Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

As a fan of the earlier Smokey Mountain Cooker, I'm surprised and gratified with the changes they made to the smoker. The previous smoker was an easy 5 stars in my book. I guess I'd have to give this one 6 stars, because it's better! After using my old smoker for some time, I began finding ways to improve it. It seems that Weber thought so too, and their changes include all of mine plus a few more. Here are some important improvements: Wider door for adding charcoal & such. This is NOT a small detail but rather a much appreciated design change. The older model's smaller door made it more difficult to place wood chunks or new charcoal where I wanted them and once upon a time I knocked the water pan down into the coals trying to put a wood chunk toward the back of the smoker. The door latch is spring loaded and features a lever type handle. The previous door latch is not spring loaded and had a featureless round knob. It was less secure and not always easy to tell if the latch was fully closed. Now it's obvious -- for those of us who need things to be obvious. :) Built-in thermometer! To think I paid more than Amazon's current price on the smoker and then another $50 on a thermometer. Mine is even in the same place on the lid. Great minds think alike, I guess... and Weber added this useful feature while keeping the price under control. Bottom ash catch pan. I never thought of that one but then again I have a concrete pad set up and it was never a big deal to sweep up a few stray ashes. Overall, the smoker performs as well as the older model but is much easier to use. With the thermometer, it will be much easier to maintain temperature and smoke up some great grub right out of the box. I am by no means an expert, but here are a few quick tips for using this smoker. 0. If you are interested in instant gratification, get a gas grill or go out for dinner. It takes some work, time and patience to use and maintain this smoker. 1. Keep the temperature as stable as you can. 2. Don't lift the lid any more than you have to (for mopping, adding charcoal, etc. 3. Use briquets, at least at first. It's much easier to work with compared to lump charcoal. If you do choose to use lump charcoal, don't add any extra wood chips or would chunks! You'll oversmoke the food and that's bad! 4. Start early. Give the charcoal time to start up, and the liquid in the water pan to get up to temperature before you put on the food. 5. Line the water pan with aluminum foil. Trust me; it will be much easier to clean later if you do! 6. Make small changes to the vents when you need to adjust the temperature. Give it some time to work. 7. Get a good book on smoking. I think we all know a good place to look for one... 8. The internet is your friend. Check out Weber's site, some of the bbq forums and most definitely Virtual Weber Bullet.