It arrived on time and my boyfriend loved his bday present, we used it this pass weekend and everything tasted amazing!

It arrived on time and my boyfriend loved his bday present, we used it this pass weekend and everything tasted amazing!  Read Less

Not very well built

Not very well built  Read Less

This review is based on the 30 inch model (20051311 GS30D).With one smoking session in I am so far pleased with the quality of ...  Read More

This review is based on the 30 inch model (20051311 GS30D).With one smoking session in I am so far pleased with the quality of the smoker. Assembly was pretty quick and easy, to my delight everything seems quite sturdy. All the pieces fit and the unit assembled perfectly. Prior to arrival I was concerned that the legs would not be very solid based on some other reviews, they seem to hold solid.I purchased this smoker with the expectation that it will need some easy modifications to operate at its best.Modifications/Improvements:Mobility: I will not leave the smoker outdoors and although the distance from storage to area of use is not far I certainly don’t want to have to always carry it. Initially I was planning on installing casters to the legs like many others do. I ended up deciding to not drill any holes into the legs but rather build a small cart for it to roll on. This way I don’t potentially damage any components on the smoker and now I also have a small little cart that I may be able to use for moving other bulky/heavier items. The cart is equipped with 3 inch rubber casters, the front 2 being locking. It rolls smooth and allows for easy transport.Gas Control: I purchased a needle valve from Amazon to fine tune gas flow. It ended up not being the correct size so I returned it. However, after I tested the gas control during the seasoning process and was optimistic that I could maintain satisfactory temperatures I have so far opted to not purchased another needle valve. With one smoking session under my belt I was easily able to maintain low 200’s when smoking ribs.Water/Drip Pan & Wood Tray: I had larger foil pans on hand that I used as the water/drip tray. It slide into the normal rack slides with ease and covered sufficient space to catch most drippings. As to not put my smoking wood in direct contact with the flames I put my smoking wood the provided water tray on top of the wood tray. Others have referenced using a cast iron pan or putting lava rock in the wood tray. I may experiment with those ideas as well but for the first smoking using the provided water tray as a wood holder placed on top of the intended wood tray worked fine.Cover/Protection: I purchased the larger grill cover, bigger than the one that Amazon had as a bundled option with the smoker. (I bought this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004UQQP4K/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1) I purchased the larger one because I was concerned the smaller one would not fully cover the smoker (including the control panel). This cover fully covers the unit, it may be a little bit large but there are cinches that can be tightened for a snug fit, in addition to clips. The cover also seems to be high quality. It’s not 100% necessary for me as I do not intend to leave the smoker outside permanently but for occasional times it will certainly work and will help keep the unit dust free in the garage.First Impressions:Gas Control - Satisfied. As mentioned I may not even bother with a needle valve for fine tuning gas flow. I was able to maintain low 200’s with ease when doing ribs for my first smoke. This left me very satisfied as I was expecting it to be difficult to achieve lower temperatures based on others reviews.Thermometer - Satisfied, but pointless. I am satisfied that the thermometer makes an accurate reading based on where it is located. That is not to be confused with it being the same temperature as where your meat is placed. While I had a digital thermometer similarly located to the door thermometer they had matching readings. HOWEVER, it was a significant difference from where I had my meat located. To achieve proper cooking temperatures a digital thermometer should be placed near the meats location in the smoker.Size - Okay for beginners/moderate use. My first smoke was ribs and as expected I had to cut the racks in half. That’s not a big deal but there is something wonderful about an intact, beautifully cooked full rack of ribs! I expect that if people are taking smoking serious that they will opt for a larger size (and also probably be using charcoal if they are serious smokers).Propane vs. Charcoal - Satisfied. I love cooking on my charcoal Weber grill, I have never owned a propane grill before. When looking at smokers I initially looked at the Weber Smokey Mountain. However, having no experience with true smoking (other than dabbling minorly on my kettle and not being satisfied with my temperature control, etc.) I thought it would be nice to start with something a bit easier. As lazy as it may be I honestly did not want to invest any time/effort/practice in temperature control and maintaining a temperature for a long period. I thought propane was a happy medium between electric and charcoal, knowing I did not want electric. After my first smoke I am very happy at the ease of control on the unit, especially since I could maintain lower temperatures with ease. Additionally, what I realized I loved about this after purchasing is that when done smoking you can just crank up the heat to burn out some of the ‘crap’ and scrap the grates off. Often times smokers can get funky because they don’t get extremely hot to burned off the ‘crap’ and easily scrape the grates. So, I found that to be a ‘perk.’At this time I do not have any immediate dislikes about the unit. I purchased it for a very fair price (~$160) so I’m not expecting a ‘Rolls Royce’ of smokers. For the price it seems to be a perfectly capable and well built smoker for light to moderate home use. I’m confident that it will do all the things that I need it to. If I come across any issues or realize there is something I do not like about the unit I will update my review.  Read Less