I would have never believed it...

[HankB]

I'm happy to hear that the kettle is working out so well for you.  It really is amazing how good the food is cooked on a kettle.

Don't get rid of the gasser though. It makes a great accessory for a kettle. When I'm cooking in the colder months, I use it to hold food as it comes off the grill. I also use it for reverse searing meats, warming them for a bit on the gas before going on to a raging hot charcoal grill. And I'll admit that I occasionally use it to quickly grill some veggies or a burger or two.

But back to kettles and smokers. I highly recommend watching CL (or is it kijiji in CA?) for a Weber Smokey Joe. The SJG is preferred bit a silver will work too. Get the tamale pot to convert it to a mini-WSM. I have one and it is one of my most versatile cookers. I foundthe SJ not too useful as it was, but the conversion turns that around entirely. An 8 pound chicken easily fits on the bottom grate and using the top grate moves the food far enough away from the charcoal to make the entire grate useful for indirect cooks.

[LightningBoldtz]

Probably already said but, Gassers are good to keep your food warm after you have cooked it in the kettle and need to do a round two.

[colin.p]

I was kidding about getting rid of my gasser, I do find that it comes in handy for all the above reasons. On the other hand, even though I would really like a WSM, I can't justify the outlay of $400 for an 18.5 especially since the kettle will work just fine, albeit with more fiddling.

Now I am really interested in the mini WSM idea and will keep my eyes open for a deal on a SJG or S at the neighbourhood Wallymart this fall. Finding the tamale pot sounds like a challenge though, not much call for such a thing up here either. I have scanned the local "CL", "Kijiji" and "Used Ottawa" sites, but around here people can't spell Weber let alone have them for sale and their ideas of BBQ's are old clapped out hibachis.