Which smoker to buy

I bought a 55 because:

- I end up BBQing for parties a lot and appreciate the extra capacity. I still frequently do multiple loads.

- Cold smoking is not reccommended in the Smokette and should work better in a 50 series.

I am very glad I went with the bigger model. I Q about every weekend, though, and typically do a party of 20 or more at least 2-3 times a month. The 55 is perfect for me.

To answer your question I did 60 chicken wings and 8 large pork spares in one full load Saturday, and 22 chicken legs in another load last night which only took 2 racks of the 5.

I typically get 10 slabs of babyback ribs per load when I do ribs.

5 pork butts, one per shelf, same for briskets.

Thanks Robbi,
Those are the #'s I have been looking for. It sounds like to me that the 55 is the way to go. When you do large loads of product like that do you have to move it around a lot? How long does it take for you to smoke the 10 slabs of ribs?

Tom

I don't really move product around at all, but I will place the food that will take longer to smoke (thicker ribs, etc) at the top of the smoker and the lighter fare further down where it's not quite so hot.

My standard rib technique is 3 hours in at 225, spray with a little apple juice and apple cider vinegar mix, another hour in, spray again and remove an hour later for a total of 5 hours. Wrap, refrigerate overnight then heat on the grill and glaze. Opening the door twice does release a lot of heat so that's not the same as 5 hours straight in the cooker, btw.

Thanks Robbi,
I am going to put my order in today. I can't wait to start Qing with the 55.

Thanks again for the help.
Tom

No problem, Tom. Welcome to the CS family!

quote:

I will place the food that will take longer to smoke (thicker ribs, etc) at the top of the smoker and the lighter fare further down where it's not quite so hot.

When folks do rotate product, it is usually to get it out of the hotter area near the element, becuase it is hotter than the top of the box.

Maybe it's because I have a little gap at the top of the door and so maybe some more air movement, but the upper level seems to dry out a bit quicker than down below in my 55. I just had assumed it was heat. I'll have to check with a polder.

If you look at the physics of it, it should be hotter aat the top of the machine due to the fact that heat rises.

G'day,

Micah

In an empty smoker, that might be true. But product on the lower shelves will cook the fastest by getting more direct heat.