PK Grills
PK Grills PK300AF Franklin Edition
PK's collaboration with Aaron Franklin, sitting $100 above the standard PK300. Same rust-proof cast-aluminum capsule and four-vent layout, but with a redesigned lid seal, cast-aluminum wheels with rubber tires, two folding cast-aluminum shelves that lock the capsule to the cart, and an all-aluminum cart instead of the PK300's. It is the PK300 with the parts most owners complain about upgraded.
Goes to the manufacturer. We earn nothing on this one.
Specifications
Features
Pros
- ✓Cast aluminum does not rust, which is why 1950s PKs are still cooking — this is the only charcoal grill class where that is literally true
- ✓Four independent vents, two top and two bottom, give finer airflow control than any kettle's single pair
- ✓20-year warranty, the longest in the catalog outside ceramic kamados
- ✓The improved lid seal is the concrete change over the PK300 and it is the part that governs low-and-slow stability
- ✓60 lbs and the capsule lifts off the cart, so it travels in a trunk
- ✓Rectangular capsule gives a real hot end and cool end, unlike a round kettle where the zones are wedges
Cons
- ✗$800 for 316 sq in is a lot of money per square inch next to a $229 Weber kettle
- ✗Aluminum conducts heat away fast; it recovers quickly but does not hold heat like ceramic on a long cook
- ✗No built-in thermometer at grate level — the capsule has a lid port and that is it
- ✗The Franklin name adds $100 over a PK300 whose cooking capsule is the same
Compare the PK Grills PK300AF Franklin Edition
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