Masterbuilt MB20041220 Gravity Series 1050 Digital Charcoal Grill + Smoker, 202.9 lbs, Black review and price compare 2025
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Product overview
| Brand | Masterbuilt |
| Model Name | Gravity Series 1050 |
| Power Source | Charcoal |
| Color | Black |
| Item Weight | 202.9 Pounds |
| Item Dimensions LxWxH | 33.07 x 61.02 x 52.17 inches |
| Fuel Type | Charcoal |
product features
- by entering your model number.
- Reaches 225°F in 10 minutes or 700°F in 15 minutes
- Control temperature and cook time with the digital control panel or with smart device control using WiFi or Bluetooth
- DigitalFan for precise temperature control
- GravityFed hopper holds 10 lbs. of lump charcoal or 16 lbs. of briquettes for up to 8 hours of use
- Convenient fold out cord storage in back of side shelf to prevent loss or damage to the power supply
- Folding stainless steel shelf and stainless steel side shelf for extra preparation space
This fits your .
From the manufacturer
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GRAVITYFED CHARCOAL HOPPERRedefine charcoal cooking with the GravityFed Hopper that holds up to 8 hours of fuel using lump or briquette charcoal. No need to remove charcoal after each use! | DIGITALFAN CONTROLWith the push of a button, the digitally controlled fan moves air flow from the hopper to the cooking chamber and maintains desired cooking temperature. | SMOKE + SEAR VERSATILITYReach 700°F in 15 minutes to grill + sear or 225°F in 10 minutes for low + slow smoking. Includes reversible cast-iron grates to smoke + sear. |
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WIFI BLUETOOTH CAPABILITYSet it and go with your smart device. Learn to master the art of smoking, grilling and more with the Masterbuilt App. | FOLDAWAY RACKS + FOLDING SHELFThe FoldAway warming + smoking racks provide extra cooking space, while the stainless steel front shelf provides extra preparation space. | GRAVITY SERIES ROTISSERIE & COVEREnhance your experience with accessories. |
product description
Style:Gravity Series 1050 XL
With the Gravity Series 1050 Digital Charcoal Grill + Smoker by Masterbuilt, you can smoke, grill, sear, bake, roast and so much more. Set the temperature on the digital control panel or your smart device and the DigitalFan maintains the desired cooking temperature. The GravityFed charcoal hopper holds up to 8 hours of charcoal and gravity ensures you have constant fuel to the fire. The reversible smoke + sear cast-iron grates and FoldAway warming + smoking racks add up to a total of 1050 square inches of cooking space. Master the art of charcoal grilling and smoking with Masterbuilt.
product details
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Questions about Masterbuilt MB20041220 Gravity Series 1050 Digital Charcoal Grill + Smoker, 202.9 lbs, Black
Q:
Can you mix wood in with the charcoal?
Answer: Thank you for your interest in the grill and smoker Shelly. Yes, you can mix wood with the charcoal. We recommend for an On-Demand smoke, add 1-2 chunks (no larger than your fist) directly to the Ash bin, this will last approximately 2-3 hours. For a Controlled smoke we recommend, add four (4) pounds of charcoal and this one (1) wood chunk, creating layers of charcoal and wood chunks. We hope this information helps. If you have any additional questions, please contact us directly at 1.800.489.1581.
Answer: I run wood chunks in both the hopper and ash pan. I layer charcoal and chunks in the hopper and then throw in some wood chunks in the ash pan every few hours or so. Gives really good amounts of smoke, not overpowering at all.
Q:
What are the dimensions of the packaging?
Answer: Thank you for your interest in this grill. The box dimensions for this unit are 37.3 W X 21.7 L X 21.6 H. If you have any additional questions, please contact our Customer Support Team at www.masterbuilt.com.
Answer: Which model? Which size?
Q:
Can you shut the grill off with it full of charcoal?
Answer: Good Morning,
Q:
What are dimensions of the cooking area, Length and Width?
Answer: The cooking area dimensions for the two cast iron grates is 14" X 22". If you need any additional assistance, please contact our Customer Support Team at www.masterbuilt.com.
Answer: The main grate is 22.5"x14.5" and the upper grates are 22.5"x5.5" each. You can fit two of the small grates on each of the upper shelves - I bought two extra upper grates to give myself two additional shelves at roughly 22.5”x11”.
Q:
What's the minimum temperature for this gravity series masterbuilt smoke.? And/ or does it have a cold smoke accessory attachment?
Answer: Hello Patricia, 150° is the lowest temp setting for this grill and smoker. Currently we have not produced a cold smoke accessory attachment for this unit.
Q:
Is it made in the USA?
Answer: Thank you for your question. Our products are manufactured in China.
Q:
How big a brisket will fit on the cooker?
Answer: It will hold large brisket 20 plus pounds
Answer: Hello Rex Andrews, thank you for your interest in this grill plus smoker product. The cooking space of each main grate in this grill is 320 sq.in. We hope this information helps. If you need any additional information, please feel free to reach out to our Customer Support Team at www.masterbuilt.com.
Q:
Does it have a drip tray to collect meat juices as cooking? Also, is there somewhere to put a water pan when smoking?
Answer: Thank you for your interest in this grill. Yes, there is a grease tray that will collect liquids. There is not a designed area in the unit for a water pan. Along with the pictures of this unit in the description there are two videos as well that should help with the grill space and components. If you have any additional questions, please contact our Customer Support Team at www.masterbuilt.com.
Answer: The drip tray is on the bottom of grill that slides out is same size as grill as far as water pan would have to put next to food on great or put on great above grill great note there are some real good videos on YouTube hope this helped
Q:
Where do you get a closed lid sensor? Mine melted first burn can't find online parts
Answer: Wow. Definitely haven’t had that happen on mine (with 24+ cooks now). But, ping Masterbuilt customer service. They’ll take care of you. If you can’t reach them on their phone (lots of places shut down due to Covid 19), I’ve heard they respond quickly on Facebook messenger.
Q:
Can this smoker be used in the rain?
Answer: Thank you Eric for asking. We wouldn't recommend using this grill in the rain due to the electric controller on the unit. If you have any additional questions, please contact our Customer Support Team at www.masterbuilt.com.
Answer: I wouldn’t.
Q:
How much charcoal does this thing consume for something simple like burgers? Seems awesome for smoking and steaks - what about burgers?
Answer: Depending on the temperature you are using will depend how much charcoal will be used. It will also depend what kind of charcoal is in use. For a quick cook of burgers, it shouldn't use much. A full hopper can last for up to 15hr with lump or 11hr with briquettes, at 225F. This number will decrease as temperatures rise but, not aggressively. And, coal can be left in the hopper between uses, just keep the hopper lid and door closed, push the slides back in and it will cut off the oxygen.
Q:
How do you return this item?
Answer: You will have to contact the seller so that they can make preparations
Q:
Main grate size on 560 vs 1050?
Answer: The Gravity Series 560 cooking and sear grate is 14.5" x 22" while the Gravity Series 1050 is 28" x 18"
Q:
Cuando tendrán en existencia?
Q:
Can this grill be used in light rain? Are there any rain gaskets around the top of the electrical panel?
Answer: There are a lot of safety features to make this a useable outdoor product. It is not suggested to use any electrical appliance in any rain. If there is a place the unit can be used and covered during rain, that would be ideal.
Q:
Temp readout showing 0000timer when increasing temp from 250 to 400 is tis normal
Answer: The controller will scroll through your time and temperature throughout the heating and cook cycle, this is a normal operation of the unit.
Q:
How wide is the unit? The description says 24.6“ but I want to confirm with someone who has the unit. Is that the width from the widest point?
Answer: From the widest points, the width is 54.13", depth is 24.65", and height is 51.96"
Answer: Dimensions
Answer: Not correct. The width is 54” the depth is 24.6”
Answer: What is the width with the bottom door of the stack opened? I have a spot for my grill that measures 67.5” wide.
Q:
Do you have a cook book for masterbuilt gravity series 560?
Answer: It's a digitally controlled smoking oven heated by burning wood and charcoal. Cook anything you want in it with any recipe, it's not unique.
Answer: No I do not have a cook book but if u need some recipes I am more than happy to help
Answer: Hello Vincent, thank you for your interest in this grill. We do have a cookbook designed for this grill yet, but we do have recipes for it. Please visit us at www.masterbuilt.com.
Q:
Do the fan / electronics run on 220v? or is it just 110?
Answer: Power source ia 110
Answer: This is manufactured for the 110v.
Answer: 110v
Q:
Would this work in the United Kingdom? Can it handle 220v without a converter?
Answer: There are units designed specifically for the United Kingdom 220v. These units will need to be purchased in the UK.
Q:
Does it flair-up
Answer: If grease builds up onr the cook is quite fatty. The unit should be cleaned after each use to avoid grease flair ups.
Answer: It flares up when cooking over 350 degrees if there's grease build up in the manifold or if the meat is very fatty. Inserting the 2 metal slides quickly chokes out most flare ups. To avoid flare ups, it's best to clean the manifold regularly.
Answer: three prong
Q:
How many meat probes com with 560
Answer: The unit comes with 1 meat probe.
Answer: Only one probe. This is an awesome piece of equipment.
Answer: I got only one with it. You’ll have to purchase them separately.
Answer: 1
Answer: It comes with one.
Answer: Just 1 but you can buy more.
Q:
i this set it and forget it? I set the temp for say 250, walk away and never have to adjust? It will keep 250 constant?
Answer: As long as you have enough fuel (charcoal/wood) yes it will keep the same temp within a range of the target
Answer: You still have to feed it add charcoal or wood chunks but for the most part it maintains temp for a couple hours
Answer: The unit can be monitored by your phone for temperature control. Variances can occur due to amount of food and outside temperature. Please let us know if we can be of any further assistance.
Answer: For 8-10 hours yes. You have to check your hopper level occasionally. Otherwise it’s the taste of charcoal with the ease of a pellet.
Answer: As long as there is charcoal in the bin it should. As with any barbecue cooking it will be +/- 10%. Very easy to use.
Answer: You need to read and follow the instructions that comes with your package. At this time you will familiarize yourself with the grills operation,if not your results my not turn out to be they should be
Answer: Yes, as long as you still have coal in the hopper.
Answer: Yes
Q:
14 cooks old - the walls of the firebox is disintegrated to the extent that the insulation in the walls is visible - is this covered by the warranty?
Answer: According to Masterbuilt, those walls are sacrificial and are just there to hold the fire bricks in place during shipping, so the answer would be no.
Answer: The metal plates in the lower portion of the hopper hold the firebrick in place and protect it during shipping. These burn out and drop into the ash pan. They are not necessary for the grill to function and we’re not offering a replacement part, since they are meant to be temporary
Q:
How do you clean the ash out? Does it fall thru to the ground? Can this be used on a wood deck?
Answer: No grill should be used on a flammable surface. The ash falls to the bottom of the hopper, in a enclosed chamber into an ash bucket.
Answer: The ash goes into a pan that you dump after you are done and it cools. Yes it can be used on a wood deck, everything is contained. To be safe you could use fire brick under it or a fire proof mat. We love ours.
Answer: There is a ash catcher with a latched door at the bottom of the charcoal stack.
Answer: Get a grill mat. For sure. I dont really think there will be a problem but Id be leary about leaving it alone for any period of time without a grill mat under grill and maybe even one in front of grill for you to stand on.
Q:
Where can I purchase additional meat temperature probes?
Answer: There aren’t generic probes yet, so the only option is to purchase the Masterbuilt probes. I bought mine from their website.
Answer: I have never trusted the "onboard" meat thermometers on grills/smokers. They are never very accurate. Buy yourself a good set of bluetooth/wifi thermometers. I have the Tappecue Touch. It's Wifi and I can check grill and meat temps from anywhere on my phone. A bit pricey but well worth it.
Q:
Bought getting error codes V001 and R0 11 won’t work ?
Answer: I had to hook mine up to the internet and update it. Works better with apple products
Q:
How do I contact the seller for replacement parts that were damaged in delivery?
Answer: I registered it on their webpage and then used the support link.
Q:
Where can you buy an additional meat probe?
Answer: MASTERBUILT .COM
Q:
Is this delivered by semi truck?
Answer: Due to weight this unit, it will be delivered through a freight carrier.
Answer: Mine was delivered by semi, unloaded with a pallet Jack and wheeled up onto my deck… I took it from there.
Answer: Yes it was. They took it off the truck and put it in my garage. They were great. BTW it is a great smoker. It is the best gift I’ve given to hubby. ????????
Q:
does it come with Alexa?
Answer: It does not come with alexa
Answer: WOW....does it come with alexa?....just wow. You don't even deserve to have a grill
Answer: No, it features wifi and bluetooth connection with an app, so you can control grill temps and check meat temps and alarms from anywhere.
Answer: No, this feature is not available with the Gravity series Grill.
Q:
Is it Insulated
Answer: This grill is not insulated. For additional questions. please visit us at www.masterbuilt.com.
Answer: No but double walled in hopper
Q:
Does this smoker put out a lot of smoke or is it contained with in grill
Answer: As with any charcoal grill/smoker you’re gunna have smoke come out of the grill and that’s a good thing. If smoke can’t escape it sits over the meat and becomes bitter. That’s why this grill has about a 10-12” vent that runs along the back to help keep the smoke fresh. It smokes more on initial startup but once you’re up to temperature you get that nice thin clean blue smoke.
Answer: It does put out a lot of smoke. I typically add a couple chunks of moist wood to increase the amount of smoke. I love mine! I have two smokers, this one is very easy to clean( I can put most of the pieces in the dishwasher), it has WiFi (I done use it often) and was really easy to assemble ( I put mine together—only needed my husband to assist in moving it). Hope this helps. Oh, I would look at Home Depot - the one in our area had this on sale for $350.
Answer: It smokes. That’s probably why they call it a smoker. :)
Answer: This unit gives a good deal of smoke within the confines of the cabinet.
Answer: It put out a lot up smoke both outside and inside evenly
Answer: Both but does give a good smoke ring add wood chunks to ash bin just made baby backs yesterday and came out best yet
Q:
Why does it say it reaches temp of 700 when that burns the meat?
Answer:
Answer:
Answer: high temp grilling is for searing such as with steaks.
Answer: This is for searing feature. Please visit our website for more details.
Q:
How many racks come wth it.
Answer: Has a main grate and a middle rack and a top rack. So 3 tiers. Thats on my 1050. The video will show you.
Answer: The grill comes with 2 smoking and sear grates and warming racks.
Answer: Well there are two bottom racks, then there is an upper one, plus a rotissary mount.
Answer: 2 racks along with the 2 grates.
Answer: Main grilling area and two warming racks.
Answer: One shelf.
Q:
I have been having a difficult time trying to get in touch with customer service, any help?
Answer: To get responses I had to make sure I registered the product first via their website. After that I was able to submit an online form for my issue. It did take 3-10 days for them to respond but I did get a response. I have not tried their Facebook group. Hope this helps.
Answer: It's a knock on them during COVID. The only way to reach them is by email. Keep trying - it took a while but they got back to me
Answer: There is a Facebook group for the gravity series. Lots of folks there may help
Answer: I’ve emailed them and they responded. Contact them on their brand FB page also. Many have had luck with that.
Q:
Does you have to use an outlet for the digital temp or is it battery?
Answer: I know that masterbuilt answered that it needs to be plugged into an outlet to this question, but some of us in the MB560 group are using this with just your standard battery pack that you’d use to charge your phone. If you buy a DC 5v to DC 9v or 12v Adjustable Step Up Voltage Converter, you can plug it into the grill and then the usb side to the battery pack, you can essentially use this on the go! A 20,000 mah battery pack should give you over 20 hours of cooking time.
Answer: Thank you for your interest in this grill. Yes, this product needs to be plugged into an outlet.
Q:
So just bought the 1050 and received the code ERR 1, it says temperature switch not fully comnected but everything seems to be not changing
Answer: Check your connection on the underside. Even unplug and replug it. You should join the Facebook group ‘Masterbuilt Gravity Series Fans’. Lots of help in there.
Q:
What happens if you use fast acting charcoal to season the grill?
Answer: Are you asking what will happen if you fill the hopper? If so, they will all light up and potentially damage the hopper. One or two in the bottom to light regular charcoal would be fine, but a hopper full of easy light charcoal could be disastrous.
Answer: Are you talking about match light charcoal? If so, you could have a problem. Since it burns from the bottom the entire hopper would probably ignite all at once. It is designed to ignite only the bottom layer and then ignite more as the layers burn away. It does this very well but with match light it would all burn at once causing extreme heat and possibly damage the grill.
Answer: Temperatures can be unstable and accelerants are not recommended in use with Gravity.
Q:
Just bought it, is it normal to have smoke coming from the top of the charcoal box?
Answer: Smoke will come from different areas but, ensure all your lids are closed and latched, and your air intake slides are completely removed, to avoid the "chimney" effect.
Answer: Yes. Mine does as well. I don’t think it was designed to be completely sealed, just pretty close.
Answer: Yes
Q:
Saw the assembly video - seems like very many steps to assemble - how long does it take?
Answer: Probably less than three hours with the help
Answer: Took me about 45 minutes. Most of it is put together, just attaching the larger pieces together. It’s pretty easy in my opinion.
Answer: About 1.5 hours but the grill is awesome best smoker I have ever owned
Answer: At least an hour and half.
Answer: Took me two hours.
Answer: Alone 2.5 hrs
Q:
Does the grill come with a cover and temperature probe? Also, can you get a rotisserie for this grill?
Answer: Thank you for your interest in this product. This grill does not come with a cover but comes with 1 meat probe. Our rotisserie will be available late spring.
Answer: The grill does not come with a cover. but you can order one on the Masterbuilt web page. Yes it does with a probe. but I have not been able to connect with it.
Answer: No cover, 1 meat probe, it seems ready to accept a rotisserie but it isn't currently available.
Q:
What size of wood chunks can be used for this grill?
Answer: Standard wood chunks can be used.
Answer: Any that fit into the charcoal drop area, I soak 2 - 4 inch chunks and then add them to the ash box as needed, the dropping charcoal starts these smoldering and is very effective at producing smoke. In my opinion, the larger the better. But I would say anything less than 8 inches you would be fine.
Q:
How durable is the fire box /What gauge steel ,any stainless steel in this grill ?
Answer: This unit is very heavy duty. Double insulated back wall and single walled on the other three. There is brushed stainless steel within the interior of the grill.
Answer: The firebox is a dual walled vertical chamber. Don't know the actual metal thickness but it should be ok for the life of the grill. The metal at the bottom of the firebox where the burn is hottest is thicker metal. A metal slide thst you put the starter material in appears to be SS.
Answer: Have not used it yet so don't know
Answer: IT IS MADE TO LAST IF YOU TAKE CARE OF IT
Q:
Can i use a water pan ?
Answer: Thank you for your interest in the grill. Yes, you can put a water pan in this grill. If you have any additional questions, please contact our Customer Support Team at 1.800.489.1581.
Answer: I believe you could next to food on great or on upper great
Q:
Why don’t you ship to Hawaii?
Answer: Probably not worth it for Amazon...
Q:
We just got the 560 today and its throwing error code 001 something to do with the temperature probe. We tried calling Masterbilt and they are closed
Answer: Have you connected it to WiFi? You might need to download the latest firmware and need a WiFi connection to do that
Q:
When is the rotisserie accessorie coming out ?
Answer: It is available
Answer: I DONT KNOW I WOOD LIKE TO KNOW
Q:
is this the 2020 model or 2021
Answer: this model has no changes year to eyar so far. the only difference you can search for is the size. 580 (580Sqin) the 1050 (1050Sqin) and now a new one 800 (800Sqin).
Answer: We would need the serial number to identify the manufacturing year.
Q:
The charcoal grate holes look pretty wide. Do that fall through before burning?
Answer:
Answer:
Answer: Smaller pieces of burnt charcoal do fall thru the grate holes. Your choices are: 1. discard the ash and small charcoal pieces before firing up the grill the next time or 2. separate the ash from the small charcoal pieces then dump the small pieces back onto the top of the unburned charcoal.
Answer: I’ve modified mine slightly to hold charcoal better. Lump’s little pieces fall through a lot. If you use the char logs from royal oak or B&B it’s no problem.
Answer: You want lit coals to drop through and help ignite wood in the ash pan. Some people have modified the grates to a smaller hole. Works for some, others have ash build up and trouble lighting and/or getting to higher temps. I’ve left mine as is and it works fantastic. Zero complaints.
Answer: No, the ash will fall through after burning.
Answer: It burns probably 3/4 of the charcoal piece before it’s small enough to fall through.
Answer: Haven't cooked a lot on mine yet but this doesn't seem to be a problem. My main issue is that the you will waste a lot of charcoal if you fill up the hopper and are only cooking burgers etc. I thought there was some kind of "slide" that would separate the unburned charcoal but doesn't appear to be so.
Answer: Yes. Most users have modified it by placing another grate over it with narrower gaps.
Answer: A couple of pieces may get through but there is no reason to panic everything will still run normal.
Answer: No, this grill is the best grill I ever owned
Product reviews of Masterbuilt MB20041220 Gravity Series 1050 Digital Charcoal Grill + Smoker, 202.9 lbs, Black
Robert W. : Buyer beware poor quality and customer service @ Masterbuilt
I am an electrical/electronics engineer and a DIYer so was not concerned about the 1:45 estimated assembly time.
The grill arrived from Amazon and the box did not appear to have more damage than a normal shipment. The box did not have any large holes or sides crushed and the box had 2 straps which I had to cut. During unboxing I noticed that the bracket on the top hopper lid which is used to clamp the lid shut was not present. Only holes where the bracket should be and could see the bracket was ripped off (rivets pulled out). After unboxing the first assembly step is remove the drip pan which was difficult and then put the grill on its back. Next is add the ash hopper at the bottom and this is when I noticed the frame was bent (which I believe made it hard to remove the drip pan). I believe I read in another review where they also had a bent frame. The frame was bent on the back right side bottom where the leg bolts on. I stopped and took photos and followed the instructions to contact Masterbuilt Customer Service. This is when i found out that you must first register the product and then submit a claim to which they then say they have up to 5 business days to respond. There is no phone number and you never talk to anyone. It was Friday and Monday afternoon I received a email that a hopper lid was being shipped. I sent a email on Monday asking about the bent frame and did not receive a response until Friday (4 days later). There was an email exchange to identify the part but photos/description where already provided. The next Friday (5 business days later) I received a email that a body kit was shipped. Meanwhile I had purchased the grill to roast the thanksgiving turkey. I found the hopper lid bracket in the box so used small screws and attached the bracket and I used some wood/hammer to straighten the frame. I was able to assemble the grill; however, it took about 3-4 hours due to the issues. I did receive the top hopper lid and body kit from Masterbuilt; however, the body kit requires a complete disassembly of the grill including the hoppers which come preinstalled. I used the grill to cook the thanksgiving turkey and the turkey was the best ever but that did not make up for all of the issues with a NEW product and the poor customer service. It took 2-3 weeks to get the replacement parts. It seems I was expected to wait for 2-3 weeks before I was to assemble a NEW grill and use it. I should have sent it back to Amazon as defective and purchased from a different manufacture. This is a issue with manufacturing, packaging and customer service. I have 3 Masterbuilt electric smokers and a electric deep fryer and WAS a Masterbuilt believer until I purchased this Gravity Feed Grill.
The grill arrived from Amazon and the box did not appear to have more damage than a normal shipment. The box did not have any large holes or sides crushed and the box had 2 straps which I had to cut. During unboxing I noticed that the bracket on the top hopper lid which is used to clamp the lid shut was not present. Only holes where the bracket should be and could see the bracket was ripped off (rivets pulled out). After unboxing the first assembly step is remove the drip pan which was difficult and then put the grill on its back. Next is add the ash hopper at the bottom and this is when I noticed the frame was bent (which I believe made it hard to remove the drip pan). I believe I read in another review where they also had a bent frame. The frame was bent on the back right side bottom where the leg bolts on. I stopped and took photos and followed the instructions to contact Masterbuilt Customer Service. This is when i found out that you must first register the product and then submit a claim to which they then say they have up to 5 business days to respond. There is no phone number and you never talk to anyone. It was Friday and Monday afternoon I received a email that a hopper lid was being shipped. I sent a email on Monday asking about the bent frame and did not receive a response until Friday (4 days later). There was an email exchange to identify the part but photos/description where already provided. The next Friday (5 business days later) I received a email that a body kit was shipped. Meanwhile I had purchased the grill to roast the thanksgiving turkey. I found the hopper lid bracket in the box so used small screws and attached the bracket and I used some wood/hammer to straighten the frame. I was able to assemble the grill; however, it took about 3-4 hours due to the issues. I did receive the top hopper lid and body kit from Masterbuilt; however, the body kit requires a complete disassembly of the grill including the hoppers which come preinstalled. I used the grill to cook the thanksgiving turkey and the turkey was the best ever but that did not make up for all of the issues with a NEW product and the poor customer service. It took 2-3 weeks to get the replacement parts. It seems I was expected to wait for 2-3 weeks before I was to assemble a NEW grill and use it. I should have sent it back to Amazon as defective and purchased from a different manufacture. This is a issue with manufacturing, packaging and customer service. I have 3 Masterbuilt electric smokers and a electric deep fryer and WAS a Masterbuilt believer until I purchased this Gravity Feed Grill.
Eli Sherman : All banged up
Just started putting it together not looking good
steve michaud : Poorly made unit
After six months of using the master built 560 and burned a hole through the lining inside the coal chute exposing fiberglass matting I then bought an LSS mods stainless steel sleeve after one use at 375° it also warped and once again exposed the fiberglass. Also creosote buildup mixed with tremendous moisture inside the chute created A strange looking crystalline form as you can see in my hand in the photo this is not something I want cooking with my food! If you are a serious griller stay away from this unit it is a very poor design And uses very cheap materials if you’re going to spend 500 bucks go with a Weber You’ll be much happier
Cody Cruise : Good Grill but.....
2nd day to cook on it my fan quit working in the middle of smoking ribs. I jacked around with it and finally hit the fan to get it to turn back on. My ribs were the best ribs I had ever smoked. Just took about 30 minutes to get my fan to turn back on. Now I'm worried I have a lemon Smoker and am nervous about the fan going out.
Amazon Customer : Used twice and broke. Cant easily get ahold of masterbuilt.
I was really excited to get this unit. I did a great deal of research and overall it seemed to be positive. The second time I tried to use this it threw out error codes and the fan would not turn on. I go online and find out you cannot contact master built for help until you register the product. So I'm in the middle of a cook with everything prepped and I can't get any answers? No phone number to call in for tech support, nothing without registering. Second, even tho I bought my unit brand new not everyone gets their grills new. Some people might have for example inherited a unit or bought it used and they won't register you unless you upload a receipt of purchase so don't buy one of these used because you won't be able to get any information or tech support. That basically, tells me Masterbuilt is more interested in getting information to add you to marketing lists then they are about actually just providing help for anyone who owns one of their grills regardless of how they came about owning it. I don't want to spend close to 800 dollars on something that breaks the second time you cook with it. Very disappointed. I returned it and am looking into other options.
Patrick G. : Amazing
I've been cooking with a Weber religiously for about 2 years now. The weber master touch kettle style is what introduced me to charcoal grilling. I cooked on it nearly every weekend for the 2 years I had it, rain or shine or snow it didn't matter. The flavor charcoal provides is incomparable. Looking back, fanning the flames with cardboard...buying a manual blower and wrecking it soon after and then upgrading to a DeWalt leaf blower. My neighbors would often wonder why I was using a leaf blower when it was snowing and cold outside. Little did they know...charcoal isn't an easy method of grilling. Smoking on that little Weber was an adventure everytime. While the weber boasted the ability to smoke and provide indirect heat as well as direct heat it just wasn't truly up to par with someone like me who was grilling every week despite the weather. I ended up warping that little weber because of the heavy usage. I sure did get my mileage out of it.
But this review isn't about the weber, it's about this wonderful, amazing piece of technology that allows you to cheat! I had often heard that pellet grilling was like charcoal grilling but cheating. This charcoal grill is like grilling with charcoal but cheating with charcoal. It's so easy it's disgusting. I went a long time, many grills doing all this effort while this grill does everything EFFORTLESSLY. Key phrase is EFFORTLESSLY. Fire and forget isn't a more applicable term! I admit the assembly process is grueling. I admit I hate starting the flame in this grill compared to my weber but that is and was a SMALL price to pay. I just smoked a 16 lb brisket to absolute perfection over 22 hours. I did none of the work. The grill did everything.
I was a little hesitant to allow the grill to work over the course of one night but when I woke up the next morning the thing still had fire and still had, albeit, a small amount of charcoal left...to think this charcoal grill went 8 hours without maintenance...it truly is disgusting for those of you charcoal purists who have worked painstakingly to maintain your heat, your supply and the placement of your flames. This grill is just profound. It's so hard to describe how amazing it truly is unless you've slaved, smoking with something like a weber.
Smoking is such a fine art that requires such specific detail to temperature and truly only works well when done indirectly. This grill is such a marvel of engineering it not only burns indirectly but the manifold allows for SEARING. My god. It's unbelievable.
If you're on the fence with the price tag but are a charcoal purist like me who is just tired of not getting that perfect smoke...this is a no brainer. If it lasts only a year, if it only lasts 6 months....I'd buy it again. I love this thing!
Edit: been a year now and have grilled more on this in the first few months than I did in 2 years with my Weber in terms of hourly usage easy. The longest I ever used this grill was 26 HOURS. That was a good brisket.
I've smoked a turkey for Thanksgiving and made 6 briskets on this thing. I've cooked pork butt and pulled it. I've made brisket and pulled that! I've made newyorks, t-bones, tomahawks, salmon, whole tilapia...this grill is beyond words.
However! I've had some failures. It's sad but nothing lasts forever. My fan had failed but this is after 100's of hours if not 1,000. Also my proximity switch for the lid melted so I shorted the wires together and kept grilling.
Still the best charcoal griller out there!
But this review isn't about the weber, it's about this wonderful, amazing piece of technology that allows you to cheat! I had often heard that pellet grilling was like charcoal grilling but cheating. This charcoal grill is like grilling with charcoal but cheating with charcoal. It's so easy it's disgusting. I went a long time, many grills doing all this effort while this grill does everything EFFORTLESSLY. Key phrase is EFFORTLESSLY. Fire and forget isn't a more applicable term! I admit the assembly process is grueling. I admit I hate starting the flame in this grill compared to my weber but that is and was a SMALL price to pay. I just smoked a 16 lb brisket to absolute perfection over 22 hours. I did none of the work. The grill did everything.
I was a little hesitant to allow the grill to work over the course of one night but when I woke up the next morning the thing still had fire and still had, albeit, a small amount of charcoal left...to think this charcoal grill went 8 hours without maintenance...it truly is disgusting for those of you charcoal purists who have worked painstakingly to maintain your heat, your supply and the placement of your flames. This grill is just profound. It's so hard to describe how amazing it truly is unless you've slaved, smoking with something like a weber.
Smoking is such a fine art that requires such specific detail to temperature and truly only works well when done indirectly. This grill is such a marvel of engineering it not only burns indirectly but the manifold allows for SEARING. My god. It's unbelievable.
If you're on the fence with the price tag but are a charcoal purist like me who is just tired of not getting that perfect smoke...this is a no brainer. If it lasts only a year, if it only lasts 6 months....I'd buy it again. I love this thing!
Edit: been a year now and have grilled more on this in the first few months than I did in 2 years with my Weber in terms of hourly usage easy. The longest I ever used this grill was 26 HOURS. That was a good brisket.
I've smoked a turkey for Thanksgiving and made 6 briskets on this thing. I've cooked pork butt and pulled it. I've made brisket and pulled that! I've made newyorks, t-bones, tomahawks, salmon, whole tilapia...this grill is beyond words.
However! I've had some failures. It's sad but nothing lasts forever. My fan had failed but this is after 100's of hours if not 1,000. Also my proximity switch for the lid melted so I shorted the wires together and kept grilling.
Still the best charcoal griller out there!
Shelli H : Do not waste you money...worked twice and now dead
Do not buy this grill. We used it twice since January and it stopped working. We contacted Masterbuilt we followed the instructions and nothing. The fan does not turn on essentially rendering the grill completely useless. For hundreds of dollars and to have received it Dec 29,2020 and it has been unusuable since March 1st is appalling. This should be removed from Amazon and my money refunded
Jeffrey Watterworth : Review of Shipping Only
Very disappointed in the damage that this had after shipping. Didn’t notice it until I started to put the legs on and one wouldn’t fit because of how bad the grill was bent. I had to straighten it out as best as I could to get the final screw in place. Masterbuilt cut corners in packaging for shipment and Amazon must have used guys that dropped the grill off the truck.
CS : Do not purchase
Wires melted after 4th use, have been trying to get issues corrected for 6 months. DO NOT Purchase!!!
Scott F. : Great Cooker
I saw some complaints on reviews about the quality of the constitution. And while a lot of assembly is required it was very well packaged. The instructions were very clear. And I would say the overall quality is extremely high. This is a well built grill.
Performance thus far has been very good. I’ve done one long smoke with a brisket that turned out fantastic. I’ve done several other things with varying degrees of success as I’m getting used to the cooker. Every cooker has its own personality.
Overall I’d say I’m extremely impressed. I was in the market for a pellet grill to go along with my gas cooker, then I saw this. I’m glad I opted for the charcoal. The gravity feed gives me a similar performance to the pellet. It heats up wicked fast and maintains whatever setting you want.
The only downside is the performance and linkage of the app. Not sure if future updates will fix that but I sure hope so. Still it is my go to cooker.
Price, while higher end, is worth it IMO. Less than the comparable sized egg and some of the pellets I’ve seen.
Performance thus far has been very good. I’ve done one long smoke with a brisket that turned out fantastic. I’ve done several other things with varying degrees of success as I’m getting used to the cooker. Every cooker has its own personality.
Overall I’d say I’m extremely impressed. I was in the market for a pellet grill to go along with my gas cooker, then I saw this. I’m glad I opted for the charcoal. The gravity feed gives me a similar performance to the pellet. It heats up wicked fast and maintains whatever setting you want.
The only downside is the performance and linkage of the app. Not sure if future updates will fix that but I sure hope so. Still it is my go to cooker.
Price, while higher end, is worth it IMO. Less than the comparable sized egg and some of the pellets I’ve seen.
Ben and Alicia Osmun : Dented on arrival
Everything is amazing. I love it. Replaced a pellet grill much more versatile... only problem is it came broken and dented as all get out.
McKenzie : Brand new doesn’t work
After a few hours of assembly we were excited to try the new smoker. Was going through the first cook process to cook off the chemicals and grease from manufacturing. Followed step by step and the smoker will not get to temp. The reason for this is the fan is not working at all. Tried all the troubleshooting and googling for the past 3 hours or so and am defeated. They delivered us a faulty product. For the price you would really expect it to work :/
Eli Sherman : All banged up
Just started putting it together not looking good
I Buy Random Stuff : 2 months, 200 hours, only one and a half complaint.
It does exactly what it is advertised to do. I know a lot of people complain about difficulties in putting it together however I was able to assemble it by myself in just under an hour. If you read the directions first and unpack your materials and make sure you have everything it’s not a big deal. It is amazingly heavy and the assembly does require some rotation, that is the only complaint I could really see.
I have cooked 20 different cuts of beef, six different cuts of pork, and a couple different methods of poultry on this from rapid Sear Grill to long-term smoking.
For long smokes it does require pretty intense babysitting compared to a pellet grill.
It chews through fuel. I’ve now tried three styles and brands of fuel, and find the kamado joe big joe coal to be the “best” so far. A 4 hour cook will use a whole bag ($30) so prepare for “millionaires brisket” on long cooks; and the need to regularly check the hopper. And it’s messy to fill.
Overall, super pleased, and happy this exists... inaugurating the end of the pellet grill lifestyle.
I have cooked 20 different cuts of beef, six different cuts of pork, and a couple different methods of poultry on this from rapid Sear Grill to long-term smoking.
For long smokes it does require pretty intense babysitting compared to a pellet grill.
It chews through fuel. I’ve now tried three styles and brands of fuel, and find the kamado joe big joe coal to be the “best” so far. A 4 hour cook will use a whole bag ($30) so prepare for “millionaires brisket” on long cooks; and the need to regularly check the hopper. And it’s messy to fill.
Overall, super pleased, and happy this exists... inaugurating the end of the pellet grill lifestyle.
Vernie : The temp control works very well!
First, I ordered this grill from Walmart, it arrived on a pallet with a dent and scrape from the fork of a fork lift through the box. SENT it back. Decided to order from the big A, this grill is pretty much sold at full retail everywhere. Amazon had it listed via seller for $25 off. This grill is heavy (200+ lbs), and the freight truck delivered intact. Boxed looked good. Thought, great. So I unpacked it and found three small dents, one on the bottom, two on the top, (thot) I can live with these. Probably from stacking on top/each other in some slow boat from the China.
The grill can be temper mental to start, but once you find the right sequence to ignite the charcoals, this grill is money! Temp holds around your target, bounces up and down, as fan switches on/off to keep the heat moving through the grill box. Smoked brisket flat, hamburger patties, Salmon, and steaks within a week. Awesome.
A few things I disliked about my Weber Smokey Mountain bullet, hitting your target temp, temp control, and stacking briquettes for a serpentine fuse. Adding more briquettes was inconvenient too. This grill is a home run. The blue tooth remote has worked perfectly. No complaints. For the money Masterbuilt could have thrown in all four temp probes, ONLY 1 came with, and the temperature was 4.5-5 degree off my instant read thermometer.
Directions say 45 min assembly, Ha ha ha, some comedian wrote the assembly directions. Get a COLD beverage, relax and take your time, gonna be a bit longer if by yourself.
A second thought, I use my Weber Summit 470 Gas grill to sear, it has no problem getting to 650+. I did not want to "crank" up the 1050 to 600 degrees, once those briquettes get hot, cooling down will still burn them up.
The grill can be temper mental to start, but once you find the right sequence to ignite the charcoals, this grill is money! Temp holds around your target, bounces up and down, as fan switches on/off to keep the heat moving through the grill box. Smoked brisket flat, hamburger patties, Salmon, and steaks within a week. Awesome.
A few things I disliked about my Weber Smokey Mountain bullet, hitting your target temp, temp control, and stacking briquettes for a serpentine fuse. Adding more briquettes was inconvenient too. This grill is a home run. The blue tooth remote has worked perfectly. No complaints. For the money Masterbuilt could have thrown in all four temp probes, ONLY 1 came with, and the temperature was 4.5-5 degree off my instant read thermometer.
Directions say 45 min assembly, Ha ha ha, some comedian wrote the assembly directions. Get a COLD beverage, relax and take your time, gonna be a bit longer if by yourself.
A second thought, I use my Weber Summit 470 Gas grill to sear, it has no problem getting to 650+. I did not want to "crank" up the 1050 to 600 degrees, once those briquettes get hot, cooling down will still burn them up.
Doug V : Nice looking easy to assemble hope it’s worth it
Hey there. Just received this and put it together and had it running in less than two hours. Once again Amazon sent another damage product. It seems like all the big stuff gets sent out damaged. Oh well. I called Amazon and asked for an easy $25 credit. They happily complied and issued me a gift card.
Whomever said mastercraft’s customer service sucks is wrong. I registered my product. Filled out the in warranty replacement part form and the nice lady sent me the parts that were damaged.
I’ve done three preburns to remove all the oils from shipping and added my own oil to season the metal.
Seems like it works well. I do not like the way you need to light the charcoal. They really screws the pooch on this feature. But once it’s lit it runs like a champ. It seems the temp setting stays within 8 degrees of the set point
Cooking some tri-tip and pork butt this weekend. I’ll update this if this bbq is a piece of junk
And the app seems to work fine for me!! ???
Whomever said mastercraft’s customer service sucks is wrong. I registered my product. Filled out the in warranty replacement part form and the nice lady sent me the parts that were damaged.
I’ve done three preburns to remove all the oils from shipping and added my own oil to season the metal.
Seems like it works well. I do not like the way you need to light the charcoal. They really screws the pooch on this feature. But once it’s lit it runs like a champ. It seems the temp setting stays within 8 degrees of the set point
Cooking some tri-tip and pork butt this weekend. I’ll update this if this bbq is a piece of junk
And the app seems to work fine for me!! ???
Kindle Customer : Great grill/smoker. App not ready for prime time.
Initial impression after assembly and first use. Assembly wasn't too bad, but it does take time. I did it solo. Another set of hands would have been helpful, but it can be done without.
This things fires up quickly and the temperature control is outstanding. So fun to turn the dial and watch it respond immediately.
As other have noted, the app is hot trash so far. If wifi/Bluetooth is an absolute necessity for you....this may not be the smoker for you. I will say that I thought going in that this was the case for me....but I may be willing to overlook it in the end given how good the performance of the actual grill/smoker seems to be. Hopefully future updates help.
This things fires up quickly and the temperature control is outstanding. So fun to turn the dial and watch it respond immediately.
As other have noted, the app is hot trash so far. If wifi/Bluetooth is an absolute necessity for you....this may not be the smoker for you. I will say that I thought going in that this was the case for me....but I may be willing to overlook it in the end given how good the performance of the actual grill/smoker seems to be. Hopefully future updates help.
Chris : Some issues but easy to use and turns out great food
from beef jerky to brisket and pizza. this grill will handle it all.
Charcoal consumption is very fair and depending whether you use lump or briquettes will determine your cook and temp time.
The app works OK but to try connect for an update though wifi its crap.
Some minor issues that I came across is that switches sometimes seem to get stuck in other words it'll think the lid and or the hopper is open. Also as of recently the meat prob isn't that reliable either so I tend use my webber connect to get a more of a accurate reading.
I have tried to contact customer support about these small issues but thats a whole other hurdle, I do highly recommend this product it handles it all. The 560 smokes well and when you put small wood chunks in ashbin and it turns out a nice smoke ring and the fact is I'd buy it again..
**Update**
I reached out to Customer service though social media, they help me register my unit and addressed the minor issues I had with fast and efficient service ...5 star now
Kelly : Support is nonexistent even when you receive an entirely destroyed item
Now I have nothing but a pile of scrap metal and electronics and other materials. I will have to pay to have this mess removed from my home and disposed of. It has all just been a huge runaround from both MASTERJUNK and Amazon.
I will detail this rediculous experience later. Photos of damaged goods attached. Tried to send to "customer service" but the automated reply says they can't be bothered to monitor their inbox.
I will detail this rediculous experience later. Photos of damaged goods attached. Tried to send to "customer service" but the automated reply says they can't be bothered to monitor their inbox.
James In DFW : Do yourself a favor
I haven't had time to use this yet because it took all day to build. Do yourself a favor, if the box your grill shows up in is not in pristine condition, don't accept the shipment. Mine had what I thought was minor damage yet it resulted in bent and scratched parts throughout the build. I hope to upgrade my review once I get through the initial burn and use it a bit, but right now I hate the darn thing.
rick : Minor modifications needed for more efficient burn
Easy to assemble plenty of cooking space. Tastes great with wood chunks mixed in the charcoal. The only drawback is that the factory grate allows for half burnt charcoal to fall into the ash can. Cut a grate and lay it in and it will burn up all the coals before they fall out.
Chris Musser : All about the Temp!!
Ok, I was extremely hesitant to purchase this Digital smoker. However after several uses this item has proved to be a very resourceful piece of equipment.
The key is the temperature control being consistent with very little variables in the heat. Like any barbecue it has its hotspots on the grill. But any educated smoker knows these locations on their barbecue and places they appropriate food in these areas to get a consistent cook temp. Overall the temperature control is unprecedented.
With the new update on the Bluetooth software it connects easily with Both android and Apple devices. Also, the app is extremely’s easy to use. Straight to the point, temp and time!
Now I’ll talk about the best part of this smoker and that is the searing at 700°. You go from a low to 250° to a high 700° in just a minute. It’s great for tri-tips that you want to smoke and then seer. Not to mention the incredible burgers and steaks you can get out of this thing.
If there were any negatives it would be the process of putting it together. One part in particular is the screws for the lift bar on the main door. Very easily dropped into the inside body of the door void. But, with a little work you can get it back out.
I did far too much research on this barbecue before buying it and watched a lot of reviews over the last year. There is a lot of negatives towards shipping and manufacturing defects. And a lot of negatives towards dealing with Manufacturing warranty.
I have not myself experienced any of these issues and I would HIGHLY recommend this product.
KNOW YOUR BBQ
There is a great deal of value in this item for what it does. It is not a heavy cast iron built BBQ meant to last 100 years in the rain. If you know Master Built Products you know they use thin metal body’s , however they double wall the majority of areas required to contain heat and consistency. This bbq requires cleaning on a routine basis to maintain consistency in your cooked and to reduce GREASE FIRES. Remember this thing can get up to 700° after you’ve just cooked a pork butt for 10hr. I recommend using aluminum foil pans on the bottom rack and use the second rack for meat on your long smokes to reduce grease drippings on the manifold burner.
The key is the temperature control being consistent with very little variables in the heat. Like any barbecue it has its hotspots on the grill. But any educated smoker knows these locations on their barbecue and places they appropriate food in these areas to get a consistent cook temp. Overall the temperature control is unprecedented.
With the new update on the Bluetooth software it connects easily with Both android and Apple devices. Also, the app is extremely’s easy to use. Straight to the point, temp and time!
Now I’ll talk about the best part of this smoker and that is the searing at 700°. You go from a low to 250° to a high 700° in just a minute. It’s great for tri-tips that you want to smoke and then seer. Not to mention the incredible burgers and steaks you can get out of this thing.
If there were any negatives it would be the process of putting it together. One part in particular is the screws for the lift bar on the main door. Very easily dropped into the inside body of the door void. But, with a little work you can get it back out.
I did far too much research on this barbecue before buying it and watched a lot of reviews over the last year. There is a lot of negatives towards shipping and manufacturing defects. And a lot of negatives towards dealing with Manufacturing warranty.
I have not myself experienced any of these issues and I would HIGHLY recommend this product.
KNOW YOUR BBQ
There is a great deal of value in this item for what it does. It is not a heavy cast iron built BBQ meant to last 100 years in the rain. If you know Master Built Products you know they use thin metal body’s , however they double wall the majority of areas required to contain heat and consistency. This bbq requires cleaning on a routine basis to maintain consistency in your cooked and to reduce GREASE FIRES. Remember this thing can get up to 700° after you’ve just cooked a pork butt for 10hr. I recommend using aluminum foil pans on the bottom rack and use the second rack for meat on your long smokes to reduce grease drippings on the manifold burner.
Noel Fontana : not worth the 500$
This item came in used and covered in animal fat. many of the pre-drilled holes did not line up. the handle came in cracked and it was very hard to put together. amazon only gave me 30% off the item after I showed them the condition it came in, even though if I had returned it there would have been a 500$ loss because it would have to be damaged out. first unsatisfactory experience with amazon.
Chris : Some issues but easy to use and turns out great food
from beef jerky to brisket and pizza. this grill will handle it all.
Charcoal consumption is very fair and depending whether you use lump or briquettes will determine your cook and temp time.
The app works OK but to try connect for an update though wifi its crap.
Some minor issues that I came across is that switches sometimes seem to get stuck in other words it'll think the lid and or the hopper is open. Also as of recently the meat prob isn't that reliable either so I tend use my webber connect to get a more of a accurate reading.
I have tried to contact customer support about these small issues but thats a whole other hurdle, I do highly recommend this product it handles it all. The 560 smokes well and when you put small wood chunks in ashbin and it turns out a nice smoke ring and the fact is I'd buy it again..
**Update**
I reached out to Customer service though social media, they help me register my unit and addressed the minor issues I had with fast and efficient service ...5 star now
Phong Ngo : Don't buy this if you expect the app/bluetooth/wifi to work
Received my grill yesterday morning and it was delivered carefully to the back deck. It took about 1.5 hours to assemble by myself and the instructions were very simple, detailed, and easy to follow. After completing the seasoning procedure, I grilled/seared some steaks the same night.
In my first use, I found the following observations:
1. Even after shaking the charcoal grate to shake free any ash, it takes 2x fire starter cubes to really get the fire going. One cube just doesn't cut it.
2. I love that the grill will beep and give error if it finds issues such as it's taking much longer than expected for the temperature to rise, which is why I found out about #1.
3. The wifi is a joke and the antenna must be for show, because I'm quite tech savvy and couldn't connect even once. The bluetooth is LOS (most times) and is working maybe 4 out of 10 attempts. Sometimes I'll be in my kitchen with the phone in LOS of the grill outside the window (approx 10 ft away) and it just refuses to connect.
4. The app is very hand (when it works), but it needs some serious development. A buggy app is one thing, but it's appalling that an entire product with so much marketing material focused on the smart connectivity doesn't actually work half the time.
Luckily, this grill has a lot going for it aside from the app/connectivity. It's a beautiful grill, feels very solid, and a pleasure to grill on. The double walled design of the lid makes it light to life, but still maintains temps really well and doesn't get so hot that you'd burn/injure yourself instantly.
In my first use, I found the following observations:
1. Even after shaking the charcoal grate to shake free any ash, it takes 2x fire starter cubes to really get the fire going. One cube just doesn't cut it.
2. I love that the grill will beep and give error if it finds issues such as it's taking much longer than expected for the temperature to rise, which is why I found out about #1.
3. The wifi is a joke and the antenna must be for show, because I'm quite tech savvy and couldn't connect even once. The bluetooth is LOS (most times) and is working maybe 4 out of 10 attempts. Sometimes I'll be in my kitchen with the phone in LOS of the grill outside the window (approx 10 ft away) and it just refuses to connect.
4. The app is very hand (when it works), but it needs some serious development. A buggy app is one thing, but it's appalling that an entire product with so much marketing material focused on the smart connectivity doesn't actually work half the time.
Luckily, this grill has a lot going for it aside from the app/connectivity. It's a beautiful grill, feels very solid, and a pleasure to grill on. The double walled design of the lid makes it light to life, but still maintains temps really well and doesn't get so hot that you'd burn/injure yourself instantly.
Amazon Customer : Cheap materials
I love this grill as far as functionality but it's too cheaply made, grate in bottom of charcoal chamber is too large charcoal hunks drops straight into ash pan and it uses more charcoal than i thought it should cause it so thin not much heat retention and the charcoal compartment is warping because of the heat but very good food off this grill
Bob : Be ready to straighten up some metal
Box was in perfect condition. But this is what the grill looked like when I opened it. I guess I can try and fix it myself. The metal is thin enough
robert : Lots of value for the money. Super convenient, Real BBQ taste.
I’ve been on the fence about getting a new smoker. I know I wanted temperature control but that limits your options to few. pellet, thermo-temp propane, or convert a kettle using a fan and controller. To me this was win/win. All the other options have shortcomings that this unit addresses. Propane is flavor. Pellet , flavor and heat.
1) Temperature control. Unit comes up to temp fast and maintains very well. I have done low and slow (225) as well as (700) for searing ribeyes. Fan is variable speed. Not just on/off witch is nice.
2) cooking chamber is double wall. I’ve already added an additional rack. Lots of nice touches, like a rubber grommet on the side to run your probes thru. Provisions for a future rotisserie. Grates have a smoke/sear side.
3) App is a little quirky but very helpful. I ran several errands during my cook without worry as I can just check the status of the pit temperature and the meat remotely.
4) I have been smoking for 20+ and after three cooks my overall impression is very good. Lots of value for the money. The main reason I bought this is for the same reason I’ve looked at pellets grills for years. Convenience. Doing a 15 hour smoke overnight or babysitting the smoker all day is not very convenient. I have used multiple smokers over the years. Electric, Gas, Pellet, charcoal. The best flavors all seem to come from charcoal and wood. My old Weber kettle and slow-n-sear can produce some really good BBQ.
So, is this better? Yes and no. Convenience , temp control, high heat, connectivity. it’s amazing.
Flavor. No. I know how to make good BBQ. I’ve got years of experience. But, for someone with less experience, this things a slam dunk. It allows you to cook at a high level right out of the box. If you’ve been looking at a pellet grill , I’d say you are much better off with this. Way more versatile and better real BBQ flavor.
1) Temperature control. Unit comes up to temp fast and maintains very well. I have done low and slow (225) as well as (700) for searing ribeyes. Fan is variable speed. Not just on/off witch is nice.
2) cooking chamber is double wall. I’ve already added an additional rack. Lots of nice touches, like a rubber grommet on the side to run your probes thru. Provisions for a future rotisserie. Grates have a smoke/sear side.
3) App is a little quirky but very helpful. I ran several errands during my cook without worry as I can just check the status of the pit temperature and the meat remotely.
4) I have been smoking for 20+ and after three cooks my overall impression is very good. Lots of value for the money. The main reason I bought this is for the same reason I’ve looked at pellets grills for years. Convenience. Doing a 15 hour smoke overnight or babysitting the smoker all day is not very convenient. I have used multiple smokers over the years. Electric, Gas, Pellet, charcoal. The best flavors all seem to come from charcoal and wood. My old Weber kettle and slow-n-sear can produce some really good BBQ.
So, is this better? Yes and no. Convenience , temp control, high heat, connectivity. it’s amazing.
Flavor. No. I know how to make good BBQ. I’ve got years of experience. But, for someone with less experience, this things a slam dunk. It allows you to cook at a high level right out of the box. If you’ve been looking at a pellet grill , I’d say you are much better off with this. Way more versatile and better real BBQ flavor.
Lance J. : BEST Charcoal Grill Smoker PERIOD!!
If you truly love to cook outdoors this gravity fed charcoal smoker by Masterbuilt is a MUST BUY!! I can’t stress enough how much I like this grill. Besides a true expensive offset smoker, this is the next best thing!
Takes some time to put together but you can do it. Don’t let that stand in the way of buying. There are many online YT walk-through videos on putting this together step by step.
Don’t pass up buying this grill and get the 1050 if you cook for more than say 6-8 people on a regular basis. For my family of 5, it handles plenty of food as you can see with my 2nd pic.
Takes some time to put together but you can do it. Don’t let that stand in the way of buying. There are many online YT walk-through videos on putting this together step by step.
Don’t pass up buying this grill and get the 1050 if you cook for more than say 6-8 people on a regular basis. For my family of 5, it handles plenty of food as you can see with my 2nd pic.
skhan : Great design, really bad quality material and quality control
I really love be the design of this grill and how it uses charcoal. However it has the softest lightest metal body in a grill I have ever seen. The box was received with a large portion bent. However, the metal is so soft and maleable that I was able to place the whole grill on a stair' step and fix it using my weight. Also the interior walls and the fire box (manifold) started rusting within a week even though I did the seasoning correctly. I am Texas and living on a third floor. I don't think this will last long...
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
skhan : Great design, really bad quality material and quality control
I really love be the design of this grill and how it uses charcoal. However it has the softest lightest metal body in a grill I have ever seen. The box was received with a large portion bent. However, the metal is so soft and maleable that I was able to place the whole grill on a stair' step and fix it using my weight. Also the interior walls and the fire box (manifold) started rusting within a week even though I did the seasoning correctly. I am Texas and living on a third floor. I don't think this will last long...
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
Amazon Customer : Best smoker/grill I've ever owned
Hands down, Simply put. This grill/smoker is a beast when it comes to doing either smoking meats or searing steak. love the flavor from either the wood or charcoal used. After cooking ribs I will turn up the grill to 700 degrees to make easy cleaning of all the surface inside. I still own a Traeger smoker and much happier with the versatility of the Masterbuilt 1050 gravity fed system. Well designed and so much room for food.
Chris Musser : All about the Temp!!
Ok, I was extremely hesitant to purchase this Digital smoker. However after several uses this item has proved to be a very resourceful piece of equipment.
The key is the temperature control being consistent with very little variables in the heat. Like any barbecue it has its hotspots on the grill. But any educated smoker knows these locations on their barbecue and places they appropriate food in these areas to get a consistent cook temp. Overall the temperature control is unprecedented.
With the new update on the Bluetooth software it connects easily with Both android and Apple devices. Also, the app is extremely’s easy to use. Straight to the point, temp and time!
Now I’ll talk about the best part of this smoker and that is the searing at 700°. You go from a low to 250° to a high 700° in just a minute. It’s great for tri-tips that you want to smoke and then seer. Not to mention the incredible burgers and steaks you can get out of this thing.
If there were any negatives it would be the process of putting it together. One part in particular is the screws for the lift bar on the main door. Very easily dropped into the inside body of the door void. But, with a little work you can get it back out.
I did far too much research on this barbecue before buying it and watched a lot of reviews over the last year. There is a lot of negatives towards shipping and manufacturing defects. And a lot of negatives towards dealing with Manufacturing warranty.
I have not myself experienced any of these issues and I would HIGHLY recommend this product.
KNOW YOUR BBQ
There is a great deal of value in this item for what it does. It is not a heavy cast iron built BBQ meant to last 100 years in the rain. If you know Master Built Products you know they use thin metal body’s , however they double wall the majority of areas required to contain heat and consistency. This bbq requires cleaning on a routine basis to maintain consistency in your cooked and to reduce GREASE FIRES. Remember this thing can get up to 700° after you’ve just cooked a pork butt for 10hr. I recommend using aluminum foil pans on the bottom rack and use the second rack for meat on your long smokes to reduce grease drippings on the manifold burner.
The key is the temperature control being consistent with very little variables in the heat. Like any barbecue it has its hotspots on the grill. But any educated smoker knows these locations on their barbecue and places they appropriate food in these areas to get a consistent cook temp. Overall the temperature control is unprecedented.
With the new update on the Bluetooth software it connects easily with Both android and Apple devices. Also, the app is extremely’s easy to use. Straight to the point, temp and time!
Now I’ll talk about the best part of this smoker and that is the searing at 700°. You go from a low to 250° to a high 700° in just a minute. It’s great for tri-tips that you want to smoke and then seer. Not to mention the incredible burgers and steaks you can get out of this thing.
If there were any negatives it would be the process of putting it together. One part in particular is the screws for the lift bar on the main door. Very easily dropped into the inside body of the door void. But, with a little work you can get it back out.
I did far too much research on this barbecue before buying it and watched a lot of reviews over the last year. There is a lot of negatives towards shipping and manufacturing defects. And a lot of negatives towards dealing with Manufacturing warranty.
I have not myself experienced any of these issues and I would HIGHLY recommend this product.
KNOW YOUR BBQ
There is a great deal of value in this item for what it does. It is not a heavy cast iron built BBQ meant to last 100 years in the rain. If you know Master Built Products you know they use thin metal body’s , however they double wall the majority of areas required to contain heat and consistency. This bbq requires cleaning on a routine basis to maintain consistency in your cooked and to reduce GREASE FIRES. Remember this thing can get up to 700° after you’ve just cooked a pork butt for 10hr. I recommend using aluminum foil pans on the bottom rack and use the second rack for meat on your long smokes to reduce grease drippings on the manifold burner.
Northwestern Bag Co. : It was just ok
The 560 model is small. Would be tight to fit two racks of ribs. The taste of food wasn't any different than cooking on a propane grill. The biggest con for me was the fuel usage. This thing uses a lot of charcoal. I just couldn't justify using half a bag of charcoal every weekend for grilling my meal prep meat. About 10lbs of chicken and a couple steaks uses half a bag of charcoal.
Didn't use to smoke on but it would be difficult to keep wood burning in the hopper. You would have to try to mix wood and charcoal to load the hopper. It would tale a lot of trial and error to get the mix right.
Didn't use to smoke on but it would be difficult to keep wood burning in the hopper. You would have to try to mix wood and charcoal to load the hopper. It would tale a lot of trial and error to get the mix right.
McKenzie : Brand new doesn’t work
After a few hours of assembly we were excited to try the new smoker. Was going through the first cook process to cook off the chemicals and grease from manufacturing. Followed step by step and the smoker will not get to temp. The reason for this is the fan is not working at all. Tried all the troubleshooting and googling for the past 3 hours or so and am defeated. They delivered us a faulty product. For the price you would really expect it to work :/
Phong Ngo : Don't buy this if you expect the app/bluetooth/wifi to work
Received my grill yesterday morning and it was delivered carefully to the back deck. It took about 1.5 hours to assemble by myself and the instructions were very simple, detailed, and easy to follow. After completing the seasoning procedure, I grilled/seared some steaks the same night.
In my first use, I found the following observations:
1. Even after shaking the charcoal grate to shake free any ash, it takes 2x fire starter cubes to really get the fire going. One cube just doesn't cut it.
2. I love that the grill will beep and give error if it finds issues such as it's taking much longer than expected for the temperature to rise, which is why I found out about #1.
3. The wifi is a joke and the antenna must be for show, because I'm quite tech savvy and couldn't connect even once. The bluetooth is LOS (most times) and is working maybe 4 out of 10 attempts. Sometimes I'll be in my kitchen with the phone in LOS of the grill outside the window (approx 10 ft away) and it just refuses to connect.
4. The app is very hand (when it works), but it needs some serious development. A buggy app is one thing, but it's appalling that an entire product with so much marketing material focused on the smart connectivity doesn't actually work half the time.
Luckily, this grill has a lot going for it aside from the app/connectivity. It's a beautiful grill, feels very solid, and a pleasure to grill on. The double walled design of the lid makes it light to life, but still maintains temps really well and doesn't get so hot that you'd burn/injure yourself instantly.
In my first use, I found the following observations:
1. Even after shaking the charcoal grate to shake free any ash, it takes 2x fire starter cubes to really get the fire going. One cube just doesn't cut it.
2. I love that the grill will beep and give error if it finds issues such as it's taking much longer than expected for the temperature to rise, which is why I found out about #1.
3. The wifi is a joke and the antenna must be for show, because I'm quite tech savvy and couldn't connect even once. The bluetooth is LOS (most times) and is working maybe 4 out of 10 attempts. Sometimes I'll be in my kitchen with the phone in LOS of the grill outside the window (approx 10 ft away) and it just refuses to connect.
4. The app is very hand (when it works), but it needs some serious development. A buggy app is one thing, but it's appalling that an entire product with so much marketing material focused on the smart connectivity doesn't actually work half the time.
Luckily, this grill has a lot going for it aside from the app/connectivity. It's a beautiful grill, feels very solid, and a pleasure to grill on. The double walled design of the lid makes it light to life, but still maintains temps really well and doesn't get so hot that you'd burn/injure yourself instantly.
Amazon Customer : Bad workmanship or engineering
Update on this on 4/30. Amazon was great. Called Amazon and complained of the mis-alignment of holes and they refunded me over 10%. But now the meat probe does not work. It shows 160 when hand held shows 130. I successfully signed into the Masterbuilt support site and lodged a support complaint, and they promptly responded within an hour and said that they would send out a new probe. All good so far. That said, I smoked my first experimental 5lb brisket and it was delicious! Now for the real sized one.
Previously Reported:
While assembling the 560, on the right front leg, 2 out of 3 holes were aligned for screws. It definitely is the correct one since all the parts attached to the leg were assembled properly. I registered the product at the masterbuilt.com site and you have to attach the receipt and pics of the serial number but when you submit you get a oracle netsuite error. The funny thing is right underneath the submit button it says do not resubmit if you get an error. They'll you know this is an issue If does say not to resubmit if you get an error! Also reported it on the prodcut support site form with pics and got the same error. So let's see what happens with Masterbuilt. Will call on a weekday. I did season the grill and the smoking and digital equipment does work pretty well.
Follow up - called Masterbuilt support 800 number and the message says to use the site that sends you the error message. Then hangs up. Really?!
Previously Reported:
While assembling the 560, on the right front leg, 2 out of 3 holes were aligned for screws. It definitely is the correct one since all the parts attached to the leg were assembled properly. I registered the product at the masterbuilt.com site and you have to attach the receipt and pics of the serial number but when you submit you get a oracle netsuite error. The funny thing is right underneath the submit button it says do not resubmit if you get an error. They'll you know this is an issue If does say not to resubmit if you get an error! Also reported it on the prodcut support site form with pics and got the same error. So let's see what happens with Masterbuilt. Will call on a weekday. I did season the grill and the smoking and digital equipment does work pretty well.
Follow up - called Masterbuilt support 800 number and the message says to use the site that sends you the error message. Then hangs up. Really?!
Bleacher Dave : Beware!!!
A great idea for a product, but poorly designed and manufactured. My unit stopped working after about a month, and customer service has been of no help. I made a warranty claim, and their has been no action. I was promised a replacement fan, but its out of stock with no date expected to be back in stock. Meanwhile, I've paid for this thing which hasn't worked in about a month. Stay away from this product or be ready and capable to modify and fix on your own.
B. Kim : Never received from AMAZON scheduled Delivery
I did not receive this item from amazon because it took over 2 weeks of the run around for a scheduled (specified time and date a week out from order date) before I had to cancel my order because no one could tell me when or where my order actually was. Ordered and picked up same day from Walmart.
Now down to the smoker
If your are looking for something as simple electric smoker and want the taste and flavor for a charcoal smoker this is the Smoker for you. I suggest getting your own Blutooth thermometer probe, i use it to monitor my meat temps and cooking temps since my smoker is too far from my router to use the app for the smoker.
Pros
It smokes about 12 hours with my setup without needing a refill.
Electric Fan control and built in meat and inside thermometer
Great cast iron racks for searing
Cons
Wifi range is quite short,
no blutooth,
wifi antenna is under the metal shelf plate (loss of signal range)
Random error codes during cooking
Now down to the smoker
If your are looking for something as simple electric smoker and want the taste and flavor for a charcoal smoker this is the Smoker for you. I suggest getting your own Blutooth thermometer probe, i use it to monitor my meat temps and cooking temps since my smoker is too far from my router to use the app for the smoker.
Pros
It smokes about 12 hours with my setup without needing a refill.
Electric Fan control and built in meat and inside thermometer
Great cast iron racks for searing
Cons
Wifi range is quite short,
no blutooth,
wifi antenna is under the metal shelf plate (loss of signal range)
Random error codes during cooking
Herbert : Fan not working after 45 days...
I was really excited for this purchase...
bought all the protective gear and the extra racks.
Set up was a puzzle.
Once I got it all assembled, I became aware that to light the charcoal you have to do some pretty creative things to get the charcoal ignited.
I ended up getting starter cubes, but they didn’t do too great.
Then I purchased an electric charcoal lighter and that does the job quite well.
But... now the fan on the Masterbuilt doesn’t kick on. I’ve used this grill 4-5 times and the fan already isn’t working.
Bought APRIL 13th, 2021 and fan was out by May 30th, 2021.
Not happy with this purchase.
bought all the protective gear and the extra racks.
Set up was a puzzle.
Once I got it all assembled, I became aware that to light the charcoal you have to do some pretty creative things to get the charcoal ignited.
I ended up getting starter cubes, but they didn’t do too great.
Then I purchased an electric charcoal lighter and that does the job quite well.
But... now the fan on the Masterbuilt doesn’t kick on. I’ve used this grill 4-5 times and the fan already isn’t working.
Bought APRIL 13th, 2021 and fan was out by May 30th, 2021.
Not happy with this purchase.
Jay Long : Worst buyers remorse I’ve ever had
Where to start.
Want temp control? Mine is usually 26 degrees (F) over for the duration of the cook.
Like the advertised heat up speeds? Takes an hour to get the charcoal going.
Like the built in thermometer? I have to use a different one. It just stops working for 5 minutes at a time.
All charcoal left in the hopper is unusable after each cook. It won’t ignite at all. I do full shutdown, replace the slides. It won’t ignite again, hence the hour to start comment. We finally figured out if we fully replace all charcoal, we can light it.
Also half the time we finally get the charcoal going, the fan won’t start.
I’m an engineer that used to build houses and assembly was awful for me.
The ONLY reason I wanted this over our $100 acorn grill was the temp control, and it’s worse here.
Want temp control? Mine is usually 26 degrees (F) over for the duration of the cook.
Like the advertised heat up speeds? Takes an hour to get the charcoal going.
Like the built in thermometer? I have to use a different one. It just stops working for 5 minutes at a time.
All charcoal left in the hopper is unusable after each cook. It won’t ignite at all. I do full shutdown, replace the slides. It won’t ignite again, hence the hour to start comment. We finally figured out if we fully replace all charcoal, we can light it.
Also half the time we finally get the charcoal going, the fan won’t start.
I’m an engineer that used to build houses and assembly was awful for me.
The ONLY reason I wanted this over our $100 acorn grill was the temp control, and it’s worse here.
G. P. Wolf : Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product
Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product Couldn't be more happy with delivery and product
McKenzie : Brand new doesn’t work
After a few hours of assembly we were excited to try the new smoker. Was going through the first cook process to cook off the chemicals and grease from manufacturing. Followed step by step and the smoker will not get to temp. The reason for this is the fan is not working at all. Tried all the troubleshooting and googling for the past 3 hours or so and am defeated. They delivered us a faulty product. For the price you would really expect it to work :/
skhan : Great design, really bad quality material and quality control
I really love be the design of this grill and how it uses charcoal. However it has the softest lightest metal body in a grill I have ever seen. The box was received with a large portion bent. However, the metal is so soft and maleable that I was able to place the whole grill on a stair' step and fix it using my weight. Also the interior walls and the fire box (manifold) started rusting within a week even though I did the seasoning correctly. I am Texas and living on a third floor. I don't think this will last long...
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
Temperature control is great btw. However, due to the super thin body it looses a lot of energy and ends up costing you a lot of coal.. also the grate on which the charcoal falls is extremely wide. So it wastes a humongous amount of charcoal. I had to mod it using a wire hanger.
I really wish this was made by Weber. I would have loved it. Instead Weber made that terribly designed smokefire....
Halborges : Looks good but the fire box is a concern.
The product arrived timely, is easy to assemble and looks really good with a lot of real estate for grilling.
The reason for the low review is that after 1 use, yes a single use, the area where the coal burns showed significant degradation an worst, the fumes from the walls going to the meat. Not the type of smoke I want my family and friends to taste.
The reason for the low review is that after 1 use, yes a single use, the area where the coal burns showed significant degradation an worst, the fumes from the walls going to the meat. Not the type of smoke I want my family and friends to taste.
Doug : Horrible Customer Service
I had this grill for less than 30 days. It seems to work well while was getting familiar with it. One day the unit wouldn’t power on so I went through some troubleshooting steps.
Due to covid you aren’t able to speak to anyone so I went online and added photos and a description of the issue. Almost 2 weeks later and a message to Masterbuilt on Instagram I finally got an email. I explained to them what the issue was.. They responded and now I haven’t heard from them again.
Horrible Customer Service.
Due to covid you aren’t able to speak to anyone so I went online and added photos and a description of the issue. Almost 2 weeks later and a message to Masterbuilt on Instagram I finally got an email. I explained to them what the issue was.. They responded and now I haven’t heard from them again.
Horrible Customer Service.
yost28 : Better bbq than a Traeger
This smoker has been honestly amazing. Easy as a pellet but real charcoal bbq flavor. My house is the best bbq place hands down. The only downside is everyone will ask if you have a Traeger. Explaining that it’s a Masterbuilt and it’s better than a Traeger to a bbq layman is not an easy task. I’m still working on this. Luckily most people don’t really care and are just happy to eat your bbq.
The hopper itself is very versatile and will accept just about any wood and charcoal. I’ve prefer kingsford with webber wood chunks.
The hopper itself is very versatile and will accept just about any wood and charcoal. I’ve prefer kingsford with webber wood chunks.
Vernie : The temp control works very well!
First, I ordered this grill from Walmart, it arrived on a pallet with a dent and scrape from the fork of a fork lift through the box. SENT it back. Decided to order from the big A, this grill is pretty much sold at full retail everywhere. Amazon had it listed via seller for $25 off. This grill is heavy (200+ lbs), and the freight truck delivered intact. Boxed looked good. Thought, great. So I unpacked it and found three small dents, one on the bottom, two on the top, (thot) I can live with these. Probably from stacking on top/each other in some slow boat from the China.
The grill can be temper mental to start, but once you find the right sequence to ignite the charcoals, this grill is money! Temp holds around your target, bounces up and down, as fan switches on/off to keep the heat moving through the grill box. Smoked brisket flat, hamburger patties, Salmon, and steaks within a week. Awesome.
A few things I disliked about my Weber Smokey Mountain bullet, hitting your target temp, temp control, and stacking briquettes for a serpentine fuse. Adding more briquettes was inconvenient too. This grill is a home run. The blue tooth remote has worked perfectly. No complaints. For the money Masterbuilt could have thrown in all four temp probes, ONLY 1 came with, and the temperature was 4.5-5 degree off my instant read thermometer.
Directions say 45 min assembly, Ha ha ha, some comedian wrote the assembly directions. Get a COLD beverage, relax and take your time, gonna be a bit longer if by yourself.
A second thought, I use my Weber Summit 470 Gas grill to sear, it has no problem getting to 650+. I did not want to "crank" up the 1050 to 600 degrees, once those briquettes get hot, cooling down will still burn them up.
The grill can be temper mental to start, but once you find the right sequence to ignite the charcoals, this grill is money! Temp holds around your target, bounces up and down, as fan switches on/off to keep the heat moving through the grill box. Smoked brisket flat, hamburger patties, Salmon, and steaks within a week. Awesome.
A few things I disliked about my Weber Smokey Mountain bullet, hitting your target temp, temp control, and stacking briquettes for a serpentine fuse. Adding more briquettes was inconvenient too. This grill is a home run. The blue tooth remote has worked perfectly. No complaints. For the money Masterbuilt could have thrown in all four temp probes, ONLY 1 came with, and the temperature was 4.5-5 degree off my instant read thermometer.
Directions say 45 min assembly, Ha ha ha, some comedian wrote the assembly directions. Get a COLD beverage, relax and take your time, gonna be a bit longer if by yourself.
A second thought, I use my Weber Summit 470 Gas grill to sear, it has no problem getting to 650+. I did not want to "crank" up the 1050 to 600 degrees, once those briquettes get hot, cooling down will still burn them up.
C. Wolfley : Charcoal and wood flavor with Pellet control
I won’t pretend that it’s perfect. There are some quirks to it. But, it’s one of the best smokers I’ve used in the ~12-13 years I’ve been smoking.
There are a few things to do like put foil over the top of the hopper so the paint on the lid doesn’t peel.. rotate the fan 90 degrees so your fan wires don’t melt at high heat, and maybe mod the hopper grate at the bottom. Those are all fairly simple.
There’s after market mods you can do. I’ve done some of them for longevity sake, because I love it and want it to last.
Overall, I absolutely love it so far.
There are a few things to do like put foil over the top of the hopper so the paint on the lid doesn’t peel.. rotate the fan 90 degrees so your fan wires don’t melt at high heat, and maybe mod the hopper grate at the bottom. Those are all fairly simple.
There’s after market mods you can do. I’ve done some of them for longevity sake, because I love it and want it to last.
Overall, I absolutely love it so far.
Jason : Practical solution for smoker and grill combo.
I’ve been wanting a smoker for 3 years… I occasionally borrow my neighbor’s electric cookshack smoker to hold me over.
My thoughts and opinions:
Assembly:
-Took me about 3 hours. I didn’t realize one of the first pieces you need is stored inside the grill lid. Took me a while to find it. Nothing was difficult and the instructions were fairly simple to follow along, just many steps.
-One of the warming racks came warped. I called customer service, they answered right away and placed an order to ship a new rack to me without any hassle.
-Some manufacturing defect with the heat manifold screws or threads. I was unable to tighten the screws to secure the manifold to the manifold support. Either the screws were too long and bottoming out or the hole was not threaded deep enough. Customer service shipped a new heat manifold to me without any hassle. The new heat manifold had the exact same issue, maybe its a problem the instructions and you don’t actually tighten the screws down.
Usage:
-I’m surprised how easy and quick it is to get the cook chamber to temp. They advertise 7 minutes to 250F, and yup I believe it. I haven’t actually timed it, but I think mine is quicker than that.
-The LCD screen is poorly positioned. It faces straight out, as if it is meant for someone 3 feet tall. It should be tilted up so I can actually read it. Instead I have to crouch down when using it.
-The control panel allows 4 meat probes to be connected. Only one is included. I haven’t seen any documentation to see if this probe is standardized and whether I can connect a generic thermometer probe to it. The smoker does not actually use any info from these probes, only to display it on the control panel and to transmit wirelessly to be viewed on the Masterbuilt app.
-There is no auger like a pellet grill. This is simply a tower of charcoal that causes the coals to fall down as the hot coals burn. Then, the fan directs the heat into the smoker to maintain temperature. So it's a fairly simple setup, but I believe a bunch of heat is wasted and I assume that you’ll end up burning the same amount of charcoal whether you are at 250F or 700F. I got about 10 hours of cook time at 250F with a full tower of charcoal.
-You can place wood chunks in the tower along with the charcoal, or place wood chunks in the ash bin. As the hot embers fall into the ash bin, it will cause the wood to smolder and produce smoke.
Remote Control and Monitoring:
-Easy to pair with your phone and your WiFi network. Download the Masterbuilt app and follow the instructions. Which is basically setup username/password, press and hold a button on the grill, then press the search button on the phone. Select the WiFi network you want the grill to connect to and enter the network password.
-Took me a while to actually set the temperature of the smoker from the app. While I have not had any trouble viewing the temperature of the grill, and from the meat thermometer, I had problems with changing the temperature, or turning on/off the grill from the app. Looks like all you have to do is push the connect button again on the smoker so the wireless icon is not flashing. I guess it may be some safety issue. I think any time you open the tower lid or ash bin lid, it requires that button to be pushed again.
-I recently wrecked my phone and had to switch to my backup. I can not get the app to work on the new phone. I see my smoker listed, but it never connects, and then the app eventually crashes. Problem with the phone? I don’t know.
-During the initial seasoning of the grill, I set a 1 hour timer in the app. Over 1 hour passed by and no notification on my phone…. Hmm…. I check the timer status and it just stopped itself with 3 seconds left. You’ve got to be kidding me.
-Can only view current temperature of the thermometers. Come on Masterbuilt, show me a plot. I want to know how well the grill has kept temperature and how quickly the meat is rising in temperature. I took the liberty of sniffing the data it sends out over WiFi. Its constantly sending out data to the cloud (appears to be MQTT over TLS), so Masterbuilt has the data. Please Masterbuilt, let me be able to set the MQTT server so I can log the data myself.
Results - Pulled Pork
-My first use I tried cooking a pork shoulder to make pulled pork. I filled up the tower to the brim with charcoal, preheated to 225F, put the meat on (all rubbed up), put two meat probes in the meat, put a chunk of hickory in the ash bin, and went to sleep.
-The charcoal was completely burned up within 10 hours. Internal temperature of the meat from the smoker’s probe was 201F, and my ThermoPro read 190F.
-There was absolutely no bark. Meat was not falling apart like I am used to with pulled pork. It was fairly tough and had trouble pulling it apart. There was a great smoke ring. Did it not cook long enough?
Results - Ribs
-Put one rack of ribs on at 225F. Waited until internal temperature was 195F.
-Not the greatest looking ribs from the outside, but the taste was incredible. Definitely the best ribs I’ve cooked myself. I ate these without any BBQ sauce.
Results - Prime Rib
-I bought these on a whim… never cooked prime rib before or even researched it. I’m glad I tried it.
-I don’t remember what temperature I cooked it at, but I pulled the prime rib off when internal temperature was 130F.
-Cranked up the grill to 700F.
-Seared the prime rib on each side for about 1 minute. Let it rest for 30 minutes.
-This was probably the best tasting slab of beef I’ve ever had… ended up eating two large servings. The insides were tender and uniformly cooked throughout.
Results - Brisket, half, trimmed
-Cooked at 250F until internal temperature was 200F.
-Let rest in a cooler for 4 hours.
-No bark at all… looked like I baked it. Insides were tough and chewy. Needed a lot of BBQ sauce to be edible. Fed some to the dog.
-Where did I go wrong?
Conclusions
-Excellent at maintaining temperatures.
-Fast to preheat, awesome it can go up to 700F.
-Great smoke ring.
-I have been unsuccessful in getting that great bark texture. Never had problems in my electric smoker.
10 hours of cooking time before running out of coals is cutting it close in my opinion. Its enough for an overnight cook, but I won’t be able to ever get it going in the morning before work and have it still cooking by the time I get back.
-Wish it had some way of determining how much charcoal you have remaining without opening up the tower lid and looking down into hot coals and smoke.
-Overall, I like that it's a pretty simple design. Seems like the only parts that would ever need to be replaced are the fan and the control board.
-Sorta expensive to operate, I think I went through $100 of meat and $30 in charcoal and wood.
-Nice that you can cutoff airflow to the charcoal, so it won’t burn the whole tower full.
-Decent choice as a smoker that can also be used as a grill, or just an outside oven even. It will satisfy my craving for smoked foods. I am really interested in hearing how to get a better bark on this thing.
My thoughts and opinions:
Assembly:
-Took me about 3 hours. I didn’t realize one of the first pieces you need is stored inside the grill lid. Took me a while to find it. Nothing was difficult and the instructions were fairly simple to follow along, just many steps.
-One of the warming racks came warped. I called customer service, they answered right away and placed an order to ship a new rack to me without any hassle.
-Some manufacturing defect with the heat manifold screws or threads. I was unable to tighten the screws to secure the manifold to the manifold support. Either the screws were too long and bottoming out or the hole was not threaded deep enough. Customer service shipped a new heat manifold to me without any hassle. The new heat manifold had the exact same issue, maybe its a problem the instructions and you don’t actually tighten the screws down.
Usage:
-I’m surprised how easy and quick it is to get the cook chamber to temp. They advertise 7 minutes to 250F, and yup I believe it. I haven’t actually timed it, but I think mine is quicker than that.
-The LCD screen is poorly positioned. It faces straight out, as if it is meant for someone 3 feet tall. It should be tilted up so I can actually read it. Instead I have to crouch down when using it.
-The control panel allows 4 meat probes to be connected. Only one is included. I haven’t seen any documentation to see if this probe is standardized and whether I can connect a generic thermometer probe to it. The smoker does not actually use any info from these probes, only to display it on the control panel and to transmit wirelessly to be viewed on the Masterbuilt app.
-There is no auger like a pellet grill. This is simply a tower of charcoal that causes the coals to fall down as the hot coals burn. Then, the fan directs the heat into the smoker to maintain temperature. So it's a fairly simple setup, but I believe a bunch of heat is wasted and I assume that you’ll end up burning the same amount of charcoal whether you are at 250F or 700F. I got about 10 hours of cook time at 250F with a full tower of charcoal.
-You can place wood chunks in the tower along with the charcoal, or place wood chunks in the ash bin. As the hot embers fall into the ash bin, it will cause the wood to smolder and produce smoke.
Remote Control and Monitoring:
-Easy to pair with your phone and your WiFi network. Download the Masterbuilt app and follow the instructions. Which is basically setup username/password, press and hold a button on the grill, then press the search button on the phone. Select the WiFi network you want the grill to connect to and enter the network password.
-Took me a while to actually set the temperature of the smoker from the app. While I have not had any trouble viewing the temperature of the grill, and from the meat thermometer, I had problems with changing the temperature, or turning on/off the grill from the app. Looks like all you have to do is push the connect button again on the smoker so the wireless icon is not flashing. I guess it may be some safety issue. I think any time you open the tower lid or ash bin lid, it requires that button to be pushed again.
-I recently wrecked my phone and had to switch to my backup. I can not get the app to work on the new phone. I see my smoker listed, but it never connects, and then the app eventually crashes. Problem with the phone? I don’t know.
-During the initial seasoning of the grill, I set a 1 hour timer in the app. Over 1 hour passed by and no notification on my phone…. Hmm…. I check the timer status and it just stopped itself with 3 seconds left. You’ve got to be kidding me.
-Can only view current temperature of the thermometers. Come on Masterbuilt, show me a plot. I want to know how well the grill has kept temperature and how quickly the meat is rising in temperature. I took the liberty of sniffing the data it sends out over WiFi. Its constantly sending out data to the cloud (appears to be MQTT over TLS), so Masterbuilt has the data. Please Masterbuilt, let me be able to set the MQTT server so I can log the data myself.
Results - Pulled Pork
-My first use I tried cooking a pork shoulder to make pulled pork. I filled up the tower to the brim with charcoal, preheated to 225F, put the meat on (all rubbed up), put two meat probes in the meat, put a chunk of hickory in the ash bin, and went to sleep.
-The charcoal was completely burned up within 10 hours. Internal temperature of the meat from the smoker’s probe was 201F, and my ThermoPro read 190F.
-There was absolutely no bark. Meat was not falling apart like I am used to with pulled pork. It was fairly tough and had trouble pulling it apart. There was a great smoke ring. Did it not cook long enough?
Results - Ribs
-Put one rack of ribs on at 225F. Waited until internal temperature was 195F.
-Not the greatest looking ribs from the outside, but the taste was incredible. Definitely the best ribs I’ve cooked myself. I ate these without any BBQ sauce.
Results - Prime Rib
-I bought these on a whim… never cooked prime rib before or even researched it. I’m glad I tried it.
-I don’t remember what temperature I cooked it at, but I pulled the prime rib off when internal temperature was 130F.
-Cranked up the grill to 700F.
-Seared the prime rib on each side for about 1 minute. Let it rest for 30 minutes.
-This was probably the best tasting slab of beef I’ve ever had… ended up eating two large servings. The insides were tender and uniformly cooked throughout.
Results - Brisket, half, trimmed
-Cooked at 250F until internal temperature was 200F.
-Let rest in a cooler for 4 hours.
-No bark at all… looked like I baked it. Insides were tough and chewy. Needed a lot of BBQ sauce to be edible. Fed some to the dog.
-Where did I go wrong?
Conclusions
-Excellent at maintaining temperatures.
-Fast to preheat, awesome it can go up to 700F.
-Great smoke ring.
-I have been unsuccessful in getting that great bark texture. Never had problems in my electric smoker.
10 hours of cooking time before running out of coals is cutting it close in my opinion. Its enough for an overnight cook, but I won’t be able to ever get it going in the morning before work and have it still cooking by the time I get back.
-Wish it had some way of determining how much charcoal you have remaining without opening up the tower lid and looking down into hot coals and smoke.
-Overall, I like that it's a pretty simple design. Seems like the only parts that would ever need to be replaced are the fan and the control board.
-Sorta expensive to operate, I think I went through $100 of meat and $30 in charcoal and wood.
-Nice that you can cutoff airflow to the charcoal, so it won’t burn the whole tower full.
-Decent choice as a smoker that can also be used as a grill, or just an outside oven even. It will satisfy my craving for smoked foods. I am really interested in hearing how to get a better bark on this thing.
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