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Pro-q cold smoke generator product review

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  • Pro-q cold smoke generator product review

    Firt off I actually bought this gadget because I'd spent a number of months trying to get a sawdust based cold smoke system working - and failed miserably every time.
    I even bought 44lbs of oak sawdust that was said to be suitable for cold smoking. Which in my book means it's capable of sustaining a smoulder, which it manifestly does not.
    I was convinced that the particle size of the sawdust was the issue - but had no idea of the correct size.

    So I cracked and ordered one of these from macs bbq
    Primarily to get the free bag of sawdust

    The pro-q is similiar to Todd's amaze-n smoke generator in that it uses a labrynth style trail of sawdust to give a long slow burn. But it's completely different in all other aspects.


    The box


    What you get in the box


    The mesh is quite fine - identical in fact to that used in cheap frying pan splatter guards (and how I Know this will be revealed in another thread lol)


    The lighting system is different to the amaze-n smoker and - in my opinion, todd doesn't agree lol - much better.


    You just light a tea candle (about 20 to the bag from buck stores/pound shops) shove it under the thin layer of dust at the end and after about 30 seconds it starts to smoulder you remove tealight and that's it lit. So far 100% ignition first time, every time.

    Having examined the sawdust that comes with it I came to the conclusion that mine was slightly too coarse (not a lot in it but enough to be significant). So I bought another magic bullet and proceeded to grind my sawdust finer.
    Test burn with the pro-q was a success !



    And I still haven't used the sawdust that came with it.

    It burns nice and slow.

    Now to the actual practicality of it.

    First off it's very small - about 4 inches square.
    And while it does burn for 10 hours it doesn't kick out much smoke.
    The test smoke in the outlaw was a real eye opener.

    After a few hours I came to the conclusion that it just does not come close to producing the kind of volume of smoke I needed. Given that it only uses 4oz of dust over a 10 hour period - this really shouldn't have come as a surprise to me
    So I lit it in a few other places.



    This worked but reduces the burn time to about 3 hours.

    Now - I'm not dissing the pro-q. It's not sold as being a smoke device for a decent sized smoker. It's designed for use in a weber kettle type grill or in a smallish cardbox type cold smoke setup.

    So for that purpose I'd say it's an excellent piece of kit.
    But as a replacement for 3 coals and a lump of wood in my outlaw it's a total washout. No good at all.
    So if you want to some some cold smoking in your kettle bbq or a small cardboard box - this is great.
    If you want to use your larger smoker for cold smoking - this is no use at all.

    Keep your eye's peeled for how I've solved this problem and built my own cold smoke generator for very little money and without any welding (just some blood loss, a lot of sweraing and numerous puncture wounds :-)
    Attached Files
    Last edited by curious aardvark; 02-22-2011, 11:15 AM.
    Made In England - Fine Tuned By The USA
    Just call me 'One Grind'




  • #2
    If you read the review derek you should notice that it produces smoke by burning wood dust in a sustained smoulder. THis method produces the ideal type of clean smoke that food smoking needs.
    It does produce heat, but only a very small amount - considerably less than - for example - a single briquette.
    The fram itself does not get noticeably warm in use.

    Here's the official video. And no you haven't gone deaf - there is no sound.
    [yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43nMHZQukwE[/yt]
    Made In England - Fine Tuned By The USA
    Just call me 'One Grind'



    Comment


    • #3
      Cool...

      How long do we have to wait to see your contraption?

      Comment


      • #4
        I think Todd's is better if only because you can light it at both ends if you want a heavier smoke.
        my 2 cents...
        "And I SWORE I would not read, much less post in that thread, dammit!

        Comment


        • #5
          I am definetly a homer on this one. Todds is made here in the US and is stainless steel and the Pro Q guy accused Todd of stealing his patent. They do not have anything in common other than both being a maze
          Just my .02
          Scarbelly

          Comment


          • #6
            i like the fact that the AMNS is made from a thicker stainless steel for a longer life.
            sigpic
            it's all good my friend..........

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Scarbelly View Post
              I am definetly a homer on this one. Todds is made here in the US and is stainless steel and the Pro Q guy accused Todd of stealing his patent. They do not have anything in common other than both being a maze
              Just my .02
              I remember that. I love my AMNS.
              Propane Smoke Shack
              UDS
              Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain
              sigpic

              Comment


              • #8
                Built much nicer

                I have turned a number of folks onto the AMNS, I have never used one but it looks like a great setup.

                For the price, I can't even buy the material to make a clone.

                I am trying to get one of the local places to buy a few to put on the shelves.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by nickelmore View Post
                  How long do we have to wait to see your contraption?
                  Not long :-)

                  Originally posted by Scarbelly View Post
                  I am definetly a homer on this one. Todds is made here in the US and is stainless steel and the Pro Q guy accused Todd of stealing his patent. They do not have anything in common other than both being a maze
                  Just my .02
                  Did not know that.

                  I'd say the only thing about this I think is better than the ams - is the lighting system.

                  But hey, this is just a review - I'm not coming down on one side or the other. Had a lot of good advice from todd over the last few weeks which is appreciated. He's a great bloke :-)

                  I can't compare and contrast as my ams clone doesn't work (it might if I could figure out how to light the bastard - but even then I suspect my holes are too large and not enough of them).
                  Right then onto my own model...
                  Made In England - Fine Tuned By The USA
                  Just call me 'One Grind'



                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Good review, CA. I just picked up the smaller AMNS from Todd and it worked great on a test run.

                    Can't wait to see your smoke gun! waiting.... waiting....

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      posted !
                      Made In England - Fine Tuned By The USA
                      Just call me 'One Grind'



                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by curious aardvark View Post
                        posted !
                        huh?

                        Why am I always wondering what the hell is going on here?
                        "And I SWORE I would not read, much less post in that thread, dammit!

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by moselle View Post
                          huh?

                          Why am I always wondering what the hell is going on here?
                          I believe this is what he is referring to.
                          http://smoked-meat.com/forum/showthr...threadid=13204
                          Propane Smoke Shack
                          UDS
                          Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain
                          sigpic

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by rbranstner View Post
                            I believe this is what he is referring to.
                            http://smoked-meat.com/forum/showthr...threadid=13204
                            Thanks. Would have thought CA would have posted that..oy...like I used to tell the kids; I can't read minds.
                            "And I SWORE I would not read, much less post in that thread, dammit!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by moselle View Post
                              Thanks. Would have thought CA would have posted that..oy...like I used to tell the kids; I can't read minds.
                              what ??? you're a woman aren't you, thought mind reading came as part of the package

                              lol yep sorry about that should have posted the link.
                              I think I was in a hurry. Been an odd week. No work on but seems to have been busy for all that.

                              anyway the smoke-vark is on for it's first full load burn tomorrow. Was going to do it today but what with buying a car and watching the rugby - didn't get round to it :-)
                              Made In England - Fine Tuned By The USA
                              Just call me 'One Grind'



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