Those of you with giant mega trailer smokers...

[SGH]

To me smokers are like guns. The more you have, the better. There are times and some occasions that I actually need the capacity. But it's few and far between. I like having a trailered rig to pull to work to cook or for some events that I do. A trailered rig makes life easy when you do need mobil capacity. And like someone already said above, it's just enjoyable cooking on a large stick burner at times rather you need the capacity or not.

 

[jbounds286]

$10,000 for a smoker? if your spending that much on a smoker you're a complete moron...especially with the other high quality pits out there for way less than half of that....i bought mine for about $3500...do i use the capacity? no...not yet..but i will...one day....and its nice to have for my wifes immediate family ofr 25 people...so yea...its a great buy and wasnt really that much money..not to mention the trailer isnt THAT much wider than the wagon wheel cart

 

[rdstoll]

For me it basically came down to flexibility. When I was looking for an upgrade from my UDS I looked at a number of patio models of some of the better pitmakers that many talk about on here. I wanted to get a quality reverse flow pit.

Once I started looking I noticed that the price differential between a really good patio model and a modestly bigger one on a trailer wasn't a huge jump. I don't cater or run a business but when I thought about having a bigger trailer pit that I could use for church events and large family parties I thought it was worth it to go with a trailer.

I was also interested in competing some day - which I'm practicing for this year - so I thought having a trailer pit would be worth it.

 

[jlane]

Thats how it translated for me also.

Yup. This site is a place for everyone regardless of social-economic status, religion, race or what have you. This thread brings nothing to the table and should be avoided. Just my opinion, of course.

 

[Brew-Bq]

For $300 or less a UDS will handle 11 people no problem. No need to think bigger if you dont want to. Hell I know guys who buy enough weed in a year to buy a Shirley! Now who has a smoking problem?:wink:

 

[Dedbrd]

Holy cow!!! Seems that just about everyone that replied is running a Shirley!!! That's awesome!! :clap:

 

[jbounds286]

Holy cow!!! Seems that just about everyone that replied is running a Shirley!!! That's awesome!! :clap:

with good reason...once u see one in person...theres no turning back lol

 

[spedly]

I got the biggest, most awesome cooker I could get past my wife without a lengthy conversation. Happy wife=happy life.

 

[AZRaptor]

$10,000 for a smoker? if your spending that much on a smoker you're a complete moron...especially with the other high quality pits out there for way less than half of that....i bought mine for about $3500...do i use the capacity? no...not yet..but i will...one day....and its nice to have for my wifes immediate family ofr 25 people...so yea...its a great buy and wasnt really that much money..not to mention the trailer isnt THAT much wider than the wagon wheel cart

For me it basically came down to flexibility. When I was looking for an upgrade from my UDS I looked at a number of patio models of some of the better pitmakers that many talk about on here. I wanted to get a quality reverse flow pit.

Once I started looking I noticed that the price differential between a really good patio model and a modestly bigger one on a trailer wasn't a huge jump. I don't cater or run a business but when I thought about having a bigger trailer pit that I could use for church events and large family parties I thought it was worth it to go with a trailer.

I was also interested in competing some day - which I'm practicing for this year - so I thought having a trailer pit would be worth it.

DANG IT! Now you guys got me thinking about upping to a trailer again. Man it's not good having this much time to think about what you want to have built. :frusty: :help:

 

[Eddiecalder]

Not trying to be judgemental- sorry I came across that way.

I'm more speaking from my own life situation- If I want to make a big purchase in my family, I have to present it in a way that justifies it to those who are affected by the decision. And spending any significant amount of money, which we don't have much of (7 kids, single income), it affects everyone and there needs to be a significant roi for the family.

In my case, my father in law was the one that specifically wanted a smoker, but I would be the one to cook on it. That's fine by me, I like to cook. He was looking to invest about $300, and was browsing home depot and lowes websites. That terrified me- as left to himself, he'd toss his money on some piece of garbage that I'd end up stuck with. So, I had to convince everyone that building a UDS was the biggest ROI for that price range.

BM

Hard to beat the ROI on a pit barrel cooker.

 

[ssv3]

I thought we were talking about this here:becky:

On a serious note bbq is strictly a hobby for me. I bought my LSG offset because I got tired of fighting for space in my other cookers when doing large cooks. I do big cooks often and I could've gotten by with using 2 or more of my cookers but why bother if I could swing a smoker I want that works for me? Plus I fell in love with stick burner bbq flavor at a brother's house on here. I totally would've had it trailered but not enough access to the backyard. Only place I could've put it would have been the garage but I have other toys in there. Would've loved to haul the smoker and q offsite but that is not an option at this time. That's my reasoning behind my decision and I don't regret it one bit. Obviously with a big family, life situations and other priorities things would've have been different and hobbies would have to be put on the back burner just to be fair.

 

[80DGY]

Hard to beat the ROI on a pit barrel cooker.

they're porcelain coated didn'tyaknow?

:biggrin1:

 

[viking72]

This will fit your needs, $288 @ Walmart.

Later,
Doug

 

[daninnewjersey]

So, you have a trailer that you take somewhere to do a cook. Let's say it's a church bbq or something similar. You've cooked your ribs and chicken and everyone had a good time. Now it's time to go home. What do you do with your coals? I know at comps there is a place to dispose of them, but on an event I can't imagine there would be a place to dump them. Do you wait until everything cools down? Do you drive down the road with some heat still in the chamber? Do you keep a rack warming for when you get home? Just curious and as I said, silly question.

With my stick burner, there is VERY LITTLE of anything left once I'm done cooking. The oak burns very well and only a very small pile of ash is left. I close the firebox and keep it shut with some extra heat proof ties, drive home, and usually forget about emptying it until it's the next time to cook.

 

[viking72]

This is $8000. Lang 108D with chargrill.

May feed 7 with $2000 leftover.

Later,
Doug

 

[Bob C Cue]

they're porcelain coated didn'tyaknow?

:biggrin1:

I did not know that!:wink:

 

[Hog1990]

It is my hobby. It is what I enjoy. I mean you can fish from the bank and catch fish, but some folks like to have a boat.

 

[Ron_L]

I thought we were talking about this here:becky:

That's what I thought of, too :-D I guess "mega" is relative :becky:

Everyone's wants and needs are different, and they change over time. I prefer variety oversize

 

[lcbateman3]

Everyone needs/wants are different.

In your situation, it sounds like a larger cooker wouldn't work for you. In mine it does. I currently own 3 WSM's, 2 Kettles, a Traeger, and a custom built pig cooker. I am on the list to get a Shirley as well. Yea, it's the most I ever spent on a smoker, but I know it's money well spent.

We like to do a lot of events for the church, BBQ for the troops, etc. So I was able to justify my purchase. If I hunted, fished, had a boat, I'd throw my money into something.

 

[b.m.]

You guys make some good points about comparing the cost to other hobbies.

My boss is out right now riding around on his $10k bicycle.

Thanks for the thoughtful responses.

BM