Premium/high end offset

Here is an post I did a couple of years ago when I seasoned my pit inside and out the first time

Not sure of the science of linseed oil - but I have had a lot of luck with it - it’s applied to both my offset and my direct heat cooker - I just put a new coat on the outside every 6 months whether it needs it or not 😀

https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=297360
 
Rust not a problem yet...

bonz50 said:
how has the exterior held up so far?? rust on the firebox yet?? sadly this is the one aesthetic thing that makes me want an insulated box. however it may be nothing to concern myself with. the BSS and the Workhorse pits are on my radar but may pop for the extra $$ to get a BigPhil backyard model as it's essentially the same thing as the BSS but with the insulated box and other options available.
Click to expand...

I don't have my cover yet, but am soon to order one.

I live in the New Orleans area and we DO generally get a lot of rain here.

So far, rust has not been much a problem. Ever since I got it, I tend to fire it up every couple weeks or so, except for the Xmas holidays when I was out of town.

My fire box and whole thing...I looked the other day when I got home and there is a touch of rust here and there, nothing bad mind you. Any I've seen in the past, I take care of when I fire it up and it gets heated, I bought a bunch of cheap cans of Pam like oil spray and I spray that on there and it cleans up nicely and re-seasons itself.

I bought it with the linseed oil coating.

I'm not sure what having an insulated firebox would do to prevent surface rust? I mean, the outside of the insulated firebox is still made of steel which would rust, right?

Are you talking interior? I've not had any rust inside the firebox or cook chamber, it is only appeared on the exterior...and again, because I don't have a cover yet.

And so far, I don't think having a non-insulated firebox has bothered me much...but then again, I live in the south where it rarely gets that cold outdoors....and I find with the thing being almost 1/2 thick steel...it comes up to temperature and stays there pretty well.

But again, not sure how having an insulated firebox would in any way prevent surface rust?

HTH,

cayenne
 
cayenne said:
I don't have my cover yet, but am soon to order one.

I live in the New Orleans area and we DO generally get a lot of rain here.

So far, rust has not been much a problem. Ever since I got it, I tend to fire it up every couple weeks or so, except for the Xmas holidays when I was out of town.

My fire box and whole thing...I looked the other day when I got home and there is a touch of rust here and there, nothing bad mind you. Any I've seen in the past, I take care of when I fire it up and it gets heated, I bought a bunch of cheap cans of Pam like oil spray and I spray that on there and it cleans up nicely and re-seasons itself.

I bought it with the linseed oil coating.

I'm not sure what having an insulated firebox would do to prevent surface rust? I mean, the outside of the insulated firebox is still made of steel which would rust, right?

Are you talking interior? I've not had any rust inside the firebox or cook chamber, it is only appeared on the exterior...and again, because I don't have a cover yet.

And so far, I don't think having a non-insulated firebox has bothered me much...but then again, I live in the south where it rarely gets that cold outdoors....and I find with the thing being almost 1/2 thick steel...it comes up to temperature and stays there pretty well.

But again, not sure how having an insulated firebox would in any way prevent surface rust?

HTH,

cayenne
Click to expand...

my thoughts on the insulated box is that due to significantly less heat there
that paint/coating would not burn off therefore inhibiting rust. I would think the temps on the firebox (uninsulated) would get hot enough, particularly on the bottom and areas where the coal bed and heat is concentrated, would cook off linseed oil or even high temp paints. i've heard some say the insulated boxes are more efficient due to heat retention and particularly in northern climates, but like you i'm in the deep south (Alabama) and we get rain/humidity as well, though surely not like NOLA (spent several weeks over the years in Thibodaux at manning camp with my sons, hottest i've ever been in my life, kids were droppin like flies the first year, air temp was 'only 92' but heat index was 117 with the humidity). anyway, i'm largely trying to make sure when I go to buy a new pit I'm spending my money wisely, if I dont need it here then it opens up several lower cost options for me, which I wouldn't complain about of course. :thumb:
 
All of the heavy backyard offset cookers are in the "no excuses" category where bad food is the Indian not the arrow.

Every year there's a new "king for a day" while wonderful units released only a couple of years ago no longer produce much forum conversation.

Buy what you like, and forget this season's forum fad which will fade before your pit ships.

Franklin, Workhorse, Mill Scale, Shirley, Meadow Creek, Lang, TMG, Blue Smoke, LSG, Goldee's, Fatstack (the few actually delivered before the house of cards blew down), Jambo, Pitts & Spitts--if we can't make great BBQ on one of these we need a new hobby.

I ordered a Workhorse 1969 a year ago and just received notice that it's ready to ship. It's no longer the forum flavor of the month, but it will cook great BBQ (if I do my part) long after the spotlight has turned elsewhere.
 
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You mentioned ordering a Cover for your Cooker. Don't know if you've selected a provider but I had Grillwraps build a cover for the new Shirley that I posted a photo of earlier in this thread. Here is a photo of that Cooker with the Grillwraps Cover.

Not cheap, but it very well made and it fits perfectly. Keeps my Cooker completely dry......even as Hurricane Idalia passed by me last season.
 

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Jumping in here with a comment about covers.... in a word - DON'T. Now this is just one person's opinion but everything I've covered in the past (motorcycles, firepits, smokers) went south in a lot of areas due to condensation. This is made worse with covers that don't breathe - and if they breathe they generally aren't waterproof.

I get the idea that a cover will keep the finish cleaner from dirt (or the dreaded pollen season in TX) but it will not aid much in rust prevention. Again, just my 1/50th of a buck.
 
I've got a Franklin Pit I've had a few years. No rust, but I keep it oiled and covered. I clean out the ashes after every cook. Leaving the ashes and letting them get wet is what kills most cookers. You are basically creating lye which is very caustic. Any of those pits are great. They all have tradeoffs.

Fatstack is definitely a no go. There's a lot on Reddit about what went down, but it's similar to all the drama that went on with BuiltRite on these forums. A lot of people paid for cookers they never got.
 
ttkt57 said:
All of the heavy backyard offset cookers are in the "no excuses" category where bad food is the Indian not the arrow.

Every year there's a new "king for a day" while wonderful units released only a couple of years ago no longer produce much forum conversation.

Buy what you like, and forget this season's forum fad which will fade before your pit ships.

Franklin, Workhorse, Mill Scale, Shirley, Meadow Creek, Lang, TMG, Blue Smoke, LSG, Goldee's, Fatstack (the few actually delivered before the house of cards blew down), Jambo, Pitts & Spitts--if we can't make great BBQ on one of these we need a new hobby.

I ordered a Workhorse 1969 a year ago and just received notice that it's ready to ship. It's no longer the forum flavor of the month, but it will cook great BBQ (if I do my part) long after the spotlight has turned elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Workhorse is high on my list as well. coming from the OK Joe I'm able to produce good Q on that but it's honestly kind of a POS in terms of materials and construction. I would love to get one of these big 250 gallon pits but frankly is a bit overkill and just money wasted for me so these smaller pits (100-150 gallon sizes) like the WH1975 and the BSS/Big Phil's Backyard are right up my alley in terms of something that is quality made and not bank breaking costs. a Shirley 36 is also a strong consideration since they are pretty local to me (about 80mi away).
 
txsmkmstr said:
Jumping in here with a comment about covers.... in a word - DON'T. Now this is just one person's opinion but everything I've covered in the past (motorcycles, firepits, smokers) went south in a lot of areas due to condensation. This is made worse with covers that don't breathe - and if they breathe they generally aren't waterproof.

I get the idea that a cover will keep the finish cleaner from dirt (or the dreaded pollen season in TX) but it will not aid much in rust prevention. Again, just my 1/50th of a buck.
Click to expand...
agreed. not a big fan of covers.

tho I make an exception for the griddle surface on my blackstone.
 
I remember the thread with "build rite", seen the owner of fat stacks YouTube videos...lot of similarities, even in attitude.

-D
 
bonz50 said:
Workhorse is high on my list as well. coming from the OK Joe I'm able to produce good Q on that but it's honestly kind of a POS in terms of materials and construction. I would love to get one of these big 250 gallon pits but frankly is a bit overkill and just money wasted for me so these smaller pits (100-150 gallon sizes) like the WH1975 and the BSS/Big Phil's Backyard are right up my alley in terms of something that is quality made and not bank breaking costs. a Shirley 36 is also a strong consideration since they are pretty local to me (about 80mi away).
Click to expand...

If you’re only 80 miles to Shirley then that’s a no brainer if you want to purchase a new pit. Rent or borrow a trailer or a truck & trailer instead of paying shipping which is still pretty expensive. If you’re like most home cooks the 24x36 should have plenty of capacity, they are very reasonably priced without an incredibly long wait time. Reach out to Tyler with an email to find out lead times.

https://youtu.be/q8cvo4N7zI4?si=8a8JMK6fMFkAHoMH
 
ttkt57 said:
All of the heavy backyard offset cookers are in the "no excuses" category where bad food is the Indian not the arrow.

Every year there's a new "king for a day" while wonderful units released only a couple of years ago no longer produce much forum conversation.

Buy what you like, and forget this season's forum fad which will fade before your pit ships.

Franklin, Workhorse, Mill Scale, Shirley, Meadow Creek, Lang, TMG, Blue Smoke, LSG, Goldee's, Fatstack (the few actually delivered before the house of cards blew down), Jambo, Pitts & Spitts--if we can't make great BBQ on one of these we need a new hobby.

I ordered a Workhorse 1969 a year ago and just received notice that it's ready to ship. It's no longer the forum flavor of the month, but it will cook great BBQ (if I do my part) long after the spotlight has turned elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Ain't that the truth!!! While reading that list of smokers I was reminded of my golf clubs. Every darned one of them is better than I am, lol. There are a couple on the list that I like better than others but for the most part, you can't go wrong. After consideration and choices about cost, size, functionality, and appearance there are two things left for me. Design and craftsmanship! It's a pretty tight race and we each have favorites for one reason or the other. But I don't see how much improvement could be made to most of them.

I would bet that if any one of us had any one of those smokers, we would have a lot of fun with it. Some might be satisfied and never change while others would have an eye out for what follows. But we would all still have fun. You just can't go wrong. Good luck to the OP and enjoy!
 
bonz50 said:
Workhorse is high on my list as well. coming from the OK Joe I'm able to produce good Q on that but it's honestly kind of a POS in terms of materials and construction. I would love to get one of these big 250 gallon pits but frankly is a bit overkill and just money wasted for me so these smaller pits (100-150 gallon sizes) like the WH1975 and the BSS/Big Phil's Backyard are right up my alley in terms of something that is quality made and not bank breaking costs. a Shirley 36 is also a strong consideration since they are pretty local to me (about 80mi away).
Click to expand...

If you go with a Shirley 36, ask Kevin White for a quote to deliver it to you. While picking it up at Shirley Fab would be a great way to meet the Shirleys, you will also pay a 10% combined Sales Tax for the experience. If you have Kevin, LSG, deliver it, that sales tax is waived. On a pit costing about $2,900 you may be money ahead. Sounds crazy, but that is AL law and I've taken advantage of it twice having Shirleys delivered.

Also, if you don't have a proper trailer, getting that Shirley home could be a challenge. A standard 24x36 weighs about 850# and it would be a chore to get into a pickup bed (Shirleys use a forklift so may not be hard for them) much less getting out when you get home. My newest cooker weighed in at 1,650# and it rolled off Kevin's trailer as easy as could be. He even helped roll it up my driveway and into the garage. Can't beat delivery service like that.
 
Fishwater2002 said:
If you’re only 80 miles to Shirley then that’s a no brainer if you want to purchase a new pit. Rent or borrow a trailer or a truck & trailer instead of paying shipping which is still pretty expensive. If you’re like most home cooks the 24x36 should have plenty of capacity, they are very reasonably priced without an incredibly long wait time. Reach out to Tyler with an email to find out lead times.

https://youtu.be/q8cvo4N7zI4?si=8a8JMK6fMFkAHoMH
Click to expand...
my brother in memphis has a 36, he loves it. and yeah, I have two sons in school at Bama and I get down there often enough that I really need to stop by and visit with 'em some day to get an idea, I'm thinkin a traditional offset tho and I see they are making those as well now, which would fit my needs perfectly.:thumb:
 
cdhbrad said:
If you go with a Shirley 36, ask Kevin White for a quote to deliver it to you. While picking it up at Shirley Fab would be a great way to meet the Shirleys, you will also pay a 10% combined Sales Tax for the experience. If you have Kevin, LSG, deliver it, that sales tax is waived. On a pit costing about $2,900 you may be money ahead. Sounds crazy, but that is AL law and I've taken advantage of it twice having Shirleys delivered.

Also, if you don't have a proper trailer, getting that Shirley home could be a challenge. A standard 24x36 weighs about 850# and it would be a chore to get into a pickup bed (Shirleys use a forklift so may not be hard for them) much less getting out when you get home. My newest cooker weighed in at 1,650# and it rolled off Kevin's trailer as easy as could be. He even helped roll it up my driveway and into the garage. Can't beat delivery service like that.
Click to expand...
no need, I have a 12' utility trailer and they are close enough to me not to worry about a delivery. also I have two strapping young boys in tusclaoosa to help load and unload :becky:
 
bonz50 said:
no need, I have a 12' utility trailer and they are close enough to me not to worry about a delivery. also I have two strapping young boys in tusclaoosa to help load and unload :becky:
Click to expand...

Sounds like a plan. If you choose to go with the Shirley, you won't be disappointed. I cooked a lot of good Q on my 24x36 before I sold it when my new Cooker was ready to ship. The SS Shelf on the front is an option well worth the $$$.

Shirleys hold their value too.......I sold mine for more than I paid for it after using it for 2 years.
 
I like covers...

txsmkmstr said:
Jumping in here with a comment about covers.... in a word - DON'T. Now this is just one person's opinion but everything I've covered in the past (motorcycles, firepits, smokers) went south in a lot of areas due to condensation. This is made worse with covers that don't breathe - and if they breathe they generally aren't waterproof.

I get the idea that a cover will keep the finish cleaner from dirt (or the dreaded pollen season in TX) but it will not aid much in rust prevention. Again, just my 1/50th of a buck.
Click to expand...

Down here in New Orleans....where we occasionally have a non-rain day during parts of the year...I have found that covers have vastly extended the lifetime of my outdoor items.

From weber grills, motorcycles....and even previous smokers....having a cover on them preserved them.

My last bandera smoker for instance. I had it for years with a cover. No rust, no problem.

But then on one last cook, the old cover kinda fell apart...so, it sat uncovered.

And it wasn't but maybe a year later....it has rusted out beyond any repair. I tossed it and got the Blue Smoke Smoker....

One of the members here sent me a link to a custom cover place with the measurements for our unit....I plan to order one soon.

Just my $0.02,

cayenne
 
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