Kamado Joe Big Joe II

The Big Joe II is the previous-generation 24-inch Kamado Joe, and it has become the value play in the lineup rather than the current flagship. The Series III sits above it with a third rack tier and upgraded shelves for around a thousand dollars more, and owners buying new today are often steered toward it - but the II is the one that shows up at $400 off at a big-box store, near $1,055 at online retailers, and around $999 from grill specialists, sometimes bundled with a rotisserie. Owners who bought at those prices are happy; the ones with reservations mostly wish they had gone larger or newer rather than regretting the cooker itself. First cooks tend to go well, with owners reporting steady temperatures and good ribs with no kamado experience at all.

What it does well is hold a temperature for a long time with very little input, and the 24-inch grid is the reason to buy this over a Classic - two packers instead of one. The ceramic deflectors are noticeably more forgiving than the metal deflectors on the brand's cheaper cookers. The failure mode owners actually hit is not temperature drift but fire propagation: on a firebox this wide, the lit center can burn to ash without catching the lump around it, and one owner lost an overnight brisket exactly that way with a fan controller running. Stacking the firebox deliberately and placing smoking wood where it will not block the fire's path matters more here than on a smaller kamado. The other running theme is that the hardware around the ceramic is the weak part: the multi-piece firebox does not seat level and is miserable to reassemble, the caster wheels crumble and have been out of stock, and the lower gasket comes loose and gets reglued with high-temperature silicone.

It suits someone who genuinely does long cooks and entertains, and it is a poor fit for anyone wanting a convenient weeknight grill. Owners are direct about this: heating 400 lbs of ceramic to cook hot dogs makes no sense, and almost everyone keeps a gas grill or a kettle for that. Two things should shape the buying decision. First, the lifetime warranty does not transfer, so a used Big Joe II is an uninsured one, and owners weigh that explicitly before buying secondhand. Second, if you are paying close to full price, owners will tell you to buy the Series III instead - the II's argument rests entirely on the discount. Fuel is the ongoing cost people underestimate, though lump is more reusable than newcomers expect and a divided charcoal basket lets you burn only half of it for smaller cooks.