Howdy from East Texas!

[musicalmeatman]

Greetings Smokers! It is an absolute pleasure to meet you all. Cant wait to hear some of the great wisdom that you will all be able to share with me.

My name is Adam Arciniega and I am from Tyler, Texas: home of the world-famous Greenberg Smoked Turkey. However, make no mistake: the rich east texas heritage of smokers and bbq masters that I have does not reflect on my own personal skill. Sadly, I am a newbie with a capital N.

Sure I can grill, but I much prefer smoked meat than grilled. That's why I've come here. I'm actually so new to smoking that I have not yet bought my smoker. Sure, I've looked around. I've even gotten a few ideas as to what I want to get. However, I need advice here as well. I want the authentic smoke flavor that a charcoal/wood smoker has to offer, but I love the ease of use that an electric smoker offers. Is there a huge difference in the flavor produced by these two types of smokers? Is the difference worth the extra effort required to "do it right"? I would love to hear advice on what you think would be good for a beginner. Do also bear in mind that whichever smoker I decide to go with, it will be a fairly cheap one. Not cheap as in like 40 bucks, but a nice happy medium-cheap like $150 or $200. And now, my mind is open. Please fill it with wisdom!

 

[SmokinAl]

Welcome to SMF. There are a lot of very friendly & knowledgeable folks here to help you. I urge you to sign up for the free E-course. It will give you the basics, & even if you are an experienced smoker you may learn something new. Then start asking questions. Good luck & glad to have you aboard. Don't forget we all love Qview!   

As for the smoker, if you can afford it a Weber Smoky Mountain is a very good charcoal/wood smoker, and yes there is a difference in taste. The WSM is very easy to operate, it holds steady temps without much work. There are 2 models, 18.5" about $299, and 22.5" about $399. If you catch them on sale they may be $50 less. 

 

[fpnmf]

Welcome!!

  Craig

 

[beer-b-q]

Welcome to SMF, Glad to have you with us.
 

This is the place to learn, lots of good info and helpful friendly Members.
 

For those of you new to Smoking, be sure to check out Jeff's 5 Day Smoking Basics eCourse.

Click Here it's "FREE" ... 5 Day eCourseE



Also for those of you new to smoking,  Get a good Probe Thermometer as we smoke by Temperature NOT TIME.



A good choice for a remote dual probe thermometer is the Maverick ET-732

 

[eman]

Welcome Adam to SMF!!!

  You have the delima that alot if not most of us have had.

 I have owned a decent SFB coal / stick burner , a cheap coal upright and an MES 40".

 The mes is by far the easiest and least work to use and it puts out some real good smoked meat.

 That being said, the SFB put out better tasting / looking  smokes .

the down side to the sfb i had was it took alot more tending the fire.

If you get into the upper end stick burners Langs, Bubbas etc. once you get the fire going they require very little tending.

But the upper end SFB run in the 3k to 4k range depending on options chosen.

 

[junkers88]

I'm a rookie here also (huge R on the front of that word) and I went with a Brinkmann Smoke n Pit from Home Depot for 140$. So far so good although I've only done little smokes here and there over the last few weeks. I'll be doing a small beef smoke here in about an hour since I'm a firm believer in start small and work your way up, don't want to ruin 15lbs of meat on my first real attempt. Welcome and have fun!

 

[musicalmeatman]

Everyone,
Thanks so much for all of your greetings and helpful advice. I am looking forward to getting a smoker that will fit my needs and my skill level. You folks have helped immensely. I will certainly be signing up for the ecourse as I could use all the pointers that I can get. Thanks again for all the advice. It has been a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Or, as we say down in texas, "Nice to meet y'all!"

 

[Fife]

Yes there is alot of great wisdom here. SOMEWHERE???? Just kidding I have learned alot being here for the past month and I am sure you will also.

 

[whtplainssmoker]

I'm using the cheapo Brinkman and it's ok.  But as Al points out the WSM is very much recommended for a relatively modest price.   I know several people that own it and they all swear by it.

 

[roller]

Welcome Adam !!! Man those Greenberg Smoked Turkeys are something to behold...

 

[meateater]

Welcome to the SMF. Glad to have you here. Lots of good folks, great recipes and knowledge. Looking forward to your first qview.

 

[pops6927]

Welcome to our family, revel in getting addicted!

 

[breeves]

Welcome to SMF

As a fellow newbie I can attest to the addiction and I spend all week longing to smoke something :)

I have found that aside from the smoker itself, the tools and other supplies seem to be a good expense as well.