Hi Smokebuzz!...
Go with the 84!!...There's nothing worse than later wishing you had the extra cooking space, and then kicking yourself because you didn't get it!!...
The 60D has approx. 11.5 sq. ft. of grate area in the chamber and will hold 100 lbs. of food (120 lbs. max). This is
not counting the cooking space in the Deluxe Warmer.
The 84D has approx. 22.75 sq. ft. of grate area in the chamber and therefore should hold approx. 195 lbs. of food (about 235 lbs. max). This
again is
not counting the cooking space in the Deluxe Warmer.
Remember that the 84 has a door on
both sides of the chamber so that you can work with your meats from the center of the grates outward.
Temps will generally stay within 10* or less end to end, dependant on weather and conditions.
As to fuel consumption...During a telephone conversation I had with Ben Lang about 2 months ago, I asked about how much more wood is required to fire the 84, relative to the 60. He told me that it took no more wood for the 84 than it did for the 60...So the 84 should be fairly economical on wood.
Additionally...If chicken would sometimes be on the menu, just remember that the reverse flow cookers will not crisp up the skin...so you might want to consider the Char-Grill option also. As the chicken comes off the smoker you could place it on the grill for a couple minutes to crisp the skin, and add a few grill marks for presentation.
There are some threads here that have pics of Lang 60's in use. I'll edit this post to include the link to some of those threads shortly.
Hopefully this info will help in your decision making process. Others of our SMF family will probably be along shortly with more info also.
Until later...
------------------------------EDIT------------------------------
Here are some links to Lang threads with pics!...
nmayeux's Lang 60:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ead.php?t=1195
And more pics of Noah's Lang 60 in use near the bottom of the page at the Lang website:
http://www.pigroast.com/
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ead.php?t=3924 Pages 7 - 10 here.
Ga.RoadHog's new Lang 84:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ead.php?t=7026
Read the posts here... No. 1 and No. 4 in particular:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...=Lang+for+sale
Again...Hope this helps!...
Until later...