Help on XL or L

from what i understand you can buy a large and a small for the same price... i have a large and a small but i got them 4 years apart... i think you should get a large ten people is not that hard on a large but if money is not a considering factor the large/small combo is pretty popular around here because you can cook diffrent things at diffrent tempratures...


but you can cook for 50 on a large






HTH

Well, since you asked, here's my 2 cents.

I see a lot of posts here by people with large, medium, and small eggs showing how to increase capacity. I own an XL and thought that there must be creative ways to use the XL both to increase capacity as well as decrease charcoal usage for small cooks.

I have to admit that I'm greedy when it comes to grill real estate. I never really considered the large because of its grate size. Obviously, many people don't find this to be a problem and indeed prefer the large. I bought a couple of accessories and had a few left over from previous grills and smokers that are gathering dust, so I thought of ways to use them to make the XL versatile and fuel efficient.

Here's the first one. If I just want to do a couple of high-temp steaks, I'll take the old fire ring and grate from my Weber Smokey Mountain and put it in the bottom of my XL filled with charcoal. I put the grate directly over the charcoal ring and let the charcoal get hot. Believe me, you can sear anything with the grate this close to hot lump.

Many people use the TRex method on this site for their steaks. I do it sometimes. The advantage the XL has here is that I don't have to wait for it to come down to temp to finish the steak. I sear the steak on the grate over the fire ring, then I put the regular XL grate on in its regular position and finish the steaks on a part of the grate that is not directly over the ring of lit lump below. It finishes indirect at about 450 without having to wait 15-20 minutes to slow down. During this time, I can also cook more delicate foods on the regular grate that need lower temps. I could also have the cook low temp on the main grate then remove it and finish on my searing grate on the charcoal ring. I could go on and on, there are tons of possibilities with this simple mod and I love it. Here's a pic below:



If I want to use the main grate at a high temp and cook indirect on the other side of the grill, I just use my half moon raised rack with the drip pan filled with sand and wrapped in foil. It makes one side cook indirect and the other side direct. Here's a pic:



The thighs were seared then finished indirect. The asparagus was just thrown on the hot side for a couple minutes.

I could go on and on, but the point is that you can use any of the sizes very creatively. If you're a grate hog, like I am, then you can go for the XL and be a little creative in the same way that the users of the smaller grills are with increasing capacity.

Here's a great post that inspired me to experiment:
http://www.greeneggers.net/index.php?option=com_simpleboard&func=view&id=410988&catid=1#410988

I don't have temp control issues and portability isn't an issue for me. I have it in a nest and can move it around on my concrete patio with no problem. These ceramic grills aren't the most portable things on the planet. But they are great.

That's my long, drawn out 2 cents.

there is something to be said for shrinking the burn on the xl....



I have both xl and large. If you normally cook for 10, then the xl is your best bet. T

Sounds like you already made up your mind, you just haven't realized it yet.......

jeff

I have two larges and two xl's. I personally prefer the XL because of the grid space, and the capability of cooking for a large group if necessary; but I can just as easily cook for two.
Yes, it's a big cooker; requires more lump; etc. In the past it has been limited in versatility; but with new innovations from folks like tjv, and the mothership, the XL is coming into its own.
I am currently testing some new things for the XL that will even further enhance the eggsperience for that size.
Either way; Large or the XL, you can't go wrong!
Hammer

Thanks Chub! I've never seen it; so I wanted to know. I've heard alot of good things about it however. Wonder where I could get some?
Mitch

Now Tom...!!!

Tell him what you reeeeally think!!

LMAO!!!

Evans

I have an XL and a Medium. I'm sure by Christmas I'll have every size from Mini to XL

I like the XL size but the place setter on the XL is the weak link. The legs on the XL place setter are as long as the pizza stone is thick. The Large and Medium place setters that I've used have legs long enough to use a disposable aluminum half pan as a drip pan.

If I had it to do again I'd get two Larges in one table. I think that setup is far more versatile than the XL, has better place setters and if you buy demo eggs about the same price as an XL.

T,
If a person with your expertise say's it's not what it's cracked up to be; I'll take your word for it. Thanks for the offer anyway!
Mitch

Greg,

If you don't need more grill space than the large has then for you it would be a better choice to add a medium or small. That's the route I went.

I couldn't decide which, M or S so I ended up with both. It is nice to have different temps available if needed.

GG