Customer Reviews

Brinkmann 810-5301-V Smoke'N Grill Charcoal Smoker and Grill with Vinyl Cover, Black

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Basic smoker, but an outstanding value for the price. Arrived before expected, well-packed, easy assembly. Smokes efficiently, although the temperature gauge never goes to "ideal." I'm very pleased with this product.

I have had this smoker for over 3 years now. This is a good intro to smoking and will give you an idea of smoking without spending a ton of money. Kingsford has a new high heat charcoal that works great in this smoker. Otherwise, I tended to have temperature problems, tended to be on the low side. The charcoal pan does not have any holes in it so the ash builds up and chokes out the charcoal. I used the new Kingsford charcoal with better results. One tip, don't take the lid off until you are done cooking. Otherwise, all the heat leaves the smoker and takes time to build up again. Adding new coals and water is kind of a pain because of the size and location of the door. Otherwise, I have had really good results.

WE were pleased with our purchase. It was so much cheaper than the green egg, and others. The only problem was the top didn't fit very well into the opening and so we had to work with it a bit. But for the price, it smoked well, and was easy to move to use and to put away....

My dad received one of these from an uncle visiting about 13 years ago. My dad uses his all summer and then left it in the snow all winter... It has held up for 13, nearly 14 years, in the elements. However, because of my dad's use and abuse, it has shown some wear and the grates rusted. He told me over the summer that he needed a new one, so I got it for him for Xmas (only to learn he really only needed the grates technically. Oh well). This one was a great deal and came with a cover. Too cool! All the parts were there and my dad like a little kid enjoyed putting it together on Xmas morning with no problems.
This is the same grill he had before, only obviously newer. However, it doesn't feel as substantial as they used to... I'm concerned on how it will hold up (although my dad says he won't be leaving it in the snow).
I know this isn't a packaging review, but the actual packaging it comes in is also the only packaging it is shipped in (kind of like being shipped a Barbie just in the Barbie box with no additional packing or padding), so I felt it is worth mentioning. The manufacturer does not provide much protection/insulation from the whole mailing process, probably because they were probably meant to just be stocked in stores... dunno. But because of this, you can expect some cosmetic issues (which may or may not affect the durability of this product over time... we'll see).
Also, my dad has noted that the Brinkman label on the hood is kind of cheap and will probably burn off fast. I'm guessing this grill won't be pretty long.
However, the grill cooks nicely low and slow. It is hard to get the temperature in the "ideal" range, but we have found that the grill doesn't need to be. We're not expert grillers, so others may argue otherwise, but I find that it makes a fine steak. Often after we've grilled a steak, we'll throw some potatoes on it and let them cook (very) slowly until the coals run out. Mmmm can't wait for some bbq!

The paint coating on the outside of the grill started peeling off and burning off. I have never seen anything like that before. I started to return it, but I didn't want the hassle. Once the grill stopped smoking and burning, it was good to go.

Out of the box the grill is missing parts; several screws, nuts, one lower support bracket, the wooden handles have some chips and splinters and a couple of the holes were not drilled completely through. The exterior of the smoke chamber is marred in several places; so I will have to buy some high temp paint to touch up the surface of a brand new grill. I am shocked that the surface isn't pre-cured (maybe the exterior wouldn't be damaged if properly treated before packing and shipping), so know that if you purchase this smoker you have to protect the surface until you've burned charcoal for 2hrs (sufficient to keep the temp in the ideal range which will require adding some dry hardwood chuncks)and then protected the surface until cooled. And like another review the lid doesn't fit, neither the lid nor smoke chamber are round, sort of irregular unmatched ovals. There is just no quality control in the manufacturing nor packing of this grill.