Step 1:
I thought it would be cool to do a step by step assessment of this product. Sometimes I love something the first week and it sucks week 2.
OK, for the unpacking and assembly of the unit. 15 minutes. No screws missing, good instructions, no misalignment of screws. No "what the heck is THIS for?" Well packaged. Good assembly instructions.
Seasoning. Cooked for 3 hours at 275. Took about 30 min to reach that temp. Added wood at about 2.50 hours. Everything went perfectly. Smoke started within 3 minutes (dry hickory chips).
Reviewers note: I own a Masterbuilt electric turkey fryer. I only use it to steam fish, lobster and other seafood. It works great with turkey. It is just I cannot stand the smell of the oil. Most people cant smell it. I can. Buth the unit works perfectly.
BTW, the BBQ guy, John McLemore pushes his recipe book everywhere in the purchasing process. Normally, I find this stuff worthless, but John works up some really good recipes, from Low Country Boil stuff to smoked Prime Rib. $19.95 at my pals at Amazon. Worth the investment.
This weekend, doin ribs.....wish me luck y'all! Will report back.
Step 2: Smoking
I did two slabs of ribs. The unit worked perfectly. The remote control is awesome! I was controlling things from 80 feet away, checking on temp etc. I used MUCH less wood chips than I did my trial run and the taste was fabulous. Less is more when it comes to how much wood to use. I used two tray fulls of hickory. You can always add more flavor later with hickory sauces or salt, but if you use too much smoke.....yuck. Takes some experimenting, and what is so cool with this unit is that it is soooo easy.
Warning: the remote has an on/off button. I thought it was just for the remote. But if you press it, it turns the UNIT on/off in addition to the remote. The instructions never told me this.
Cleanup: the only thing I clean up is the drip pan, water pan, the racks and the glass. Have to do this anyway with any other grill, except the glass. I squirted windex on it and voila, good as new.
Con: the only one besides the remote issue is the drip tray. You have to make sure the unit is tilted back enough to let the grease drain into the pan. Otherwise it leaks through the front. I put a 2" piece of wood on the front legs rather than try to tweak the adjustable wheels. Worked fine.
All in all, a very impressive, easy way to get into smoking!
Step 3: Smoke the heck out of it!
I have tried everything from potato salad smoking to pork loin to brisket. Unit totally dependable, remote control works flawlessly (see above) and the glass IS easy to clean with Windex. Look, I watched from afar, never thought I could smoke food. This makes me look good.
UPDATE:
I have had the smoker for several months now, and just like S&P's downgrading of the US, I must downgrade this unit. For some reason, I cannot get rid of an acrid, metallic smell to the smoke. To test, I burned the same hickory chips on my gas grill and in this unit. The gas grill smoke was true to the wood, but this Masterbuilt keeps on giving a combination smoke/metallic odor. I read somewhere someone else noticing the same thing. While it functions perfectly, I can't stand the smell it gives off. Selling it off and buying a Weber Smokey.