Been member for 6 years. Time to start posting :)

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mikemike

Newbie
Original poster
Sep 16, 2007
5
10
Palm Bay, FL
Yeah, just realized that I signed up in 2007 and been lurking here since. :) This site is a great source for everything bbq and smoking!

I've been smoking on and off for 35 years. I mostly smoked in my strange own home made constructions until maybe 6 or 7 years ago where I bought an electric Old Smokey. What a relief to set and forget (almost). The Old Smokey has really been great and everything I have thrown at it came out good. It's not very convenient though. You basically have to take all the meat out of it before you can add extra chips.

Anyway, it's worn out and it's time to upgrade. Right now I'm leaning most towards the Cajun Injector model #22174.0171.

I like the big glass door and it's a good price as well. I was also considering the new gen mes40 at Amazon for $308, but the reviews aren't that great and that's as high I want to go in price.

Well, off to read more about you guys opinions on various electric smokers :)
 
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That looks like a nice smoker to me. I couldn't tell what size heating element was in it. It looks like it is laid out nice and the price is right.
 
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Hi Mike! :welcome1: to finally posting on SMF!!! We're happy you did! You've come to the right place, we have over 50,000 members who just love to share their experience and over 1,000,000 posts describing it! Yea that’s right over 1,000,000!

The search bar at the top can be your best friend when you are trying to find answers to your questions but you can still ask too if you want!

We have an ”Articles” section that is full of great information about smoking to include a lot of recipes and instructionals. Check it out there is a lot to learn in there!

You might want to check out ”Jeff's Free 5 day E-Course”, it will teach you all the basics plus a whole lot more!
 
Hi Mike!!

If you can get a 1st Generation MES 40, you'll love it, but if you get the New Gen MES 40, you'll hate it !!

Good to see you posting,

Bear
 
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to SMF!  We are so glad you joined us! 

We love to see pictures of what you are cooking (or what we call q-views here at SMF).  To "upload the q-views" just follow the directions here and it will be easier. If you are using a cell phone, an IPad or a kindle, go to the main SMF page and click the Mobile button. Will make the uploads a bit faster too.

If you didn't read the "Terms of Service" notes.....please do.  There are a few things that everyone should know about those pesky little rules before plunging into the forums and some guidelines of how to interact within the forums. Off site links are not allowed here at SMF per Jeff. Not that you have done anything wrong....just a little bit of FYI for new members!

If you need any help roaming around the forums....just holler!  Happy to help out!

Kat
 
That looks like a nice smoker to me. I couldn't tell what size heating element was in it. It looks like it is laid out nice and the price is right.
I tried to find more info about the heat element, but it's not listed anywhere. I have seen some mention that it was 650W which may seem low. The cons will be the additional time to warm up and longer time to recover the temperature if you've had the door open. I don't see that as a problem though. The only reason for me in the past to open a smoker is to "just take a look" . I can do that now through the window. On my Old Smokey there was a 1250W watt element, which was a big disadvantage. It heated up very quick and whenever it turned on it was a very short time. The result was very little smoke created. At times I opened it just to lower the temperature so I could get the heat element to run more. The way I see it is that if the heat element is smaller then it will run more often and burn more wood. I hope that will be the case with the Cajun Injector and maybe I will not need any additional smoke gadgets
smile.gif
. As you mentioned it has a really nice design and the price is good.

I will be back and post pics and let you guys know how it all goes.
Off site links are not allowed here at SMF per Jeff. Not that you have done anything wrong....just a little bit of FYI for new members!
Ok, I changed the linked text in my first post to model name and # instead. Hope that's ok.

I also read the rules and of course I'm ok with all that.
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I tried to find more info about the heat element, but it's not listed anywhere. I have seen some mention that it was 650W which may seem low. The cons will be the additional time to warm up and longer time to recover the temperature if you've had the door open. I don't see that as a problem though. The only reason for me in the past to open a smoker is to "just take a look" . I can do that now through the window. On my Old Smokey there was a 1250W watt element, which was a big disadvantage. It heated up very quick and whenever it turned on it was a very short time. The result was very little smoke created. At times I opened it just to lower the temperature so I could get the heat element to run more. The way I see it is that if the heat element is smaller then it will run more often and burn more wood. I hope that will be the case with the Cajun Injector and maybe I will not need any additional smoke gadgets
smile.gif
. As you mentioned it has a really nice design and the price is good.

I will be back and post pics and let you guys know how it all goes.

Ok, I changed the linked text in my first post to model name and # instead. Hope that's ok.

I also read the rules and of course I'm ok with all that.
police2.gif
Mike,

Don't let the size of the element fool you into thinking one size will give you good smoke in an electric smoker. 500, 650, 800, 1000, 1200, or 1500 Watts will get you an on & off smoke at best---sometimes too much smoke, sometimes not enough, and sometimes NONE.

You're better off getting one with enough wattage to get where you want it to, in Winter & Summer, and get an AMNPS for the smoking. Then you can fill it up, and light one end, and without touching it, get up to 11 hours of continuous, consistent, Perfect smoke!!

Bear
 
I tried to find more info about the heat element, but it's not listed anywhere. I have seen some mention that it was 650W which may seem low. The cons will be the additional time to warm up and longer time to recover the temperature if you've had the door open. I don't see that as a problem though. The only reason for me in the past to open a smoker is to "just take a look" . I can do that now through the window. On my Old Smokey there was a 1250W watt element, which was a big disadvantage. It heated up very quick and whenever it turned on it was a very short time. The result was very little smoke created. At times I opened it just to lower the temperature so I could get the heat element to run more. The way I see it is that if the heat element is smaller then it will run more often and burn more wood. I hope that will be the case with the Cajun Injector and maybe I will not need any additional smoke gadgets
smile.gif
. As you mentioned it has a really nice design and the price is good.

I will be back and post pics and let you guys know how it all goes.

Ok, I changed the linked text in my first post to model name and # instead. Hope that's ok.

I also read the rules and of course I'm ok with all that.
police2.gif
Mike,

Don't let the size of the element fool you into thinking one size will give you good smoke in an electric smoker. 500, 650, 800, 1000, 1200, or 1500 Watts will get you an on & off smoke at best---sometimes too much smoke, sometimes not enough, and sometimes NONE.

You're better off getting one with enough wattage to get where you want it to, in Winter & Summer, and get an AMNPS for the smoking. Then you can fill it up, and light one end, and without touching it, get up to 11 hours of continuous, consistent, Perfect smoke!!

Bear
Mike your thinking is right as far getting more consistent smoke with a smaller element but I agree with Bear. Having consistent heat and consistent smokes make repeating your food much easier. Normally find out how you like something and repeat, repeat, repeat.
 
Hi Mike,

welcome1.gif
 to the SMF, the best BBQ site on the web.  Whatever you need to know about the fine art of BBQ you can find it right here, from recipes to technical knowledge.

One thing you need to know about us is that we like to see pictures of your creations and your gear.  We call it Q-View and its basically the 
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!!!

So, don't just talk about your food, show it!  Otherwise you may get a gentle reminder, like this...

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  or this...
th_What_NO_QVIEW.gif


Good Luck and Get Smokin'

Bill
 
Yes, that is the newest of the 1st Generation. That is the Best One. IMO

Bear
Thanks Mr. Bear.

I found it for $363 with free shipping. That seems to be a good deal. I think I'll go ahead and hit the checkout button :)

never mind... I think that was the MES30 with incorrect measurements.
 
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Thanks Mr. Bear.

I found it for $363 with free shipping. That seems to be a good deal. I think I'll go ahead and hit the checkout button :)

never mind... I think that was the MES30 with incorrect measurements.
I think I just saw a guy get one for about $290 including shipping.

Bear
 
Thanks Mr. Bear.

I found it for $363 with free shipping. That seems to be a good deal. I think I'll go ahead and hit the checkout button :)

never mind... I think that was the MES30 with incorrect measurements.
I found it, Mike!!!

Here it is from QVC for $249.98 plus $24.47 shipping, plus tax, comes to under $300 total:

http://www.qvc.com/webapp/wcs/store...12&uattrmb=NV0CSNULL&ddkey=http:CatalogSearch

Never mind---Those measurements must be for the MES 30. My MES 40 is 39" high not counting the control box.

They're saying that one is 34" high---Must be an MES 30 including the control box.

Bear
 
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