Masterbuilt 44-Inch Propane Smoker

[JEBar]

it has been decades since I used a propane smoker .... I still prefer an electric, computer controlled but I now have 2 high dollar, dead ones in the garage that in retrospect were most certainly not worth the money ... I'm considering going back to propane and after looking at one at our local Bass Pro, in interested in the one shown in the link below .... the good news is, I have plenty of time to shop around because with our travel schedule, it will be late March at the earliest or after we return from South Dakota in mid August .... comments, recommendations, alternatives would be most welcome

https://www.amazon.com/Masterbuilt-2005 ... adcefeb448

[Mistered]

I have been using a rather basic Smoke Hollow LP unit that has worked very well and I use it a lot. The only problem is in the winter it is tough to maintain the right temp for smoke cooking. I am currently looking at a new one myself but it will be some sort of double wall insulated style. I believe I have looked at the Masterbuilt one in your link and it may wind up on the short list!

[JEBar]

there are a couple of features built into the one in the link in the first post that I really like .... first it has 2 doors .... when you go to add liquid or chips, the cooking area remains closed so the cooking temp remains unaffected .... they have a similar setup on their 30 & 40" models .... on their 44" they have 2 burners which can be burned individually or at the same time .... that gives a good bit more flexibility in cooking temperature .... their 30 & 40" units have a single burner

[Mistered]

I see the 40" has the single door but then that is reflected in the price being the lowest of the three. I suspect if I go with the MB it will be the 44"

[JEBar]

here is a link to a Masterbuilt 40" two door model ....http://www.basspro.com/shop/en/masterbu ... ane-smoker .... Bass Pro's prices are a good bit higher than Amazon

[Mistered]

to a Masterbuilt 40" two door model

I think YOU found my new smoker!!

[JEBar]

back when I was using a propane smoker, I found that temperature, humidity, and wind could easily make a difference in the necessary burner setting .... with the way the weather changes in our part of the country, some days required closer monitoring than others .... I had a "bullet smoker," don't remember the brand .... it was designed to where it could use gas, electric or charcoal .... it didn't take any time to figure out charcoal wouldn't work for us .... the electric heating element proved to be the simplest to use .... my hope is the next smoker will be the last one I have to buy .... our history is we use a smoker heavily in the fall and to a lesser degree throughout the rest of the year .... with the 44" we should be able to increase the amount of food smoked at a time which would nice .... I spent some time looking at and really liked the 40" .... the biggest features I'd be buying with the 44" would be capacity, having 2 burners, and the double door .... I like both of them .... as noted it will be 4 to 9 months before we buy another one, no use buying a new one and hitting the road for an extended period .... that will give me plenty of time to look .... I've seen several interesting styles in Texas that I want to checkout

[JEBar]

after considerable talk and pondering, I just ordered the Masterbuilt smoker shown in the link in the first post .... I didn't order it from Amazon .... I received some gift cards for Christmas so I went with Cabela's instead because it is cheaper than Amazon .... https://www.cabelas.com/product/MASTERB ... s?slotId=1 .... as this is being typed on Saturday, we are in Texas, and are due to get back home next Friday the 16th .... we should be able pick it up the following Thursday the 22nd .... that should work well for smoking ribs and sausage for a family gathering the following weekend .... I do plan to order a MAGNUM size smoke daddy attachment .... I'm glad a decision has been made and am looking forward to getting it dirty ....

[JEBar]

we just got back from picking up our new Masterbuilt 44-Inch Propane Smoker at our local Cabala's .. .. cut the box open and to say "Some Assembly Required" would be a major understatement .. .. a string of medical appointments will make it impossible for me to get started on it until Wednesday morning at the earliest .. .. what I do know for sure at this point is, she's heavy ...

[JEBar]

today is Friday and after working on it for 4 hours, our new smoker is assembled ..... tomorrow morning it will be seasoned and then put to work smoking 20 lbs of bulk tube sausage and 10 lbs of 3 oz patties .... 6 racks of ribs are scheduled to be smoked later this coming week .... it will be good to once again have the scent of hickory in the air .... as far as the assembly instructions go, lets just say they leave much to be desired .... it would probably help if they would update them so as to reflect the current parts ....

[JEBar]

seasoned then used the Masterbuilt 44 smoker for the first time .... filled her up with 20 lbs of bulk tube and an additional 10 lbs of 3 oz pork sausage patties .... it really turned out good .... I learned that empty with both burners on high she will hold 325 degrees .... with 1 burner on high she will hold about 225 degrees .... with all shelves loaded heavy with both burners on high, she will hold 200 degrees .... that is a bit misleading because she cooks evenly on all shelves at that temp

[JEBar]

UPDATE :

the only thing I don't like about our Masterbuilt 44 is the chip tray is way too small .... we've tried a couple of things to generate more smoke but they haven't performed to the level we want .... taking a lesson from the outstanding performance from the addition of a small Smoke Daddy ===> https://smokedaddyinc.com/product/8-inc ... generator/ to our Holland Companion grill (first 3 pictures) that we take with us while traveling in our camper, we ordered a large one .... it arrived today, I hope to be able to install it within the next few days .... its sure a Big Daddy , I'm looking forward to seeing it in action .... the last 5 pictures below show a side-by-side comparison of our original small Smoke Daddy and the new larger one

[JEBar]

we've got smoke ... ... installed the large Smoke Daddy today .... install was pretty straight forward, all I had to do was drill a hole and mount it .... the pictures below show the install, lit charcoal, chips added, smoke coming in .... next to last picture show that when cold smoking (like cheese) without the burner, smoke comes in much faster than it can escape ..... last picture shows that with the burner lit, smoke flows through really well .... yep, we've got smoke !!!! ..

[JEBar]

first mod to our upgrade .. .. in the first picture the OEM locking nut can be seen .... to remove the Smoke Daddy from the smoker requires loosening the locking nut with channel locks so that it can be removed ..... second pictures shows the locking nut has been replaced wit a coupler that can be hand tightened or removed .... that greatly speeds up the process

[JEBar]

on of the things I enjoy about fall is smoking sausage .... for the first run of this fall we purchased 20 lbs of what, around here, they call link sausage .... sometime before New Years I hope to do another 20 lbs .... our current 44-Inch smoker could handle 40 lbs at once .... I'm finding is propane burners do an excellent job of maintaining the temp and the Big Kahuna Cold Smoke Generator provides a volume and consistency of smoke that produces really good food .. .. pictures show the process from going into the smoker to being vacuumed sealed and headed for the freezer

[Ojaileveraction]

You got me drooling!

[JEBar]

must admit I've been taste testing and it has passed with flying colors .... most certainly drool worthy indeed ..

[BigAl52]

Ya but one thing about it Jim you had something to do and you weren't at all bored in retirement putting that together.

[JEBar]

earlier today we once again drove 35 miles (round trip) to McLamb's Abattoir (Abattoir = slaughterhouse) where we purchased 15 lbs of their homemade link sausage .... for decades we have purchased sausage for our personal use as well as the whole hogs that we grilled as part of our catering business from them .... we normally purchase 30 to 50 lbs of their sausage, hickory smoke it, vacuum seal it, and freeze it ....

[JEBar]

our trip to South Dakota exhausted our supply of home smoked sausage so restocking has been the order of the day .... after getting home from picking up 25 lbs of sausage from McLamb's Abattoir (AKA slaughterhouse), we fired up the smoker .... once smoked the sausage was vacuum packed and is now in the freezer .... I have taste tested it and it is good stuff ..