Newbie needs help on smokers masterbuilt gen 1 or gen 2???

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Which Masterbuilt Smoker 30"

  • Gen 1 20070910

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Gen2 20070213

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    0
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Wow... this unit was $309.99 just last week and now its $273.  That's making the used Gen2 ($175) less and less attractive.

Anyway, going back to the slanted drip pan... why shouldn't I remove it?   Is the water pan (in the Gen1 and 2.5) intended to catch drips?  Because from what I see on pictures, the water pan in the Gen1s is oval.  Without the water or drip pan, would the drips just fall to the bottom drip pan anyway.  The only thing I see being an issue is drip could then fall on the chip tray.  But then what about the Gen1... with the water pan being oval, I dont see how that protects the chip tray either. 

Anyway... seems like this slanted drip pan seems to be the only hang-up or issue left with the Gen2.  Just trying to understand the issue would be if I removed it all together.
 
 
Wow... this unit was $309.99 just last week and now its $273.  That's making the used Gen2 ($175) less and less attractive.

Anyway, going back to the slanted drip pan... why shouldn't I remove it?   Is the water pan (in the Gen1 and 2.5) intended to catch drips?  Because from what I see on pictures, the water pan in the Gen1s is oval.  Without the water or drip pan, would the drips just fall to the bottom drip pan anyway.  The only thing I see being an issue is drip could then fall on the chip tray.  But then what about the Gen1... with the water pan being oval, I dont see how that protects the chip tray either. 

Anyway... seems like this slanted drip pan seems to be the only hang-up or issue left with the Gen2.  Just trying to understand the issue would be if I removed it all together.
Like I said, if you can make something fit in there, like the big water pan the Gen #1 has, you could take it out, but the side vent isn't a good thing either.

If you just remove the slanted drip plate there will be too much direct heat on the food, especially the bottom 2 positions. Maybe even higher up.

Also the drippings would be landing on the super hot chip burner cover instead of in a water pan. Why not just get a Gen #1 or #2.5??

Bear
 
I know ... with the gen1 now being $273... I'm really tempted to just go for that (than the used Gen2 for $175).

Ok so this a little tangent but I need to know if I go with amns pellets or dust, do I need that amns tray as well or do the pellets and dust just go into the MES chip tray. Just trying to figure out all the cost I'm looking at if I do decide to pull the trigger on the gen 1 on amazon.

Lastly, how much pellet or dust do I need to begin with. Amns pounds per hour estimates.. Just some touch estimates so I know how much to buy and be good for my first smoke.
 
I know ... with the gen1 now being $273... I'm really tempted to just go for that (than the used Gen2 for $175).

Ok so this a little tangent but I need to know if I go with amns pellets or dust, do I need that amns tray as well or do the pellets and dust just go into the MES chip tray. Just trying to figure out all the cost I'm looking at if I do decide to pull the trigger on the gen 1 on amazon.

Lastly, how much pellet or dust do I need to begin with. Amns pounds per hour estimates.. Just some touch estimates so I know how much to buy and be good for my first smoke.
LOL---Or you can get the Gen #2 and maybe end up kicking your own butt for not listening to the reviews & comments on this forum.

You need the AMNPS for pellets & dust, as long as you aren't at a high altitude. If you put the area you live in your Profile we would know better how to help you.

A full AMNPS of Pellets will get you a perfect continuous, constant smoke for 10 to 12 consecutive hours. I never weighed how much that is, but Todd or some other guys can tell you. It won't be pounds per hour, but quite a few hours per pound. 

Bear
 
Thanks Bear. I'm in Colorado... in the city, not in the high country, so roughly "mile high." I've also updated my profile to show my location. Thanks for the tip!

I realized amns isn't just replacing wood chips with pellets or dust, you actually use a whole "different system." I get how it works now after reading up on amns websites.

From what I read 1 lb should burn for about 11 hours. I read about how to start the burn and what things to do to ensure it keeps burning (pulling out loader and chip tray for added ventilation etc).

So you mentioned something about high altitude, which that has me curious if theres added considerations I should have living in the Denver area.

With Gen 1, I asume you place the amnps somewhere under the water pan to keep protected from drips, to the left of the heat source.

Lastly, I'm just going to go for the new gen1 on Amazon and forgo the used gen2. You're right, I don't want to regret the gen2, I'll get a new smoker and have some peace of mind with the 90 warranty.

So... on another slight tangent... I'd like to know what other bare essential things I need to have before I even start my first smoke. So far I have...

1. Mes 40 (my choice of smoker)
2. Amnps tray
3. Amns pellets (I'll have to look up some recipes and see which kind I need for what I want to smoke)
4. Propane Torch (I have a MAP gas torch... used in sweating copper pipes. Is this too hot? If so, I have regular propane gas I can use with the torch)

... apart from recipe ingredients I'll need for the particular smoke I wanna do, are there any other "equipment" I need in order to proper do my first smoke?
 
Thanks Bear. I'm in Colorado... in the city, not in the high country, so roughly "mile high." I've also updated my profile to show my location. Thanks for the tip!

I realized amns isn't just replacing wood chips with pellets or dust, you actually use a whole "different system." I get how it works now after reading up on amns websites.

From what I read 1 lb should burn for about 11 hours. I read about how to start the burn and what things to do to ensure it keeps burning (pulling out loader and chip tray for added ventilation etc).

So you mentioned something about high altitude, which that has me curious if theres added considerations I should have living in the Denver area.

With Gen 1, I asume you place the amnps somewhere under the water pan to keep protected from drips, to the left of the heat source.

Lastly, I'm just going to go for the new gen1 on Amazon and forgo the used gen2. You're right, I don't want to regret the gen2, I'll get a new smoker and have some peace of mind with the 90 warranty.

So... on another slight tangent... I'd like to know what other bare essential things I need to have before I even start my first smoke. So far I have...

1. Mes 40 (my choice of smoker)
2. Amnps tray
3. Amns pellets (I'll have to look up some recipes and see which kind I need for what I want to smoke)
4. Propane Torch (I have a MAP gas torch... used in sweating copper pipes. Is this too hot? If so, I have regular propane gas I can use with the torch)

... apart from recipe ingredients I'll need for the particular smoke I wanna do, are there any other "equipment" I need in order to proper do my first smoke?
The first thing you should do is talk to Todd Johnson (Owner of Amazing Smokers), and ask him if maybe since you're a mile high, maybe you should get a Tube Smoker instead of the AMNPS. Todd knows more about that than anyone else.

Probably hard to keep an AMNPS smoking at that Altitude.

I use Hickory for everything, but that's just me.

I don't know much about how hot Map Gas gets. I just use Propane for lighting pellets & Butane for lighting Dust.

Other things??

Digital wireless Therms, like Maverick ET-732

Foil Pans, Foil

This might help some:

Just click on "Bear's Step by Steps".

Bear
 
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The first thing you should do is talk to Todd Johnson (Owner of Amazing Smokers), and ask him if maybe since you're a mile high, maybe you should get a Tube Smoker instead of the AMNPS. Todd knows more about that than anyone else.

Probably hard to keep an AMNPS smoking at that Altitude.

I use Hickory for everything, but that's just me.

I don't know much about how hot Map Gas gets. I just use Propane for lighting pellets & Butane for lighting Dust.

Other things??

Digital wireless Therms, like Maverick ET-732

Foil Pans, Foil

This might help some:

Just click on "Bear's Step by Steps".

Bear
When you pull out the chip loader an inch or so for ventilation do you leave it upside down in the dump position?   Can you just remove the chip pan or slide it out an inch?  Do you slide out the drip pan as well?

-Kurt
 
 
Here's an outstanding deal on a MES 40. It's an updated Gen 1:
Wow!  I sent this to my buddy with the Gen 2 he still needs to plug in for the first time.  With my 600 sq. inch charcoal grill and charcoal offset and Kamado smokers, I just don't have the space until one of the other smokers falls apart.  The offset is rusting pretty badly but the gauge of steel is heavy.  I would get it as an additional oven if it went up another 100*F to 375*F.  Hell I don't know I'm still on the fence.  Thanks for the link.  I have it saved.

-Kurt
 
 
When you pull out the chip loader an inch or so for ventilation do you leave it upside down in the dump position?   Can you just remove the chip pan or slide it out an inch?  Do you slide out the drip pan as well?

-Kurt
I never touch my chip dumper or chip drawer. My AMNPS works Great in my MES 40 Gen #1 without playing any games.

Others do various things combined or individually, including turning their chip dumper 180°, pulling it part way out, and pulling the chip drawer an inch or so out.

I can't tell you how good those things work, because I never tried them.

Bear
 
 
That's the Gen #1 I have for 5 years.

Great Smoker!!

I paid $349.99 5 years ago!!

Bear
If I'd known about this smoker and had had the money 5 years ago this is the one I would have bought. But if this model is 5 years old or so, how old are the plain black MES 30 & 40 Gen 1 models with the original controller?
 
 
If I'd known about this smoker and had had the money 5 years ago this is the one I would have bought. But if this model is 5 years old or so, how old are the plain black MES 30 & 40 Gen 1 models with the original controller?
I got my MES 30 Gen #1 a year earlier, and it had the older straight edged control box. I think my MES 40 was one of the first ones with the remote control.

It was love at first sight.

Bear
 
 
Wow!  I sent this to my buddy with the Gen 2 he still needs to plug in for the first time.  With my 600 sq. inch charcoal grill and charcoal offset and Kamado smokers, I just don't have the space until one of the other smokers falls apart.  The offset is rusting pretty badly but the gauge of steel is heavy.  I would get it as an additional oven if it went up another 100*F to 375*F.  Hell I don't know I'm still on the fence.  Thanks for the link.  I have it saved.

-Kurt
You're welcome, Kurt. But you know that Amazon is like Costco: sometimes you have to jump on a great deal because the next time you shop there it's gone. But if you're looking for an electric smoker oven that goes up to 375° I don't think you'll find one. Cookshacks only go up to 300°F.

Every person who has an offset smoker that I've talked to has rust problems. That's why I chose an electric smoker I could keep in my garage.
 
 
Did you say that you don't get a smoke ring with the MES?

-Kurt
That's correct and here's why: http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/mythbusting_the_smoke_ring.html

Theoretically if you burn a charcoal briquette in the wood chip burner that could give a smoke ring due to the carbon monoxide and nitric oxide produced. But to that you'd also have to crank the cooking temp up to max at 275° F.

From the article I linked to: "Don't use electric smokers. That is partially because the wood smolders at a low temp in electrics, and high temps are required to create the NO and CO. Experts at cooking in electric smokers sometimes add a charcoal briquet as well as wood to create the correct atmospheric conditions for a smoke ring. Some of these briquets actually contain powdered sodium nitrates, which enhance ring formation. But in general, a vigorous charcoal or wood fire at just the right temperature, produces the deepest ring and the best meat."
 
 
I got my MES 30 Gen #1 a year earlier, and it had the older straight edged control box. I think my MES 40 was one of the first ones with the remote control.

It was love at first sight.

Bear
So my having a smoking affair with your MES 40 would be out of the question?
 
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I never touch my chip dumper or chip drawer. My AMNPS works Great in my MES 40 Gen #1 without playing any games.

Others do various things combined or individually, including turning their chip dumper 180°, pulling it part way out, and pulling the chip drawer an inch or so out.

I can't tell you how good those things work, because I never tried them.

Bear
I took Rick's advice and ordered the MES 40" Gen 1 from the link he put up.  I have the 12" AMNTS for up to 6hrs. of smoke.  I'll see if I need to get the AMNPS for longer smokes down the road.  I'll do nothing other than put the tube smoker on the rails and see how it goes.  Thanks for all the help.

-Kurt
 
 
You're welcome, Kurt. But you know that Amazon is like Costco: sometimes you have to jump on a great deal because the next time you shop there it's gone. But if you're looking for an electric smoker oven that goes up to 375° I don't think you'll find one. Cookshacks only go up to 300°F.

Every person who has an offset smoker that I've talked to has rust problems. That's why I chose an electric smoker I could keep in my garage.
Ok, I freaked out after a quick loop through Google on MES's and had to jump on your Amazon find.  The offset is going to my girlfriend's and the MES 40" from your link will be here before June 2nd.  I'm not familiar with the $17.11 estimated tax but had $19 in Discover cash back that covered it.  Thanks for all your help.

-Kurt 
 
Haha! I put my order in as well!
Thanks for the heads up on the altitude thing. After doing some more reading, it does appear the tray was not designed for altitude >5000 feet. I'm definitely gonna go with the tube, though I'm still trying to figured out if I should do the 12" or 18". Thoughts?
 
Haha! I put my order in as well!
Thanks for the heads up on the altitude thing. After doing some more reading, it does appear the tray was not designed for altitude >5000 feet. I'm definitely gonna go with the tube, though I'm still trying to figured out if I should do the 12" or 18". Thoughts?
Did you have the $17 estimated tax thing? I never saw anything like that before when ordering from Amazon. I put a cup and a quarter of pellets in the 12 " tube smoker held it side ways and shaked it till it's level all the way across, which is a little over half way filed standing on end for over 4 hrs of TBS when cold smoking. The diameter is plenty big to play around with a quarter cup increments. The tube smoker seems easier fo me to light without the open end cap just the bottom cap. Gelled alcohol seems to be very easy to start the pellets.
-Kurt
 
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