I have a large Webber gas grill for grilling, but wanted something to try smoking. After doing a lot of research and talking to friends who have Traeger pellet grills and other types of smokers who have had mixed success, I was not expecting to be wowed by a pellet smoker/grill. But this is awesome! The next time I'm in the market for a grill, I'm going to scrap the Webber and go with a large Green Mountain. I'm so happy with this smoker/grill that I wish I would have gotten a bigger one.
After 4-months of a lot of use, here's why I like this Green Mountain Davy Crockett so much, and I think this would be the same for any Green Mountain grill.
1. Solid construction. Built very sturdy and with perfect fit and finish. Significant quality difference compared to the Traegers.
2. Temperature control is perfect and precise. I have used a Thermoworks Thermopen to verify, and the Davy Crockett holds the temperature perfectly without fluctuations or overshoots. It must have a very good control system. There are a few hotter and cooler spots in the grill area, but that works to my advantage as I can put the thicker part of the salmon or chicken or whatever on the hotter end of the grill.
3. Wifi and phone app works flawlessly. A lot of grills use bluetooth and that seems to be very problematic. This grill uses wifi, so there is no connectivity issues. Ever. Not once. I'm using both andriod and apple, and both apps work perfectly and multiple devices can connect simultaneously. The app is solid and hasn't crashed even once, which is unheard of.
4. No issues at all with the pellet feed auger system, fan, ash, etc. I've heard horror stories from friends about jammed pellet augers and other firebox problems with Traegers and other brands, but again this Blue Mountain system works perfectly. I'm on my fifth bag of pellets without a single issue. Flawless performance. It's automatic ignition sequence has lighted on the first try every time; again perhaps speaking to a very good control system. I've vacuumed it out two times now but probably didn't need to; there isn't much ash (using the Traeger signature blend pellets, which I think are pretty good). I think the pellet hopper is just the right size; it stores plenty of pellets for anything you would cook, but not so many that they stay in there and absorb moisture and such.
5. Awesome smoking and grilling both. When set at the minimum temperature of 150 degrees, this puts out a massive amount of smoke and does fantastic, and the entire neighborhood smells great. Our favorite so far is steelhead fillets from the grocery store, smoked for about 3 hours and then bumped up to 250 for 15 minutes to get it finished off to a safe temperature. Chicken breasts are awesome too. Our family is not a huge red meat eater, but I have grilled hamburgers and steaks and they came out better than the webber because of the precise temperature control and no flareups.
I have no comment on the portability as I have no intention of doing that. Originally I was going to store it in the shed and bring it out only occasionally to smoke, but now I'm using it weekly so it just stays on the deck and I bought the cover for it. It is portable, but it can be heavy, especially if the hopper is full of pellets, and the size and shape makes it a bit awkward to pack around by yourself.
Love it! If you're looking for a smoker or a grill, this is the one. My only advice may be to consider going larger as you're going to end up using this so much you'll throw away your other grills. :-)
Thank you Green Mountain Grill for a quality product. Very pleased with this purchase.
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Well worth the price, no regrets
We use it almost daily at home and have taken it camping and to the beach. Its just the right size for the two of us and super simple to use. During a power outage we used it for most of our meals for cooking and heating. The ability to run on 12 volts meant it was just a matter of bringing my trolling motor battery up to the deck for power.After going through many bags of pellets, we have had no problems or concerns. Be advised you should clean out the pellet burn pot after consuming a bag to keep the heat control accurate. Since there is zero insulation, we are considering buying the optional thermal blanket kit since using it in the winter means lots of the heat is lost to the air meaning more pellet consumption.For the few times we wanted a larger we are also thinking of purchasing the optional second rack. It will allow for an additional rack of ribs or two.We were initially hesitant of the cost, but after lots of use, its well worth it. We will update as time goes by.++++++++++++++++++++++++We have been using multiple times a week since the initial review and it still is working great. The only thing that has gone wrong is the meat probe quit working about a month ago. Have not bothered ordering a replacement since the kitchen instant read is handy.Have learned that the trick to cleaning the grill is to wait until it fails to light the first time. At that point I try again and when it lights, run the temperature to maximum, 550 degrees and let it soak there until it quits smoking. The smoke is all of the accumulated grease burning away. After it quits smoking I wait about 15 min and then push the off button. When its cool, I remove the grill and plates and go after them with a wire brush until the built up carbon is gone. Then I remove the fire pot box and go after the interior with a shop vac. Make sure you clean out the fire pot but be careful of the heating rod inside.After all the accumulated ash, grease and debris are gone, I probe down the grease tube with a small piece of wire to clean out any chunks of carbon that would stop the outflow of grease. The final step is to put a handful of fresh pellets in the fire pot as a prime. Fill to just cover the heating rod.Now just reassemble and start cooking.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2020
Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2020
Temperature control works well. Meat and time required is fairly predictable from run to run. Good smoke ring. It seems to use a lot of pellets but it is winter so maybe in the summer when warmer it will use less.
We've done a few ribs, tenderloins and batches chicken wings. Everything is delicious and juicy and smokey!
Ours acted funny on initial startup. We followed setup instructions but for some reason it shot up to 550F. We shut it down and ran it normally and it was fine since.
Wifi and server work great. Wife can check the temperature of the smoker while at the store or on a walk.
She loves it and shows everyone her new toy. Everyone loves the meat. We use a local dry rub and have been buying trager pellets, on our 2nd bag now.
We wrapped the drip tray and bucket in foil and purchased the grill cover and stackable rack. Everything works great. We store it under the roof overhang and it's been through several storms unscathed.
We've taken it on one trip, and plan to take it camping. They pull very little power, you car can run it or any plug. It is heavy, over 60lbs I believe.
Great Smoker. Compact, portable, robust, feature packed.
Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2020
One of the best gifts I have given my wife. She loves it.Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2020
Temperature control works well. Meat and time required is fairly predictable from run to run. Good smoke ring. It seems to use a lot of pellets but it is winter so maybe in the summer when warmer it will use less.
We've done a few ribs, tenderloins and batches chicken wings. Everything is delicious and juicy and smokey!
Ours acted funny on initial startup. We followed setup instructions but for some reason it shot up to 550F. We shut it down and ran it normally and it was fine since.
Wifi and server work great. Wife can check the temperature of the smoker while at the store or on a walk.
She loves it and shows everyone her new toy. Everyone loves the meat. We use a local dry rub and have been buying trager pellets, on our 2nd bag now.
We wrapped the drip tray and bucket in foil and purchased the grill cover and stackable rack. Everything works great. We store it under the roof overhang and it's been through several storms unscathed.
We've taken it on one trip, and plan to take it camping. They pull very little power, you car can run it or any plug. It is heavy, over 60lbs I believe.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2017
First, I have never monitored the tracking on an order so intently as this one. (Amazon does not update nearly as fast as the Fedex tracking, by the way.) Got the grill today, and Its like a fat boy Christmas!
Couldnt wait to try it, so got home at 8:30, had her fired up by 9, put a FROZEN chicken breast on at 9:30 and ate it by 10:15. HO LEE COW! Dayum! That was purty gewd, purty gewd, indeed. Pleasantly surprised given the fact that chicken was a brick. Excellent results from what I honestly figured would be a sacrificial cook. Got the wifi rollin, got the food probe in once the breast thawed enuf to do so, set the meat probe temp on the app, and pulled the breast at 165°. Verified with an instant read, and they were identical. I have rediculously high hopes for this thing now.
Update. 12/10/17
I have used the grill about 30 times. The more I cook the better it gets. Did poor man's burnt ends with a Chuck roast yesterday. Programmed my own profile for the Chuck, and I don't see how it could have turned out any better!
I cooked two 8 pound bone in pork shoulders, (cut in half, four 4 pound chunks.) Thirty people got two good sized sandwiches, and it was absolutely delicious, every single bite, beautiful bark, quarter inch smoke ring, my mind was blown, honestly! The texture was firm but tender, could have shredded it finely, but I left it chunky.
The only thing I haven't cooked perfectly on this thing is chicken wings. I have a mission to figure that out, trying different dry brines and temps/times.
The biggest secret you should know with this thing is that the heat is very uneven, no matter where you put the heat shield. I have mapped mine with infrared thermometer and high quality digital probes. Right side of the grill was 50 degrees higher than the left side. After this, I decided to add another heat deflector just for low and slow cooks. I accomplished this by purchasing a round 10 inch cast iron griddle. Cut the handle off, and just sit it on top of the stock deflector. I now have a 10 degree variance from right to left, measured at the level of the grates. (Which are awesome by the way. They clean up so easily with a wire brush.)
Also, the Traeger Pellets are the best I have used. Just wish they made a peach variety.
I have used probably 100#'s of pellets so far, and whether I get them locally or online, they run about $1 per pound.
If you wanna go from BBQ Novice to BBQ Pro in a short amount of time, this is the grill for you.
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2017
This will be updated, but....Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2017
First, I have never monitored the tracking on an order so intently as this one. (Amazon does not update nearly as fast as the Fedex tracking, by the way.) Got the grill today, and Its like a fat boy Christmas!
Couldnt wait to try it, so got home at 8:30, had her fired up by 9, put a FROZEN chicken breast on at 9:30 and ate it by 10:15. HO LEE COW! Dayum! That was purty gewd, purty gewd, indeed. Pleasantly surprised given the fact that chicken was a brick. Excellent results from what I honestly figured would be a sacrificial cook. Got the wifi rollin, got the food probe in once the breast thawed enuf to do so, set the meat probe temp on the app, and pulled the breast at 165°. Verified with an instant read, and they were identical. I have rediculously high hopes for this thing now.
Update. 12/10/17
I have used the grill about 30 times. The more I cook the better it gets. Did poor man's burnt ends with a Chuck roast yesterday. Programmed my own profile for the Chuck, and I don't see how it could have turned out any better!
I cooked two 8 pound bone in pork shoulders, (cut in half, four 4 pound chunks.) Thirty people got two good sized sandwiches, and it was absolutely delicious, every single bite, beautiful bark, quarter inch smoke ring, my mind was blown, honestly! The texture was firm but tender, could have shredded it finely, but I left it chunky.
The only thing I haven't cooked perfectly on this thing is chicken wings. I have a mission to figure that out, trying different dry brines and temps/times.
The biggest secret you should know with this thing is that the heat is very uneven, no matter where you put the heat shield. I have mapped mine with infrared thermometer and high quality digital probes. Right side of the grill was 50 degrees higher than the left side. After this, I decided to add another heat deflector just for low and slow cooks. I accomplished this by purchasing a round 10 inch cast iron griddle. Cut the handle off, and just sit it on top of the stock deflector. I now have a 10 degree variance from right to left, measured at the level of the grates. (Which are awesome by the way. They clean up so easily with a wire brush.)
Also, the Traeger Pellets are the best I have used. Just wish they made a peach variety.
I have used probably 100#'s of pellets so far, and whether I get them locally or online, they run about $1 per pound.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2023
