Buckboard Bacon: Butt vs Shoulder

[rob g]

Is there much of a difference between using pork butt vs pork shoulder for buckboard bacon? Around here I find pork shoulder on sale quite often for $1-$1.50 a pound. I can find the butts but generally not on sale for that good a price. I generally smoke shoulders for pulled pork as my smoker doesn't like full price meat in it :). The shoulders generally have quite a bit of skin left on that I have to remove. The shoulder also tapers down to the hock. Is the butt that much better from a usable meat and fat content point of view?

 

[mosparky]

I'd say yes, the butt is better from an edible product per pound point of veiw. There are things that can tip the scales the other way pending on what you want to do with the "scrap".
The shoulder has skin, more fat and a larger bone than a Butt. Now if you want to trim excess fat and save for making sausage and use the skins for fried pork rinds or some other use, you only have the bone as true waste. Then the shoulder may take the lead as the cost per pound leader, pending the price difference.

 

[SonnyE]

From what I've seen, pork shoulder is called Boston Butt.
I guess Bostonians have a hard time deciding, so their pork has two butts.
One on each end...

I just get shoulders. Good for pulled pork, or bacon.
I like having choices.