Thinking of upgrading to RT 1250 from MES

[TShepp84]

I may finally be ready to pull the trigger on the 1250 that I’ve been scoping for 8 months

I have a Weber Spirit for steaks, chicken, brats plus 40” MES with pellet tray I’ve used for a few years to do pork ribs and butts but not much else. The MES has served me well for learning basics and starting out but have lately been toying with the idea of “upgrading” to something new and have had my eye on Recteq for a while. My main complaint with the MES is having to mess around with making sure the pellet is set up right and stays lit and not being able to get higher temps to properly do wings or things like pizzas. I posted on the RT FB group and a few said “do it” while others said I might not gain much beyond what I can do today for such a bit expense. I know that with a pellet grill I might have to add smoke anyway and believe it’s easier to dry things out whereas the MES keeps a ton of moisture in it. I’d love to hear any feedback from experience in moving from a MES/vertical electric to pellet grill.

 

[02ebz06]

No experience with either, but now would be the time if you are going to take the leap, they are on sale.

 

[TShepp84]

No experience with either, but now would be the time if you are going to take the leap, they are on sale.

I should have added that is why I’m considering the splurge right at this moment

 

[smokerjim]

I have a mes 30 makes great food, then I got a pitboss pellet smoker/grill thinking it was an upgrade but as usual I was wrong yes it works fine, use a pellet tube for extra smoke but in my opinion it doesn't match up to mes. This is just my opinion, I have no experience with the req tec

 

[TShepp84]

I have a mes 30 makes great food, then I got a pitboss pellet smoker/grill thinking it was an upgrade but as usual I was wrong yes it works fine, use a pellet tube for extra smoke but in my opinion it doesn't match up to mes. This is just my opinion, I have no experience with the rec teq

Thank you for the reply. That is somewhat my concern is that I have something that works for the few things that I smoke now. It would be nice to have higher temps and do chicken, pizzas, and other but that’s a lot of investment for a maybe

 

[smokerjim]

Thank you for the reply. That is somewhat my concern is that I have something that works for the few things that I smoke now. It would be nice to have higher temps and do chicken, pizzas, and other but that’s a lot of investment for a maybe

You could just smoke your chicken for 45-60 minutes at 180 or so to get the smoke flavor and then finsh in a hot oven or grill to get it crispy.

 

[SmokinAl]

I have a RT 1250, and love it. I went from a Lang to the RT. I don’t use a smoke tube & use the extreme smoke option for most cooks. It is a fantastic machine, however it is huge!
If I knew how big it was I think I would have bought a smaller one, but all the extra space is nice & it doesn’t use a lot of pellets. If you do buy one don’t buy the RT pellets. Lumberjack pellets are the best in my opinion. The only other thing I was not happy with is the cover, it deteriorated in under one year. I called RT customer service & they sent me a new cover, no questions asked. So I have to say that they make a very good unit & their CS is exceptional.
Al

 

[jcam222]

If high temps, smoke that almost rivals a stick burner and set and forget are your goals I’d suggest you check out the Masterbuilt Gravity Feed. I love my stick burner now but if I ever add a set and forget it will be one of those. Buddies bbq out of it is hard to tell from stick burner results.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Interesting that Rec Teq has a sale going on, right in the middle of the peak buying season for grills/smokers.

I saw that PK Grills had the 300 priced at $460 the other day. Big discount.

Home Depot reported grill sales off in the first quarter and they have a large inventory. They've marked down the Masterbuilt Gravity 560 and 800 by $100.

Lowes reported first quarter this morning, and while they beat estimates they're saying sales are off and they expect a decline.

Home improvement and grill sales were way up during the pandemic when people were spending a lot of time at home and could not travel. Now its in decline.

Its looking like we should see some grill/smoker sale prices.

 

[jcam222]

Interesting that Rec Teq has a sale going on, right in the middle of the peak buying season for grills/smokers.

I saw that PK Grills had the 300 priced at $460 the other day. Big discount.

Home Depot reported grill sales off in the first quarter and they have a large inventory. They've marked down the Masterbuilt Gravity 560 and 800 by $100.

Lowes reported first quarter this morning, and while they beat estimates they're saying sales are off and they expect a decline.

Home improvement and grill sales were way up during the pandemic when people were spending a lot of time at home and could not travel. Now its in decline.

Its looking like we should see some grill/smoker sale prices.

In general the second half bounce back in spending many anticipated is not happening. Most companies are now looking at a second round of labor cutbacks for the 2nd half. Deals should be out there on many things for sure.

 

[hooked on smoke]

If high temps, smoke that almost rivals a stick burner and set and forget are your goals I’d suggest you check out the Masterbuilt Gravity Feed. I love my stick burner now but if I ever add a set and forget it will be one of those. Buddies bbq out of it is hard to tell from stick burner results.

I have an Masterbuilt Gravity 800 and really like it. I've had several MES 30's and 40's as well as a Brinkmann Trailmaster Limited Edition. I must say the gravity is my favorite. Good smoke profile with ease of use. There is the switch issues, which I fortunately have not had problems with, yet. But its the right unit for me hands down.
Good luck on whatever you decide on. Happy smoking.

 

[TShepp84]

I have an Masterbuilt Gravity 800 and really like it. I've had several MES 30's and 40's as well as a Brinkmann Trailmaster Limited Edition. I must say the gravity is my favorite. Good smoke profile with ease of use. There is the switch issues, which I fortunately have not had problems with, yet. But its the right unit for me hands down.
Good luck on whatever you decide on. Happy smoking.

Thanks for the input. I keep hearing more about these and getting the recommendations for it so I think I’m going to take a serious look. Academy has them on the showroom floor so I might head over there and check them out.

 

[jcam222]

Thanks for the input. I keep hearing more about these and getting the recommendations for it so I think I’m going to take a serious look. Academy has them on the showroom floor so I might head over there and check them out.

You may hear a lot of chatter on issues with switches or electronics on them. It’s like most things, you often only hear the bad. I sold a dozen of these a year and a half or so ago. Of the dozen one person lost a board on it which MB replaced promptly. The rest have run flawlessly. The food I’ve had off them is honestly incredible.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I replaced all three of the switches on my Masterbuilt 560. Total cost for all three, $21 from Amazon. And maybe 30 minutes of time. Was easy to do. That's the only problem I've had with my 2 yo smoker.

I would not get the 560. First reason is its too small. The bottom grate is almost useless for smoking as it gets radiant heat from the manifold. Its better on the middle grate anyway, gets good convection there. You will be wanting to upgrade to the 800 or 1050.

Second reason may not be a concern for most, but from what I can tell, the 560 has very little resale value. I'm gonna be selling mine and from the info I gather, they won't bring much if they can be sold.

 

[jcam222]

It was the 1050s I sold and my buddy has. Lots of room in it. Bigger is better haha

 

[clifish]

It was the 1050s I sold and my buddy has. Lots of room in it. Bigger is better haha

only issue i have with my MB800 is the dial to set temp/time does not work, I can use the app to control that. Have not a chance to ask MB about that but i am sure they will make it right.

 

[civilsmoker]

I have a RT 1250, and love it. I went from a Lang to the RT. I don’t use a smoke tube & use the extreme smoke option for most cooks. It is a fantastic machine, however it is huge!
If I knew how big it was I think I would have bought a smaller one, but all the extra space is nice & it doesn’t use a lot of pellets. If you do buy one don’t buy the RT pellets. Lumberjack pellets are the best in my opinion. The only other thing I was not happy with is the cover, it deteriorated in under one year. I called RT customer service & they sent me a new cover, no questions asked. So I have to say that they make a very good unit & their CS is exceptional.
Al

I'm in he RT1250 camp like Al and it is a solid cooker and I have no issue recommending it at all! They happen to be on sale at the moment..... In the end its your choice on how you want to cook, but for me an my lifestyle, having a pellet is number one, but I still have the Copper Pot reverse flow and vertical combo and X-Fire wood fire grill, oh and my GMG pellet, oh and little black pig reverse flow, oh and I can't for get my little char giller...... Good luck on your decision and the only advise I will give is once you have made your choice, don't overthink if you made three right choice, just enjoy it!!!!!

 

[chopsaw]

You may hear a lot of chatter on issues with switches or electronics on them. It’s like most things, you often only hear the bad

July will be 2 years with the Dreaded Weber SmokeFire . I use it constantly , and have only had to replace the igniter once . No other issues .

In the end its your choice on how you want to cook, but for me an my lifestyle, having a pellet is number one,

Never had any idea how much I would love a pellet grill . Easy , controllable and makes fantastic food .