better than masterbuilt? please?

[daricksta]

 
i think lady is right. men love to tinker. the majority of members seem to have MBs, they love them, but spend all their time modifying them.

i'm not a mechanic n actually hate trying to fix or modify things.

for my needs n general laziness i think i need an electric smoker that i can smoke on but otherwise ignore.

had i found this site before i bought the trager, i'd own a cookshack. only a few hundred more than traeger. equivalent in price to the big green egg.

now that i've seen the thread about MBs not working in the cold, i'm gonna save up for something like cookshack. i smoke weekly, year round.

i'll save up til i can afford something i'll be happy with.

rick, you are the only one i know here that doesn't run around adding various electrical components n hardware to his MB.

these other folks don't have lemons, just smokers that are sub optimum.

You go with what you think will work best for you. I and others here were under the impression that you had limited funds to spendI chose the MES 30 Gen 1 because it was the best smoker for my limited budget, which is exactly how it was designed and marketed. I still think you should disregard all the guys who like or feel they have to modify it to make it work "better". A lot of guys like to work on cars, does that mean if you buy a new car you'd have to be out in the garage tinkering with it all the time to make it run "better"?

As for as a CookShack, if you've got the bucks they make a great smoker at different price points, all above what you can get Masterbuilts for; CS smokers start at $675. Old Sarge got a great deal on a new but slightly dented model and loves his Amerique (retail $1,875.00) to pieces. But CookShacks are made in the USA and priced accordingly. Heck, if I cook afford one I'd have bought one, too. But Masterbuilts were built for people like me--home smokers on a tight budget--and I feel I got more than what I paid for.

Again, I'm not saying that a MES is the only way to go, many people like Smokin-It and SmokinTex. I believe that either some or all of them, like Masterbuilt, are made in China, which is the only way to keep them cheaper than a CookShack. It all depends on what your needs are and how much you're willing and able to spend to meet them.

 

[ladygt]

 
dave, that other smoker you mentioned? i'll save up n spend the thousand to get a smoker like that,  that works without hair driers, charcoal, new controlers, evil customer service  or anything else. i'll load pellets or chips n press a button.

that's my idea of fun smoking.

Smart lady!!

 

[susieqz]

well, i'm sure not able to spend now.  i spent $400 on the traerger.  now i spent a ton on accessories for general smoking.

i do apprieciate all the help n advice. i think hard  about everything you say.

right now tho, unless i can sell the traeger, i'll have to live with it for a couple of years before i get what i need.

admit it. it's fun hearing what everyone thinks about their smokers.

most people here either have MB or weber. those that do love them even with problems. i'm not sure what that means but it's pretty cool.

 

[ladygt]

 
I still think you should disregard all the guys who like or feel they have to modify it to make it work "better". A lot of guys like to work on cars, does that mean if you buy a new car you'd have to be out in the garage tinkering with it all the time to make it run "better"?

For some reason gearheads do. For example, many people buy brand new off the lot Ford Mustangs or other well known muscle cars and, as soon as they can, modify it, with high performance parts.

 

[Rafter H BBQ]

thanks joops. i read the thread but don't understand. you build it yourself? what's the advantage? how much are parts? you mentioned $150. the MES30 is on sale for $129.

Where did ya find the MES for $129 ? If ya don't mind me asking.

 

[susieqz]

tractor supply has them on close out sale. if you want that price you need to move right now.

 

[daricksta]

 
For some reason gearheads do. For example, many people buy brand new off the lot Ford Mustangs or other well known muscle cars and, as soon as they can, modify it, with high performance parts.

You actually agreed with my point, LadyGT. I think that same "gearhead" mentality that enjoys adding mechanical steroids to muscle cars also enjoys increasing the muscle on an inexpensive, starter smoker, which is what a Masterbuilt is. And I've got no problem with people improving on the MB design if they choose to. But I don't want someone looking at the line of Masterbuilts to think that they'll be forced to spend time and money on mods to get it to work decently because that's not true at all.

I would love to see stats on how many people own and enjoy their MES--whatever generation they have--without any mods and how many have chosen to mod their MES  for what they feel is for better performance. Within the people who did the mods, I'd also like to know how many have technical backgrounds as electricians or mechanics, etc.

Someone who never smoked before but always wanted to can now get in on the action as either a hobby or as a new way of life, if they decide to really pursue it. The MES was never meant to be a ice cold weather smoker or a smoke ring producer or anything fancy because you can buy it for as low as $130. If you want a real cold weather smoker and you want to see smoke rings in your meat then you buy something a lot more expensive. I'm not aware of any SI or ST or CS smoker that's available for under $300.

I knew exactly what a MES was before I bought it and that's exactly why I bought it. No one is going to tell me that what I researched and purchased is a piece of junk as it came delivered from the factory. Mine works very well and because it works so well, and I've learned how to use it as it came from the factory, all the money I haven't spent on mods has been saved for spending on other things, smoking and non-smoking related.

We also don't have a decent BBQ place in town but with my MES and how much I've learned about smoking through using it, I don't need a BBQ place in my town because the Q I put on the table draws raves from family and friends. Why would I want to modify that?

 

[gathumper]

 
You actually agreed with my point, LadyGT. I think that same "gearhead" mentality that enjoys adding mechanical steroids to muscle cars also enjoys increasing the muscle on an inexpensive, starter smoker, which is what a Masterbuilt is. And I've got no problem with people improving on the MB design if they choose to. But I don't want someone looking at the line of Masterbuilts to think that they'll be forced to spend time and money on mods to get it to work decently because that's not true at all.

I would love to see stats on how many people own and enjoy their MES--whatever generation they have--without any mods and how many have chosen to mod their MES  for what they feel is for better performance. Within the people who did the mods, I'd also like to know how many have technical backgrounds as electricians or mechanics, etc.

Someone who never smoked before but always wanted to can now get in on the action as either a hobby or as a new way of life, if they decide to really pursue it. The MES was never meant to be a ice cold weather smoker or a smoke ring producer or anything fancy because you can buy it for as low as $130. If you want a real cold weather smoker and you want to see smoke rings in your meat then you buy something a lot more expensive. I'm not aware of any SI or ST or CS smoker that's available for under $300.

I knew exactly what a MES was before I bought it and that's exactly why I bought it. No one is going to tell me that what I researched and purchased is a piece of junk as it came delivered from the factory. Mine works very well and because it works so well, and I've learned how to use it as it came from the factory, all the money I haven't spent on mods has been saved for spending on other things, smoking and non-smoking related.

We also don't have a decent BBQ place in town but with my MES and how much I've learned about smoking through using it, I don't need a BBQ place in my town because the Q I put on the table draws raves from family and friends. Why would I want to modify that?

Well said! There must be thousands of Masterbuilt smokers that were purchased at any number of big box (and small box) stores and online that are in use and providing great food and enjoyment to their owners. We won't hear anything from most of them. Granted there will be out of box failures and quality problems with some percentage of them as there are with any product where the price point has been pushed down, typically by manufacturing offshore.

And I also believe that in most cases, as the cost increases, features and quality can be expected to improve.

That leaves us with the internet forums, and the people who are posting. We are not the average consumer or user of these products.

There are the "gear heads" to borrow the analogy used in this thread. They like to disect and modify, they get satisfaction from the process and take pride in what they can do to "improve". I'm one of those. I took a brand new motorcycle with less than five hundred miles on it and ripped off the carburetor that the engineers had designed and installed a carburetor from another manufacturer's 4-wheeler!

There are the internet savvy consumers who have had a problem with the product under discussion, and gather together to discuss said problems, some to find solutions and make corrections, others to vent about the product or warn other consumers.

And there are the satisfied customers of one product or another, sharing their experiences and in some cases trying to convince the reader that their product is the best.

I'm going to go out on a limb here, and guess that the internet postings about a given product may represent less than 5-10% of the owners!

So, I take everything I read with a good old grain of salt, understanding that everyone has an opinion and there is truth on both sides of any debate. I learn all I can from my research online and really appreciate the opinions and advice that are freely shared on the forums. For me, it makes a better buying decision, and a better experience with the products I purchase.

And finally, although I'm about 90% decided to spend the extra money for a Smokin-It, I still haven't ruled out spending about 1/3 of the cost of the SI and getting a 40" Masterbuilt, knowing I can probably expect good service out of the box, and if I have a problem within the warranty period they will probably make it right. And yes, since I'm a "gear head", I'm already thinking about taking a brand new smoker into my secret lab and taking it apart and making a few "modifications"!

hmmm... replace the controller with an Auber, rewire with better quality wire, I'd still have only $500 in a pretty sweet "hot rod" smoker! :)

or use it just like it came out of the box for years, making lot's of great jerky, snack sticks, etc.

Thankfully we are not all the same, different strokes for differnet folks, and there are options out there for everyone!

 

[daricksta]

 
Well said! There must be thousands of Masterbuilt smokers that were purchased at any number of big box (and small box) stores and online that are in use and providing great food and enjoyment to their owners. We won't hear anything from most of them. Granted there will be out of box failures and quality problems with some percentage of them as there are with any product where the price point has been pushed down, typically by manufacturing offshore.

And I also believe that in most cases, as the cost increases, features and quality can be expected to improve.

That leaves us with the internet forums, and the people who are posting. We are not the average consumer or user of these products.

There are the "gear heads" to borrow the analogy used in this thread. They like to disect and modify, they get satisfaction from the process and take pride in what they can do to "improve". I'm one of those. I took a brand new motorcycle with less than five hundred miles on it and ripped off the carburetor that the engineers had designed and installed a carburetor from another manufacturer's 4-wheeler!

There are the internet savvy consumers who have had a problem with the product under discussion, and gather together to discuss said problems, some to find solutions and make corrections, others to vent about the product or warn other consumers.

And there are the satisfied customers of one product or another, sharing their experiences and in some cases trying to convince the reader that their product is the best.

I'm going to go out on a limb here, and guess that the internet postings about a given product may represent less than 5-10% of the owners!

So, I take everything I read with a good old grain of salt, understanding that everyone has an opinion and there is truth on both sides of any debate. I learn all I can from my research online and really appreciate the opinions and advice that are freely shared on the forums. For me, it makes a better buying decision, and a better experience with the products I purchase.

And finally, although I'm about 90% decided to spend the extra money for a Smokin-It, I still haven't ruled out spending about 1/3 of the cost of the SI and getting a 40" Masterbuilt, knowing I can probably expect good service out of the box, and if I have a problem within the warranty period they will probably make it right. And yes, since I'm a "gear head", I'm already thinking about taking a brand new smoker into my secret lab and taking it apart and making a few "modifications"!

hmmm... replace the controller with an Auber, rewire with better quality wire, I'd still have only $500 in a pretty sweet "hot rod" smoker! :)

or use it just like it came out of the box for years, making lot's of great jerky, snack sticks, etc.

Thankfully we are not all the same, different strokes for differnet folks, and there are options out there for everyone!

This is a great comment. As part of my products research I read a lot of reviews and I feel I've gotten to the point where I can weed out the bogus negative reviews based on a number of different factors. I also base which positive reviews I go with based on the same factors. I'd say 99% of the time I make the correct decision as to which product to buy and then I post my own online product reviews.

I'm knowledgeable enough to know that an Auber PID controller could improve how the heating element works on my MES 30, and for that matter, buying a 1500 w heating element would also improve performance. However, I don't want to dismantle anything or drill holes in the smoker and fool around with replacing wiring because I don't feel confident enough to do all that and I don't like drilling holes in stuff where there were no holes before. Call me an un-gearhead but if and went electrical components need replacing on my MES, I'll get exact replacements from Masterbuilt which can be easily installed. It's like when I had a bathroom ceiling vent fan go bad. A friend advised I could replace it with a more powerful fan but I would have to enlarge the hole in my ceiling and make some other messy alterations, including possibly the wiring. I wound up putting a new but exact replacement of the fan in the ceiling because the space was already there so I had to do was connect it to the existing power outlet and it was ready to go. That's why I prefer to keep my MES as it came from the factory, including any replacement parts I made need to install.

 

[tjohnson]

You All have Great Points!

From a marketing point of view......

I read somewhere that a "Satisfied Customer" will tell 1 person of their positive experience and a "Dissatisfied Customer" will tell 10 people of their negative experience

Are these statistics true?

I really don't know, but generally speaking "Yes".

 

[old sarge]

Todd, I think it may be more like 20 complaints for every 1 positive.

 

[daricksta]

Sarge, I've been taught the same stat at customer service training seminars. In fact, one trainer set the number at 50 negatives for every positive.

 

[old sarge]

Rick,

That figures. When folks are happy, they are silent.  When unhappy, well, misery loves company. 

 

[cmayna]

 
Rick,

That figures. When folks are happy, they are silent.  When unhappy, well, misery loves company. 

Not when they eat my smoked salmon, are they silent 

  Thanks, just had to add my 1 cents worth.

 

[old sarge]

Well the food always speaks for itself and the praise and compliments can be deafening!

 

[daricksta]

My favorite (well, NOW, anyway) brother-in-law calls me the King of Ribs after eating the baby back ribs I smoked in my MES 30. I used a combo of apple and pecan wood pellets.

 

[gr8dane777]

 
The best thing I ever did was get the $59.99 cold smoker kit for my MES. I don't even use wood inside anymore even when hot smoking. I find that if I am hot smoking something like pork tenderloins at 225, the wood just burns up real fast and the smoke is too white. And running a cold smoke, even with ice is a pain burning wood inside. I just use the cold smoker, load it up and let it burn a bit before hooking up the duct. That way, it has a chance to get a good smoke going that's not so white. The other day I lit up three briquettes in my gas BBQ and then chucked them in the tray at the bottom of the MES cold smoker and put the wood on top. I didn't even use the element. I got a nice blue smoke after about 15 minutes and it lasted several hours.

This way I can control the smoke the way I want, don't have to load wood so often and when hot smoking, I can just adjust the main unit to the desired temperature without putting any wood inside. Works great.

Exactly what I do, works great!