NFT: Anyone have a Pit Barrell Cooker?

I just got a Weber smoker and it is awesome.

It's called a UDS. Cost me a total of $30 and works great! I can go over 20 hours without adding fuel.
Build a UDS yourself - ( New Window )

it is fantastic and gives reliable and consistent performance -- competition quality BBQ - every time I use it

the directions for use are pretty much fool proof and there are many videos the company puts out and has put out that detail exactly how to use it -- it's idiot proof!

and I called and either the owner of the company or his sister called back and helped me resolve it

In comment 13043971 gidiefor said:

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it is fantastic and gives reliable and consistent performance -- competition quality BBQ - every time I use it the directions for use are pretty much fool proof and there are many videos the company puts out and has put out that detail exactly how to use it -- it's idiot proof!

I agree - however, i think you can definitely stray from their directions and mess around with different woods, etc. Overall its a fantastic product.

yes -- the directions can be fiddled with- and I do after two years of regular use now -- including adding fruit woods for smoking purposes

but the confidence that you gain from following their step by step directions and times is not to be under-rated

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In comment 13043985 jcn56 said:

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thanks j -- lol --- I think

I love it. So easy to use. Website has great videos. I do mostly chicken wings, ribs, and tri tip in the summer. More tenderloins, prime rib, turkey in the fall and winter. I highly recommend it.

In comment 13043991 DC Gmen Fan said:

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DC -- the first issue was the draft - there is a cover over the draft hole in the bottom that is set according to your altitude -- it comes preset at 1/4 open

I am in the 1/4 altitude range -- and it wasn't drafting properly to keep the coals hot enough -- so I called and left a message and the owner called me back while I was cooking -- and said to crack the top that day -- there was no breeze -- and his solution worked like a charm. You don;t want to use the top cracked all the time - because it makes the fire too hot -- you also only want to use that trick to get the coals going when there is a lack of draft (as opposed to opening the draft hole) - and not throughout the cook


the second issue was a bubbling that took place on the lid -- I thought the coating was buckling - I emailed them pictures of it - his sister emailed back and told be it was smoke grease and not paint and that it could just scrape it off -- which I did and she was right. She also told me that at the time I purchased mine they were not coating the lids - and she was right about that as well, because i scraped with a BBQ grill scraper and the grease came off easily to reveal the original metal surface

Some of my results. Link below. Did the wings yesterday with applewood and charcoal.
Imgur Gallery - Pit Barrel - ( New Window )

well done!

Some cooks have gone better than others. Sometimes it's the meat. Sometimes it's me but all in all everything comes out good to excellent.

you want a real treat -- do a whole side strip cut with the bone instead of the rib -- the texture and taste was amazing!!

Those pictures are great!!!

Thanks for the recommendation.

are being discontinued -- I just purchased a whole palate that they had at a discount to stock up -- 27 bags -- lol

and I love it. I am a competition level BBQer (ranked in my division) and while I have a nice big rig, I love my PBC. I can't seem to not use it when I am doing small batches.

Also, cooks in a third of the time.