Bear’s Smokers FREE to good homes.
( MES Gen #1, Gen #2, and Gen #2.5)
( MES Gen #1, Gen #2, and Gen #2.5)
OK Guys & Gals, due to Health problems beyond my control, I just can’t safely get out there enough to use my Smokers. I can get out there occasionally to use my Weber “Q” Gas Grill, but not very often. So I’ve decided to give my 3 Masterbuilt Electric Smokehouses away to my SMF Friends. So the 3 Smokers are listed & shown below. Anybody interested, let me know, and if there are more than 3 guys interested I’ll decide who gets them, If anyone wants more than one of them, we’ll wait until the others aren’t wanted by others.
NOTE: I'm located near Macungie, PA.
Address & directions will be furnished to pick up.
No Shipping or delivery included. You would have to pick yours up here.
The "ZERO Cost" should help with the travel expense of getting here & back.
If nobody from SMF wants them, I’ll probably list them for a Low Price, and sell them.
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MES 40, Gen #1:
This is an MES 40 Gen #1, all SS, with RF Remote Control & Glass window in the Door. This thing worked Great for 5 years, and I smoked an awful lot of Great tasting food with that Smoker, until the Heating Element connector corroded off. It was easily repaired with a new connector & a little solder (Less than $2 cost). This Smoker still works Great, and has been sitting in my Garage since 2013, as a Back-up to my Generation #2.5 MES that I’m currently using.
This Gen #1 should be good to go as is, or you can mod it however you may want.
Inside---Racks are like new, and stored inside house. RF Remote Control included:
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MES 40 Gen #2:
A few months after my Open-Heart Surgery, I was asked by Masterbuilt if I would be willing to test their new Smoker, if they would send one to me. They said there was mixed reviews on it, and since I was well versed on the Generation #1 Smoker, they would like me to test it out, and give them an honest review of it, comparing this Gen #2 to my old Gen #1. They would also like any suggestions as to what I would do to improve it, if anything. I agreed to do the testing, and it was delivered that week.
I put it together, and swapped positions with my Gen #1 on my Smoking Porch. It had a problem with the control, but I managed to get it up to temp, and did all kinds of tests, mainly for balance of heat from left to right, and some from different heights in the smoker. After a few days of testing, I notified MB, and told them what I had found. They were going to send me a new controller, but I told them not to bother, because the heat differences were too much for me to want to use this Smoker, and I’ll just go back to using my Gen #1.
However I told them I would still give them my suggestions to improvements that could be made:
Improvements I suggested:
#1 Get rid of the slanted Drip Plate with the small water pan hanging from it.
#2 Replace that Drip Plate with a full width Water Pan, similar to what is in the Gen #1 Smoker.
#3 Remove the Top vent in the left side wall, and put a top vent like the Gen #1 has, but in the left side of the Top, instead of the Right.
#4 Leave the door hinged on the left side the way the Gen #2 is, instead of the right side, like the Gen #1 is.
They thanked me for my testing, reporting back, and for the suggestions, and told me they would send me one of their new model, that would have some of my changes included in it. I wasn’t too sure that would ever happen, but sure enough, I got it.
This Gen #2 has a Problem with the Control. I would suggest getting a PID to control it, and if you like the way it heats, leave it alone. If it doesn’t heat evenly enough for you, I would suggest removing the slanted Drip plate & the small hanging water pan. Then I would put the bottom grill rack in place, and put a Foil pan on that rack as a Water pan & Drip pan. (Caution: Not too big a Pan!)
Or it could be used strictly as a Cold Smoker Too:
Inside---Racks are like new, and stored inside house:
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MES 40 Bluetooth, Gen # 2.5:
So the one they sent me is the MES 40 Bluetooth “Elite”, all black with the Glass in the door. It has 6 racks in it instead of 4, and it’s without the legs. (Legs wouldn’t work good with my setup anyway)
Every one of the suggestions I made above is incorporated into this smoker, and it seems as though they have served their purpose. I did various tests, mostly temperature balance test, and I couldn’t believe the results. After recording 126 temperature readings overall, I can say that this one outperforms all others in the heat balance department by far, including my Gen #1. The initial over-run is easily eliminated in a very short time, and when I did the testing at my most used Temp of 230°, I found the MES digital read-out to be about 15° lower than my Maverick readings. That’s closer than my Kitchen oven was when I checked it, and I don’t find it a big deal to set my MES at 215° to get my meat to be Smoking in a Temp of 230°.
Now here’s the part I really like. After putting Maverick Smoker Probes on both the Left & Right sides at the same time, I set the Temp to 215°, because I wanted an average of 230° on rack #3. In a very short time the heat stabilized, so that the MES Readout cycled from a low of 213° to a high of 217°. These temps come from the MES heat sensor, which is in the center of the back wall of the smoker. At this same time, the heat on the Left Side was cycling from a low of 228° to a high of 232°. And as hard as it is to believe, the right side was also cycling from a low of 228° to a high of 232°. After watching & recording it for hours at different Temps, I watched this cycling for about 20 minutes. Then tiring from the hours of watching & recording, I took an hour break, and went in the house to my recliner. Then after that hour, I went back out to see what it was doing, and it was still cycling with those exact same temperatures. I had seen enough to make this report, and this is the report I gave to Masterbuilt.
"I couldn’t believe how this Smoker cycled from 228° to 232° for hours, making that average the 230° I wanted, and both sides were the same Temp without using a makeshift heat deflector to balance it out. IMHO, A heat cycle range of 4° is Amazing!!! This is a Great Smoker!!!"
"I did not hook-up to Bluetooth, because I don’t have anything to use with it, and I have no problem going out there to the smoker to make my settings & changes, and I like to check on how much smoke I’m getting at certain intervals anyway. However, my Son said he might have something I can use & he’ll install the App."
This Gen #2.5 Works like a charm, and has since 2013. It is good to go as is, without any Mods.
I have always used an AMNPS (Amazing Smoker) with it.
Inside---Racks are like new, and stored inside house:
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So that’s all I got Guys!!
Tip: Don’t get Old & stay out of Bad Wars!!!
So—After my Open Heart Fiasco, and they screwed everything up inside of me:
First I quit Chainsaw carving about 12 years ago.
Then I quit building Decks about 12 years ago.
Then I quit Hunting & Trapping.
Then I quit Fishing.
Then I quit Driving. (2 years ago)
Now I’m quitting Smoking Meat.
Right now I’m just trying to stay out of the Hospital, or worse, and keep doing what I can, around My Home.
Thanks for stopping By,
Bearcarver
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