I'm trying to understand the SF differences with cook results for those of you that have a Smokey Mountain. I have a highly modified WSM which is a pleasure to use but admittedly a bit of a hassle to prep and clean. It does very well at smoking all the typical meats we generally discuss in the BBQ world. I only use it for longer cooks because the convience factor is not there for quick cooks. I've been eager to grab a SF but given the present situation with the product, I'm somewhat hesitant.
I'm willing to take a bit of a risk if the sucessful cook is not a step backward from the WSM. I have no experience with pellet grills. Never had a bite from something cooked on one.
So can someone help me to understand the differences between the two with respect to taste? Does one make beter BBQ than the other?
Cheers...
Sorry, this response got longer and longer as I typed it out.....
Interesting to read your post, as I currently have a SF, and I'm thinking of going the WSM route. I'm not an expert, but from what I have read, you are going to get more smoked flavor out of your WSM than from the SF. But with that said, the smoked meats I've cooked on the SF have been awesome, very tender, great smoke flavor (though I can't compare to what it would have been if cooked on a WSM). My experience of smoking is coming from a Weber kettle to the SF pellet. My understanding of the WSM is that once you get the temp dialed in, it just stays there, and the smoker is very fuel efficient. The WSM may take a bit of prep work and tending of the fire to get there, but once it is, you are good for the duration of your cook. The idea behind the pellet grill is that it is a "push button have smoke" kind of grill, and for the most part I believe this to be true. My prep for a cook is pretty simple, fill the hopper with pellets, vacuum out the pellet dust that collected in the bottom of the cooker and in the fire pot, and for a long cook with fatty meat, I place a water pan above the flavorizor bars and below the grill grates where I place the meat. Then set the temp, hit start and start cooking.
I don't know what cleaning a WSM is like post cook, but a SF is pretty simple, but there are a lot of pieces to move around. After a long cook I remove the grates, then scrape and remove the flavorizor bars, then remove the heat shield. I can then use the scraping tool to scrape down the inside of the cooker, and push everything out the drip holes in the bottom. I then vacuum out the pellet dust from the bottom of the cooker and clean out the drip tray. Then I put everything back together. This isn't required after every cook, but I do it at least once a week, and after any really long cook.
As for buying a SF now....I honestly would wait a little longer.
I bought mine as a pre-order. Initially my grill was flawless. I fired up to 600 degrees, seared the heck out of steaks, cooked amazing pizzas, and slow smoked pork butt and ribs to perfection. The versatility and convenience of the grill is amazing, and when it works it is absolutely worth it because while it might not produce the same smoke as your WSM, the convenience of being able to smoke or grill on the same unit with the ease of pushing a button and setting the temp is pretty amazing.
But then there was a firmware update, and my grill has never been the same. I've since replaced the pellet chute and the auger with the new welded versions. I've replaced the motor (revision F) and have reset the software multiple times. The grill is just inconsistent. Some days it will reach temp and I will have a great cook, other days it might reach temp, but then after I open the grill to put on my food, it never fully recovers, and struggles for the remainder of the cook. This happens on both low and slow, and high temp cooks. Last week I installed the new motor and reset the software, and I immediately fired up the grill to 400 degrees and cooked some awesome pizzas. The next day I cleaned it out and tried to cook some food at 450 and the grill could never get above 390 degrees. Then I tried a lower temp cook and once again it couldn't maintain temp. I don't know what happened other than to say that my grill was perfect, and I admittedly wondered if people were just being trolls when they posted all their negative results. But now I'm one of those people, as I literally walk past my SF to fire up my old Traeger, or my Weber 22" kettle because I just don't want to deal with the frustration of my SF.
Weber customer service has been good, if I account for the fact that email will take about a week for a response. Then they will send me a new part FedEx overnight. I install it, the grill works for a single cook, and then I am back to sending an email to Weber asking what to try next. I admittedly asked them to exchange my grill for a new SF, or allow me to exchange it for a Summit Charcoal as I've replaced everything on this grill except for the controller board and quite honestly I don't think that for the amount paid for it I should have to go through all this.
Do I love my SF grill...YES...when it is working.
Bottom line, I believe that Weber will work the kinks out on the grill, and when they do it will be awesome. Right now it is hit or miss, you could get a good one that works, or you could get a problem child. Or you could be like me, and have one that worked flawlessly, and then all of a sudden becomes a trouble maker.
