Pit Boss
Pit Boss Champion Barrel Charcoal Smoker
Pit Boss's take on the drum smoker: a 24-inch barrel that cooks the Pit Barrel way, with meat hung on rods over a charcoal basket rather than laid on grates, plus three porcelain-coated grates for when you want to cook flat. The triple row of hanging rods takes twelve racks of ribs, which is more than double what a Pit Barrel Classic holds, and it is the largest drum in the mainstream market.
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Specifications
Pros
- ✓Three rows of hanging rods hold twelve racks of ribs — roughly triple a standard 30-gallon drum
- ✓Hanging meat over direct coals is what gives drums their bark and render rate; this does it at party scale
- ✓Also ships with three porcelain-coated grates, so it works as a conventional grate smoker when hanging is impractical
- ✓5-year limited warranty is remarkable on a charcoal drum, where most rivals offer one
- ✓1,158 sq in of grate area plus hanging capacity for under $1,000 undercuts the custom drum builders
Cons
- ✗$990 is more than twice a Pit Barrel Classic, and the drum design itself offers no temperature control beyond an intake damper
- ✗Drums run hot — typically 275–300°F — and are poor at the low 225°F range some cooks want
- ✗No thermometer ports, no probes, no controller; this is a manual cooker at a semi-premium price
- ✗Pit Boss publishes neither dimensions nor weight for it, and a 24-inch loaded drum is heavy
- ✗Hanging cooks drip straight onto the coals, which is where drum flavour comes from but also means flare-ups with fatty loads
Compare the Pit Boss Champion Barrel Charcoal Smoker
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