Pellet Smoker Recommendation for Family of 3 under $500

[Olympus]

Hey guys, I'm looking to replace my GMG Daniel Boone that I've had for the last 10 years. I've replaced the ignitor and auger assembly a couple times already and today my auger assembly went out again. So I'm just going to replace it with something else. I'm strictly a backyard smoker, not a competition guy. It's just me, my wife, and our 5 year old son. I don't smoke large amounts of food very often, especially now that I got a Blackstone griddle (that's another story). I'd prefer to stay closer to the $400 if that's possible. I have a smaller Weber charcoal grill that I use for high temp grilling, so I very, very rarely used my current smoker for actual grilling. Most of what I smoke is pork shoulder, pork loin, chicken thighs, and briskets. I don't do ribs very often and I think I've only smoked a chicken and turkey one time in the last 10 years. I'm definitely sticking with pellet smokers because of simplicity and ease of use. I'm not interested in charcoal or stick smokers right now. I also do not want to go over $500 and prefer to stay closer to $400 if that's possible. Any recommendations would be appreciated!

 

[jcam222]

Since you grill on your Weber and are set on a pellet smoker perhaps a Pit Boss Cabinet?

 

[civilsmoker]

The masterbuilt gravity 560 is close to that price point and many forum users really like it......

Edit....ops it’s not a pellet but simple to use.....I don’t know if too many pellets in the 4 bills price point....

 

[reformedvegan]

I'm becoming a big fan on my Pit Boss 700S. Thats over your price point, but a smaller model should be more than adequate for you. The 700 is really bigger than I need - even for dinner parties or cookouts. These pellet cookers aren't dedicated smokers, and I prefer to do high temp grilling on my Weber kettle too, but it can be mighty convenient to turn the dial up for a reverse sear after smoking for a couple hours, like I did on my tri-tips this weekend. I went with Pit Boss over the competition at this price point because of the more substantial construction and the porcelain coated cast iron grates. I viewed Traegers in a local showroom, but they just seemed "flimsier" to me. If you get a Pit Boss pellet cooker, be sure to check out my thread on the initial burn off so you don't make the same mistake I did! Even though this procedure was unclear to me the way it was written in the manual, the Pit Boss customer service has been absolutely great.

- Jon

 

[Buttah Butts]

Save up and get a Rec tec. You won’t regret it

 

[mike243]

Been very happy with my PB, they have a 5 year warranty on all of the sizes I believe, some of the others don't get that amount of time unless you get the upper end models , I have enjoyed mine with every thing I have cooked.

 

[sandyut]

Save up and get a Rec tec. You won’t regret it

Second on this!

 

[Dr. Dobbins]

I would go with the pitboss cabinet they can hold large amounts of pellets. Won’t break the bank, and if you ever want can do a lot of food. Plus the cost is within your budget.

 

[Olympus]

I’m looking at 3 options right now. Looks like I have to be at the $500 mark. Not much I’m interested in I’m the $400 mark.

Walmart has the Pit Boss Austin XL for $500.
Academy has the Pit Boss 820 for $500
Ace Hardware has a Traeger Pro 22 for $550

I was not crazy about the Pit Boss grates. They have 3 piece grates that had a lot of slop and they slid around a lot. I also don’t have a need for the direct flame deal that slides open and closed. Seemed kind of “gimmicky” to me.

 

[Buttah Butts]

Do yourself a favor and avoid the traeger at all costs!!

 

[Lonzinomaker]

I get a lot better smoke flavor with my Smokin-It smoker than I do with my Pellet Smoker (GMG). And it is a lot easier to use.

 

[reformedvegan]

I’m looking at 3 options right now. Looks like I have to be at the $500 mark. Not much I’m interested in I’m the $400 mark.

Walmart has the Pit Boss Austin XL for $500.
Academy has the Pit Boss 820 for $500
Ace Hardware has a Traeger Pro 22 for $550

I was not crazy about the Pit Boss grates. They have 3 piece grates that had a lot of slop and they slid around a lot. I also don’t have a need for the direct flame deal that slides open and closed. Seemed kind of “gimmicky” to me.

You can bet you'd probably never use the flame broiler feature on the PB if you have a weber kettle. Yes, a bit of a gimmick, but it does provide a convenient window to check the fire pot to see if it needs to be cleaned or if you have a problem down there - without having to remove the entire heat deflector.

The grates on my PB are two piece. They are great and fit tightly with zero slop, so you may want to check other models, or perhaps you saw a display model that had the incorrect grates installed.

 

[Olympus]

Do yourself a favor and avoid the traeger at all costs!!

Can you explain why?

 

[Inscrutable]

I came very close to getting a Pit Boss Pro series vertical pellet at Lowe’s (think pretty much same as the 5-series one at WalMart)
(FWIW, I went electric so I can control heat and smoke separately/independently)

Anyway, that one is huge, inside your target budget (389), 5yr warranty, and good customer service ... worth a look.

Masterbuilt and Louisiana Grills make one but over your budget.

might be others(?)

 

[Buttah Butts]

Can you explain why?

They are not what they once were as far as quality. They are living off there name and have fallen behind much of the other manufacturers. I had a Pro 780 and it was horrible at keeping a consistent temp it would fluctuate 30 to 50 degrees either way and flame out on occasion. I tried several different pellets etc. Got sick of the Traeger and got a GMG Daniel Boone, it was much better than the Traeger but still had temp issues. I finally got a Rec Tec and have had no issues with it keeping a consistent temp. It was an expensive lesson learned

 

[sandyut]

Do yourself a favor and avoid the traeger at all costs!!

my feeling as well.

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

civilsmoker mentioned it above but you might do a little research on Masterbuilt 560. Right at the $500 price point and people seem to love them. Gravity fed charcoal smoker with just as much ease as a pellet rig. Wifi controls and all that jazz. Sorry I know you said you are only interested in those three pellet models but just throwing it out there. Looking at one myself.

 

[Dr. Dobbins]

Pitboss vertical you will have enough money for a cover and several bags of pellets. I have every grill type that burns fuel charcoal gas stick burner pellet. The pitboss pellet smoker rivals my stick burner with smoke taste without the ordeal of managing a fire.

 

[JWFokker]

Pit Boss Copperhead vertical sounds like what you're looking for. They're actually a bit better at smoking than the horizontal grill units for the money and are larger capacity too. The grill models with the flame broil feature also have a hotspot above the firepot because they have no box style heat diffuser around the firepot, only a grease pan.

Btw, Louisiana Grills is Pit Boss, just a different label.

 

[bigfurmn]

I have a PB 1000SC (similar to Austin XL). I love it. Never had any issues with the three part grates, it does make it easier to take them out. I think two bigger ones would be heavy and awkward. I've done just about everything on this grill. 20lb brisket to hot dogs. It does a very good job for the price. Would I have a Rec Tec 700 if I could afford it? Absolutely! Instead I have a six month old son, I think I'll keep him. Lol.