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HomeGrills / SmokersBradleyMasterbuilt GS40 Black Propane Smoker, 40-Inch |
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|  | | | Customer Reviews: | | | Average Customer Review: ( 14 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 found the following review helpful:
Up to the task Sep 05, 2011
By GalvezGuy
"Weekend construction dude"
Make sure you burn this unit in before cooking the first time, there were a lot of noxious chemicals that burned off.
I broke this unit in with two racks of pork ribs, two racks of beef ribs, two chickens, a whole brisket, one rabbit, and five pounds of sausage.
Pros
Great temperature control with the propane. Was able to keep it the desired temperature and forget about it
Capacity is great, could easily smoke four whole turkeys in there
Adjustable grates were very useful in makeing room for everything
Comes back up to temp very quickly after the door was opened
Temperature gauge is dead on accurate and verified by an oven thermometer
Cons
Drip/water pan is a joke, especially for a unit of this size, I overcame by using a large foil pan.
Smoke pan looks like a fire trap, especailly using the drip pan that came with it I used an old cast iron skillet which did the job very well
Seems to use a lot of propane, about 1/2 tank for 10 hours of smoking
Some smoke leaks out the door which means that some heat is escaping that way as well, could accout for the larger than expected propane use. I will be sealing it with some fireplace rope.
Verdict
Temp control is great, with the addidtion of a cast iron skillet, the ability to control the smoke is awesome
Capacity is more than enough for all but the largest of home events
The food came out great, everything was most and tender because low and slow is the way to go.
I would recommend it with the easy modifications I have mentioned(seal door, use cast iron pan for wood chunks, use large pan for drip/water pan)
Rating is four stars for too small drip pan and faulty design of the smoke tray. The issue with the door seems to be a common thread for this type of smoker, no matter where it comes from.
The unit preformed very well with a large task for its first use.
Update:
This unit continues to perform very well. I have made my own drip pan and continue to use a cast iron skillet for the wood chunks/chips. Turkey turns out fantastic and with the great temp control, there is nothing to fret or fuss over. I have added fireplace rope to the door to seal it, that really helped reduce the propane usage. I have run the smoker for more than thirty hours on a single take of propane.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 Great Smoker Nov 01, 2011
By mackvet
"mackvet"
When something is so great as this smoker, where to you begin. I made the decision to get a propane smoke as it is a lot easier to maintain a consistent temperature than the traditional charcoal or wood smoker. Also, you don't have to stay glued to this smoker like the traditional smokers to stoke the coal or wood. The smoker went together with ease. Wanting to do a Thanksgiving turkey, I did a trial run and prepared a 17.5 pound turkey. I preheated the smoker to 250, I set the turkey in the middle of the smoker cabinet and loaded the pan with hickory as well as the water pan. After reloading the pan with hickory blocks three times and the water pan twice the turkey was ready in 7 hours. First of all, I am not crazy about turkey but this turkey was moist and had a fantastic taste. The next order of business before Thanksgiving is ribs and brisket.
After reading a bunch of reviews, there was a consistent report regarding the temperature gauge on the cabinet door and the pan you put the wood blocks in. The remedy for these two negative were easy to handle.
1. Purchase a 8" iron skillet to place over the pan that is furnished with the smoker. Putting your wood blocks in the skillet will insure that the wood does not catch on fire which it will if you use the pan furnished with the smoker.
2. The temperature gauge on the cabinet door is off anywhere from 20 to 25 degrees. It is not dependable. I used a digital thermometer and stuck the probe in the thigh of the turkey and ran the wire out the cabinet door. I also placed another thermometer of the same type to monitor the cabinet temperature. I took a metal clip and stood the probe in the air attached to one of the grill bars.
I found that after 7 hours of cooking, I had used very little propane. At 250 degrees which was almost the lowest setting on the control gas knob This grill is worth the money and should generate great BBQ for a long time. Beware...with this large smoker cabinet don't be surprised if your neighbor tries to talk you into letting them put some meat in the cabinet along with yours.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
What a great smoker! Nov 05, 2011
By Minden Man
After owning many other kinds of smokers, home made freezer smoker, bullet with a aftermarket propane burner, and sometimes anything I could find, this is a great smoker. It does have it's issues with the small water pan, and the goofy chip tray, but other than that I am very happy with my purchase. I am waiting to get my free factory "retro kit" (a new style chip pan and water pan I believe) after Nov. 20th. I didn't use a cast iron skillet as a chunk pan, I used a pie tin inside of a cake tin on the top of the factory chip pan, I just offset it from center as much as possible and got 3 hour smoke times on one fist sized chunk of hickory. Normally when I run a smoker I have solid billows of smoke, and in spite of never having creosote problems, I went on the advice of many GS40 owners and just had a constant "wisp" of smoke the entire smoking time which for me diod not impart the level of smoke flavor I wanted. After burning off the bad fumes in the smoker's tray, I wiped it out, sprayed it with Pam and threw in some chunks. Temperature was right on after I reset the gas valve once, it was set it and forget it. The Masterbuilt cover recommended for the GS40 doesn't fit. The Char-Broil 433592 vertical smoker cover fit perfectly, and cost half as much 15.00 versus 30.00
3 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 Poor customer service Dec 26, 2011
By R. M. Shankman
I received this smoker from Amazon in 2 days thanks to the priority shipping and was extremely excited to assemble it and get to use it. To my extreme disappointment this was not possible because of the 3 holes that were to receive the bolts for one of the front legs only one was complete. the others didn't have the treads for the bolt to attach.
I called the manufacturer and was pleased to talk to a person and discuss what was needed. They said they would be happy to send the new box (and the door handle) that was needed in order to have the smoker in working condition. To my utter disappointment they would not be able to ship the items in any expedited manner and i would have to wait 5-7 business days. Although I was disappointed I did wait for my parts. I was extremely surprised when a box smaller than a shoe box showed up 5 days later with the door handle kit (this was needed) and a body handle (not needed). Nothing else was on the packing slip. I was hoping this was a mistake but I have made several inquires with my contact at customer service and have no response. I will be giving them a few more days to get back in touch with me and then I will have to return the whole smoker as this is unacceptable and a safety hazard to use as it is. I will post an update if anything changes.
Masterbuilt GS40 gas smoker May 02, 2012
By Janofa
The amount of space in this smoker will blow your mind!I cooked 8 2# plus chickens using just 2 racks and could have easily done them all on a single rack if needed.Next project is to be a 24 # pork loin...I really had no issue with the chip pan as many other reviewers seem to have.I used chunks rather than chips(soaked).I agree that the water pan needs to be larger but I never use the pan that comes with my smokers anyhow.I always purchase a pan of the maximum size that will fit the unit.This allows most of the drippings to be caught in the pan.
The reason I deducted 1 star is because there is a lot of leakage around the door that could be easily eliminated if they would simply add a gasket
If you want a quality,spacious smoker...LOOK NO FURTHER
See all 14 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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