# Sams Club Hybrid Grill



## morning wood (Jan 8, 2013)

My brother in law just bought a Members Mark Hybrid Grill Model GR3055-014684. 

(i tried to paste a link to the sams club website here but was told the thread in my link did not exist)

He lives 2 hours away so we have been discussing possible modifications over the phone and through email. 

Quick description:

propane side (cook chamber)  is 17" wide, 21" long and measures 15" from top of lid to bottom

Charcoal side (fire box) is 17" wide, 21" long and measures 20" from top of lid to bottom

there is a full depth divider between the  two sides.  The top half of the divider is in the lids and the bottom half of the divider is fixed from the cooking surface down to the bottom of both chambers.

(I tried to paste the link to the bbq calcuator here but was told that the thread didn't exist.)

My modification ideas are to put the lid with the chimney over the propane side and not the charcoal side as instructed and shown in the picture.  Than according to the calculator, cut a 57 sqin hole between the firebox and the cooking chamber.  My thought is to cut this as a 4" x 15" hole about 2" down from the top of the support.  I'm thinking the chamber-to-chamber opening would be better to be wider than deep.  Than add the high temp silicone around both lids. 

According to the calcuator the 3" diameter chimeny needs to be 50 in long.  It is roughly 7".

What are your thoughts on the modifications and what do you think we should do for the chimney?

Thank you.


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## garyt (Jan 8, 2013)

is this the one

http://www.samsclub.com/sams/hybrid...as-and-charcoal-cooking-system/prod2410014.ip


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## morning wood (Jan 9, 2013)

that is the one.  I couldn't get it to post when i tried.

Thank you


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## s2k9k (Jan 9, 2013)

Morning Wood said:


> that is the one.  I couldn't get it to post when i tried.
> 
> Thank you


Oh it posted...about 8 times!

Just so you know since you are new if you post any pictures or links our software will probably hold the post until a moderator can approve it. Just be patient and don't double post it because you don't see it show up right away, someone will get to it! We do this to keep the spammers out and so no one posts anything inappropriate until we get to know them. This only lasts until you make about 20 posts.


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## michael ark (Jan 9, 2013)

It's a smokey hollow. I started a thread In I seen this at sam's.


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## morning wood (Jan 9, 2013)

S2K9K said:


> Oh it posted...about 8 times!


I am sorry.  When the message poped up I just assumed the links were corrupt.  I better get my first 20 posts done 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






Michael

I looked but couldn't find your thread.


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## morning wood (Jan 9, 2013)

OK I found the post you were referring to ( http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/110357/seen-this-at-sams/20  ) and it is very similar to the one he has with the exception that his did not come with a side fire box.  I have told him about this and he is going to see if he can purchase the fire box separately so we don't need to do any modifications.  If that's not going to work we will try to make the charcoal side of this into a fire box. Any suggestions?


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## slumav505 (Jan 10, 2013)

Just got this set up for Christmas. On the charcoal side we left the chimney, and for a firebox we bought a smokey joe and linked it to the side vent with dryer vent hose. Works AWESOME. SOO much smoke. Future mods I can see being necessary is finding a way to prevent smoke from escaping around the charcoal grate handle.


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## morning wood (Jan 11, 2013)

Slumav505 great idea!!  Are you getting enough heat transfer with this set up or do you fire up the charcoal inside the cooker as well?


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## slumav505 (Jan 11, 2013)

Heat transfer not so much, granted I didn't really try. It works best as a cold smoker. I didn't really load up the smokey joe with tons of Charcoal like I was actually cooking on it though. Might be an idea for next time. I'll post up here when I try it. I just offset the meat from the coals to prevent flare ups and put a small water pan on the bottom of the grill. Being able to access to the coals without opening the lid is a major upgrade over the POS bullet smoker I was using before. I did some smaller chicken breasts with the set up last night and it came out excellent again.


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## morning wood (Jan 14, 2013)

just a quick follow up: 

A pre-fabricated firebox was purchased from lowes and should be on the grill this weekend. 

Thank you


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## slumav505 (Feb 10, 2013)

Slumav505 said:


> Heat transfer not so much, granted I didn't really try. It works best as a cold smoker. I didn't really load up the smokey joe with tons of Charcoal like I was actually cooking on it though. Might be an idea for next time. I'll post up here when I try it. I just offset the meat from the coals to prevent flare ups and put a small water pan on the bottom of the grill. Being able to access to the coals without opening the lid is a major upgrade over the POS bullet smoker I was using before. I did some smaller chicken breasts with the set up last night and it came out excellent again.


Did the first true smoke last night:

(low grate) 2 6lb PB's

(top Grate) 1 onion, 1 garlic clove, 3 jalepenos

I started the coals around 6:15pm using the infrared side burner (take off the grill grate and just rest each coal on top of the unit, flip once you see flame.) By 6:45 temperature was around 270, After opening the lid and positioning the pork so the lid could close (more of a challenge then it seems.) temp was around 240. The first hour was spent battling temp to keep it around 240. Temp would increase to around 300 quite frequently. I noticed that this unit is really prone to flare ups since there are quite a few ways for oxygen to get in. I took some of the aluminum tape i used on the side burner and covered up the opening around the grate handle, which seemed to help the problem. Next problem came up around the hour 2 mark when the grease hit the coals. (Lesson 2, push all the coals to the back of the unit so the grease does not hit the coals.) My next modification is going to be a way to install a drip/water pan above the coals but below the meat. I had a water pan to help balance the temperature, but the only place currently to put it is below the charcoal rack. Once I did that the unit worked like a charm. As far as the side cold smoker I installed, it continues to impress. One thing I'm thinking about is putting another vent for fresh air to help the burn. The webber grill seems to choke itself off over time with ash.

All in all took me around 8-8.5 hours but both butt's turned out perfect. I have some pics on my phone that I will post later.


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## aquaduck (Feb 10, 2013)

Then he only has about 12 more pics to go!


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## slumav505 (Apr 3, 2013)

Well I've used it a bit more now.

1) does not need a lot of coals to get hot. Make sure you use a drip pan. Ribs on the top rack work very well. (More on that later)

2.) side infrared unit is touchy and does not like wind. One trick to get it to stay lit is pull the panel gently out and up while holding the button in during start. Seems to stay lit more often. Works amazing as a charcoal starter. I don't use lighter fluid anymore. As far as wind, block the gap between the lid and the burner.

I've done one major smoke (2 6 pound butts) and ribs. Ribs seem to get done quicker, but I've developed my secret trick to get the desired taste and tenderness. Poems took about 8-10 hours, I used a foil serving pan at internal temp 165, and had a major flare up. (Move your coals rearward if you can't use a drip pan.


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