Difficult choices…help!

[jo83ben]

I’m fortunate enough to have a LSG 20x42 on Order. Total with shipping is just over 4200 (upgraded to 8” wheels, and added plancha/griddle and a few other upgrades. It’s not yet built but will be soon.

Now having that second guessing pondering canceling and doing a recteq combo. For about 400 less I could order the BFG-2500 AND the pellet griddle they make, AND the bullseye deluxe with the matador pan. OR I could do the above but with the dual fire or flagship 1400 for almost 1000 less.

I know the LSG will out smoke the recteq all day, but is it really worth it vs having several different units from another great company? What would you do and why?

 

[slavikborisov]

I custom built my smoker with 2 pellet hopper from smoke daddy but I know Your looking for an already pre built unit check them
Out I wouldn’t hesitate to buy from them
Great customer service. https://smokedaddyinc.com/product/the-pellet-pro-double-d-2-door-vertical-cabinet-pellet-smoker/

 

[schlotz]

First question: do you want a stick burner OR something that requires less attention?

 

[bmudd14474]

First question: do you want a stick burner OR something that requires less attention?

This is the biggest question. Im guessing you went with LSG because you wanted a stick burner. If that is the case stick with it. RecTec is a great Pellet Pooper and will get you close to the same as a stick burner but its not the same IMO. If you have access to the wood and desire/ability to work the fire then id stay with LSG.

If you want convenience then go RecTec.

 

[jo83ben]

Ah. Sorry I should have specified. I ordered the lone star grillz pellet smoker. I have an offset (albeit a chargriller Dakota from Lowe’s) but it got me into stick burners). I’m solely talking pellet for now. I have a Weber 22” kettle, a small q100 propane for quick and lazy, and am planning on building a 250 gallon trailer offset with built in Santa Maria, but plans are sometimes dreams. I did have a GMS pellet grill which I loved, and gave away to a friend when I got a Traeger from Costco (the Costco specific model) which I had a very love/hate thing with which ultimately caused me to return it, putting me where I’m at now. Pelletgrillless.

My thoughts on the LSG is simple, it’s extremely well built, well designed, and is consistently reviewed as one of the smokiest pellet grills on the market, but can sear well to boot.

I’ve looked at the new Weber sear wood which early reports at least, it seems to do a superb job in smoking and decent grilling, but in checking them out in person the built quality wasn’t what I was hoping. The campchef woodwind pro also looks super legit but again lower overall built quality and no sig ability to sear.

The recteq combos mentioned above would give me lots of options, multiple cookers, ability to sear, fry, smoke, and the bullseye is small enough to throw in my truck for a beach trip. I also like that the bullseye is Weber kettle sized, so the gazzillion accessories for the Weber kettle will work on that too (rotisserie, pizza kit, etc)

But all of this gets away from my original thoughts on having a one and done best of the best pellet smoker.

 

[schlotz]

There are higher end pellet smokers but the RecTec is a soild pick. Many here use them and are very satisfied. RecTec was in its infancy when I was in the market, which is why I went with MAK. If I was looking today there is a larger selection. The key is determining the features that are most important for you then how the reviews land. The one feature back then that was important to me was a pellet dump shoot. As you discovered some manufacturers smokers get a fair share of negative feedback.

 

[chopsaw]

I’ve looked at the new Weber sear wood which early reports at least, it seems to do a superb job in smoking and decent grilling, but in checking them out in person the built quality wasn’t what I was hoping.

Just a comment because I have a SmokeFire . I looked at the Sear wood the other day , and something about the lid I didn't care for . Not sure if it was the operation of it , or the reach of the handle . I like the fit and finish of the SmokeFire way better .
Never used the sear wood , but the SmokeFire is a great smoker , and better grill .
The sear wood is the same basic design , just open side to side , instead of front to back .

Like Matt said above , I shopped features and that really narrowed it down for me .
Pellet dump
Drop Auger
No shop vac to clean it out .

 

[civilsmoker]

just adding that it’s really up to how and what you want to cook. I have said this before, but cooking tools are very personal decisions, ie what makes you love or want to smoke/grill….. I love my Recteq 1250 but I also love my Weber Genesis and my other smokers as well. The LSG is a very nice grill with many nice features, the electronics and moving parts will go south well before the unit my many times over…..

here is another way to think about it……let’s say you only get 6 years out of your LSG (you should get way more), @ 52 weeks a year that’s 312 weeks of use, which equals to $13.50 a week……many peps spend more in coffee a week than that….

For me, if I were starting from scratch I would get a RT 1400, a weber genesis, and a thermostatically controlled propane flat top with a 3/8” SS top (commercial grade, us listed)

 

[jo83ben]

just adding that it’s really up to how and what you want to cook. I have said this before, but cooking tools are very personal decisions, ie what makes you love or want to smoke/grill….. I love my Recteq 1250 but I also love my Weber Genesis and my other smokers as well. The LSG is a very nice grill with many nice features, the electronics and moving parts will go south well before the unit my many times over…..

here is another way to think about it……let’s say you only get 6 years out of your LSG (you should get way more), @ 52 weeks a year that’s 312 weeks of use, which equals to $13.50 a week……many peps spend more in coffee a week than that….

For me, if I were starting from scratch I would get a RT 1400, a weber genesis, and a thermostatically controlled propane flat top with a 3/8” SS top (commercial grade, us listed)

Just out of intrigue. Is there a specific flat top you have in mind? I’m going down the rabbit hole of commercial grade flat tops. It seems like any that are thermostatically controlled are 2k plus if you get chrome plated (those apparently can scratch?) any stainless steel top ones are like 10k. The recteq is carbon steel top but polished not textured, and though pellet fired, it has temp control built in so kind of like thermostatic control?

 

[civilsmoker]

Here are two options…..these are the two I have been looking at for my outdoor kitchen…..

thermostatically controlled keep the grill temp vs air temp on a air temp probe. I don’t know how Recteq does theirs, I would ask them if it is thermostatically controlled vs air probe temp before I would go that route. If RT is measured at the plate temp like the above the. It is the real deal…..if you do call them please report it out!!! I would love to know for future……

We use to have a Wolf IR grill in the kitchen and that is the single most missed kitchen cooking item we want/miss having….

 

[sandyut]

RecTeq's are great units. I have had mine for a decade and love it every time. I cant see buying anything else...maybe if I wone the powerball, get a fancier one because I could. IDK.

The ease, quality, great tasting food, killer customer service=RecTeq all day long

 

[civilsmoker]

Ps the chrome ones are TOL, and way overkill for home use…..

 

[civilsmoker]

RecTeq's are great units. I have had mine for a decade and love it every time. I cant see buying anything else...maybe if I wone the powerball, get a fancier one because I could. IDK.

The ease, quality, great tasting food, killer customer service=RecTeq all day long

Sandy for the 700 and 1250 I fully agree…. The new 1400 is the perfect set up in my book since the adjusted to right shelf height……I’m just not sold on the control of the big griddle and one fire pot

 

[sandyut]

those big ones...ooof. never really look at em they are just huge. the Flagship 1100 looks great! sale price is righteous! man, I think I paid $900 for my RT7000, but its not going anywhere anytime soon.

 

[jo83ben]

I decided I’ll stick the the LSG for now since it’s the closest thing to and offset without the hassle of an offset (though as stated I plan on building a large offset too). I’ll keep an eye out for a cheap Craigslist bullseye from recteq because I’m really interested in what they can do. I’ll call recteq and ask about how the temp control works for the smoke stone griddle, because I would very much consider replacing my Blackstone with one. If you’re unsure of or haven’t heard much on the smokestone check out trumpetmaster77 or something like that on YouTube. He has some great videos on the recteq griddle and for sure got me looking down that road.

 

[jo83ben]

I decided I’ll stick the the LSG for now since it’s the closest thing to and offset without the hassle of an offset (though as stated I plan on building a large offset too). I’ll keep an eye out for a cheap Craigslist bullseye from recteq because I’m really interested in what they can do. I’ll call recteq and ask about how the temp control works for the smoke stone griddle, because I would very much consider replacing my Blackstone with one. If you’re unsure of or haven’t heard much on the smokestone check out trumpetmaster77 or something like that on YouTube. He has some great videos on the recteq griddle and for sure got me looking down that road.

Here are two options…..these are the two I have been looking at for my outdoor kitchen…..
View attachment 708214
View attachment 708215

thermostatically controlled keep the grill temp vs air temp on a air temp probe. I don’t know how Recteq does theirs, I would ask them if it is thermostatically controlled vs air probe temp before I would go that route. If RT is measured at the plate temp like the above the. It is the real deal…..if you do call them please report it out!!! I would love to know for future……

We use to have a Wolf IR grill in the kitchen and that is the single most missed kitchen cooking item we want/miss having….

Heard back from recteq on the griddle. They said “All of our smokers will read information from their RTD probes will reads an ambient temperature of the entire barrel.” Im assuming that includes the griddle, so it’s not technically thermostatic control with griddle temps, but I’m still considering it down the road. I wish someone would do a review on it and show temp distribution across the griddle since it’s one heat source.