Yoder Smokers
Yoder YS640s
The Yoder YS640s is a 315 lb pellet smoker welded from 10-gauge American steel in Yoder, Kansas, with the FireBoard-based ACS controller and true direct-flame grilling. On BBQ forums it's the buy-once-cry-once pellet grill.
Specifications
Features
Pros
- ✓Nothing under $3,000 approaches its build - 10-gauge steel everywhere means thermal mass that laughs at wind, winter, and decade-plus daily use
- ✓The 'Yoder' name caps out search results in owner discussions, owner discussions, owner discussions, and owner discussions - the consensus endgame pellet grill
- ✓The ACS controller is built on FireBoard hardware with WiFi and two probe ports, and holds within about 5°F across a 14-hour brisket in independent testing
- ✓Swap the heat diffuser for the direct-grilling setup and it sears steaks over live flame at 600°F+ like a charcoal grill
- ✓1,070 sq in across two shelves with nearly 12 inches of headroom swallows briskets, turkeys, and rib racks simultaneously
- ✓Smoke flavor is heavier than mainstream pellet grills thanks to the thick body and firebox design
- ✓It's hand-built in Kansas with a 10-year body warranty and a company that answers the phone and ships parts for decades-old pits
- ✓Resale holds remarkably well - used YS640s still command most of their original price
Cons
- ✗At ~$2,799 (over $3,100 on the competition cart) it costs as much as three mainstream pellet grills
- ✗315 lbs means delivery, assembly, and any relocation is a two-person-minimum event, and it's never going to a tailgate
- ✗The painted steel finish (not stainless) needs occasional touch-up to prevent surface rust, especially in humid climates
- ✗Pellet consumption is higher than insulated thin-wall grills since all that steel takes energy to heat
- ✗No frills - no pellet sensor, no ash-cleanout system (you vacuum the firepot), and side shelves cost extra on some configs
- ✗The direct-grilling conversion means physically swapping internal plates, not flipping a lever like Pit Boss's slide plate
- ✗It's sold mostly direct or through specialty dealers, so you likely can't see one before committing to freight shipping
- ✗Electrical components carry a much shorter warranty than the 10-year body coverage
Owner Insightssummarized from owner discussions
The YS640s is the pellet grill people buy when they have decided not to buy another pellet grill. It is heavy welded steel, it holds its set point, and the thing owners say most often is that it simply works when you turn it on. Owners coming off a Traeger or a GMG describe the difference as obvious the moment they lift the hood, and the ones in cold climates are emphatic: pits that became unusable in a Chicago or Canadian winter were the reason they upgraded, and this one keeps running. It sears properly over its own firebox at grate temperatures around 800F with the stock grates, so it genuinely can be the only cooker in an outdoor kitchen.
Two things about it are not in the marketing. The first is rust. The steel is thick but it is painted, not stainless, and owners in humid states report surface rust and flaking within a few years even kept covered, with one five-year owner having repaired it once and watched it come straight back. The eleven-year owner's only stated regret is the same thing. The second is heat distribution. That same long-term owner measured about 600F near the firebox and about 280F at the far end after half an hour, and owners disagree about which end runs hot, so you have to learn your own grill rather than trusting a general rule. Ribs coming off burnt at a modest set temperature usually trace back to this.
The surprise for upgraders is smoke. Several owners who made dozens of good briskets on a cheap Traeger found the Yoder gave them less smoke flavor, not more, and ended up adding wood chunks to the fire pot or running a smoke tube. If heavy smoke is the goal rather than build quality, owners point at a Camp Chef Woodwind Pro with its separate smoke box instead, often for a thousand dollars less. Buy the Yoder for the steel, the cold-weather behavior, and the decade-plus service life, and go in knowing it costs roughly three times a Recteq or GMG for food that is not three times better. Buying used is a genuinely good route here, because the controller can be upgraded and the body is worth restoring.
What owners like
- +The build difference is obvious in person, and owners say that is what closed the sale. One buyer who spent weeks comparing Recteq, Traeger, Weber, Pit Boss and Louisiana in stores described the American steel against big-box stamped steel as immediately apparent on the flick test. Another said lifting the hood told him it was in a different league than the Traeger he was replacing.
- +It does not quit mid-cook. The line owners keep repeating is that they no longer wake up at 3am wondering whether the pit shut itself off, which is the specific anxiety they carried over from cheaper pellet grills.
- +Cold weather is where it separates itself. An owner in Chicago could not run his old pellet grill at all in late fall or winter; an owner running both a YS640s and a Camp Chef Apex says the Yoder is the superior smoker specifically for winter cooking.
- +Searing works without buying anything extra. Owners report real steakhouse crusts over the direct-flame setup, with one measuring grate temperatures around 800F, and note that the stock stainless grates do the job so the optional aluminum sear grates are not required.
- +It sears over its own firebox, so there is no side burner attachment and no separate propane tank to buy and store. Buyers cross-shopping a Camp Chef point out that adding a Sidekick pushes that grill much closer to Yoder money anyway.
- +The controller is upgradeable rather than disposable. One owner bought a YS640 eleven years ago and converted it to 640s spec by swapping the controller, which is why older units keep circulating.
- +The used market rewards patience. One owner picked up a used YS640 for $500 and had it fully sorted at $1,200 including a new controller, other parts, and a sand-and-repaint.
- +It is treated as an only-grill by people building outdoor kitchens. It gets to temperature quickly enough for a weeknight, bakes, takes a pizza attachment, and can be built in, though the built-in island is sold through dealers rather than on Yoder's own site.
Common complaints
- −Rust is the defining long-term complaint and the thick steel does not prevent it. A five-year owner reports surface rust starting while the grill lived in California and significant rust and flaking after moving to Florida, despite keeping it covered, with the cover itself deteriorating early. Shoppers cite reports of light to moderate rust within a year, and an eleven-year owner says his one regret is that it is not stainless.
- −The heat gradient is severe. The same long-term owner measured roughly 600F near the firebox against about 280F at the exhaust end after 35 minutes of running, and describes the spread as extremely uneven enough to change how he uses the grill. Owners disagree about which end runs hot, which means you need to map your own.
- −Smoke output disappoints people coming from cheaper pellet grills, which is the opposite of what they expected. Owners who made dozens of briskets on a small Traeger report the Traeger's flavor was better, and a new YS640 owner getting little to no smoke was planning to add wood chunks to the fire pot and a smoke tube to compensate.
- −Igniters are a consumable. One owner went through two in four years and recommends keeping a spare on hand, having been caught trying to light the pit at night with every store closed.
- −The price is hard to defend on performance alone and owners admit it. The common framing is that it costs about three times a GMG or Recteq, that you could buy two replacements of those before reaching Yoder money, and that the honest justification is loving the hobby rather than better food.
- −Pellet handling is awkward. There is no easy way to dump the hopper after a cook, which matters because pellets need dry storage and left-in pellets absorb humidity.
Common Questions
Will it actually rust?
Does it smoke more than a cheaper pellet grill?
How even is the heat across the grate?
Can it be my only grill?
Is it worth roughly three times the price of a Recteq or GMG?
Compare the Yoder YS640s
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