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Royal Oak charcoal

Has anyone noticed an increase in large rocks appearing after cooking with Royal Oak charcoal? I know some rocks always make it through to the product, but these seem to have increased recently in RO.

I have used RO for several years. Everyone is aware of Home Depot's hidden price increase (reducing the size by over 12% and charging the same), but it is concerning if they are also choosing to include more rocks to their product.
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Comments

  • clifkincaid
    clifkincaid Posts: 572
    When it goes to 9.97 a bag I'll stock back up on a dozen bags.
  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    weigh the bags before getting out the pitchforks....

    many (most?) bags (for many suppliers) are overweight.

    people crab about cowboy lump all the time, but my last bag was 5+ pounds overweight.  kinda makes up for a couple rocks every now and then
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    I have a couple good sized ones in my XL right now.
  • chrisc133
    chrisc133 Posts: 501
    I use a lot of RO and have yet to find a single rock.
    Augusta, GA
    #BGETEAMGREEN member
    MiniMax, Large, XL BGE
    Featured on Man Fire Food Season 7
  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    chrisc133 said:
    I use a lot of RO and have yet to find a single rock.
    ^^^ This.

    Ok, surely I've had a couple in the nearly SEVEN years I've been using RO...

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • HeavyG
    HeavyG Posts: 10,344
    I haven't had any rocks in any Royal Oak for well over a year. Luck of the draw/regional variability I guess.
    “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.” ― Philip K. Diçk




  • JMCXL
    JMCXL Posts: 1,524
    I had a strange problem with 1 bag of Humphrey's Lump. Called the company and they shipped 2 replacement bags for free.  Great company that stands behind their product. 
    Northern New Jersey
     XL - Woo2, AR      L (2) - Woo, PS Woo     MM (2) - Woo       MINI

    Check out https://www.grillingwithpapaj.com for some fun and more Grilling with Papa (incase you haven't gotten enough of me)

    Also, check out my YouTube Page
    https://www.youtube.com/c/grillingwithpapaj

    Follow me on Facebook 
    https://www.facebook.com/GrillingPapaJ/

  • I had my first large rock last night. I had about 5 shall rocks.

  • GregW
    GregW Posts: 2,677
    I am fresh out of fvcks to give regarding the normal variations of lump charcoal.
    It does seem to be a recurring dead horse to beat.
  • Toxarch
    Toxarch Posts: 1,900
    I've had some small rocks. Usually end up in the bottom of the KAB after a while.
    Aledo, Texas
    Large BGE
    KJ Jr.

    Exodus 12:9 KJV
    Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.

  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    I am fresh out of fvcks to give regarding the normal variations of lump charcoal.
    I have been championing not giving a fvck about charcoal for years. Lotta people are emotionally invested in the supposed superiority of their brand of the moment though. Lotta blow back when you dare to question 
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

  • Jupiter Jim
    Jupiter Jim Posts: 3,351
    Has anyone noticed an increase in large rocks appearing after cooking with Royal Oak charcoal? I know some rocks always make it through to the product, but these seem to have increased recently in RO.

    I have used RO for several years. Everyone is aware of Home Depot's hidden price increase (reducing the size by over 12% and charging the same), but it is concerning if they are also choosing to include more rocks to their product.
    It is lump that we put into a cooking vessel and turn into ash! I'm just wondering why we expect it to be so pure? It's not a precious metal or stone! I recommend that you switch to a lump at a much higher price so you can get the so much sought after PURE LUMP! Relax and Egg On. :) 

    I'm only hungry when I'm awake!

    Okeechobee FL. Winter

    West Jefferson NC Summer

  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    edited April 2016
    I am going to start selling lump sorted into various sizes, guaranteed rock free and bagged by hand

    only $75/25 pounds 
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

  • dougcrann
    dougcrann Posts: 1,129
    They ain't rocks......they are heat sinks...
  • Doc_Eggerton
    Doc_Eggerton Posts: 5,321
    weigh the bags before getting out the pitchforks....

    many (most?) bags (for many suppliers) are overweight.

    people crab about cowboy lump all the time, but my last bag was 5+ pounds overweight.  kinda makes up for a couple rocks every now and then
    Cowboy?  A few free pounds doesn't make up for plastic straps, fiberglass and plywood.

    XXL #82 out of the first 100, XLGE X 2, LBGE (gave this one to daughter 1.0) , MBGE (now in the hands of iloveagoodyoke daughter 2.0) and lots of toys

  • onedbguru
    onedbguru Posts: 1,647
    When it goes to 9.97 a bag I'll stock back up on a dozen bags.

    I went to a WallyWorld last week and lo and behold they had the 17.6lb bags on sale for $9.97 so I bought 8.   HD still had the 15.4lb bag for $12.97 on a pallet with balloons as if this was a "great price".  Now I have 11 bags (3 of which were the 15.4lb bags).  

    I use RO because I can get it at that price and I like the result.  I occasionally get a bag of something more expensive - especially if it is on sale and typically don't see any real, measurable difference. Others sparked and burned differently, but the overall taste was still the same. But no matter the brand, I always find a few rocks here and there so, not a big deal, and usually at the bottom of the bag. 
  • pgprescott
    pgprescott Posts: 14,544
    I am going to start selling lump sorted into various sizes, guaranteed rock free and bagged by hand

    only $75/25 pounds 

    You'd be losing your butt......$200 for 20# minimum.  And you'd have to x-ray every piece to make sure there wasn't anything encased.  Then the big chunks would still break down unless you wrapped each one in bubble wrap.  :)

    When people complain about the size distribution in the bag, I always wonder if they call Frito-Lay or General Mills after they find a bunch or crushed up chips or cereal in the bottom of the bag.  There's a fair share of size distribution in Tostito's and Corn Flakes just like any lump charcoal.  All of them come out of the machine in a pretty much standard size, then just like lump charcoal, they get broken down during the bagging, palletizing, shipping, handling, stocking.  They can't do anything about it either, yet it's somehow perfectly acceptable for them and not for us.  Hell, even Pringles break during handling yet no one says a word.  :/
    Hey Jonathon, can you work on a bag of ice that won't melt together into a big hunk when it melts and refreezes? I would like to buy some of that too. 
  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    edited April 2016
    weigh the bags before getting out the pitchforks....

    many (most?) bags (for many suppliers) are overweight.

    people crab about cowboy lump all the time, but my last bag was 5+ pounds overweight.  kinda makes up for a couple rocks every now and then
    Cowboy?  A few free pounds doesn't make up for plastic straps, fiberglass and plywood.
    Straps and fiberglass weigh nothing

    and the plywood?  Big deal. Pull it out and get over it. They do not use plywood to make charcoal. You might get a stray piece, but that's rare. And that sh!t happens to every manufacturer  

    People used to b!tch that Cowboy was all construction debris and would piint to flooring as proof

    until it was pointed out to them that there were no nailholes, it was all square cut, etc.

    they were sourcing culled pieces from oak flooring manufacturers, not dumpster diving

    but their consumers were too stupid to understand this, and thought it was demo debris 

    my food tastes pretty good. No one has dies yet. And i can cook with any charcoal you give me. I don't panic when i am down to twenty bags of "brand-of-the-month"

    i find it frankly effeminate when 'men' argue about brands of charcoal. Ford. Chevy. Whatever

    laughable priorities

    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    I am going to start selling lump sorted into various sizes, guaranteed rock free and bagged by hand

    only $75/25 pounds 

    You'd be losing your butt......$200 for 20# minimum.  And you'd have to x-ray every piece to make sure there wasn't anything encased.  Then the big chunks would still break down unless you wrapped each one in bubble wrap.  :)

    When people complain about the size distribution in the bag, I always wonder if they call Frito-Lay or General Mills after they find a bunch or crushed up chips or cereal in the bottom of the bag.  There's a fair share of size distribution in Tostito's and Corn Flakes just like any lump charcoal.  All of them come out of the machine in a pretty much standard size, then just like lump charcoal, they get broken down during the bagging, palletizing, shipping, handling, stocking.  They can't do anything about it either, yet it's somehow perfectly acceptable for them and not for us.  Hell, even Pringles break during handling yet no one says a word.  :/
    Nope. Wouldn't lose a dime, and would be legend. Because I wouldn't sort a damn thing. I'd just resell the same crap in a fancy bag. And then take care of the one in twenty that complained. 



    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

  • stlcharcoal
    stlcharcoal Posts: 4,684
    edited April 2016

    Cowboy?  A few free pounds doesn't make up for plastic straps, fiberglass and plywood.

    and the plywood?  Big deal. Pull it out and get over it. They do not use plywood to make charcoal. You might get a stray piece, but that's rare. And that sh!t happens to every manufacturer  
    You will NEVER find a piece of plywood in our bags......I can guarantee that.  With the way the supply chain works, some charcoal companies can be sure of that.  All of our charcoal comes from slab and cord wood.
  • Doc_Eggerton
    Doc_Eggerton Posts: 5,321
    weigh the bags before getting out the pitchforks....

    many (most?) bags (for many suppliers) are overweight.

    people crab about cowboy lump all the time, but my last bag was 5+ pounds overweight.  kinda makes up for a couple rocks every now and then
    Cowboy?  A few free pounds doesn't make up for plastic straps, fiberglass and plywood.
    Straps and fiberglass weigh nothing

    and the plywood?  Big deal. Pull it out and get over it. They do not use plywood to make charcoal. You might get a stray piece, but that's rare. And that sh!t happens to every manufacturer  

    People used to b!tch that Cowboy was all construction debris and would piint to flooring as proof

    until it was pointed out to them that there were no nailholes, it was all square cut, etc.

    they were sourcing culled pieces from oak flooring manufacturers, not dumpster diving

    but their consumers were too stupid to understand this, and thought it was demo debris
    my food tastes pretty good. No one has dies yet. And i can cook with any charcoal you give me. I don't panic when i am down to twenty bags of "brand-of-the-month"

    i find it frankly effeminate when 'men' argue about brands of charcoal. Ford. Chevy. Whatever

    laughable priorities

    Weren't you the poster lambasting people who are passionate about their choices in lump?  You seem to feel the need to defend Cowboy to the point of making personal insults.  I was not commenting on the basis of popular myth, but upon my personal experience.  Cowboy is ashy, smelly, and in my experience full of surprises.  Oh and BTW, bugger off.

    XXL #82 out of the first 100, XLGE X 2, LBGE (gave this one to daughter 1.0) , MBGE (now in the hands of iloveagoodyoke daughter 2.0) and lots of toys

  • Terrebandit
    Terrebandit Posts: 1,750
    I have not noticed a spike in rocks. I did notice a spike in dead birds last summer. 
    Dave - Austin, TX
  • clifkincaid
    clifkincaid Posts: 572
    Our WM use to carry the 17# bags. Now it's the 8#ers. HD here is the same as yours...sure hope in june or july they have the sale again. 

    onedbguru said:
    When it goes to 9.97 a bag I'll stock back up on a dozen bags.

    I went to a WallyWorld last week and lo and behold they had the 17.6lb bags on sale for $9.97 so I bought 8.   HD still had the 15.4lb bag for $12.97 on a pallet with balloons as if this was a "great price".  Now I have 11 bags (3 of which were the 15.4lb bags).  

    I use RO because I can get it at that price and I like the result.  I occasionally get a bag of something more expensive - especially if it is on sale and typically don't see any real, measurable difference. Others sparked and burned differently, but the overall taste was still the same. But no matter the brand, I always find a few rocks here and there so, not a big deal, and usually at the bottom of the bag. 

  • Jll0004
    Jll0004 Posts: 32
    I bought two bags of RO last week and found a small boulder! Not sure how I feel about RO
  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    Exhausted by lump threads.  I know, don't open if...
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053
    I have seen a drastic quality increase in RO. The lump size has gotten much better. I bought a bag of the other stuff recently and the RO was just as good if not better IMO. And it's half the price.
  • SloppyJoe
    SloppyJoe Posts: 406
    Blah blah blah.   
  • DMW
    DMW Posts: 13,832
    Lit said:
    I have seen a drastic quality increase in RO. The lump size has gotten much better. I bought a bag of the other stuff recently and the RO was just as good if not better IMO. And it's half the price.
    Maybe the rumor they bought Ozark Oak has some merit?
    They/Them
    Morgantown, PA

    XL BGE - S BGE - KJ Jr - HB Legacy - BS Pizza Oven - 30" Firepit - King Kooker Fryer -  PR72T - WSJ - BS 17" Griddle - XXL BGE  - BS SS36" Griddle - 2 Burner Gasser - Pellet Smoker