Smoker questions

[BKING!]

So I’ve searched this forum and have got some insight already but would like some more opinions.

I’m looking to get an insulated charcoal smoker. The smoker will be used for charity events, church gatherings, catering, and competition. I have tried gas, pellet, electric, direct charcoal (drums), indirect charcoal, and stickburners. I prefer stickburners and charcoal indirect. However I will not have the time to manage a fire and food at the same time (my last event proved that) so I’m looking for an insulated charcoal smoker.

1. Gravity fed vs standard charcoal basket.
2. Anyone successfully use lump in a gravity feed without bridging?
3. 304 gauge stainless steel inside and out a waste? Does it rust? Which holds up better in the long term, powder coated steel or stainless? What about the inside of the firebox , carbon steel or stainless?
4. Aluminum vs painted steel trailer?

Any insight or opinion is very welcome. I sincerely mean this as I have no idea what direction to take.

If I can figure out the answer to these then I may have a couple more questions for you guys:)

 

[drunkenmeatfist]

I wish I could give more help, but I am still in the research stage for my next purchase. It seems to me that Humphrey's and Lone Star Grillz are making popular cabinet smokers. Looks like they work very well with a temp controller and you can mostly forget about tending to fire for very long periods. I'm sure you already knew this though.

 

[BKING!]

I wish I could give more help, but I am still in the research stage for my next purchase. It seems to me that Humphrey's and Lone Star Grillz are making popular cabinet smokers. Looks like they work very well with a temp controller and you can mostly forget about tending to fire for very long periods. I'm sure you already knew this though.

I am between the Myron Mixon g33 trailer, large lone star grills cabinet trailer, and the assassin 6ft hog trailer.
To further complicate things I am considering the all stainless g33 or all stainless lsg cabinet versions. I am also looking at rack spacing as well.

I’ll give you an example. Normal set up for a g33 is 11 rack runners at 3.5 inch spacing. With configuration I can do 30+ butts or 22 hotel pans. Or I can do 7 rack runners at 5.5 inch spacing and do 42 butts or 14 hotel pans. I can either do more big meats in one configuration or more small meats or hotel pans in another. With more racks I also won’t need warmers or coolers as I will have the room to just pull pans of cooked meats and sides out of a 180 deg smoker as I can have the cooker run at whatever temp I want with a guru. Then I can just pull them out as needed. I would have the capability of keeping 330+ pounds of food warm at once but would only be able to cook 30-35 butts at once vs 40-45 butts. But with more racks I could do 66 racks of ribs vs 42 racks. I have a lot of thinking to do lol.

 

[BKING!]

Bump. Any insight on any of the points would be great. I believe I have decided on just a charcoal basket as opposed to gravity feed. I wouldn’t have to worry about charcoal bridging, starting the charcoal with a torch, or waiting for enough ash to fall onto the wood in the ash pan to get a clean smoke. Now just trying to decide:

1. How big I should go with smoker size.
2. If stainless steel is worth the extra cost.

Any opinions are welcome.

 

[BKING!]

Bump I’ve decided on an insulated cabinet non gravity feed and non stainless inside and out. Several coats of high temp pain is just as protective as stainless on the exterior and as long as I keep the firebox, grates, basket, and cooking chamber seasoned I should have no worries. Plus stainless can still rust as it’s not stain proof but stain less. It is also more expensive. I know what size I want now and believe I’ll go with a dual chamber model so I can cook/warm/hold meat and sides at 2 different temps or have both sections cook/warm/hold at the same temp. Now just deciding when to pull the trigger on the build. I’m guessing it will take 20 weeks for it to be built.