Offsets, Trailers, Green Eggs ohh my!

            So today I am going to hopefully clear up some confusion on the best smoker for the beginner. Should I go buy a huge oversized trailer smoker, one of them fancy green eggs or a gas smoker? Too many choices I know. Keep in mind ANYONE that tells you that xyz is the BEST choice is giving purely an opinion. There are just far too many choices when it comes to smokers. They all have one function and that is to create an indirect heat and every smoker I have seen on the market does just that. You could pull a Walter Jetton and just dig a hole in your backyard if you don’t feel like investing the money yet, that hole still serves the same function of creating an indirect heat.

            The first smoker I used was a BDS (Big Drum Smoker) an old 55gal drum my father and I cut up and made a smoker out of. This thing was nothing fancy and was a typical vertical smoker. We used it till the bottom burnt out, patched it and used it some more. When my wife and I first moved into our house I got my first offset horizontal smoker. I wanted this smoker because in my mind a real smoker is a horizontal offset, that is just what I see in my head, always have always will. So my best advice is getting the style you see yourself using. If you don’t like the looks or the style of an offset get whatever style you see in your minds eye, because you will then be more likely to use it.

            As for things to look for, that is kind of a hard question. You want one that is soundly made. Areas I look at are weld points (is it just spot welded or is it welded inside and out), how thick is the metal (the thinner it is the more you will have to baby it in windy/cold conditions), how big is the firebox (is it big enough to accommodate full size logs? Trust me the cost savings in the ability to burn full size logs is worth it), etc. Now keep in mind all these things are truly not REQUIRED to create amazing BBQ, I have made brisket that was just as good as the brisket I make on a $600 smoker, on a tiny 426 sq. in. $70 Char-Broil Wal-Mart special. So if you are not sure go on the cheap follow this guide and before long you can upgrade to a nicer made smoker that will last your entire life. My current smoker is 5/8” wall and I plan to pass it down to my son.

            In the short there is no huge winner in style of smoker. If you don’t like the idea of playing with fire all day long, get a gas or electric smoker, the deal is get what you see yourself using. Don’t worry too much about any major short comings because as we will discuss in my next tip most any short comings can be fixed with a few mods. Just make sure if you plan to keep the smoker for a long time that it is soundly built and if you plan to get a fire box that will take full size logs make sure the hinges, handles, etc are strong and will withstand the extra heat.