The only problem I have with the WSM is I can build a pit barrel smoker for less than $100, and still have $200 left over for several really good thermometers- the most important component of smoking
I built a mini WSM for ~$100, it doesn't have as much capacity as a barrel smoker but this is portable!
Mini WSM Smoker by cxg231, on Flickr
+1, will own nothing else!I love the Weber Kettle. It truly does not get better than a Weber kettle.
Besides all the wonderful qualities of the grill, itself, you also have Weber customer service and warranty. It's a 10-year warranty on those babies. At about nine years and eleven months after buying a Weber kettle, I called them because mine was rusting out a little and the brackets that held up the bottom grate had all but gone away. The response was something along the lines of "oh, we'll take care of that. How is the . . . ." By " . . . .", I mean that the lady went through each and every part of that grill, asking about the condition. When I told her it was getting rough, she said they would replace it. Essentially, I got a brand new Weber Kettle for free (including shipping) nearly ten years into a ten-year warranty.
If you ever see me buying another brand while they have this policy in place, you'll know that I am under alien mind control.
That is why I like my carport. I can grill 365 days a year. I grilled on Sunday, and we got hammered that dayIt been raining too much for me to get my Weber back out since I put it up cause of the storms we had in DFW.