I have been obsessing (really, I mean it) over what to buy to replace our 10+ year old Treager Lil' Tex for the last couple of weeks. I bought a Thermoworks Smoke last year and using it I am starting to realize how inaccurate and inconsistent the temps are on our old Traeger. It's also slow to get hot, doesn't get very hot and I hate the lid stop mechanism, which has failed a few times resulting in an unpleasant surprise and an interesting curve to our lid. It's just time to replace it with something newer and shinier.
We grill more than smoke, but I do enjoy smoking 2 or 3 racks of ribs, pulled pork, an occasional tri-tip etc. However, we do a lot more burgers, dogs, brats, chicken thighs and steaks. Currently we are doing this all on the old Traeger. I have an old (~50 years old) Charmglow HEJ grill my dad bought sitting on our patio, but I haven't hooked it up to the natural gas at the new house we moved into 5 1/2 years ago. Thinking of getting rid of it to clean up the patio. We use the Traeger year round. I'm in Boise, and it get's cold in the winter here.
Like many before me, I have narrowed down my choice to either a Memphis Grill or a MAK. The wife does not like the looks of the MAK 1 Star General, so for a MAK it would be the 2 Star General. Today, I went to a local shop that used to carry the MAKs (wish they still did) and saw a couple of Memphis grills that they are closing out, discounting by $500. They have the Pro and the Advantage. I frankly prefer many things on the Advantage, including the upper rack layout, the design of the lid hinge and the pellet hopper in the front.
Through my exhaustive searches on the many MAK vs Memphis threads, there has been little or no talk about three important topics to me; convenience, cleaning and burgers. So, I would love some feedback on these three topics in regards to a Memphis Advantage or Pro, vs the MAK 2 Star General.
Convenience:
I am lazy. I admit it. I want something that's easy to use, easy to change configurations on (if necessary) and easy to clean. The Memphis Genie tool seems to make configuration changes (e.g. to direct flame for searing) easy. It appears MAK had a similar tool but it no longer works on the latest Flame Zone. I also think I wouldn't need additional grill grates or searing grates on the Memphis for when we a cooking 2 - 4 steaks.
Cleaning:
I HATE cleaning our old Traeger. I need to remove the dirty grill, remove the dirty drip pan, remove the dirty deflector and then vacuum out all the ash. We also foil the drip pan and changing the foil is a nasty job. I would be ashamed to have anyone here see the foil I have pulled off of that thing.
So, which is easier to clean between the Memphis and MAK? One thread mentioned that you need a vacuum for the Memphis and not for the MAK. That is not a concern for me since we have a "BucketHead" shop vac just for outdoor jobs like the grill and the shed. To me, the bigger concern is the effort to get at things like the burn pot. It seems to me that the Memphis, with it's pull out pans and easy access to the burn pot would make most of the cleaning easier. Is this a good assumption?
Burgers:
OK, these pellet "grills" are primarily smokers, but we use ours as a grill. There is so little talk about cooking burgers here. Between the MAK and the Memphis, which will be best for cooking a big old pile of burgers for a summer back yard barbecue? I see so many mentions that the Memphis is more of of a grill. Is that just because of the higher temps it can do? The direct flame insert doesn't help me when I want to fill the grill with burgers. So, without the direct flame insert, is the Memphis better or worse at grilling up some burgers, dogs and brats than the MAK with the Fire Zone covers removed?
Cost:
OK, this wasn't one of the the 3 things I listed. I can afford either option, but I need to justify the expense to myself. I am not a competitive cook. I am not even that serious about it. I just want to make some good food for me, my family and my friends. With the closeout pricing, I can get the Memphis Advantage for well over $1000 less than a comparably equipped (WiFi, cabinet door, front shelf) MAK 2 Star. Is the MAK worth over $1000 more than a Memphis Advantage?
Sorry about how long this is. My brain literally hurts from this. I am losing sleep. I need to make a decision or go insane. I would appreciate any help in making this decision. Thank you all for all the amazing info I've already found here.
We grill more than smoke, but I do enjoy smoking 2 or 3 racks of ribs, pulled pork, an occasional tri-tip etc. However, we do a lot more burgers, dogs, brats, chicken thighs and steaks. Currently we are doing this all on the old Traeger. I have an old (~50 years old) Charmglow HEJ grill my dad bought sitting on our patio, but I haven't hooked it up to the natural gas at the new house we moved into 5 1/2 years ago. Thinking of getting rid of it to clean up the patio. We use the Traeger year round. I'm in Boise, and it get's cold in the winter here.
Like many before me, I have narrowed down my choice to either a Memphis Grill or a MAK. The wife does not like the looks of the MAK 1 Star General, so for a MAK it would be the 2 Star General. Today, I went to a local shop that used to carry the MAKs (wish they still did) and saw a couple of Memphis grills that they are closing out, discounting by $500. They have the Pro and the Advantage. I frankly prefer many things on the Advantage, including the upper rack layout, the design of the lid hinge and the pellet hopper in the front.
Through my exhaustive searches on the many MAK vs Memphis threads, there has been little or no talk about three important topics to me; convenience, cleaning and burgers. So, I would love some feedback on these three topics in regards to a Memphis Advantage or Pro, vs the MAK 2 Star General.
Convenience:
I am lazy. I admit it. I want something that's easy to use, easy to change configurations on (if necessary) and easy to clean. The Memphis Genie tool seems to make configuration changes (e.g. to direct flame for searing) easy. It appears MAK had a similar tool but it no longer works on the latest Flame Zone. I also think I wouldn't need additional grill grates or searing grates on the Memphis for when we a cooking 2 - 4 steaks.
Cleaning:
I HATE cleaning our old Traeger. I need to remove the dirty grill, remove the dirty drip pan, remove the dirty deflector and then vacuum out all the ash. We also foil the drip pan and changing the foil is a nasty job. I would be ashamed to have anyone here see the foil I have pulled off of that thing.
So, which is easier to clean between the Memphis and MAK? One thread mentioned that you need a vacuum for the Memphis and not for the MAK. That is not a concern for me since we have a "BucketHead" shop vac just for outdoor jobs like the grill and the shed. To me, the bigger concern is the effort to get at things like the burn pot. It seems to me that the Memphis, with it's pull out pans and easy access to the burn pot would make most of the cleaning easier. Is this a good assumption?
Burgers:
OK, these pellet "grills" are primarily smokers, but we use ours as a grill. There is so little talk about cooking burgers here. Between the MAK and the Memphis, which will be best for cooking a big old pile of burgers for a summer back yard barbecue? I see so many mentions that the Memphis is more of of a grill. Is that just because of the higher temps it can do? The direct flame insert doesn't help me when I want to fill the grill with burgers. So, without the direct flame insert, is the Memphis better or worse at grilling up some burgers, dogs and brats than the MAK with the Fire Zone covers removed?
Cost:
OK, this wasn't one of the the 3 things I listed. I can afford either option, but I need to justify the expense to myself. I am not a competitive cook. I am not even that serious about it. I just want to make some good food for me, my family and my friends. With the closeout pricing, I can get the Memphis Advantage for well over $1000 less than a comparably equipped (WiFi, cabinet door, front shelf) MAK 2 Star. Is the MAK worth over $1000 more than a Memphis Advantage?
Sorry about how long this is. My brain literally hurts from this. I am losing sleep. I need to make a decision or go insane. I would appreciate any help in making this decision. Thank you all for all the amazing info I've already found here.