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[fishtruck]

Hi, After 30 years, my little chief has finally decided to retire. Looking for advice for a new smoker that's reasonably priced, between $ 200- 400. Thanks

[dennisK]

I paid about $100usd for mine about 12 years ago at walmart in bham. Its still WORKING fine after living outdoors the entire time. I'm not sure if it's still avail but I'm a huge fan of the propane powered smokers. Mine could go from 125 to 700. I smoked a ton of salmon and even a chicken in there. Very versatile, convenient and great value.

https://www.smoking-meat.com/propane-gosm-smoker-instructional-guide

this one is a beast but if you want to smoke a lot lol

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Masterbuilt-40-inch-ThermoTemp-XL-Propane-Smoker-with-Window-in-Black/870673579

[fishtruck]

Thanks for the suggestion, much appreciated. I'll look into both.

[SuperBobby]

I paid about $100usd for mine about 12 years ago at walmart in bham. Its still WORKING fine after living outdoors the entire time. I'm not sure if it's still avail but I'm a huge fan of the propane powered smokers. Mine could go from 125 to 700. I smoked a ton of salmon and even a chicken in there. Very versatile, convenient and great value.

https://www.smoking-meat.com/propane-gosm-smoker-instructional-guide

this one is a beast but if you want to smoke a lot lol

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Masterbuilt-40-inch-ThermoTemp-XL-Propane-Smoker-with-Window-in-Black/870673579

Propane smokers are too expensive to run. Propane fuel is expensive right now. You can't even compare the cost of actually running them.
110/120 V Electric smokers cost .10 cents an hour on step 1 and .15 cents an hour on step 2 if you are on BC Hydro.
A smoker is not like a BBQ where you put you preheat for 5 minutes...cook your steak in 8 minutes and turn it off 5 minutes later. Pulled pork, brisket, and things like that are in the smoker all day and sometimes more. Even smoked salmon or ribs takes hours. The amount of propane you go through is astronomical.
Same reason I don't bring those propane fires when I'm camping. Find some wood and start a campfire.....way cheaper.

[ynot]

after 30 yrs with little chief and big chief i switched to basic bradley smoker and very happy about it  , dont hve to keep looking at it, temp stays ware you set it  and pucks come in many flavors. look for sale cabela's cdn tire.

[Wiseguy]

I just purchased a new Big Chief front loading smoker. The lowest price I found was on Amazon for 350 bucks. A Bradley will run you 750 bucks and then your stuck buying their expensive pucks. Prices have gone up a lot since I bought my first Big Chief several years ago for about a 150 bucks. 

[dennisK]

Thanks for the suggestion, much appreciated. I'll look into both.

I get about 3 years of smoking with one 20lb propane tank. Most of my salmon smokes occur at about 145 degrees for about 7 hours. It's an amazingly small flame.