Question about pellet smokers

Just turn to temp you want to cook at as you can just skip the smoke setting at least on a traeger there will be no smoke flavor that way. If you want smoke flavor for you then just leave it on the smoke setting for awhile.

If you can swing the price of the yoder, do so. Above 350 very little smoke. Below that, 225-275 you can get all OAK which has very low smoke profile. Highly recommend Lumberjack. They can ship a pallet to local dock for much less than local purchase.

Agree with the fruit wood having least impact of smoke flavor and cooks above 300 degrees offer very little smoke.

Why have you dismissed GMG? I've never had an easier to use, trouble free cooker - I even have a remote control where I can check temp and IT while laying in bed. It's well built and pretty efficient.

Ron_L said:

Pellet smokers in general have lighter smoke than other cookers because they burn with a small, very efficient fire. You can also change the flavor a little by the type of pellet. I fruit wood pellet will have lighter smoke than a hickory pellet, for example.

I know that you didn't ask, but if it is between the Traeger and the Yoder, hands down the Yoder. Traeger smokers can do a fine job, but there is a huge difference in build quality between a Traeger and a Yoder.

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He is right on this. Traeger is cheaply built but at the same time it is a very good smoker but even without seeing one in person the yoder is better by far. Although though I love traeger grills yoder is superior. Traeger is a great entry level pellet grill. Great customer service from traeger too. I love them. I think the traeger is equal to the green mountain grills. If I were to bet money you are having a tough time swallowing the cost of a yoder. I have been there and yeah cost always wins and what I feel comfortable with spending. Let me put this in a really good perspective for you. Is this going to be the last smoker you buy for 10+ years? If yes get the Yoder. If it is about 5 years max and you want an upgrade at some point get a Traeger. The traeger will last longer than 5 years. In your other threads you said it is out of necessity to get a pellet grill because of time. I doubt you will be happy with the pellet grill long term. Just a feeling. I love my pellet grill but I am moving to kamado grills due to weather and fuel consumption issues. I am glad I got my traeger it works very well for me when workload is high and I am on 12 hour days. The thing is pellet grills are not my long term grill just to many flaws if you ask me including the yoder. I like fire and I like to tend a fire but it is a nice tool to have when needed. So traeger is a workhorse and it has it's place. I think for me though the kamado grill probably a big green egg will be my long term grill and smoker of choice. For you though I would lean towards the traeger pellet grill as it is a good entry level pellet grill. It puts out good food at a good price. It is entry level and expect huge temp swings which will drive you crazy but as long as it stays in a range of temps don't worry the end product is very good. It will help you determine if pellet grills are for you.

Yoder's have fantastic technical support, so they're always a good call.

As far as pellets and smoke goes, you're also often better off going with a flavored pellet cut a percentage of Oak or Alder vs. 100% flavor woods.

Seth

Yoder shipped out FREE a replacement thermocouple, and I bought my unit used!

Also look at rec-tec , they have a solid cooker as well , I bought my traeger used so I could get an USA made one , it's a great cooker for 350* and less , if you want higher temps Yoder can handle that

Compare this to the Yoder 640

http://greenmountaingrills.com/products/grills/jim-bowie/

On my Yoder I can easily skip the strong smoke flavor by cooking at a higher temp (over 275). The fire burns so cleanly there's very little smoke.

I vote for yoder also. Just a better smoker than a traeger period. As for smoke flavor, you just heard it from those above me. There is nothing to add that has not already been said above ^^^^. I wish you the best with your decision.
Remember, what works for someone else may not work for you. You need to make your own decision as to what works best FOR YOU. BTW, the Yoder is just what works for me.

Can you use q pellet smoker at a KCBS comp? The rules seem like you can't?