I just purchased a Yoder YS-640 May 1st. It has been a fun journey the last month. I already have a fridge smoker, that does well at slow long cooks, but does not do a great job at finishing things wrapped in bacon, or chicken. I wanted a smoker to add to the equipment that could do some searing and both grill and smoke.
I picked up the grill from a local supplier, I have grilled on it and seared the meats. Standard stuff like chicken breast, hamburgers, steaks, and brats/sausages. I have cooked pulled pork. Made Thai peanut butter, Teriyaki sesame seed chicken legs. This weekend I did a Mexican meatloaf, and also stuffed pabalano peppers. I tried smoking potatoes chips like jeff had suggested on his videos.
I did buy the following with the Yoder.
1. 1/2 top shelf. Has worked out good. I never used the top shelf on regular grills. But I have used it on the yoder.
2. 2 piece diffuser plate (the one with the door on it. Great of cleaning in between cooks, and I remove the door plate when I want to sear.
3. Searing grates, 2 sets to cover the whole grill. Works good when I am Grilling without the diffuser plate. Nice hot grill surface all the way across the grilling surface.
4. Stainless steal drip tray for the front of the Yoder and Stainless Steel shelf covers. These are great for keeping the front of the grill clean and keeping a mess of off the Cement porch.
So far I love the smoker although I have had 2 problems with it. Yoder customer service was fantastic. Friendly and quick to respond.
1. Straping down the Yoder in my pickup, I broke the antenna. Yoder had one shipped out free of charge immediately.
2. After my first smoke, I notice oil(grease) dripping from under the main body. Called Yoder and they shipped me out a tube of their high temp chalk, and I had it repaired in less than a week.
The Yoder holds temps fairly well. This is my first pellet smoker I have every had. I saved up for it over 15 months. I have a friend that has a Traeger that caught fire, had a lot of problems in the winter holding temps. I wanted this to be a one time purchase. I did not want to make a mistake on my purchase. I like the bottom storage shelf on the YS640, I found a storage tote that is 7 inches high and slides to the shelf. I put all of the things I need for the Yoder in the storage container, I pull it off the shelf and pull the things I need out. After cooking and the grill is all cleaned up and cooled down, I slide the container back on the shelf, and cover the smoker.
I do wish the smoker had the larger tires, like on the competition grill. But it is still manageable in the concrete.
For a cover, I purchase one from walmart, I turn the exhaust tube down, and the cover slides right on. It is a classical Accsessory grill cover. I bought one for the old weber girl, and it has lasted 5 years and looks in great shape. Not bad for $35.
