
I decided, after a lot of wishin and lookin, I wanted to jump on the band wagon and get myself an Amazen Pellet tray of my own. So I went to the source, Amazen Products, pick it, and headed for check out. $29.99

Then hit the deal breaker.... Shipping. I put my foot down last year about shipping charges and sub-standard shipping by a few (damn few) companies. $13.50 for shipping. Really? Oh, but if you spend $49 bucks you get free shipping!
Do I have STUPID written on my forehead? No!

What I find interesting, and what pissed me clear off, is if I order from Home Depot, I don't pay any shipping. And here's the proof: https://www.homedepot.com/p/A-MAZE-N-5x8-in-Smoker-Maze-AMNPS5X8/301426353
How about that.... Tell me, Whom is absorbing the shipping cost for Home Depot?

Now, the broth thickens. Of my many background talents, one is fabrication. So I decided maybe I could simply make something myself for my pipe burner grill. I have the material, I have ways to form the material, so I decided to proceed. And succeed. In the hopes maybe somebody else could take advantage of what I found.
I posted it over here: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/smoke-in-a-pipe-burner.272435/

OK, I'll move on from here. I think I've seen some dirty underware.
I'm going to smoke some salmon...

PS: Maybe Todd will see this and realize shipping can be a deal breaker. ;):cool: