A-Maze-N vs ProQ Cold Smoke Generators
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Ok----I get it---Sorry about the confusion, Wade.
I was meaning the lighter fluid
I used that stuff for years & years, until I learned about the Chimney Charcoal starter (on this forum).
No more Lighter fluid tasting Ribeyes & Burgers for me.
Amazing that they would use Lighter fluid in a Smoke Generator Demo Video.
Bear
tuffer
Newbie
Well I will keep using it, as it does not produce thick smoke,Its called learn to adjust and fine tune your smoker just like everything, and i do not use lighter fluid to start my pellets.That meister has great reviews on other sites like BBQ BRETHREN, But hey to each is its own. This group is the most biased i have ever seen. Sad
Hi Tuffer - If you mistake banter for being biased then I am sorry but we cannot help that.
The unit actually looks very good. If it behaves as it appears to in the video then they have overcome the staying alight problem that is common with the other barrel smoke generators. I think it is the larger diameter that makes the difference.
In the video the smoke is very think - as I mentioned above it is similar to the smoke put out by the tube smokers. This is great for hot smoking in a gas BBQ as shown in the video but it would be way too thick for cold smoking as shown. I too have an Amazen tube smoker and also an AMNPS - both which I use regularly. They really hit too different smoke points - I find that the tube smoker is great for hot smoking and the pellet smoker is better for cold smoking.
As you say (and as I teach on my BBQ courses) the secret is in the fine tuning. It would be great if you could do a q-view review on the product and show just what it is capable of. It would be good to see how low you can adjust it without it going out - I suspect that it can go quite low.
There was mention above about creosote. I did not gather from the video that they were expecting creosote in the smoke chamber but maybe Gary saw it elsewhere. What they did demonstrate though wad how to remove tars that were in the smoke generator after it has been used. This is perfectly understandable as all smoke generators produce tars - it is a natural product of burning the dust or pellets. It has to go somewhere and in this case it is better that as much as possible stays in the smoke generator.
I am a little surprised at the price though. $120 seems a little steep, but if it does the job then it may be worth the money.
Looking forward to photos and maybe a video clip or two
The unit actually looks very good. If it behaves as it appears to in the video then they have overcome the staying alight problem that is common with the other barrel smoke generators. I think it is the larger diameter that makes the difference.
In the video the smoke is very think - as I mentioned above it is similar to the smoke put out by the tube smokers. This is great for hot smoking in a gas BBQ as shown in the video but it would be way too thick for cold smoking as shown. I too have an Amazen tube smoker and also an AMNPS - both which I use regularly. They really hit too different smoke points - I find that the tube smoker is great for hot smoking and the pellet smoker is better for cold smoking.
As you say (and as I teach on my BBQ courses) the secret is in the fine tuning. It would be great if you could do a q-view review on the product and show just what it is capable of. It would be good to see how low you can adjust it without it going out - I suspect that it can go quite low.
There was mention above about creosote. I did not gather from the video that they were expecting creosote in the smoke chamber but maybe Gary saw it elsewhere. What they did demonstrate though wad how to remove tars that were in the smoke generator after it has been used. This is perfectly understandable as all smoke generators produce tars - it is a natural product of burning the dust or pellets. It has to go somewhere and in this case it is better that as much as possible stays in the smoke generator.
I am a little surprised at the price though. $120 seems a little steep, but if it does the job then it may be worth the money.
Looking forward to photos and maybe a video clip or two
jokensmoken
Master of the Pit
Biased...hmmm...I'm confused.
Especially since I've been shunned and/or ignored on some other sites because using electric or propane as fuel isn't "real BBQ" or "real smoking"...
I use both, as well as a WSM and an older Okie Joe stick burner...but none of that mattered...soon as they heard propane or electric that was it...nothing you had to say about anything was pertinent nor was any question worth answering.
I have to agree with Wade...banter isn't showing a bias nor is sticking with what's working for you...personally I like my A-Maze-N tube and ANMPS because I have learned to use them or "fine tune" them as you put it...that's not really a bias...it's what Ive spent the time to learn to use and what I'm comfortable with.
Walt.
Especially since I've been shunned and/or ignored on some other sites because using electric or propane as fuel isn't "real BBQ" or "real smoking"...
I use both, as well as a WSM and an older Okie Joe stick burner...but none of that mattered...soon as they heard propane or electric that was it...nothing you had to say about anything was pertinent nor was any question worth answering.
I have to agree with Wade...banter isn't showing a bias nor is sticking with what's working for you...personally I like my A-Maze-N tube and ANMPS because I have learned to use them or "fine tune" them as you put it...that's not really a bias...it's what Ive spent the time to learn to use and what I'm comfortable with.
Walt.
True Walt, We have a lot of Great People on this Forum!!
Yup---Hardly anyone on this Forum picks on us poor old Cripple Watt-burners.
Only one or two guys that I can think of do it as a habit.
We know you can get better flavor from an actual Woodburner, but I think we get pretty close when we get everything going just right.
Bear
Yup---Hardly anyone on this Forum picks on us poor old Cripple Watt-burners.
Only one or two guys that I can think of do it as a habit.
We know you can get better flavor from an actual Woodburner, but I think we get pretty close when we get everything going just right.
Bear
Last edited:
Yer not old Bear,
Just well seasoned, and smoked. [emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128512[/emoji]
JD
----///------
Yup---Hardly anyone on this Forum picks on us poor old Cripple Watt-burners.
Only one or two guys that I can think of do it as a habit.
We know you can get better flavor from an actual Woodturner,
Bear
[/quote]
Just well seasoned, and smoked. [emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128514[/emoji][emoji]128512[/emoji]
JD
----///------
Yup---Hardly anyone on this Forum picks on us poor old Cripple Watt-burners.
Only one or two guys that I can think of do it as a habit.
We know you can get better flavor from an actual Woodturner,
Bear
[/quote]
Wade
Remember He's a Bear cannibalism doesn't count in his world.
Oops I guess that's picking on old crippled members.
Warren
Remember He's a Bear cannibalism doesn't count in his world.
Warren
Yup--What Warren said!
Wade
Remember He's a Bear, so cannibalism doesn't count in his world.Oops I guess that's picking on old crippled members.
Warren
So be careful.
Bear
jokensmoken
Master of the Pit
Right bear.
I think I do pretty good on my MES and my propane now...lol...
When I switched from using my stick burner to my MES the very first thing I noticed was a lack of smoke flavor...now that I've got the right mix of different woods figured out and the right tools...no problems...
Walt.
I think I do pretty good on my MES and my propane now...lol...
When I switched from using my stick burner to my MES the very first thing I noticed was a lack of smoke flavor...now that I've got the right mix of different woods figured out and the right tools...no problems...
Walt.
Last edited:
Howdy.
I have a gen 1 MES 40, and love it with a bit of help from an Anmps. I also now have a MB propane 44Xsmoker. I can't control temp very well is my number one complaint and More smoke, would be welcome. I have ripped out most of the innards and now nothing but a rack and a cast iron pan over my burners. What kind of propane smoker do you have and Can you learn me sum tricks?
Thanks.
JD
I have a gen 1 MES 40, and love it with a bit of help from an Anmps. I also now have a MB propane 44Xsmoker. I can't control temp very well is my number one complaint and More smoke, would be welcome. I have ripped out most of the innards and now nothing but a rack and a cast iron pan over my burners. What kind of propane smoker do you have and Can you learn me sum tricks?
Thanks.
JD
jokensmoken
Master of the Pit
I've got an XL40 Masterbuilt single door propane.
It's basically a cabinet with racks and a burner in the bottom.
About a as basic as it gets.
I had lots of problems and solved most of them...
One issue was temp control so, as suggested by many on this site, I installed a needle valve to my propane tank that gave me better temp control for lower temps...if you're too cool you'll have to look into adding some insulation...my issue was getting cool enough.
The next issue was hot spots.
From top to bottom and front to rear I had as much as 30-40° temp differences...
I got a piece of 1/4 inch thick sheet steel about 14 inches X 24 inches from a scrap yard...filled the water pan with sand and set the steel directly on top of the shelf that holds the water pan making a big heat sinc. It helped alot but I still had some hot spots so I drilled 3/4 inch holes in all four corners through the side of the cabinet for air flow (8 holes in all, 4 in each side) I use flat refrigerator magnets as dampers to choke them down...
After playing around with them I all but eliminated hot spots.
SMOKE...Yup...same problem so I got an A-Maze-N tube and abandon the chip tray altogether...
I mix in hickory chips with a competition blend of hickory, maple and cherry (HMC blend) pellets from lumberjack...the pellets alone didn't seem to impart much smoke flavor but adding chips (about half and half solved the problem.
I ran into another problem though...
keeping the tube lit...so I took two small pieces of 2x4 wrapped in foil (to prevent burning) and put one in the front left corner and one in the back left corner right on the floor of the cabinet where I set the well lit tube...I then drilled 5 more small holes about the diameter of a pencil right along the side where the tube sits...and now it smokes away for about 4-5 hours...
Sounds like a lot of stuff but it's all pretty simple stuff and my smoker works amazingly good now.
Not knowing about your particular smoker I'd just start with the needle valve and a smoke tube...and go from there...
Hope some of this helps.
Good luck and happy smoking.
Walt
It's basically a cabinet with racks and a burner in the bottom.
About a as basic as it gets.
I had lots of problems and solved most of them...
One issue was temp control so, as suggested by many on this site, I installed a needle valve to my propane tank that gave me better temp control for lower temps...if you're too cool you'll have to look into adding some insulation...my issue was getting cool enough.
The next issue was hot spots.
From top to bottom and front to rear I had as much as 30-40° temp differences...
I got a piece of 1/4 inch thick sheet steel about 14 inches X 24 inches from a scrap yard...filled the water pan with sand and set the steel directly on top of the shelf that holds the water pan making a big heat sinc. It helped alot but I still had some hot spots so I drilled 3/4 inch holes in all four corners through the side of the cabinet for air flow (8 holes in all, 4 in each side) I use flat refrigerator magnets as dampers to choke them down...
After playing around with them I all but eliminated hot spots.
SMOKE...Yup...same problem so I got an A-Maze-N tube and abandon the chip tray altogether...
I mix in hickory chips with a competition blend of hickory, maple and cherry (HMC blend) pellets from lumberjack...the pellets alone didn't seem to impart much smoke flavor but adding chips (about half and half solved the problem.
I ran into another problem though...
keeping the tube lit...so I took two small pieces of 2x4 wrapped in foil (to prevent burning) and put one in the front left corner and one in the back left corner right on the floor of the cabinet where I set the well lit tube...I then drilled 5 more small holes about the diameter of a pencil right along the side where the tube sits...and now it smokes away for about 4-5 hours...
Sounds like a lot of stuff but it's all pretty simple stuff and my smoker works amazingly good now.
Not knowing about your particular smoker I'd just start with the needle valve and a smoke tube...and go from there...
Hope some of this helps.
Good luck and happy smoking.
Walt
jokensmoken
Master of the Pit
Forgot to mention I plugged all the air leaks with high temp silocone and put a gasket around the door...the silocone was high temp permatex from the local auto parts store and the door gasket was ordered off Amazon...it was made by lavarock and I used the 1/8" thick X 1/2" wide self stick which has been in place two years now...I think it comes in different length rolls like 6, 8, 10, 12 feet.
jokensmoken
Master of the Pit
Thanks bear,
It was a learning process and I'd be remiss not to give the folks on this site a lot of the credit...most of the mods were suggestions from all y'all.
I just kept asking and fiddling.
Walt.
It was a learning process and I'd be remiss not to give the folks on this site a lot of the credit...most of the mods were suggestions from all y'all.
I just kept asking and fiddling.
Walt.
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