I Have Always Wanted A Stickburner And Now I Have A Problem

Money_Hillbilly

Well now I have a dilemma, too many grills and not enough space to keep them.  I found a good deal on a Lang 36” hybrid, one side is a grill and the other is a reverse flow smoker.  Now I have some duplication and I have to decide what to part with.  I have 2 large eggs built into my outdoor kitchen, an XL egg in a Cuna cart, a KBQ and a big Rockin W gravity smoker.  I plan on running a few cooks first to ensure I am happy with the offset before parting with my current setup.  Thinking about parting with the KBQ and the XL since the Lang can do both.  Problem is I am really attached to the KBQ.  What say you? What would you part with?

HeavyG

A KBQ takes up so little space I wouldn't part with it for just any space concerns.

WeberWho

Get rid of the KBQ and I own one. That will do what the KBQ does and more. You will tend the KBQ almost as much as that. So you're not really losing much with the KBQ except for the smaller size and easy portability of the KBQ.

@lousubcap will have some excellent input on that size Lang. 

WeberWho

Is that an old VW Bus in the driveway?

JohnInCarolina

I will just say that the resale market for the KBQ is very good.  Of course that cuts both ways…

Money_Hillbilly

@WeberWho That was my thought also, the stick burner needs the same attention as the KBQ.  It does have a small footprint and makes killer ribs but so does my gravity unit and I am sure the Lang will make killer ribs also.  The pictures were taken at the guy’s house that sold it to me.

Ozzie_Isaac

Buy more land, if that isn't possible, I would part ways with the XL.

lousubcap

I have a Lang 36" solo stick-burner and it was all I needed when acquired in Fall 2016. Like you, I was attracted to learning how to manage a wood fired off-set smoker for years.  And it is a totally different animal.  Needs care and feeding almost continuously-I knew that going in.  The challenge of fire, air and fuel (wood sticks) management is something I wanted to deal with first-hand so be ready for that.  
The fire box and total size means you are in for feeding the fire around every 20-30 minutes +/- for the duration of the cook.
The results are more smoke and earthy (whatever that means to anyone else) flavored and standalone especially with ribs and chix.  
I will totally endorse going down a new Q rig approach but as you note, give it a few runs before tossing anything to the curb. In the end game, you have to be committed to a stick-burner cook. FWIW-

lkapigian

We have similar arsenal, I’d love to have a KBQ ,they are all unique in there own way … my vote is for get rid of nothing 

Gulfcoastguy

I’m sure that you can persuade someone to give the XL a new home.

caliking

Ozzie_Isaac said:

Buy more land, if that isn't possible, I would part ways with the XL.

I vote for this ^^^.  Buy a new house, or sell the XL

The KBQ’s small footprint and portability are a big win IMO. You can transport it in the trunk of a sedan, if needed. 

Photo Egg

Definitely get rid of the KBQ on your next visit to Galveston.
Nice score on the Lang!

The Cen-Tex Smoker

caliking said:

Ozzie_Isaac said:

Buy more land, if that isn't possible, I would part ways with the XL.

I vote for this ^^^.  Buy a new house, or sell the XL

The KBQ’s small footprint and portability are a big win IMO. You can transport it in the trunk of a sedan, if needed. 

Confirmed. Pig head included. 

Money_Hillbilly

I forgot the biggest real estate occupier is this stainless griddle.  I have a small carport connecting my 2 garages and it is so full I can’t get into the garage without moving cooking equipment.  The boss can’t get the golf cart out of the garage.  

saluki2007

If you are not strapped for cash maybe loan your xl or kbq out to a close relative until you are for sure, for sure happy with your new unit. 

caliking

Sell the golf cart. Done. 

caliking

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

caliking said:

Ozzie_Isaac said:

Buy more land, if that isn't possible, I would part ways with the XL.

I vote for this ^^^.  Buy a new house, or sell the XL

The KBQ’s small footprint and portability are a big win IMO. You can transport it in the trunk of a sedan, if needed. 

Confirmed. Pig head included. 

That's the image that's seared into my memory !

The Cen-Tex Smoker

caliking said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

caliking said:

Ozzie_Isaac said:

Buy more land, if that isn't possible, I would part ways with the XL.

I vote for this ^^^.  Buy a new house, or sell the XL

The KBQ’s small footprint and portability are a big win IMO. You can transport it in the trunk of a sedan, if needed. 

Confirmed. Pig head included. 

That's the image that's seared into my memory !

I can’t believe we don’t have a pic of that somewhere but I can’t find it. 

ColbyLang

Money_Hillbilly said:

I forgot the biggest real estate occupier is this stainless griddle.  I have a small carport connecting my 2 garages and it is so full I can’t get into the garage without moving cooking equipment.  The boss can’t get the golf cart out of the garage.  

What’s the use level on this? This may be in the sell pile

Money_Hillbilly

Spent the day cleaning and playing with fire and smoke.  I have a large pile of old cherry wood that I needed to use up so I burned quite a few splits and quickly learned it is no bueno for a stick burner cook.  No coaling so you constantly have to add wood to keep temps up but never getting thin blue smoke.  Neighbors invited us over for dinner so I switched to oak and hickory and managed to get control and smoke some wings for appetizers.  Used Elk Creek jalapeño/garlic and Heath Riles Simply Citrus rubs for some really nice flavor.  They were juicy and delicious but not as good as wings grilled on the egg raised direct at 400 degrees.  Not a bad start but I have a lot to learn.  

lousubcap

@Money_Hillbilly - the Lang website has some videos about fire management.  There may be something of value there but you've got it right...just gotta work at it.  Have fun.  

Money_Hillbilly

@JohnInCarolina Any idea of KBQ value in resale market?

caliking

Money_Hillbilly said:

@JohnInCarolina Any idea of KBQ value in resale market?

I know this wasn't directed at me, but I've seen them listed for $400-$500 around here. 

WeberWho

Money_Hillbilly said:

@JohnInCarolina Any idea of KBQ value in resale market?

Around 1K

JohnInCarolina

Money_Hillbilly said:

@JohnInCarolina Any idea of KBQ value in resale market?

I would just look on Craigslist nationally and see what they’re going for.  They are built like tanks and fairly unique, so personally I wouldn’t sell for much less than $500.  

HeavyG

The cheapest I ever saw for resale was $800 which I thought was a bargain. I'm rather shocked to see that some folks find them in the $400-$500 range.

As @JohnInCarolina says they're built tough - everything is stainless steel, they don't rust, there's really nothing to break, the control box is tried and true decades old tech and is pretty bulletproof, they can cook a lot of meat, easily portable, etc.

I guess tho that when you live in the land of $1.99/lb prime briskets and <$3/gal gas that seeing used KBQ's available for a few rolls of quarters is just a normal day.

Ozzie_Isaac

Money_Hillbilly said:

@JohnInCarolina Any idea of KBQ value in resale market?

Wish you were closer.  I'd be in at $600 easy.

Photo Egg

HeavyG said:

The cheapest I ever saw for resale was $800 which I thought was a bargain. I'm rather shocked to see that some folks find them in the $400-$500 range.

As @JohnInCarolina says they're built tough - everything is stainless steel, they don't rust, there's really nothing to break, the control box is tried and true decades old tech and is pretty bulletproof, they can cook a lot of meat, easily portable, etc.

I guess tho that when you live in the land of $1.99/lb prime briskets and <$3/gal gas that seeing used KBQ's available for a few rolls of quarters is just a normal day.

In this area, south Texas, many start in $1000 range but sit and eventually slash price in half to sell. Maybe it’s because of the large number of used smokers in this area.   @caliking is a good example, as he bought 1 in the range he stated above.

Photo Egg

@Money_Hillbilly
If you do decide to drop KBQ give a shout. We make it to your area, Covington, to visit Spring Chicken and Spring Hen.

Canugghead

Photo Egg said:

@Money_Hillbilly
If you do decide to drop KBQ give a shout. We make it to your area, Covington, to visit Spring Chicken and Spring Hen.

I miss Leroy’s wee hours posts, lol