Pit Barrel Cooker Junior Premier 14 vs Dyna-Glo Wide Body Vertical Offset Charcoal Smoker
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Quick take: The Dyna-Glo Wide Body Vertical Offset Charcoal Smoker costs $11 less; the Dyna-Glo Wide Body Vertical Offset Charcoal Smoker offers more cooking space (1,890 vs 14 sq in).
| Spec | Pit Barrel Cooker Junior Premier 14 | Dyna-Glo Wide Body Vertical Offset Charcoal Smoker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~$360 | ~$349 |
| Rating | 5★ (396) | — |
| Type | Charcoal Smoker | Charcoal Smoker |
| Cooking Area | 14 in grate plus 2 hanging rods (4 hooks) | 1890 sq in |
| Max Temp | — | — |
| Fuel Type | Charcoal | Charcoal |
| Build Material | Porcelain-Enameled Steel | Powder-Coated Steel with Porcelain-Enameled Charcoal Chamber |
| Hopper Capacity | — | — |
| Burners | — | — |
| WiFi / App | No | No |
| App control | No | No |
| Meat probe | No | No |
| PID controller | No | No |
| Side burner | No | No |
| Rotisserie | No | No |
| Searing | No | No |
| Dimensions | 14 in drum diameter | 43.3 x 21 x 50.2 in |
| Weight | — | 83 lbs |
| Warranty | 1 year | 1 year |
Pros & cons
Pit Barrel Cooker Junior Premier 14
- ✓Hanging meat vertically over the coals is a genuinely different cook from a grate — drippings hit the fire and the smoke is heavier than a water smoker's
- ✓Sealed-drum design has no damper to fiddle with: you set the single intake for your altitude once and it holds 275–300°F on its own
- ✓Premier heat shield means it can legally and safely sit on a wood deck, which the older Junior could not
- ✓Ships fully assembled with hooks, rods, charcoal basket, grate, hook tool and two rubs — nothing else to buy
- ✓Half the charcoal load of the 18.5-inch Classic, so short cooks are much cheaper to run
- ✗No damper control by design — it runs hot and fast at 275–300°F, so true 225°F low-and-slow is not what this cooker does
- ✗A full packer brisket over 8–10 lbs will not fit hanging; the 18.5 or the PBX is the one for competition-size cuts
- ✗No built-in thermometer at all — the lid is blank and you supply your own probe
- ✗$360 is a lot of money for a 14-inch drum next to a $289 Weber Smokey Mountain 14 with twice the grate area
- ✗Every product photo on Pit Barrel's own store for this model is AI-generated rather than a real studio shot, which makes it hard to judge fit and finish before buying
Dyna-Glo Wide Body Vertical Offset Charcoal Smoker
- ✓1,890 sq in for $349 is far more cooking area per dollar than any horizontal offset in this catalog
- ✓Six grates each rated to 25 lbs means 150 lbs of meat - real capacity for a party or a small catering job
- ✓Vertical layout self-bastes: fat from the upper racks drips onto the meat below, which horizontal offsets do not do
- ✓Porcelain-enameled charcoal chamber resists the burn-through that kills bare-steel fireboxes
- ✓The high-temp rope seal comes factory-fitted, so the usual first modification is already done
- ✓Removable ash pan makes clean-up between cooks a two-minute job
- ✗Thin-gauge body - Dyna-Glo says only 'heavy-gauge steel' and publishes no actual number, which almost always means it is not heavy
- ✗83 lbs across a 50-inch-tall cabinet at this price means noticeable leaks at the doors and stack until you gasket them
- ✗Temperature stratifies badly top to bottom in a tall vertical; the top grate can run 30-50°F hotter than the bottom
- ✗The lid thermometer has a 'Smoke Zone' band instead of usable numbers at the range that matters
- ✗Chrome-plated grates will flake with heat cycling; stainless replacements are an extra cost