Pit Selection Help... Please

[Shiz-Nit]

Some questions can you help me out?
Okay I just got approved by the wife to get a Backwoods or some kind of new smoker for X-Mas. The two models I am looking at are the extened party and the fatboy....if the money works out maybe the competitor?
I will be using it in the backyard for the most part and will cook for anywhere from 5 to 10 people most of the time. But also I do some big cooks a few times a year anywhere between 80 to 125 people. Then ALSO I would like to compete a few times next year.
If you were out to get one for my needs which way would you go? And what are the pros and cons of each?

Any advice would be appreciated
Thanks

[RickC]

The fatboy gives you more than half a square foot more room for food over the standard party and it's racks are a half inch further apart than the party. For me I would go for the fatboy or as I'm doing order the Gator. It's 4.5" deeper than a fatboy, comes with the commercial fire grate, expanded metal racks and removable water pan. To me the removable water pan is a biggy. It allows me to grill when I want to.

[Old Dave]

Mr Shiz-Nit,

Welcome to the Backwoods forums and I hope we can provide the answers you are looking for as there is a great bunch of people on this forum. I also like the cookers you own and do have all of them in my stable.

The Backwoods line of cookers are somewhat like your Egg cookers and do have multiple ways of cooking, smoking, grilling, and baking and are fairly close to being air tight which gives you many options on how you can use them. In other words, anything you can do on an Egg, I think you will find that you can do the same on a Backwoods. From smoking cheese at 80 degrees, to smoking sausage or fish at 115-140 degrees, and then your normal low and slow type of cooking at 225 275 degrees, to medium heat range of 275-350 for poultry, casseroles, and others, to high temp baking at 375-425 for breads, pizza, and again poultry, to probably over 1000 degrees with the removeable water pan and grilling at the tip of a lump charcoal flame, these cookers can flat do it all. Check my webpage for details.

Now, I need to correct my friend Ricks post as I think he probably misfigured the cooking area of the cookers.

The Backwoods Party has more cooking space than the Fatboy by 13-1/2 sq ins. 6 Racks @ 15-1/2X16-1/2 VS the Fatboy with 4 racks @ 19-1/2X19-1/2.

The Party gives you more options for cooking with the much taller cooking space and the extra 2 grids.

Ok, lets look at what you want in that new cooker.

"I will be using it in the backyard for the most part and will cook for anywhere from 5 to 10 people most of the time."

Any of the cookers will work well for this and of course, the smaller cooker would be more efficient and easier to handle.

"But also I do some big cooks a few times a year anywhere between 80 to 125 people."

The Party, Fatboy, and the Competitor will cook for 125 people very easily if you control the menu. Heck no, you can't cook a half slab of ribs each for 125 people but again, you could do a nice cook with other meats. A fellow can also do some cooking in advance for the larger cooks. (Just like you probably do on your Eggs now!)

All three cookers are good for competition cooking. I have cooked competition with all three of the cookers and I like the Party the best for KCBS cooking. It is just so much easier to handle for this old feller.

This info should get you started and please ask more questions and we will try to get you answers.

[Braddog]

I was in the same boat, looking to move up from a Big Green Egg to something with more capacity. I chose the Fatboy for a couple of reasons:

-stated capacity of the Fatboy is twice as many butts as the Party. Typically, when I need the capacity it's for butts or brisket.
-The Fatboy is deeper and can handle ribs laid front to back without trimming them or angling them to get them to fit.

Now on the downside, it's heavy. I haven't figured out how I'm going to do this easily. It's really too heavy to try and pick it up and put it in a pickup. Additionally, the capacity might be a bit overstated. Bone-in butts are too tall to fit them on every rack. I've cooked boneless the last few times and I can use all the cooking racks that way. See my "12 Butts on a Fatboy post in the "general" forum.

Good luck with your decision,

Cheers,
Braddog

[RickC]

Now, I need to correct my friend Ricks post as I think he probably misfigured the cooking area of the cookers.

The Backwoods Party has more cooking space than the Fatboy by 13-1/2 sq ins. 6 Racks @ 15-1/2X16-1/2 VS the Fatboy with 4 racks @ 19-1/2X19-1/2.

Old Dave is right again. I fat fingered the calculator some how. As I said I'm going for the Gator. Basically it is an "extended" fatboy with a lot of the fatboy options standard. I like the larger racks, which gives me more room for large cuts of meats and leaves plenty of room for airflow.

[toynaround]

what is a gator?

[RickC]

what is a gator?

The Gator is an unlisted BWS that is 4.5" deeper than the Fatboy and has the commercial fire grate, removable water pan, and expanded metal racks.

[toynaround]

thanks, another silly question, what is a commercial fire grate?

[Braddog]

Here's a shot of the commercial fire grate from my Fatboy's seasoning fire.






Cheers,
Braddog

[toynaround]

thanks, looks like my grate except stainless? Is that the difference?

[Braddog]

I think the difference is that the commercial fire grate is suspended on rails above the ash pan and is a little bigger. I believe it's an option on the Party while it's standard on the Fatboy and larger.

Mine is not stainless.

Cheers,
Braddog

[RickC]

thanks, looks like my grate except stainless? Is that the difference?

Nope, that is a brand spanking new one. That fire you see is it's first fire ever didn't you notice that the door seals are perfectly white?

[Braddog]

thanks, looks like my grate except stainless? Is that the difference?

Nope, that is a brand spanking new one. That fire you see is it's first fire ever didn't you notice that the door seals are perfectly white?

LOL! You're right, that's my first ever fire and the one I seasoned the cooker with. At the end, I couldn't resist putting a fatty and a pan of biscuits on for a little snack.

Cheers,
Braddog