Looking for a new Smoker thats best for ribs.

Smokin' OState · Newbie Joined: 07 Dec 2005 Posts: 27 Location: Edmond OK

Hello Everyone!

About once a month I buy a case of ribs and smoke them for friends and family. Usually the case consists of 18 full sides of baby backs. My current smoker just does not have enough room and I would like to buy one that is a vertical smoker with plenty of room.

I am looking at this one from Klose

I was wondering if anyone has used one of these or knows of any others out there that I should look at.

I am curious to know about the Diamond Plate Fat 40 and just how many ribs it can do. The thought of being able to pull my smoker to my tailgaiting would be awsome.

I also do about 5 briskets at a time to give out to family and friends.

Any suggestions would help. Thanks.

Mike Lawry · Posted: Jun 08 2008 Post subject:

Make sure to at least look at the Backwoods Smokers. Sounds like they might be what your looking for.

http://www.backwoods-smoker.com/

Mike Lawry.

graybeard · Posted: Jun 09 2008 Post subject:

Only thing I can add is to make sure whatever pit you go with, the vertical chamber IS LARGE ENOUGH TO LAY THE RIBS FLAT! I went wit athe vertical smaller Camp Chef when I got my first smoker. Being the smaller model I couldn't lay a rack of ribs on the shelf. Had to either roll them or cut in half. JMO.

Garry · Posted: Jun 09 2008 Post subject:

texanx5 · Posted: Jun 09 2008 Post subject:

Gator also has a cabinet that would do great for ribs or IMO it is hard to beat a STUMP. Fantastic for ribs, etc...
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Slobberin' Hog · Joined: 23 Feb 2008 Posts: 20 Location: K.C. MO

Hey OState,
We did 36 slabs of St. Louis style on our Fat 40 over Memorial day weekend. It was tight but we got them all on. Had to rotate a couple of times as it gets pretty hot in the front of the smoker.
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Alien BBQ · Posted: Jun 09 2008 Post subject:

Go with the DP.
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Smokin' OState · Newbie Joined: 07 Dec 2005 Posts: 27 Location: Edmond OK

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I have surfed the backwoods and gator pit sites. Very interesting to say the least.

I like the way the DP is set up.

Slobberin' you said your fat 40 gets hot in the front. Which do you consider the front? Very Happy

The door side or the Fire box side? And, is there anything you can do about it. Did you use rib racks?

I'm going to hijack my own thread..but Alien.....dang man you have been giving out some great receipe's. I have cooked almost all of what you post and my waist line thanks you. I did the Hurrican Turkey for Thanksgiving last year and it was a massive hit. I am now required to make it every year.

Slobberin' Hog · Joined: 23 Feb 2008 Posts: 20 Location: K.C. MO

OState,

Our Fat 40 has a water/charcoal pan in the cooking chamber. This creates a reverse flow action inside the smoker. All the heat goes to the door side first. Could probably take it out and have a more even temp. I like the water pan because it catches all the grease and it makes it easier to clean up. The heat coming up the door side makes a great place to cook chicken.
As for the rib racks. I had planned on using mine. It was the only thing I forgot to bring. Would have made things a little easier but, everything turned out great. All 36 slabs gone in about 2hrs.

Gary
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Alien BBQ · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

You can have Travis weld a small 4 inch deflector plate across the length of the chamber and about 6 inches under the rack and it will kick a portion of the heat coming up the front side back out into the center of the smoker.
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Travis_Creek · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

We capped the snouts on Florida Boy's pit and it seems to work well.

Look for Jay Potts on the diamondplatepits.com website. He is in OK and can help you out.
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Reggae Q · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

While I've heard nothing but great things about Klose and it's obvious he does great work but I personally would have a hard time justifying the money he charges. I just feel there are more smokers out there that will give you a bigger bang for your buck without giving up quality. For example, when I compared Lone Star by Bates to Klose for mine, it wasn't even CLOSE and I don't think there is anyone out there that would question Steve's quality except the clique on texasbbqrub.com (not everyone on that site to clarify)

I'd look at the Fat50 vs. the 40 as you will probably wish you went bigger. Next thing you know, you're going to want to be doing a case or more plus some chickens or abt's or whatever.

Other nice ones as many people have already stated.
Spicewine
Stumps
Backwoods

Gator also does nice work but I quickly felt like the black sheep on the other forum once I decided on Lone Star instead. Luckily, I'm not losing sleep over it Laughing

Nice thing about DPP or Lone Star is the customer service and it shows every day on this site. I mean really, who goes out of their way to help build clones of THEIR smokers??? Well, I know Travis and Steve do.

I like the DPP's a lot and good price for being towable.

HOWEVER, whatever you decide, I'd probably speed up your decision as much as possible with the constant increases in steel prices as every single one of the companies you look at will be facing the same challenges/increases. It gets to a point where they can't afford to eat that extra cost and must pass it on to the buyer.

These are just my opinions

camdentom · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

Here is a pit we built for a client http://batespitts.com/bandy.html I liked it so much that we are currently building one for me to take home.

jrb03 · BBQ Fan Joined: 23 Jan 2008 Posts: 186 Location: Tx

I have cooked on many different types and brands of smokers, and nothing I have used beats backwoods for ribs. They are pork cooking machines. I currently have a Party model and cant believe the quality of the ribs that come out of this thing. On my offsets I usually foiled the ribs to help with time and texture. No need to foil in the backwoods, texture comes out perfect each time, and the ribs are done quicker than in the offset with foil. I cook at 250 in every cooker I use. Look at the backwoods long and hard if your primary use will be ribs.
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Reggae Q · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

BBQMAN · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

It also depends on what style a cooker you are looking for.

Standard offset, or reverse flow?

Cabinet smoker with heat chamber at the bottom, or offset style?

Vertical feed charcoal Stumps cabinet is yet another choice.............

Wood or charcoal?

David Klose builds a very fine pit, so do the folks at Lone-star and all the other's mentioned

I like the DPs. They work well, and you get a lot of bang for the buck (and they are log burners)

I also have a very large standard offset, and I love it to.

I own a Stumps SW 3x5 reverse flow, and it is great for cooking lots of ribs AND larger cuts like whole hog, or a whole lotta other food.

I'm also a pure wood burner.

One of the best parts of this forum is that you can get the true (or mostly true! Laughing

) skinny on just about any topic.

As other's have noted, brand specific forums ()more often than not) offer a bit of a lopsided view.
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gordo · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

Smokin' OState · Newbie Joined: 07 Dec 2005 Posts: 27 Location: Edmond OK

All this information is a great help. I really appreciate all the info.

I mainly cook with Hickory and Pecan and throw in some lump just to keep the cost of burning so much wood down.

I do like to lay the ribs flat because I have a hard time with rib racks. Thats why I was looking at what Klose had. I like the Fat 40/50 with the two slide out trays and the possibility of taking it with me to tailgate. I dont know if I can justify the fat 50 cost though.

The backwoods one still looks really interesting and would fit on my back porch perfectly. It looks as if your cooking in a Refridgerator.

Camdentom: That looks like the one I thought might work for the style of cooking I do. How many BB can you lay flat across one rack?

Another question:
What are the pros and cons to an offset vs having a bottom heat source? Is one harder to control the heat than the other?

camdentom · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

Hey Smokin' O You can get 4 to 5 racks of BB's per shelf. It comes with 4 shelves but you can get up to 6 shelves.

smokinit · Posted: Jun 11 2008 Post subject:

I will second the Backwoods although I am bias.
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