Equipment Crew- Part IV

[keyboardworkout]

During the summer, our house is at 80 during the day and 78 at night. For some reason my wife is always cold and we don't wear much in the way of clothing in the house.

During the winter we set the thermostat at 76/74.

[RemainDieHard]

72 at night in the summer would be just crazy unless either your house is seriously imbalanced, or you sleep with an actual blanket - which is completely counter intuitive and a waste of money imo

[Cleveland33]

I'm telling you guys, 65 and don't touch it.

[Bench905]

72 at night in the summer would be just crazy unless either your house is seriously imbalanced, or you sleep with an actual blanket - which is completely counter intuitive and a waste of money imo

Are you saying that's high or low? I do 72° in the summer and 70° in the winter.

[Domicron]

in college with 3 roommates me and 2 others were walking around without shirts on keeping the temp at 68 max. the 4th roommate wore a sweatshirt and jeans and tried to sneak the temp up whenever he could, lol.

at home the wife keeps it at like 75, which is hotter than i like, but not too warm that i can't stand it.

BTW right now i have a weber kettle grill, the good old standby. i don't grill very often but about half the time i do we invite too many people or at least cook too much food. so i'm thinking about either upgrading to a larger charcoal burner or adding a gas grill. i know gas is anathema to many, but one of the advantages is that the wife might use it more. i try to convince her that lighting up a chimney full of charcoal for cooking dinner isn't a big deal, but even then there's the cleanup that she doesn't want to deal with.

do you guys think i should go with 2 grills, 1 gas/1charcoal or just go with one larger charcoal grill. if i got a larger one, it'd be kind of silly to keep the smaller one around.

[rpark]

I keep my temp at 68 all year round, 72+ and I'll be sweating. Also, not sure what video you guys were watching, but all I saw was some girls on unicycles.

[cwcmac]

in college with 3 roommates me and 2 others were walking around without shirts on keeping the temp at 68 max. the 4th roommate wore a sweatshirt and jeans and tried to sneak the temp up whenever he could, lol.

In college we had a house with 3 guys and 3 girls. The girls I lived with were always cold so they'd turn up the thermostat and I'd sweat my ass off. After a while of this game I just bent the bar the mercury tube was attached to so it would always be colder than the setting. They were all happy that the guys let them move it to 75 but it was probably closer to 67-68 due to a nice little bend

[daniel327]

72 at night in the summer would be just crazy unless either your house is seriously imbalanced, or you sleep with an actual blanket - which is completely counter intuitive and a waste of money imo

LOL sleeping at 72 degrees. My bedroom is cooled to 64 all year round.

I'm telling you guys, 65 and don't touch it.

Exactly

[RemainDieHard]

How heavy of a blanket are you guys sleeping under at 62 degrees in the summer? Don't lie

[EricAtl]

I prefer 60 myself, wife would die though. Never seen that product, similar to a Coolshirt.

A cooling vest like one of those coolshirts save my life once. The Chilipad is worth every penny. They may be having a sale any day now. Got a watch out for something bi email from them.

[EricAtl]

in college with 3 roommates me and 2 others were walking around without shirts on keeping the temp at 68 max. the 4th roommate wore a sweatshirt and jeans and tried to sneak the temp up whenever he could, lol.

at home the wife keeps it at like 75, which is hotter than i like, but not too warm that i can't stand it.

BTW right now i have a weber kettle grill, the good old standby. i don't grill very often but about half the time i do we invite too many people or at least cook too much food. so i'm thinking about either upgrading to a larger charcoal burner or adding a gas grill. i know gas is anathema to many, but one of the advantages is that the wife might use it more. i try to convince her that lighting up a chimney full of charcoal for cooking dinner isn't a big deal, but even then there's the cleanup that she doesn't want to deal with.

do you guys think i should go with 2 grills, 1 gas/1charcoal or just go with one larger charcoal grill. if i got a larger one, it'd be kind of silly to keep the smaller one around.

Big green egg all the way. These are som pork chops I was cooking while reading your post. Pricey, but think of it like an appliance.

[Skidmarx]

Is that the large size egg?

[EricAtl]

Is that the large size egg?

Medium. Big enough to cook a turkey, pork butts, and four steaks.

[dieselmike]

In college we had a house with 3 guys and 3 girls.

Are your Joey, Chandler or Ross? Seriously dude! You start a post like that and then proceed to talk about the the thermostat?

[thejosef]

...

BTW right now i have a weber kettle grill, the good old standby. i don't grill very often but about half the time i do we invite too many people or at least cook too much food. so i'm thinking about either upgrading to a larger charcoal burner or adding a gas grill. i know gas is anathema to many, but one of the advantages is that the wife might use it more. i try to convince her that lighting up a chimney full of charcoal for cooking dinner isn't a big deal, but even then there's the cleanup that she doesn't want to deal with.

do you guys think i should go with 2 grills, 1 gas/1charcoal or just go with one larger charcoal grill. if i got a larger one, it'd be kind of silly to keep the smaller one around.

1 gas, 1 charcoal is you have the funds & space. I have a gas Weber Genesis that has been excellent. I got a slightly upgraded model with stainless grates and burner covers and it's held up for 8 years now with no issues and it cleans up real nice. It's just so quick and convenient to get fired up. It gets used about 1-2x per week. That being said, every single person I talk to with a green egg or komado absolutely loves them. I would like one eventually, but it would probably get less use just cause the Weber is so easy..

[Cleveland33]

How heavy of a blanket are you guys sleeping under at 62 degrees in the summer? Don't lie

Either the top sheet or one of those microfleece blankets - I don't do it for warmth, I just like having something on top of me. I use the same in the winter too.

But it doesn't really matter either - from what I have read, to really get benefits from temperature swings on the thermostat, you need to move it at least 5 degrees. I have a heat pump though and it runs more efficiently if you leave the temp flat rather than make swings - especially in the winter, as any swing more than 2 degrees will run the auxiliary heat which costs an arm and a leg.

A cooling vest like one of those coolshirts save my life once. The Chilipad is worth every penny. They may be having a sale any day now. Got a watch out for something bi email from them.

I would hope so - jesus, $1,000 for the king? It may be worth it, my damn memory foam mattress is hot as hell.

[Bench905]

1 gas, 1 charcoal is you have the funds & space. I have a gas Weber Genesis that has been excellent. I got a slightly upgraded model with stainless grates and burner covers and it's held up for 8 years now with no issues and it cleans up real nice. It's just so quick and convenient to get fired up. It gets used about 1-2x per week. That being said, every single person I talk to with a green egg or komado absolutely loves them. I would like one eventually, but it would probably get less use just cause the Weber is so easy..

Same here - have a Weber and a komado. I love both, but the gas Weber gets used way more. Just way faster. If I get the luxury of time, I try to use the komado.

[Synthetickiller]

1 gas, 1 charcoal is you have the funds & space. I have a gas Weber Genesis that has been excellent. I got a slightly upgraded model with stainless grates and burner covers and it's held up for 8 years now with no issues and it cleans up real nice. It's just so quick and convenient to get fired up. It gets used about 1-2x per week. That being said, every single person I talk to with a green egg or komado absolutely loves them. I would like one eventually, but it would probably get less use just cause the Weber is so easy..

I have an acorn/komodo/egg grill. I don't remember brand as I haven't used it in forever. I remember it being really easy to use. I can't wait to fire it up again when I actually have my 3rd world problems fixed, lol.

In an attempt to cook here when it's not raining, I ordered a Kenyon Frontier electric grill. I have never been a fan of BBQing on anything bug charcoal/wood, but I really like this little guy. It's the only grill i've ever used that has a reservoir to steam whatever you're cooking. Nothing was ever dried out, even if I left meat on too long. You could add apple juice to add flavor to meat, sort of like marinading it. As much as it rains here, I figured it was a worth while investment. Also, when it's cold & damp. Who wants to go outside just to grill a burger or steak?






Speaking of gas, you buy propane or are you hooked up to the natural gas at your house?
My grandfather's last home had a small "T" that was set up to hook up a gas grill so he never needed to buy propane. I'm going to have my plumber do the same thing. Luckily, the NG hook up is on the other side of the corner by the patio. Seems like a good option if I want to do a ton of meat meal prep & don't feel like dealing with charcoal.

Which webber do you own?

[Bench905]

Speaking of gas, you buy propane or are you hooked up to the natural gas at your house?
My grandfather's last home had a small "T" that was set up to hook up a gas grill so he never needed to buy propane. I'm going to have my plumber do the same thing. Luckily, the NG hook up is on the other side of the corner by the patio. Seems like a good option if I want to do a ton of meat meal prep & don't feel like dealing with charcoal.

NG hookup is sweet. Some downsides are that you can't move the grill very far and resale value. Vast majority of gas grills are propane, Webers can't be converted (via an OEM kit anyway) and if you want to sell a NG grill, the market will be small. Big upside is never running out of fuel.

[Synthetickiller]

NG hookup is sweet. Some downsides are that you can't move the grill very far and resale value. Vast majority of gas grills are propane, Webers can't be converted (via an OEM kit anyway) and if you want to sell a NG grill, the market will be small. Big upside is never running out of fuel.

Thanks for the heads up. I had no idea. I never considered this to be an issue, lol.


I never consider resale value. Selling stuff around here never works out. People will say, "oh, that's a $500 grill, new, in good condition. I'll give you $20." This has been my experience for 20+ years doing yard sales & trying to get rid of things I don't use. People are so cheap in this State (not pointing the thejosef, lol, his high end choice in bars says otherwise!), I can't consider it as an option.


I see a bunch of really nice NG grills with really "nice" prices, lol. I'll have to do a bunch of research before even bothering with this.
Link for anyone curious: http://www.homedepot.com/b/Outdoors-...Rated_Sort%7C1

[a7stringkilla]

I just use a basic oak pit. We have two of these just in case we have a bunch of stuff to grill. We're looking into smokers too, and will probably be getting one soon.

I cant use gas because I always feel like its missing flavor. If I dont have time to get a fire going, Ill throw steaks or chicken in an iron skillet.

[thejosef]

NG hookup is sweet. Some downsides are that you can't move the grill very far and resale value. Vast majority of gas grills are propane, Webers can't be converted (via an OEM kit anyway) and if you want to sell a NG grill, the market will be small. Big upside is never running out of fuel.

Yeah mine has to move out from under patio when I grill so permanent hookup wasn't really an option. 'Unlimited' supply would be amazing though. SK, I have a Weber Genesis EP310. It's old now.. but still awesome. Just wish I would've got a side burner.

[dieselmike]

The idea that a NG grill can't be converted back to propane is complete BS. The manufacturers probably say this for liability issues.

Propane set ups use smaller orifices than NG where the gas enters the burner. So converting to NG is as simple as getting a NG regulator and drilling our the orifices (something a manufacturer would NEVER recommend).

Converting back to propane --- they all say this is not possible because you can't make a hole smaller in a tiny brass fitting. But you can buy replacement orifices made for propane. Many manufactures make conversion kits and for the ones that don't (yes, even Weber), there's a guy in FL that will sell you whatever you need for your set up.

http://www.grillparts.com/

Highly recommend this fella. very helpful.

[Synthetickiller]

Yeah mine has to move out from under patio when I grill so permanent hookup wasn't really an option. 'Unlimited' supply would be amazing though. SK, I have a Weber Genesis EP310. It's old now.. but still awesome. Just wish I would've got a side burner.

Yeah man! I hated having to run out for propane.
I think the simple act of cooking (besides clean air & water) is what I'm looking forward to the most.

The idea that a NG grill can't be converted back to propane is complete BS. The manufacturers probably say this for liability issues.

Propane set ups use smaller orifices than NG where the gas enters the burner. So converting to NG is as simple as getting a NG regulator and drilling our the orifices (something a manufacturer would NEVER recommend).

Converting back to propane --- they all say this is not possible because you can't make a hole smaller in a tiny brass fitting. But you can buy replacement orifices made for propane. Many manufactures make conversion kits and for the ones that don't (yes, even Weber), there's a guy in FL that will sell you whatever you need for your set up.

http://www.grillparts.com/

Highly recommend this fella. very helpful.

Dude, thanks for that link! I know there's a forum about buying & refurbing weber grills. That might be an option if I find someone selling one locally. On spread.

[Domicron]

Thanks for all the advice. too many to quote:

the BGE style cookers are interesting, but i'm not looking to drop that kind of cash yet. maybe after we rebuild our deck...

I've been thinking NG for a little while now; i really don't want to bother with propane tanks. I just hope the installation will be cheap. there is a gas line for the stove top located in a good spot for the gas plug. i'm hoping we can pull out 2 drawers and drill a hole in the exterior wall easily, then split the gas line and be done with it. not sure that's how things actually work, but not needing to run new pipe would be really great to save on cost.

if it's cost prohibitive, i'd rather just get a second, rectangular shaped grill similar to what A7 has.

in my fantasy world where i don't have to work 24/7 and i have time to actually live in my house and enjoy it, and i have the money to rebuild the deck and renovate the basement, i'll have a medium to large brick grill/pit on the lawn and a gas grill up on the deck. everyday cooking on the deck, charcoal when there's more people.

[Stasher1]

I have a pop-up camper with a couple bottles on it, so I always have spares...but it's still a PITA to have to swap bottles halfway thru grilling my steaks/burgers/sausages.

We have gas heat, hot water, and fireplace, so the next grill will be plumbed into the house gas line. I also need to pick up a small charcoal grill one of these days, just to change it up once in a while.

[Bench905]

the BGE style cookers are interesting, but i'm not looking to drop that kind of cash yet. maybe after we rebuild our deck...

I picked up an BGE knockoff at Costco for $399 last summer. It's a Pit Boss 24" Kamado. They get them in the Spring and list them for $599 and then usually start closing them out in July with the $200 price drop. Here's the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Pit-Boss-7124.../dp/B00XOV85ZY

Definitely happy with the purchase. I really could not justify spending $1k on an equivalent size BGE.

[Domicron]

I have a pop-up camper with a couple bottles on it, so I always have spares...but it's still a PITA to have to swap bottles halfway thru grilling my steaks/burgers/sausages.

We have gas heat, hot water, and fireplace, so the next grill will be plumbed into the house gas line. I also need to pick up a small charcoal grill one of these days, just to change it up once in a while.

i happen to love charcoal grilling. it's just that lately it feels like such an event to prep all the different meats and vegetables and stuff. we rarely just grill a few pieces for dinner.

part of the problem is that for steaks i actually find myself preferring a good old fashioned cast iron skillet half the time. the only downside with that is the smokiness of the house. a gas grill with a nice hot searing burner would help fix that. maybe i could get one with a side burner for a cast iron skillet as well?

I picked up an BGE knockoff at Costco for $399 last summer. It's a Pit Boss 24" Kamado. They get them in the Spring and list them for $599 and then usually start closing them out in July with the $200 price drop. Here's the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Pit-Boss-7124.../dp/B00XOV85ZY

Definitely happy with the purchase. I really could not justify spending $1k on an equivalent size BGE.

If i don't do gas, i think i'll try for one of these:



apparently they distribute to retailers in Cali, including costco, but otherwise have very cost prohibitive shipping costs. their website says limited availability to my costco locations so maybe i can get they to order me one.

the reason instead of the komado style is because on the 4th i've had good results sous vide cooking a bunch of the food and then just searing it on an open fire when people are ready. things like lamb chops, steaks, pork, etc. chicken wings this thing is nice because we can easily adjust the height to control heat and replace coals as needed...

with this style i think i'd be wasting a lot of the potential of the komado.

[chadsalt]

Any long range shooters in the crew? I'm trying my hand at it and looking for some advice or point me to a good forum on the subject. Everyone ones an expert, lol. I'm having problems at the 800 yd line.

[keyboardworkout]

Any long range shooters in the crew? I'm trying my hand at it and looking for some advice or point me to a good forum on the subject. Everyone ones an expert, lol. I'm having problems at the 800 yd line.

Palma Match?

I've been out of the game for a while.

I used to shoot in local long range matches using a .308 700 I built with a Mark 4 M3. I also built a 223 700 F Class rifle I played with for a while using 90 grain pills.

Every time I get something put together someone begs me for it and I give it to them. The .308 is now in the trunk of a patrol car in Tucson. I have a buddy who worked for McMillan way back in the 90s who has a full machine shop in his garage (instead of a gym like all of us). I go over there to do my machine work.