Anyone with experience with a LSG El Patron

[Zarn]

I am replacing my Masterbuilt 1050 Gravity Smoker this year.

Does anyone have any experience with the LSG El Patron. This grill looks like it can do a lot. Plus I like the fact I can temp control this smoker with a fireboard and the pizza oven is a bonus.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank You

 

[InfiniteJester]

I don't have any experience to provide about the El Patron. I did consider it long and hard last fall. After pricing it out with options, plus shipping, the bill was about $3,800. I ended up getting a Hasty Bake 357. After much thought, I opted for the HB because of the larger fire access door and more accessible charcoal tray (you can dump a full weber chimney easily, won't fit in El Patron's smaller fire door). The 357 comes with all of the accessories and it's all stainless. It is double insulated and holds heat well. I'm sure the El Patron will hold heat even better, but for what I do, mostly grilling and smoking, the 357 foots the bill. Also, I didn't like that the lift mechanism rod on the El Patron, it's directly under the grill grates. This seems like it will need constant cleaning to keep carbon build up at bay. Another feature on the 357 I like is the storage below the charcoal shelf will store all of the accessories. I don't normally do a ton of pizzas, but the few I have done have turned out fine. I'm sure the El Patron would do better. The 357 lists for 4,000, but you can catch them on sale occasionally. I got mine for 20% off in November. So that's my two cents. I think it is probably an awesome cooker, I just thought you might want to hear the reasons for my decision. Best of luck!!!

 

[InfiniteJester]

Mark, I don't have any experience with the El Patron. I did consider it long and hard last Fall when I was looking to purchase a new cooker. I did a considerable amount of research and ultimately I decided to purchase a Hasty Bake 357. After receiving a quote for several accessories and shipping, the cost was $3,800. The HB 357 lists for $3,999, however I took advantage of the 20% off sale in November, so it was actually slightly cheaper. The 357 comes with all of the accessories and a fan port. The two biggest reasons I decided against the El Patron was the size of the door opening (On the HB, the door is much larger and one can easily dump a full size charcoal chimney into the fire basket and I didn't like the lifting mechanism directly below the cooking grates. IMHO that just seems like a pain as it would need cleaning after every cook. The 357 is double walled and all stainless, so it should last forever. I'm sure the El Patron holds heat better and can accommodate hotter fires. I don't regularly do pizzas on my grill, so although a cool feature, I went a different direction. This probably doesn't help to much, but as nobody had responded, I thought I would pass along what I learned. Best of luck with your search!

 

[InfiniteJester]

Mark, I don't have any experience with the El Patron. I did consider it long and hard last Fall when I was looking to purchase a new cooker. I did a considerable amount of research and ultimately, I decided to purchase a Hasty Bake 357. After receiving a quote for the El Patron and several accessories plus shipping, the cost was $3,800. The HB 357 lists for $3,999, however I took advantage of the 20% off sale in November, so it was slightly cheaper. The 357 comes with all the accessories and a fan port. The two biggest reasons I decided against the El Patron was the size of the door opening (On the HB, the door is much larger, and one can easily dump a full-size charcoal chimney into the fire basket and I didn't like the lifting mechanism directly below the cooking grates. IMHO that just seems like a pain as it would need cleaning after every cook. The 357 is double walled and all stainless, so it should last forever. I'm sure the El Patron holds heat better and can accommodate hotter fires. I don't regularly do pizzas on my grill, so although a cool feature, I went a different direction. This probably doesn't help to much, but as nobody had responded, I thought I would pass along what I learned. Best of luck with your search!