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I Sold My XL and Small Egg, I'll Shirley Miss Them!
WeberWho
Posts: 11,259
It's was a sad day last Wednesday when I sold my XL and Small Big Green Egg. My Mini will also head to Craigslist sooner than later. My Good One Smoker offset that I just recently restored and my Big Steel Keg will follow the Mini's departure. It feels like the Barrett Jackson of grills around here.
Don't you all go jumping for joy and think I'm leaving here!
The XL didn't get used very often and I had two smalls. (The small I sold was brand new. I bought it 2.5 years ago on clearance for $300. I never found a need for two small eggs at the same time. So it just sat collecting dust) I still have my Large, Small, and newer Mini egg. I'll be rocking a green grill as long as I have two feet on this ground. I just needed to sell off a few grills to justify my new toy.
My wife wanted a picture of all the Big Green Eggs before a few of them found new homes.
So why did I sell off some of the Big Green Egg family? An opportunity came knocking. I'm a BBQ nerd and like to check Craigslist every few days for BBQ related items. I came across a Lang stick burner a few weeks ago that peeked my interest. I read the Craigslist ad but I didn't think too much of it. It did excite me a little as a stick burner is a whole different animal when it comes to smoking. I own 10 grills but they work similar to one another. A stick burner is a whole new challenge. I can't just go out and buy a Lang offset smoker to try out. I'd need to start small and work my way up to a nicer stick burner like a Lang over time. A few days later I go back to Craigslist to look at BBQ related items. I ran across the Lang smoker once again. I took another look at the ad but I couldn't justify a purchase of a Lang offset smoker. I move on and don't think much of it. However, I couldn't help but think how much fun it would be to feed a live fire.
A few days later I do the typical bbq search on Craigslist. Then it happens. Something that I thought I'd never see come up for sale here in Minnesota. I think I may have even let out an "oh sh*t" when reading the ad. Remember how I said earlier that I couldn't just go out and buy a Lang stick burner to start out on? Let me throw that whole theory out the window. It's a little different when you come across a used Shirley Fabrication Patio smoker! This doesn't happen here in Minnesota. I don't think it happens much anywhere with a Shirley. I was shocked, stunned, confused, but I couldn't click on the Shirley ad fast enough. There she was, a used Shirley smoker that I knew absolutely nothing about! I didn't email on it. I couldn't. I've never used a stick burner and couldn't justify the cost. So I passed on it. Well that feeling lasted a few hours. The next thing I know I'm emailing the seller and asking a few questions about it. I had to email. Even if I didn't buy it. I can say I at least made a feeble attempt. Now how do I tell my wife I just emailed on a smoker? Well it really wasn't that hard. I have 10 grills so it wasn't much of a surprise. What did take her off guard was that I would need to sell some of my other grills to get this smoker. This was the only way I could justify the purchase. I couldn't afford to go out and blow money on a new/used smoker but I did feel comfortable selling off some grills that I don't use. So I was looking at it more as a trade than a financial purchase. I was still nervous to say the least.
The next morning I get an email from the seller and he said it's still available. He said he's had some interest but wasn't looking for low ball offers. I knew he was going to get what he was asking. His other requirement was that it goes to a person who was going to use it and appreciate it. I sent an email back and asked if 10 grills would get my foot in the door?
I explained to him that I was new to stick burners but I knew all about Shirley Fabrication. (I enjoy their Youtube videos) I think he knew that I knew the quality of the smoker and enjoyment I'd get out of it. I made him my best offer and what I'd come close to selling my other grills for. He was happy that it was going to a good home and dropped the price for me. The next day when picking the smoker up he had four calls wanting to purchase it. I knew I'd be kicking myself down the road if I didn't at least make an attempt to contact the seller. I'm glad I emailed when I did.
The seller Jeremy was a great guy. He went over everything with me and took the time to explain how the smoker works and different tips and tricks. I could tell the smoker meant a lot to him. You could tell he didn't necessarily want to sell it but knew it was time. He watched the smoker leave on the trailer as if it were an old muscle car and seeing it one last time. It was sad. I know he could have sold it for what he was asking and I made sure when leaving and in text later that night that he knew he could come over or even borrow the smoker if ever needed it for a party or event. I think he appreciated the offer.
Trailered and making it's way to its new home.
Picture of it being built by Paul.
Previous owner pictures.
I lit it for the first time this afternoon. Just to play around with temps.
I got it to stay around 250 which I'm happy with. I still need to work on how to fire this bad boy up. I don't want to use a bag of charcoal to light it up everytime so I used straight wood. I'm going to need a wood splitter and some oak trees before I know it! It should get easier as I learn more along the way. I'm excited nonetheless.
Sitting back and drinking a beer.
This smoker is way more than my wife and I will ever need. What I want to do is add a baffle between the firebox and warmer to make the warming box into a vertical smoker. That will become the next project. Kind of sad when you spend 30 hours on my other smoker restoration and only gets one cook on it. Already wanting to start another project with this one. When will I learn!?
If you made it this far thanks for looking! If anyone has some tips or tricks I'm all ears. Thanks!!!
Don't you all go jumping for joy and think I'm leaving here!
The XL didn't get used very often and I had two smalls. (The small I sold was brand new. I bought it 2.5 years ago on clearance for $300. I never found a need for two small eggs at the same time. So it just sat collecting dust) I still have my Large, Small, and newer Mini egg. I'll be rocking a green grill as long as I have two feet on this ground. I just needed to sell off a few grills to justify my new toy.My wife wanted a picture of all the Big Green Eggs before a few of them found new homes.
So why did I sell off some of the Big Green Egg family? An opportunity came knocking. I'm a BBQ nerd and like to check Craigslist every few days for BBQ related items. I came across a Lang stick burner a few weeks ago that peeked my interest. I read the Craigslist ad but I didn't think too much of it. It did excite me a little as a stick burner is a whole different animal when it comes to smoking. I own 10 grills but they work similar to one another. A stick burner is a whole new challenge. I can't just go out and buy a Lang offset smoker to try out. I'd need to start small and work my way up to a nicer stick burner like a Lang over time. A few days later I go back to Craigslist to look at BBQ related items. I ran across the Lang smoker once again. I took another look at the ad but I couldn't justify a purchase of a Lang offset smoker. I move on and don't think much of it. However, I couldn't help but think how much fun it would be to feed a live fire.
A few days later I do the typical bbq search on Craigslist. Then it happens. Something that I thought I'd never see come up for sale here in Minnesota. I think I may have even let out an "oh sh*t" when reading the ad. Remember how I said earlier that I couldn't just go out and buy a Lang stick burner to start out on? Let me throw that whole theory out the window. It's a little different when you come across a used Shirley Fabrication Patio smoker! This doesn't happen here in Minnesota. I don't think it happens much anywhere with a Shirley. I was shocked, stunned, confused, but I couldn't click on the Shirley ad fast enough. There she was, a used Shirley smoker that I knew absolutely nothing about! I didn't email on it. I couldn't. I've never used a stick burner and couldn't justify the cost. So I passed on it. Well that feeling lasted a few hours. The next thing I know I'm emailing the seller and asking a few questions about it. I had to email. Even if I didn't buy it. I can say I at least made a feeble attempt. Now how do I tell my wife I just emailed on a smoker? Well it really wasn't that hard. I have 10 grills so it wasn't much of a surprise. What did take her off guard was that I would need to sell some of my other grills to get this smoker. This was the only way I could justify the purchase. I couldn't afford to go out and blow money on a new/used smoker but I did feel comfortable selling off some grills that I don't use. So I was looking at it more as a trade than a financial purchase. I was still nervous to say the least.
The next morning I get an email from the seller and he said it's still available. He said he's had some interest but wasn't looking for low ball offers. I knew he was going to get what he was asking. His other requirement was that it goes to a person who was going to use it and appreciate it. I sent an email back and asked if 10 grills would get my foot in the door?
I explained to him that I was new to stick burners but I knew all about Shirley Fabrication. (I enjoy their Youtube videos) I think he knew that I knew the quality of the smoker and enjoyment I'd get out of it. I made him my best offer and what I'd come close to selling my other grills for. He was happy that it was going to a good home and dropped the price for me. The next day when picking the smoker up he had four calls wanting to purchase it. I knew I'd be kicking myself down the road if I didn't at least make an attempt to contact the seller. I'm glad I emailed when I did.The seller Jeremy was a great guy. He went over everything with me and took the time to explain how the smoker works and different tips and tricks. I could tell the smoker meant a lot to him. You could tell he didn't necessarily want to sell it but knew it was time. He watched the smoker leave on the trailer as if it were an old muscle car and seeing it one last time. It was sad. I know he could have sold it for what he was asking and I made sure when leaving and in text later that night that he knew he could come over or even borrow the smoker if ever needed it for a party or event. I think he appreciated the offer.
Trailered and making it's way to its new home.
Picture of it being built by Paul.
Previous owner pictures.
I lit it for the first time this afternoon. Just to play around with temps.
I got it to stay around 250 which I'm happy with. I still need to work on how to fire this bad boy up. I don't want to use a bag of charcoal to light it up everytime so I used straight wood. I'm going to need a wood splitter and some oak trees before I know it! It should get easier as I learn more along the way. I'm excited nonetheless.
Sitting back and drinking a beer.
This smoker is way more than my wife and I will ever need. What I want to do is add a baffle between the firebox and warmer to make the warming box into a vertical smoker. That will become the next project. Kind of sad when you spend 30 hours on my other smoker restoration and only gets one cook on it. Already wanting to start another project with this one. When will I learn!?
If you made it this far thanks for looking! If anyone has some tips or tricks I'm all ears. Thanks!!!
"The pig is an amazing animal. You feed a pig an apple and it makes bacon. Let's see Michael Phelps do that" - Jim Gaffigan
Minnesota
Minnesota
Comments
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Son of a B!t-h. Great story and even better score. Congrats on taking advantage of the " window of opportunity". The window is only open for so long, either jump or play what if. You are so right with the stick-burner and different animal behavior. You will either embrace it or wonder "why did I go down this road." Here's to the former.Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win. Life is too short for light/lite beer! Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
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Looks like a good time. Enjoy the new acquisition friend.
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A fellow CL comber gets rewarded...great find bud.BrandonQuad Cities
"If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful." -
Congrats that's the size I have been looking for. Think that was posted on the bretheren also would have been tempting if it was closer.
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That's a score.. I was the same way trolling CL for different smokers. I came across a backwoods fat boy G2 all the way here in Seattle.
picked it up on a trailer similar to
you paid less than half price for an almost new smoker.
great find and enjoy!Seattle, WA -
Congrats Brother.... great storyCharlotte, NC - Large BGE 2014, Maverick ET 733, Thermopen, Nest, Platesetter, Woo2 and Extender w/Grid, Kick Ash Basket, Pizza Stone, SS Smokeware Cap, Blackstone 36"
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Dude you should be a writer. You tell a really good story. Big big congrats on the purchase too! When you get time, would you mind taking some measurements? Firebox w/l/h, smoker chamber diameter/ length, reverse flow?, firebox to chamber opening size? Seriously I'd love to pick your brain a little, as I'm building a similar smoker.Slumming it in Aiken, SC.
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Awesome post and awesome trade. Looking forward to seeing the output
on that bad boy.Snellville, GA -
Shirley you jest.
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That's awesome buddy. Congrats on a great find. Selling some of those eggs was the smart move. You don't need that many units. Can wait to live vicariously through you as you transition to the Shirley
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Congrats and nice score. Oh yeah, welcome to la famiglia.MMBGE / Large BGE / XL BGE (Craigslist Find) / SF30x80 cabinet trailer - "Ol' Mortimer" / Outdoor kitchen in progress.
RECOVERING BUBBLEHEAD
Southeastern CT. -
Great write and even better score. Congrats. Cant wait to see the pictures of the first food coming off.Large and Small BGECentral, IL
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Great story. I'm happy for you. I hope you have a great source of fire wood. That would be my biggest problem.Marshall in Beautiful Fruit Cove, FL.
MiniMax 04/17
Unofficial BGE MiniMax Evangelist
Facebook Big Green Egg MiniMax Owners Group -
This has been on my mind since you first mentioned it. Enjoy your christmas morning! Incredible find!
Phoenix -
Awesome!! You are going to be like the guy who started with a paperclip and kept trading up till he ended with a house in Canada.
Maybe your purpose in life is only to serve as an example for others? - LPL
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Happy Dance!
Oh yeah & you suck! Congrats and feed that fire.LBGE 2013 & MM 2014Die Hard HUSKER & BRONCO FANFlying Low & Slow in "Da Burg" FL -
Congratulations!Coleman, Texas
Large BGE & Mini Max for the wok. A few old camp Dutch ovens and a wood fired oven. LSG 24” cabinet offset smoker. There are a few paella pans and a Patagonia cross in the barn. A curing chamber for bacterial transformation of meats...
"Bourbon slushies. Sure you can cook on the BGE without them, but why would you?"
YukonRon -
Great story, and even better looking rig! Looking forward to seeing your progress.
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Very cool! Let's Go Cubs or Yankees! Dont really care at this point.=======================================
XL 6/06, Mini 6/12, L 10/12, Mini #2 12/14 MiniMax 3/16 Large #2 11/20 Legacy from my FIL - RIP
Tampa Bay, FL
EIB 6 Oct 95 -
Nice score man and I read the whole post.------------------------------
Thomasville, NC
My YouTube Channel - The Hungry Hussey
Instagram
Facebook
My Photography Site -
Congrats on the Shirley! That should be a good one. The BBQ Brethren brother it came from made some great Q from it.
Enjoy.
Large BGE, MiniMAX BGE, 2 Mini BGE's, R&V Fryer, 36" Blackstone Griddle, Camp Chef Dual Burner 40K BTU StoveBGE ChimineaProsper, TX
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Holy. Sh!t. Talk about a score. The boss lady occasionally harps on me about selling off a few grills. I gladly would to make room for a Shirley.#1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February 2013 • #3 Mini May 2013A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
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Congrats bro.
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I am not selling my eggs ever. If I ever had more than 3, I could see trading the 4th and 5th for a quality offset though. I think you made a great trade, enjoy that offset."Bacon tastes gooood, pork chops taste gooood." - Vincent Vega, Pulp Fiction
Small and Large BGE in Oklahoma City. -
Lone Star Grillz is right in your back yard. I'm just trying to help...caliking said:Holy. Sh!t. Talk about a score. The boss lady occasionally harps on me about selling off a few grills. I gladly would to make room for a Shirley.Coleman, Texas
Large BGE & Mini Max for the wok. A few old camp Dutch ovens and a wood fired oven. LSG 24” cabinet offset smoker. There are a few paella pans and a Patagonia cross in the barn. A curing chamber for bacterial transformation of meats...
"Bourbon slushies. Sure you can cook on the BGE without them, but why would you?"
YukonRon -
Cool!!! And also that was very cool of you to offer to loan it back to the seller! That shows real class in my book!
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Great find! I would've been all over that as well. Would love to find one in my area. Enjoy your Shirley.
SE PA
XL, Lg, Mini max and OKJ offset
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