Just about time for a new BBQ

Trick · Feb 27, 2011

Weber grills are hard to beat. Just lifting the lid on one you can tell they are quality units.

spectra · Feb 27, 2011

Ok here you go the ultimate BBQ

Not really built for the average family but it will work in a pinch :s0114:

TS500 Barbeque Smoker | BBQ Smokers From Meadow Creek I just got to check one out this week as a guy who bought one decided to drive over something and ripped a steel starp of the bottom of the trailer. Welded it bak on then checked out the thing it was real nice with slide out racks and everything. Nice price tag also :s0131:

jgeist · Feb 27, 2011

I bought a Traeger about a 18 months ago and will never buy another one.. Since they went to China, they are all pieces of crap. I sold it after a year and went with a MAK Grill, made in Dallas Oregon and 100% US and dam is it a cooking machine. I get 20lb bags of pellets for $10 at cash and carry and it will cook for days on that bag... They are made like a tank and are everything a Traeger ever should have been and came up short.. If you want a grill for the next 12 years, get a MAK, you will be very impressed...

Ian1816 · Feb 27, 2011

After much research and deliberation I recently bought a Green Mountain Grill. I like the convenience of the pellets while still getting the flavor of wood. To me the quality of a GMG is much better than Traeger. Once you see them in person I think you will agree. Also using pellets is not that much more expensive than charcoal or gas. Especially if you buy Bear Mountain pellets from Cash & Carry. (also a great place to buy meat) The GMG also gets hotter than the Traeger and does get hot enough to sear steaks. GMG also come standard with a digital temperature controller so that you can maintain the perfect cooking temperature without constantly adding wood or moving coals around. Traeger does make a digital temperature controller but it is an additional accessory and does not come standard.

There are many videos on You Tube about them. I recommend checking some of them out.

Starship · Mar 2, 2011

ian1816, thanks for the info. This is the one that I have pretty much zeroed in on. For the reasons you mentioned and then some.
Can I ask where you bought yours?

RainMan_PNW · Mar 3, 2011

Starship said:
ian1816, thanks for the info. This is the one that I have pretty much zeroed in on. For the reasons you mentioned and then some.
Can I ask where you bought yours?

I ended up getting mine at Hometown Hearth and Grill on 82nd down near the Wholesale Sports. The prices were about the same as everywhere else I looked. If you hold out for a fair or sporting show, you may get one a little cheaper as a "show special."

Ian1816 · Mar 3, 2011

That is where I bought mine as well. Did you get my PM Starship?

Starship · Mar 3, 2011

ian, I did get it (Thank You!) and thought I responded but apparently it didn't go out. Have no idea what I did wrong.
Hometown is where I bought my Ducane 12 years ago and I just found out a few days ago that they carry the GMG. Will definately be going there this
weekend.

Verno · Mar 5, 2011

I am big into grilling/smoking/BBQ. I started out with a Traeger 075 many years ago. I got a helluva deal from one of the guys who used to work at Mt. Angel Brewpub and could not pass on it. I had issues with the paint flaking off, which seems to be a fairly common problem. Costco has had Traegers in a couple of times and I personally would not buy one of the Chinese made models.
Currently I am running an FEC100, Primo XL oval, Weber 22.5 WSM and my good ole Weber kettle grill. The Primo is fast becoming my favorite of em all. This thing can hold 220 for hours on end or can blast to 700+ for a quick sear.
I am thinking of selling the FEC100 and downsizing to a Mak 3 Star when they come out later this year. I really like the looks of the Maks.

Starship · Mar 5, 2011

Ok I did it!

Made the mistake of going to Hometown, just to look (yeah right). Got the Green Mountain Grill home about noon, put it together and did the burn in.

Now looking at receipes for my first try, probably tomorrow.

Thanks to all that replied with suggestions and comments.

Ian1816 · Mar 5, 2011

Congrats!! You won't regret that purchase.

RainMan_PNW · Mar 6, 2011

Nice. Get extra pellets quickly - your first week you'll go through at least a bag, because you'll be trying EVERYTHING on it. Cover the drip pan with foil to make that easier (get the industrial heavy stuff if you can) to clean, and I clean mine out completely about every 10 fires. Note that cooking times will be a little longer than with a direct-fire gas grill (think of it like a smokey convection oven).

If you need a few other recipes, you can go to purelyprimal.com, and search the tag "Grilled" in the lower left of the page. Anything that pulls up from that tag has been cooked on my GMG, except maybe a handful of the very early posts.