I want to buy a pellet smoker and am considering three: the yoder 640, memphis pro and cookshack fec100. The first two are comparable in price while the cookshack is twice as much. First, is the fec100 work the double in price. second, if not, what do people think is better the yoder640 or the memphis pro. thanks in advance.
yoder, memphis pro or cookshack fec100
- Thread starter arksmoker
- Start date
sparky
New member
you should look at the mak 2 stars also. a great grill / smoker w/ alot of features. makes it that much easier. mak grates, griddle, temp probes and the pellet boss. you can set the pellet boss up to smoke for 2 hours and then go to 225º until the meat temp comes to 195º and then shut off. and not once did you have to go outside to do anything. no if i can only get MD to send a monkey to put the rubs on i would be set (i could turn in on in the house w/ the remote control if i had one).
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TentHunter
Moderator
First of all, welcome to the forum!
You have to consider the type of cooking you want to do. Smoking, grilling, or a combo of both.
Out of those three I believe I'd lean towards the Memphis Pro because they are tried and true. They get hotter than most other pellet grills for grilling. Folks who own them sure seem to be happy.
The Yoder 640 is still going through some growing pains, but looks like a tank. My understanding is the FEC 100's are more for commercial or competitors and are really for smoking and not grilling.
BUT... Like Sparky said, don't discount the MAK 2 Star or even the 1 Star. They are also built extremely solid and have great features not found on most pellet grills and are versatile for both smoking low & slow and grilling.
I am so impressed with how customer service is handled. Bob (Mak Daddy) is truly a Johnny-on-the-spot with responses to any issues or questions about their products. That's what made our final decision. I didn't want just a great pellet smoker/grill. I wanted options and outstanding customer service I could count on even if it meant I had to pay a little more. We do not regret our decision.
If you go with a Memphis or MAK product you will do no better than purchasing from BPS (the sponsor of this forum). They are second to none in both price and customer satisfaction. Give Big Poppa, Jessie or Kristen a call. They can answer your questions.
Hope this helps!
You have to consider the type of cooking you want to do. Smoking, grilling, or a combo of both.
Out of those three I believe I'd lean towards the Memphis Pro because they are tried and true. They get hotter than most other pellet grills for grilling. Folks who own them sure seem to be happy.
The Yoder 640 is still going through some growing pains, but looks like a tank. My understanding is the FEC 100's are more for commercial or competitors and are really for smoking and not grilling.
BUT... Like Sparky said, don't discount the MAK 2 Star or even the 1 Star. They are also built extremely solid and have great features not found on most pellet grills and are versatile for both smoking low & slow and grilling.
I am so impressed with how customer service is handled. Bob (Mak Daddy) is truly a Johnny-on-the-spot with responses to any issues or questions about their products. That's what made our final decision. I didn't want just a great pellet smoker/grill. I wanted options and outstanding customer service I could count on even if it meant I had to pay a little more. We do not regret our decision.
If you go with a Memphis or MAK product you will do no better than purchasing from BPS (the sponsor of this forum). They are second to none in both price and customer satisfaction. Give Big Poppa, Jessie or Kristen a call. They can answer your questions.
Hope this helps!
jimsbarbecue
Moderator
What Scooter said. And Welcome to the forum
So Cal Smoker
New member
Welcome to the forum. You've received the best advise already so do your homework and give BP a call as suggested by Tent.
thanks for the welcomes. I am looking for one just for smoking. I have a great grill - don't need that, plus a weber smokey mountain. I'm looking for something where I can cook for up to 20 people for smoking. Don't need it for grilling. I hope that helps narrow my needs down. So, I need something large enough that can hold two pork butts and a brisket. My wsm will do it, but I want a pellet smoker so I don't have to monitor as closely. It will be used in my backyard. any other advice is appreciated. thanks.
TentHunter
Moderator
The MAK 1 Star will hold that much easily if you get the upper rack(s) and it generates a lot of smoke. I'm very pleased with the smoke flavor I get from mine.
All the cookers you are looking at will do that... and most will hold more than that.
The FEC 100 is a unit that is designed ground up as a vertical smoker only. It is not designed for high heat applications. The majority of the other pellet units you are looking at can also act as a grill in addition to just smoking. I've had 16+ butts in my FEC, 7 in the Yoder, and 3 in the memphis (I think it could hold four - at least the one at the culinary center I teach at can). so all the units will take what you are wanting to dish out at it.
I've been playing with a yoder for several months now, and am very happy with it. We took the chef's choice at the jack cooking on it. You'll want to pay attention to MAK grills also; very consistent and easy to cook on... wont go wrong with a pellet boss... for your volume, a 1Star is what I would go for. I like the smoke profile from the 1Star better, so if you are using it predominantly for smoking I would stick with that model in a MAK. We won Mesquite cooking on MAKs, and I did briskets in both a 1Star and 2Star... and we really liked the smoke profile from the 1Star.
I have limited experience with the Memphis, I've use one 4-5 times at the culinary center... I'm not overly impressed, but it didnt do anything that let me down either... so probably fine, but I like the MAK, Cookshack, and Yoder equipment better.
The FEC 100 is a unit that is designed ground up as a vertical smoker only. It is not designed for high heat applications. The majority of the other pellet units you are looking at can also act as a grill in addition to just smoking. I've had 16+ butts in my FEC, 7 in the Yoder, and 3 in the memphis (I think it could hold four - at least the one at the culinary center I teach at can). so all the units will take what you are wanting to dish out at it.
I've been playing with a yoder for several months now, and am very happy with it. We took the chef's choice at the jack cooking on it. You'll want to pay attention to MAK grills also; very consistent and easy to cook on... wont go wrong with a pellet boss... for your volume, a 1Star is what I would go for. I like the smoke profile from the 1Star better, so if you are using it predominantly for smoking I would stick with that model in a MAK. We won Mesquite cooking on MAKs, and I did briskets in both a 1Star and 2Star... and we really liked the smoke profile from the 1Star.
I have limited experience with the Memphis, I've use one 4-5 times at the culinary center... I'm not overly impressed, but it didnt do anything that let me down either... so probably fine, but I like the MAK, Cookshack, and Yoder equipment better.
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