Pit Showdown- Oyler vs Ole Hickory Pit

spbbq · Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Atlanta, Ga

I recently acquired an Ole Hickory Pit EL Model with some other equipment I purchased. I already have an Oyler Pit that we do the bulk of our cooking on. I plan to do some cooking on both cookers "Showdown" style and see if there is an appreciable difference. So I thought this might be an interesting follow up to Harry's thread about whether the cooker or the cook makes the most difference in producing great BBQ. The plan is to evaluate both cookers based on construction/engineering, ergonomics/features, ease of use , and the quality of the end product. I will include plenty of pictures to compare and contrast each cooker. I don't plan on using the gas assist initially but may do a couple of runs with it because it is a widely used feature on the OHP. It will by no means be scientific and my intent is not to trash one cooker or the other, but I thought it might be an interesting exercise. The OHP needs some serious cleaning as it has been in storage for over a year, so I plan on doing that today and tomorrow before I get started.

If anybody has any questions about either of the pits or helpful hints about the OHP I am all ears.

BTW The OHP is for sale in the Buy, Sell, Trade forum if anybody is looking.

Frank
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Jeff Hughes · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

I would be most interested in the results when you use gas assist on the OHP. As that is how the smoker is designed to be used in a commercial setting. The OHP works great in comp mode, but very few if any restaurants use the cooker that way.
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Harry Nutczak · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

this should be a good comparison test.

What are you product quality criteria? Or are we just looking at efficiency with burn times on wood only for that section?

I would also consider "Ease of cleaning/maintaining" as a point too.

What I came from cooking on before getting into my Oyler is worlds apart, I did 20,500 pounds of meat through a DPP-70 this summer before getting into my Oyler(s) I thought it would only be easier with a controlled pit, but I am also seeing yield increase and higher quality now too, especially with my ribs.
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day_trippr · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

I just wish I lived close enough for an invitation to the taste testing! Laughing

Cheers!
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spbbq · Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Atlanta, Ga

I am open to suggestions for all the testing criteria and comparisons. I think my hope with this exercise is to provide raw data and my impressions/experiences with both cookers and let people draw their own conclusions as to which cooker is best for their use.

I honestly had not thought about the fuel usage aspect of the cookers or the ease of cleaning/maintaining but those are both critical factors in determining the right pit for an intended use. I have to admit I am a die hard believer in the purity of wood burners but I will try not to let that color my test using the gas assist.

I already have a few initial thoughts as to the differences in engineering/build quality but I will reserve those for the "official review".

For the first test cook, I am planning on cooking a butt, some ribs and a brisket in each cooker at the same time, using the same wood, cook temps and rub. I will check wood usage(no gas assist), time to come up to cooking temp, cooking times, shrinkage of the product, and quality of the end product. I will try to do this test for the superbowl, as we have a bunch of friends coming over and can get some unbiased opinions.

For the second test I will use the gas assist.

Keep the ideas coming for the testing criteria.
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Harry Nutczak · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

I would consider looking at the maintenance schedules as outlined in each cookers owners manual for a comparison (how much more unbiased can you get than that?), the ease of cleaning out the firebox, removing racks for cleaning/sanitizing and difficulty of reinstalling them.
Start-up and shut-down (wood only, and gas assist on the O-H)
Ease of adding and removing food from the cooker would be a good thing to compare also.

If I was doing the comparison, I would weigh each butt, brisket, and rack of ribs before and after cooking to see if one generates a higher yield than the other. Why? Because the yield of usable meat will affect profits directly.

Customer service may also be another thing to compare, I know I had a few questions on my Oylers, and the service/parts department at J&R was very prompt to both answer the phone, and get me the information I was seeking.
They even gave me a full history of these pits, (including service and parts replacement) when they were built, and for who, and the different restaurants where they have been working before I got them. and asked that I provide them with their current location for their records.
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Just remember that the toes you may step on during your climb to the top will also be attached to the a$$es you'll be forced to kiss on your way back down!

BBQMAN · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

So you stored the cooker for a year and didn't clean it beforehand!? Razz

Great comparison, I look forward to your results.

Yes indeed, please use the OH as intended with the gas assist.

I own a large custom log burning offset, and cooked on it for years (10 to be specific) before converting it to the same gas assist the OH/SP uses.

And while it is far from scientific, there are no differences is cooking other than I now get sleep on overnight cooks.

Same great food, same great cook, same techniques, same results.

I have not dealt with the Oyler folks, but the manufacturing department help from OH was top-notch.
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Texas BBC · Joined: 31 Jan 2011 Posts: 20 Location: Texas

i too am curious as to the outcome. i agree with the others on using the gas assist. if you were closer i would also be interested in the pit. unfortunately ga. is to far for me.

Bbq Bubba · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

Looking forward to your reviews having cooked on both units myself.
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Jerk Pit Master · Posted: Feb 01 2011 Post subject:

Cool.

Do a few practice runs on the new addition first to get used to it and how best to cook.
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spbbq · Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Atlanta, Ga

daddywoofdawg · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

One is stainless insulated sheet metal and the other is 1/4"plate
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Harry Nutczak · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

allsmokenofire · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

Jeff Hughes · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

One nice attribute of OHP is that all parts are stocked at Granger...
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spbbq · Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Atlanta, Ga

I really like the stainless exterior on the OHP for ease of cleaning. It has cleaned up really nicely.
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tonyg · BBQ Pro Joined: 10 Feb 2006 Posts: 628

spbbq · Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Atlanta, Ga

Geronimo · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

With both claiming to hold the same amount of meat, I know what a new Ole Hickory Pit EL-EDX costs, what does a new Oyler 700 cost?
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Jeff Hughes · Posted: Feb 02 2011 Post subject:

OHP 12000

Oyler 21000
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