# Pulling the trigger on a Yoder?



## adamrappy (Sep 20, 2020)

Greetings all

I feel bad for not posting for awhile. My phone is stocked with pictures of meals but I have been lazy...no other excuses. 

So here I am 90 days into my ownership of my Traeger 575. It was my first pellet grill but I love it. I love grilling and smoking that is. The Traeger is okay but in my first 90 days I have learned alot from experience and from this website. In these 90 days I have cooked over 30 meals on the Traeger including a brisket and burnt ends, salmon for dinner, smoked salmon, salmon jerky, steaks, chicken, roasted cauliflower, a ton of other roasted vegetables, etc....

I bring food to friends, family, etc... Its and absolute joy....

I want more... I was at he hardware store yesterday and happened to drive by a bbq store. Bad move. This place had a couple of Yoders and I fell hard... I have already completely cleaned the Traeger up and am posting it on Craigslist to sell. 

I want something bigger, that can get hotter, that can sear... that is reliable and that I can use ALOT and never have to worry. So do I spend 8 or 9 hundred on a decent Rec Tek or some of the other recommendations here or do I go for the YS480 from Yoder which is their lowest end pellet grill. I dont really need the 800 square inch area but just having that is nice. I really want to sear and have the full range of smoking. I want a known commodity. 

So any thoughts. comments, or perhaps any Yoder owners out there?


----------



## jcam222 (Sep 20, 2020)

I’m sure you will get good feedback from actual owners. I don’t think you can go wrong with either the Rec Tec bull or the Yoder.


----------



## Dr. Dobbins (Sep 20, 2020)

If you are looking at spending serious money go with the Yoder, I have a smoke fire I love the grill it was a flop in the beginning but they have finally made it work right. Everyone will have their opinion. I like the sear on the smoke fire, and it's smoke mode.


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 20, 2020)

I am in a bit of a quandry now. I have spent the entire evening comparing the RT 700 with the YS 640... Honestly now I think I am leaning to the RT 700. I am not planning on entering any competitions or anything like that. I do want to be able to sear but it seems like the RT700 is up to the task. Seems like you get about the same amount of bang but much less buck for the RT 700.


----------



## ofelles (Sep 20, 2020)

I have a YS640 pre S model.  It has been a work horse.  The S models have the advantage of the wifi/FireBoard controller.  It holds temp very well.  With the grillGrates and optional diffuser with the door it sears good also.  
I went with the 640 over the 480 because "bigger is Better" in my mind and have not regretted it.  You say you take food to friend often.  I did 70+ lbs. of pork butt for a friend who feeds the homeless once a month locally.  The butts all fit in and cooked with an hour of if I had cooked just one.  
Well worth the $$$ IMHO


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 21, 2020)

Thanks for the advice guys... 1 am out here in Texas and I am still all over the internet... 

I need sleep... The Fast Eddy PG500 has also caught my eye...


----------



## joetee (Sep 21, 2020)

Have you thought about a stick burner? Real smoke from wood not pellets.


----------



## SmokinAl (Sep 21, 2020)

Have you thought about a Masterbuilt 560. They seem to be real popular right now, and you get the charcoal/wood flavor. It has the ability to sear & is much less than the RT or Yoder.
Al


----------



## ofelles (Sep 21, 2020)

Just to cause more trouble, I also have a Lone Star Grills large insulated Cabinet smoker which I love.  Stronger smoke profile and with a controller and fan as easy a a pellet to control.  Did 7 racks of stl ribs over the weekend for family, they turned out very good!


----------



## sandyut (Sep 21, 2020)

adamrappy said:


> I have spent the entire evening comparing the RT 700 with the YS 640...


I was down to the Rec Tec, Yoder or Mac.  After a LONG research period.  I bought a rec tec.  No Regrets what so ever.  I love it.  customer service is second to none.  meat products that come off it are killer.  

Look at the differences and choose what works for your needs and wants.  these units have few complaints and you will like any of them.  my money went to rec tec two years ago and my RT700 fires up perfectly like day one.


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 21, 2020)

Well nothing like getting all excited about something but then a big come down. I finally decided on the YS 640. I figure it would be the next and last piece of equipment I would ever buy so why not. Now the only issue is I have to wait until mid November and December based on the dealership I select.. Called every dealership within 300 miles of my place, started in DFW and worked outward even a few places in Oklahoma. Called Yoder as well and they confirmed everyone is pretty much in the same boat. One place in Abilene is getting a 640 in mid October but it is with the competition cart and I dont really need or want that.


----------



## WeberBlackStoneYoder (Sep 21, 2020)

I love my YS640, My only complaint is the igniter get crusted over to easy.


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 21, 2020)

Hi WeberBlackStone (and any other Yoder owners who can comment) -

So I may have gotten lucky. It looks like there is a dealership in Abilene that called me today and one of their customers bailed out on a 640s that is coming on October 14. So a 200 mile drive... I have a trailer I can put it in. Regular 640, not a comp cart which is okay with me. 

A few things I am concerned about. You mentioned the ignitor, I was under the impression that the ceramic ignitor is one of the features that Yoder mentions. I have been poring over posts on the Yoder website. Several posts mention paint chips and some rust. Wondering if you have experienced that. 

If I pull the trigger any recommendations on extras? The smoker would sit on my patio which luckily is covered but for sure I would get a cover. Leaning towards the grill grates as well... 50/50 on the griddle. I cant bring myself to fork over 800 bucks for the comp cart but it would be really nice to have those big old castors for moving it. 

Which brings me to a somewhat embarrassing omission. So if I pull the trigger and it is looking that way, I am planning out how to get this sucker to my patio. I have an 8 foot trailer that it will be riding in with a ramp. Darn thing is a tank as you know. Cant bring it through the house. From the driveway its about a 60 foot path through bermuda on the side yard to the backyard. Then a gentle but non trivial slope up to the patio (about 10 feet). Then the kicker is up the 8 inch patio slab on to the patio. That competition cart is looking better. So I figure I will get some 1/2 plywood to roll it across the lawn. Hopefully even to get it up the slope. At that point things get messy. Probably looking at getting a furniture dolly and fashion a ramp to get up that step. 

Any thoughts in all the above


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 21, 2020)

Never mind on the moving. I can rent a 6000 lb hand cart and a set of ramps for under 50 bucks total at the home depot down the street.


----------



## ofelles (Sep 22, 2020)

I have the pre "S" model so I don't know anything about the ceramic igniter.  I have never had an issue with my igniter though.  Get the 2 piece diffuser for sure and the grillgrates.  I have the comp cart and it makes it easy to move around.  
The plywood will serve you well and a couple of strong backs and weak minds to bully it around also.


----------



## sandyut (Sep 22, 2020)

the weight and rust reported were a couple of the deterrents for me.


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 22, 2020)

I pulled the trigger. 

Spending way more then I should and I have read many a post that references that it would be impossible to tell the taste difference between a 3000 buck smoker and a 500 buck smoker. That is most likely true however I am not making this purchase because I believe the food will taste better. It is impossible to for me to qualify it. Is it a great investment? Probably not... Will the food taste better? Probably not much different... Will it bring me enjoyment? Probably. I am just a regular guy... kids, wife, ex wife, child support payments, I work alot... Most of the time guys like us are doing things to help our family, our kids, etc... So getting selfish every now and then may not make sense financially, however I had this same feeling before I bought some ATVs for my kids and self... They are fun, I love riding, nothing better then a day in the mud. So when I got the Traeger 3 months ago, I found the same enjoyment. If its something I enjoy and love doing then why not enable myself to have a piece of equipment to enjoy it even more?  

When I die they can split whatever money is left and fight over the ATV and the Yoder. 

The dealership in Abilene just confirmed shipping on the 9th and estimates that at the latest they will have it ready for me to pickup on the 14th. Ordered the 2 piece diffuser, grill grates, cover and threw in the cast iron griddle and watched my money fly out the window. I dont want to bang the smoker up on the drive as its 200 miles in the back of a trailer so I am leaving it packed and will drive it and assemble at home. Fortunately there is a Home Depot 2 miles from me and I will rent a handcart to get it up onto the patio slab. I asked them about inspecting it at the dealership but they said it really wont be possible to fully unpack and repack it but they said if there is a problem to contact Yoder and at the very worst if needed I could bring it to a local dealer. 

Finally it looks like if I wanted I could order a wheel upgrade to get the 8 inch casters or if I wanted just order a set of back wheels and put them on the front in place of the small front urethane wheels if need be but I dont think that will be necessary.


----------



## texomakid (Sep 22, 2020)

I too own a Yoder YS640. I've owned it for over 2 years and I've run around a ton (that's right, 2000 lbs) of pellets though it. I don't post as much as I used to but our cooking hasn't slowed down. I still fire up the Yoder at least 3 times a week and it's nothing to use it 5 or 6 times a week. Yeah, I threw down too and I'll be honest, I DON'T have any regrets. The only issues I've had so far is 1) rust on the top edge - here's the reality, it's a tank and the rust don't hurt anything where it's at. If rust gives you heartburn they send touchup paint with it. 2) on a couple of occasions I've had a pellet dump issue - this is where the pellets pile up and don't burn. In every case of this I was playing with the smoker - changing temps a lot or pushing the "feed" button. My best advice is set it and leave it alone and if you do decide to turn it up or down move it to the desired temp and leave it alone.

Right now I still need to do a deep clean on my cooker & replace the door seals. I might do a little touch up with the paint but it's not a priority for me. I just want it to cook good.

I'll agree, the cooker itself won't make better BBQ or final product but it will last you forever. I really believe this. Good luck on your new purchase and be sure to post pics of your adventures. Welcome to the Yoder club!


----------



## WeberBlackStoneYoder (Sep 23, 2020)

adamrappy said:


> Hi WeberBlackStone (and any other Yoder owners who can comment) -
> 
> So I may have gotten lucky. It looks like there is a dealership in Abilene that called me today and one of their customers bailed out on a 640s that is coming on October 14. So a 200 mile drive... I have a trailer I can put it in. Regular 640, not a comp cart which is okay with me.
> 
> ...


No rust or paint chips at all for me. I think the ceramic igniter is a new thing for Yoder and may take care of the issues I have had. Mine is almost 2 years old and I don't think it has the ceramic igniter. Pretty sure your gonna love it.


----------



## adamrappy (Sep 23, 2020)

Counting down the days until I go pick it up! This will be the longest 3 weeks of my life.


----------

