Questions for XL owners

The Virginian

Dear XL owners, [p]I should be joining your ranks in a few weeks, or whenever Atlanta sends up the next shipment of XLs to the Mid-Atlantic region. I wanted to take advantage of your experience in preparation for its arrival. [p]Question 1: What is the best way to get the XL in and out of vehicles (I have a Voyager)? Any little tips that can help me avoid breaking it or my back (and my teammates' backs) would be greatly appreciated.[p]Question 2: How much lump will one of these things hold max, and how long will that burn on a low and slow? [p]Question 3: What do you suggest for an elevated grid on one of these? Shall I buy a 20 inch weber rack and add the necessary hardware, or are there other options already out there? [p]Question 4: What would you say are the main differences between cooking on an XL and cooking on a large (smoking and grilling)? My sense is that the airflow might be a little different, which might call for some tweaking of techniques learned with the large. [p]Thanks to all, [p]Brett

BBQfan1

The Virginian,
Question 1: What is the best way to get the XL in and out of vehicles (I have a Voyager)?
--I'm sure there's got to be a better way, but so far I've just moved it into the van, drove it home, lifted it out of the van and it's set on the deck til spring's 1st competition! Dang, it IS one heavy brute. One plus is the squatness of it makes it easier to grip in one armslength. 2 guys handled both moves, but I strongly recommend backing the vehicle right up to the cooker and do no more lifting than necessary! The type of 'engineering knowhow' to rig a specialized carrier is not my area of expertise, to say the least.[p]Question 2: How much lump will one of these things hold max, and how long will that burn on a low and slow?
--I think they would hold 7-8 lbs chock full to just under the grid. I've had it near that level and it seemed like it took 1/3 of a 20 lb bag or so. The burn length appears to be slightly shorter than that of a fully-stocked large as the fire seems to eventually 'drift' to one side of the XL over a prolonged cooking period. I've thought of trying a charcoal basket or perforated cylinder to hold the lump in a more controlled space; that is a wide (but shallower) firebox on the XL. The other thing I've found is that if you use a charcoal brand with many fines in it, or if you're working on the bottom of the bag, you are likely going to lose a quantity through those quarter-sized air holes in the ash grate.[p]Question 3: What do you suggest for an elevated grid on one of these? Shall I buy a 20 inch weber rack and add the necessary hardware, or are there other options already out there?
--Brett, I don't know if they are going to introduce/have introduced an XL grid extender, but it would be a good idea. Making your own from a seperate rack sounds workable as well. I've used the current extender on it and it certainly seems an under-utilization of the cooker with the extra empty space left over![p]Question 4: What would you say are the main differences between cooking on an XL and cooking on a large (smoking and grilling)? My sense is that the airflow might be a little different, which might call for some tweaking of techniques learned with the large.
-- Brett, I've actually found airflow to be pretty much the same. The difference in the extra internal area you are trying to heat seems to be compensated for by the larger ash grate openings, so basically the 'draw' from the lower vent seems to be about the same XL to Large and visa versa, therefore, vent aperture settings to reach particular temps seems to be almost identical for each cooker in my experience!
The one thing I have noticed personally with the XL versus the Large is in cooking items that depend on the refractory heat to cook properly. It will be interesting to hear what others say once the XL gets into wider circulation, but for me, things like turkeys, pizzas, cakes, breads etc don't seem to brown/crisp as much on the tops of them as they do in a large. My take is that it is because of the lower slope to the XL dome which causes the heat to refract at a lower angle than it does in the higher arched dome of a Large (med or small). For example, between Thanksgiving and Christmas I did 4 turkeys, 2 in each cooker. In the Large, the birds began to brown almost immediately on the tops of the legs and the top of the breast, so much so that I had to loosely foil those areas to prevent burning. The turkeys in the XL on the other hand, began to brown first on the tucked-in wings and sides of the bird; sides of legs and in the upper thigh area. The breast actually had to be brushed with butter to encourage browning, which it did, nicely, over the 2.5 hr cook. Actually, for turkey, this reduced-angle refraction and it's affect on the breast may be a bonus, given that it helps evens out the cooking time thigh-to-breast so the hit target internals at the same time.
For pizzas and other baked products I've found the XL to be great for cooking volume quantities (did you see the 18" pizza pic I posted about a month ago?), but again, the crust seems to be done to perfection when I'm barely getting any bubbling of the topping. Doing calzones a week or so ago at 600°F, I actually had to flip them on the plate setter to get the top-side to brown. Without flipping, the top of the calzone was still pasty white and a bit soft.
Now, all of these cooks incorporated the plate setter in the set-up. Whether its size (I think it's 18 or 18.5 in diameter) is affecting the heat getting to, and being refracted from, the dome, again, that all needs to be seen as I've not done a chicken/turkey/baked product without it. Anyway, that should give you enough food for thought to keep you going til that Egg arrives and you can test these things out for yourself!
The Canadgian

WessB

The Virginian,
I posted this to you back when you asked the loading question before...not sure if you saw it...and then I`m not sure it will work with your vehicle, but the price aint bad for what it will do...HTH[p]Wess
[ul][li]Lift Gate[/ul]

The Virginian

WessB,
Thanks, Wess, I will check it out. [p]Brett

The Virginian

BBQfan1,
Thanks for the mini-tutorial, very helpful. I wonder if putting the baked goods closer the dome (put the pizza stone on a raised grid, for example) would take care of the browning problem by getting the food close to the ceramic on top? I will play with it once the beast is under my carport. [p]You coming down for the Salisbury competition in April? Free Range will be coming, XL in tow! [p]Brett

Gene

The Virginian,
I unloader a 57 inch TV with a ladder. Just slid it down.that should work fine with a boxed Egg and dosen't cost anything if you already have the ladder