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i'm heading down to Cabela's this weekend for employee days. I can get between 25 and 40% off selected items. i do not have a ton of space in the garage to store the 40 when its not in use. the 30 sounds like its light enough to store in my basement. should i go for conventional with the 30, or overkill with the 40? plus it all depends on if they have any left by the time i get there.
You should get a good response on this one. Many here have used both versions. I have a 30 original version which has done well for 1 1/2 yrs.
I believe there are more than one type of the 30. Also believe I read about a factory upgrade for the tiny chip tray for the new 40. So kinda need to check out which type is in stock.
With that much discount it would be hard to not choose the 40" unless the budget is really tight.
I like the 30 for occasional use. Keep it outside under a weber cover on the porch. You will get some more specifics from all soon. Besides, how cool it is to work at Cabela's?
wish i worked there, i have a buddy in Sidney NE, his wife is one of the high ups in the office. Each year, each employee gets to hand out 5 certificates which has the discounts on them. So that's how i am getting one.
Definitely get the 40" if you can, You won't be sorry, with it you can smoke a whole slab of ribs without having to cut them in half or bend then to fit...
I have the MES 30, and after a couple of months I wished I had the MES 40, because the MES 30 is too small.
A few weeks ago I finally got the new ALL Stainless Steel MES 40, with the remote, wheels, tilt handle for moving, built in meat probe, and glass door. This is my dream smoker.
So now I have one of each. If I wasn't so dumb, I would have bought the MES 40 right away!
Overkill??? Yeah I guess it's overkill:
If not liking to cut your ribs in half to fit them in the MES 30 is overkill.
If mixing up a small 10 pound batch of Beef sticks, and not liking the fact that you can only get 7 pounds of it in an MES 30 is overkill.
Which is easier, carrying the MES 30 down those steps, or wheeling the MES 40 down those same steps?
The MES 40 is the same depth, a few inches wider, and it is 10 inches higher.
I never store mine, but if I did, I'd much rather store one with wheels. That way, every time it's in the way, I don't have to bend over & pick it up from the bottom to move it. The MES 30 doesn't have any handles for lifting.
Definitely get the 40" if you can, You won't be sorry, with it you can smoke a whole slab of ribs without having to cut them in half or bend then to fit...
Like I said, the MES 40 is a few inches wider than the MES 30.
If the rib racks are between 16" & 19", they will fit in the MES 40, but not in the MES 30.
Most racks of pork spares I have seen are between 16" & 19" long.
BTW: I had measured both of them before, but didn't bother to memorize what their exact height, width, and depth is.
Just the fact that I said the ribs fit in one & not the other, and the 40 doesn't take much more storage room, should have been enough to get my point across.
Smokers are like TVs, and boats, you will always wish you had the bigger model. My 40" is the older Sam's all stainless, purchased almost 3 years ago. I had the same decision you are trying to make, and one thing I already knew I wanted to smoke a whole rack of ribs just like the big boys, so cutting a rack of ribs was not an option. Further, even though most of our BBQ is for 5 or 6 of us, almost every Sunday, 4-6 times a year we have a big BBQ with 30+ people, I wanted the capacity to cook enough ribs for those crowds. Don't worry about overkill, the 40" only cost a couple pennies more an hour to operate, the wood is the same. At least you will have the capacity to cook several other things for an entire meal. I'm almost 60 with a bad back. If I can pick up and carry my 40" almost any healthy person can pick it up and carry it a couple of feet, it just is a little awkward. Another bonus with the 40" is it is more versatile, owners are hanging bacon, chickens, even ribs as well as other meat.
I am not bagging on the 30", I am only stating what I have found using the 40".
One thing I can say for sure, I know a lot of MES 30" owner have purchased a 40" later, but I can't remember a single 40" owner say I wish I had the 30".
Smokers are like TVs, and boats, you will always wish you had the bigger model. My 40" is the older Sam's all stainless, purchased almost 3 years ago. I had the same decision you are trying to make, and one thing I already knew I wanted to smoke a whole rack of ribs just like the big boys, so cutting a rack of ribs was not an option. Further, even though most of our BBQ is for 5 or 6 of us, almost every Sunday, 4-6 times a year we have a big BBQ with 30+ people, I wanted the capacity to cook enough ribs for those crowds. Don't worry about overkill, the 40" only cost a couple pennies more an hour to operate, the wood is the same. At least you will have the capacity to cook several other things for an entire meal. I'm almost 60 with a bad back. If I can pick up and carry my 40" almost any healthy person can pick it up and carry it a couple of feet, it just is a little awkward. Another bonus with the 40" is it is more versatile, owners are hanging bacon, chickens, even ribs as well as other meat.
I am not bagging on the 30", I am only stating what I have found using the 40".
One thing I can say for sure, I know a lot of MES 30" owner have purchased a 40" later, but I can't remember a single 40" owner say I wish I had the 30".
I just bought the 40 MES from Sams last week. Debated on whether it was worth the extra $$$ or not since there were some great deals on the 30. To me it came down to having the extra height to be able to hang sausage....speaking of sausage, got a date with some chicken, a grinder and sausage stuffer this weekend...