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Thought I would share my thought process in choosing the CS50 (ordered 7/28/07) over other smokers.

Like many others, I decided on an electric smoker because of the ease of use and consistancy of the product they turn out. I would much rather spend my time fishing than tending fires, playing with vents and rotating food.

After a bit of research I was pretty much set on a Bradley and was a day or so away from placing an order. Thats when I stumbled on this Forum. Don't get me wrong, the folks on the Bradley forum are great and have a wealth of knowledge but, after I signed on here I posted a question about where to get Allspice wood for real Jerk flavor. I got a response in about a day.

I realized then that the folks at Bradley were at a disadvantage because you can't use "real" wood in the Bradley smokers. I'm sure the most popular woods are available in the Bradley pucks, but after reading about woods such as peach, grape, wine barrel...well, Bradley can't provide the variety. Also, as far as I know, there are no "aftermarket" companies making pucks which makes me wonder what would happen if Bradley ever went out of business.

All in all, I still think the Bradley is a great smoker with great customer support and a community of loyal, friendly users. It just wasn't the right smoker for me.

Hope this helps others who may be lurking, as I was, and trying to figure out which smoker to buy.

Tony
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the smokers, Tony. And glad you chose the 50/55. That's what I have, too, and am thrilled with it.

I think we're all pretty careful to not 'bad-mouth' another company...though I think we ALL believe we have made the right decision with Cookshack...but, now that you've made the 'right' decision, take a look at the article that Dave, the owner of The Charcoal Store, wrote regarding his experiences with his Bradley. Maybe his was an isolated incident(s) but I think you'll be even happier with your decision. Wink

www.charcoalstore.com Look under 'tips and tricks' and read the article "My Bradley Smoker"

And thanks again for the kudos to this list's members. A GREAT bunch of folks, always ready to help.
Tony, I didn't think, at all, that you were bad-mouthing Bradley. There are plenty of people putting out plenty good Q with Bradley smokers. My point was, that if somebody wants to buy one, I don't think anybody here would bad-mouth the decision. That being said, if someone asked our 'opinion,' ...well, after all, this is a Cookshack forum! hahahah

I just wanted you, a new convert to Cookshack, to know that in our 'opinion' you made a good decision...like, a REALLY good decision!

I always get a kick out of reading Dave Naas' experience with his Bradley. He doesn't hold back! Smiler

Again, welcome. I know we all look forward to hearing more from you and your successes, and 'challenges' if any.
TonyNJ Welcome to the forum.

My friend bought a Bradley he has good luck with it, but after looking at the SM055 at the factory I decided it was less likely to break down.

No rubber seals, plastic, or internal moving parts to go bad, and no dependency on wood compressed pucks. If I had went with the Bradley I would have figured some way to make my own I could have used the Shop Smith lathe to turn out solid pucks and cut them off with a band saw naw to much work I will stick with the CookShack it makes smoking great tasting food real simple

BTW my friend is thinking about buying an AmeriQue

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