Looking at getting into smoking foods. I know NOTHING about it and have been doing some research. What info I don’t have are what to look for and what not to look for in a smoker and what you guys are liking/disliking. Are there better sizes vs. others? Smaller vs larger? Thickness of metal? Insulated vs uninsulated?
Some things to consider:
1. Do you mind “babysitting” the smoker? If not you may want to consider the digital electric type of smoker. Obviously not a set it and forget it, but much less babysitting. 2. Outside temps when smoking? If you will only smoke during the summer months, probably don’t need an insulated smoker. Insulated helps keep temps even, but is much more necessary if you will be smoking something for Christmas dinner. 3. Do you have a source of wood? I’m not talking about chips for smoking, but the heat source. If not, you will probably want to look at the propane or electric smokers. 4. From personal experience (I will be getting a new one this year) know the size of the items that you will be smoking and get a smoker that will accommodate them. I smoke my deer summer sausage and the sticks are a little too long. Takes a lot longer when you have to do multiple batches. 5. Be patient, the end result is worth it.
JD
I am new to it also, but check out smokingmeatforums.com and there is more information there than you can digest. Everything from recipes to smokers and all in between. Good Luck! 
Wade, a couple of years ago I got a Materbuilt electric and I really like it. Mostly I smoke fish but have smoked up some pork loins and chops a few times. The electric is easy to use and mine came with a remote that is very handy to check the temp. I would also recommend getting a smoker that uses wood chips instead of the pucks because chips are more readily available. A built-in meat probe is also a great option. Cabelas has some of the Masterbuilt smokers on sale.
There are two forums for smoking meat. This is the better one(IMO) http://www.smoked-meat.com Just click on forum and there is an abundance of info there.
I have a electric Hollow Smoker for Gander-MT. I have done just about every store bought meat you can buy. I also smoke winter and summer. I like the electric because once you find the right temperate you can go about your business. The wife like it with a light smoke favoiter to the meat and not a heavy smoke. The only meat that I have not done is fish. I will have to try it this summer for sure. There is all kinds of rub to use also. It is just one of the things that you have to try for yourself. If you like ribs there is nothing better then to it yourself and have a few beers doing it. I think I bought my for less than 150.00 bucks. Go for it- – -you and the family will like it. 
[Insulated]
I agree with Dale. I have an electric Masterbuilt. They have several models to pick from that work great. Low maintenance and easy to use. You will love it. Way cheaper that going out for ribs and pulled pork.
I have had a couple different ones. Here are the pros/cons of each.
1. Off set fire box, barrell type. Heat source: charcoal. The nice thing what that it was easy to control temps and I could smoke large amounts of food at once.
Cons: Charcoal is not free and there is the babysitting factor, mentioned above. If memory serves correctly, I would have to add charcoal every 45 minutes.
2. Vertical water smoker, heat source: charcoal.
Pros: smoked meat tasted awesome. Great flavor without drying out the meat.
Cons: limited real estate for food. adding charcoal is even more inconvenient that with the off-set box.
3. Gas Grill. My favorite and the only one that I use. I will soak chunks of wood in water and then put them directly on the rocks.
1. Pros:
-once you have adjusted the gas and lid (I will prop the lid open a few inches) you really don’t have to do anything.
-If you add chunks of wood every 1.5 hours, you get the same great smoky flavor as the other minutes.
– You only need one outdoor cooking appliance (assuming you already have a gas grill)
Cons: I can’t think of any.
Amazing Ribs has a great breakdown of different smoker types and reviews. Gas, electric, charcoal all have their strengths and weaknesses. IMO there is no such thing as the perfect smoker. I have a masterbuilt currently that I got on sale at Tractor Supply for $150. Digital control and insulated. Gets the job done. My next electric one will be a cookshack. For charcoal ones, a green egg is hard to beat. Here is a link to the Amazing Ribs reviews. That website has a wealth of information about everything to do with smoking food.
X2 on Amazing Ribs sight!
There is no reason to buy a dedicated smoker just to get your feet wet. I say get createive and get started.
If you have a Weber kettle-style charcoal grill, you can (and I do!) use it as a smoker. It works great. You cannot achieve true cold smoking results, but almost none of the small home commercial smokers can do that anyway.
If you want to test drive this method, reply and I’ll post details for either ribs or brisket that will be so good you will openly weep tears of tastebud joy.
My father uses the Weber to smoke venison roasts and they come out tasting like the finest ham. It is amazing. Oh, and young turkeys! Gawd! We brought some 10 pound turkeys out to a rancher as a thank you gift for letting us hunt. The family of 6 sat down and demolished one turkey at lunch.
You can also go on the internet and google “cardboard box smoker” and the like and you will find out how to turn a large cardboard box into a perfectly serviceable smoker. Strange, but true. Jeff, the Long Term Lurker on this forum has done so and achieved excellent results on some steelhead (clipped fish, I hasten to add).
Grouse
I’ve been smoking a lot of different things – for a long time now and I’m exactly with Mr. Schultz. I’ve been through 3 other smokers up to the Masterbuilt. Cookshak is next. Nobody has talked about cold heat/smoke. If you want to do something cold-smoked, gas and most electric won’t do it. In most cases, they won’t ignight the wood at less than 160. You just can’t get smoke from them. Some of the gas smokers won’t get or stay cool enough to smoke whatever you’re doing for longer periods of time either. They just get/stay too warm and cook the food too fast.
….Just my thoughts. Like previously stated, there are pro’s and con’s to all the varieties. Good luck – and choose wisely.
I took the leap for a pellet grill/smoker. A bit spendy, but worth every penny. It’s amazing. Traeger or Green Mountain. Very similar. Both incredible.
I currently have a masterbuilt from Fleet Farm but am not too impressed. Has a thermocouple and temperature control dial on the front (low medium high). The thermocouple is located at the bottom of the unit close to the burner, so shuts off before any wood smoke really gets started. I have to leave the door open a crack to allow cold air into the chamber to keep the unit smoking and then it works.
I set the wood box directly on the burner to get sufficient smoke. I like the front access to the racks, but this unit is a piece of junk in terms of functionality. I will cut a hole in the bottom to attempt to bring air flow to the thermocouple to get the burner to stay on longer with door closed to hold in the heat.
Prior to this I had an electric tube or barrel type smoker which I liked a lot. It had good temperature to generate smoke, but problem with it was that the racks were accessed through the top of the unit and one had to stick their head into the top of the unit to access the meat and I would end up as smokey as the meats I was processing! The recommendation for that unit was to distribute the wood around the burner but that never worked well, so I put a small steel bread pan onto the burner and covered it with some aluminum wrap with holes poked into it to generate smoke. That worked well.
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