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Ributt
Member
USA
528 Posts |
 Posted - 11/13/2011 : 14:10:22
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I need some advice from those that have experience with upright chambers.
I currently have an offset 16x36 smoker and need a little more grate space for family bbqs and friendly neighborhood competitions.
My question is about the Old Country Angus smoker available at Academy stores. It seems like a very reasonable price for what you get.
The pit is 20 x 36 with a 20x18 square firebox and a 20x20x40 upright chamber. It is made with 3/16 steel throughout.
My question has to do with the heat distribution and flow dynamics of an upright chamber added to the side of a standard offset smoker.
How hot can I expect the upright chamber to get. If my horizontal chamber is at 250°, will the upright be a similar temperature? Can I consider the lowest rack in the the upright to be an extension of the horizontal chamber? What kind of temperature variations should I expect between the lowest and the highest racks in the upright? Does all that added space and another large door make the temperature harder to control? How important is it to have the upright door seal very well?
What I really want is just a 20 or 24 X 48 offset. But if I can use the upright section for more than sausage, cheese or for keeping things warm then I will consider buying the old country.
Thank you for any input you might have.
Michael
Aka STS
Brinkmann SnP(soon to be retired)
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hot dawg
Member
USA
140 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 15:16:53
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i have an old country offset. i wish i had waited and got a better cooker.
keeping consistent temperatures is almost impossible! my cooker is less than a year old and after struggling with it for 6 months, i bought a stumps with a guru.
now i let the old country serve as a yard decoration in my back yard, thank gooddness for great cookers like Stumps!
hot dawg |
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Farmdog
Member
1112 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 15:40:47
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At the cost I saw at their web site, you might as well get a Stumps. The Baby is actually cheaper.
Bill
Junction City, KS
Weber 22 inch kettle
Baby Stumps |
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hot dawg
Member
USA
140 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 15:42:06
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and so much better! i love my baby!
hot dawg |
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BigOrangeSmoker
Member
USA
5262 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 16:26:04
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I GOTTA AGREE GET YOU A STUMP,YOU WONT REGRET IT CAUSE STUMP DONT BUILD NO JUNK
Off The Sauce Cookers
Stump Stretch
Orange Nation
Huntsville,Alabama
Eat A Pig Save A Farmer
phil.white@comcast.net
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Ributt
Member
USA
528 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 16:53:26
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Thanks for the stumps suggestions, but that's not the style of smoker i'm after right now. I know of the quality of stumps, and i'm sure I will be in the market for one some day. I am a stick burner and i've just started burning post oak exclusively. So i need an offset. I went to Klose and had a simple 24x40 offset quoted for $3,000. I can't justify spending that much right now so i've been looking at other options and old country looked darned good.
Michael
Aka STS
Brinkmann SnP(soon to be retired)
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mountainpitbbq
Member
China
3217 Posts |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 20:18:21
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I can personally vouch for this offset and it's nowhere near 3k http://www.peoriacookers.com/custom-cookers/backyard-cooker.html
-Dave Putnam Valley NY Peoria Custom Cooker Backyard 24x48 w/ firebox grill NEBS member KCBS certified bbq judge |
Edited by - mountainpitbbq on 11/13/2011 20:19:34 |
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hot dawg
Member
USA
140 Posts |
Posted - 11/14/2011 : 16:42:36
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my old country is a royal pain to try to keep consistent temps, after having such a hard time, i resorted to buiding a big fire and opening the door to let the temp drop when it got too high!
the reason i did this was because if the temp was low it took a couple of hours to get it back up.
the el cheapo Brinkman that i had worn out worked a lot better at a lot lower cost.
im not trying to discourage you, wish someone would have let me know this before i wasted my money on it.
hot dawg |
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FatWilliesBBQ
Member
USA
141 Posts |
Posted - 01/10/2012 : 17:09:39
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Rib,
I swear by the stumps product as well. If you cannot afford a Stumps Plat. offset cooker, the next best thing I would think would be a Lang. I have a Lang 60D and yes you do have to constantly attend the fire. If its windy or the weathers bad, fagetaboutit.....Ive seen welders blankets, ceramic bricks and all other "modifications" to get the temps to hold steady. IMHO, wait until you can pull the trigger on a insulated box like a stumps. Its worth the wait and it will hold temp like you will not believe...and I mean that...I had no idea that a cooker could hold to temp like a stumps..
Bill Thomas
Lang60D
Char-griller Pro (now with MOD's)
Stumps STRETCH with STOKER
Stumps Baby With Stoker
http://www.fatwilliesbbq.com
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Edited by - FatWilliesBBQ on 01/10/2012 17:09:59 |
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hogzillas
Member
United Kingdom
1655 Posts |
Posted - 01/10/2012 : 21:19:07
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Stump's build some offset ones as well. I've had the 2x3 reverse flow offset & Stump gave me a great deal on it but that was years ago & have hated every minute since I sold it. It would be his equivelant of a Lang48 Patio I guess for just backyard cooking but able to do a contest if you wanted to do it. He also has some other backyard grills that you can set up to use like a smoker that you could probably use smaller chunks of wood instead of logs in.
"If you go to a BBQ place & they have a seafood salad on the menu, don't eat the BBQ!"
Los Cerdos Locos
KCBS CBJ
FBA CBJ
BDS 2336
Traeger Jr
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Cactus1
Member
USA
1630 Posts |
Posted - 01/11/2012 : 08:01:31
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Ributt
I'm a backyard guy who cooks for the pleasure of me, my family, and friends. I do not compete or vend. I am not highly technical. I am a Weber guy. Look at some of the posts on the 22 1/2" WSM here and at the Weber Virtual Bullet. I did some basic mods, that cost me less than $50, and my first cook this past weekend on mine and I think it's great! Weber's price is $499 but they're on Amazon for $399 with free shipping - that's where my wife got mine. This may be the cooker that you are looking for.
* IHP Cactus Farm & Sauce Shack *
" A Balanced Diet Is A Rib Bone In One Hand
And ... Uh ... Oh Yeah ... Maybe A Chicken Wing In The Other!"
Member - IBS, Nelsen's Hall Bitter's Club, & West Side Rooters Social Club
Whatever You Do - Wherever You Go - Have A Great One! |
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SWATPigBBQ
Member
USA
288 Posts |
Posted - 01/12/2012 : 10:00:55
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I am not trying to be partial but the American Barbecue Systems Judge I won at the American Royal this last fall has been cooking like a champ. I can get 2 1/2 to 3 hour burns on charcoal and wood with no problems. Also everything I have been cooking on it has a lot better look and even taste. I have sold my Lang 84 fake and another one and now I just use this one. It is nice.
Jeremy from Missouri the REAL home of BBQ!
CBJ-KCBS.
SWAT Pig BBQ Team!
American Barbecue Systems "Judge" Pit
"The true test of BBQ is not the amount of people who love your BBQ because it is free but it is the ones who have to pay for it and still enjoy it."
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BILLYBONESBBQ
Moderator
USA
1707 Posts |
Posted - 01/12/2012 : 14:27:53
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SOMETIMES WE TALK OURSELVES INTO SPENDING $3,000 FOR A COOKER MUCH LIKE BUYING AAN ENGAGEMENT RING.FOR THAT SPECIAL SOMEONE. THE ONLY WAY YOUR GOING TO LEARN RIGHT FROM WRONG IS TO GO AHEAD AND BUY THE DAMN THING, IGNORING THE BEST ADVICE OF YOUR FRIENDS. AFTER YOU HAVE SPENT A FEW NIGHTS WITH HER ER AH ER AH 'THE OFFSET" WILL YOU BEGIN TO WISH YOU HAD BOUGHT CUBIC ZIRCONIUM ..  
locate billy in Red Keg, michigan - half way between Paradise and Hell |
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Cactus1
Member
USA
1630 Posts |
Posted - 01/12/2012 : 15:23:39
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Never wish I bought cubic zircronium. I've had a couple cheaper off-sets - a New Braunfels & a Char-Griller Super Pro. Never got the hang of them - consequently never liked them. I no longer have them.
* IHP Cactus Farm & Sauce Shack *
" A Balanced Diet Is A Rib Bone In One Hand
And ... Uh ... Oh Yeah ... Maybe A Chicken Wing In The Other!"
Member - IBS, Nelsen's Hall Bitter's Club, & West Side Rooters Social Club
Whatever You Do - Wherever You Go - Have A Great One!
22 1/2" Weber One Touch Silver (my "go to grill"), 26 3/4" Weber One Touch Gold, 18 1/2" WSM (with basic mods), 22 1/2" WSM (with basic mods), 1970's era Weber Kettle (rescued from & at my Dad's in Ohio - my cooker when I'm there), MasterBuilt Digital Electric |
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bobberqer
Member
USA
11268 Posts |
Posted - 01/13/2012 : 05:39:56
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quote:
Originally posted by BILLYBONESBBQ
SOMETIMES WE TALK OURSELVES INTO SPENDING $3,000 FOR A COOKER MUCH LIKE BUYING AAN ENGAGEMENT RING.FOR THAT SPECIAL SOMEONE. THE ONLY WAY YOUR GOING TO LEARN RIGHT FROM WRONG IS TO GO AHEAD AND BUY THE DAMN THING, IGNORING THE BEST ADVICE OF YOUR FRIENDS. AFTER YOU HAVE SPENT A FEW NIGHTS WITH HER ER AH ER AH 'THE OFFSET" WILL YOU BEGIN TO WISH YOU HAD BOUGHT CUBIC ZIRCONIUM ..
locate billy in Red Keg, michigan - half way between Paradise and Hell
now THAT's funny!!!
whoddathunk???
FBA Member
Cant you'll talk faster, or at the least, hear faster?
100% North of the Mason Dixon Line |
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Old country smokers
