Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2018 7:54 am
Looks like a nice smoker, good look with it and happy eating!
Friendly forums dedicated to BBQ for those who like to talk about Texas BBQ.
https://www.texasbbqforum.com/
This is one of 4 smokers that I have. This is a Horizon (30").
I've got a Durango 24" underneath that tarp over there. It's a Yoder Durango 24". I have a Yoder Frontiersman as well, and a Lone Star Grillz vertical offset. And this is, as far as construction is concerned, the most crude of the smokers. The welds on the Yoders and Lone Star Grillz are extraordinary. Not that this is bad, but it's just not quite as refined. These guys are a little slap shot dealing with and everything. It took quite a bit longer to get the cooker than promised. It was poorly packaged for shipping when they sent it freight. It arrived badly damaged so it had to go back to the manufacturer for a lot of repairs. When it showed up again it was in great shape.
But, all that aside, this is probably the best cooking smoker I have. The firebox is set a little bit lower on this than on the Yoders. The Yoders backdraft awfully, and whenever you open the door you just get a face full of smoke. And they cook well, but this one's just a lot nicer to use.
slamkeys wrote:I just ran across a new video from February this year that highlights a Horizon 30" Marshal smoker. It's relevant to the Yoder discussion because this guy owns 2 big Yoders, 1 LSG, and the Horizon, which he says is "one of my favorite smokers," and "it seems to draw pretty well." He compares the build quality of the smokers and dings Horizon for late delivery and poor packaging for shipping, but then talks about how awfully the Yoders backdraft. This proves once again, it isn't pretty welds that make a good cooker - it's the design.
[url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlhAozEREVA[/url]
At about 5:30 into the video, he says the following:This is one of 4 smokers that I have. This is a Horizon (30").
I've got a Durango 24" underneath that tarp over there. It's a Yoder Durango 24". I have a Yoder Frontiersman as well, and a Lone Star Grillz vertical offset. And this is, as far as construction is concerned, the most crude of the smokers. The welds on the Yoders and Lone Star Grillz are extraordinary. Not that this is bad, but it's just not quite as refined. These guys are a little slap shot dealing with and everything. It took quite a bit longer to get the cooker than promised. It was poorly packaged for shipping when they sent it freight. It arrived badly damaged so it had to go back to the manufacturer for a lot of repairs. When it showed up again it was in great shape.
But, all that aside, this is probably the best cooking smoker I have. The firebox is set a little bit lower on this than on the Yoders. The Yoders backdraft awfully, and whenever you open the door you just get a face full of smoke. And they cook well, but this one's just a lot nicer to use.
Horizon 30" Marshal:
[img]https://i.imgur.com/y4iXZpp.jpg[/img]
freddie987 wrote:Have a look at 5:10 into the video. That corner of the cook chamber door is sitting so far off the cooker body that you wouldn’t need to open the door to remove the brisket you could just slide the brisket through that door gap. That workmanship would drive me crazy
It's hard to resist when Joe Phillips acted as if he never heard a single complaint before now. This latest video is just another example of a Yoder customer who "learned his cookers" and ultimately learned the Yoders have awful backdraft issues, but I'd bet he never called Yoder and voiced his concern. In the eyes of Yoder, he's just another satisfied customer with no complaints.Dirty Dawg wrote:Annnnnd once again, Slamkeys demonstrates he hates Yoder smoker.
Just couldn’t let be be, could you? No, in fact, just no.
In the eyes of Yoder, he's just another satisfied customer with no complaints.
But, honest feedback (even when negative) is the core of any review system, and Yoder has absolutely rejected any negative feedback on their store front. It's 5 out of 5 stars or the feedback is rejected. That isn't right, and forces people to leave feedback elsewhere or not be heard. I don't agree that negative feedback gets more attention. I typically see many more positive reviews for good products and they always outweigh a couple of disgruntled customers. However, when a product has real issues you'll see higher numbers of negative reviews, and that is valuable feedback that can eventually lead to product improvements when the company realizes their product doesn't meet expectations.Dirty Dawg wrote:Just as you are another dissatisfied customer; the difference is you’ve decided to claim the soapbox as your own. I see this no differently than negative reviews on any other platform, they typically garner far more attention than they’ve a right to claim and are often posted by someone with an axe to grind.
I've been working 7 day weeks for several months now so I haven't had any time for long cooks, but hopefully I'll get some free time after we finish our current firmware release next month. I do enjoy cooking on it now that I can focus on cooking. Anyone how owns a steel smoker knows there is some TLC involved unless you want to end up with a rusted out hunk of metal. The whole process involves quite a bit of planning and work, so you don't take it on lightly - it's an investment of your time. That reminds me, I need to order some more Yoder touch-up paint.Dirty Dawg wrote:Do you ever cook on that thing or do you spend your time polishing, cleaning, scrutinizing and designing improvements?
But, honest feedback (even when negative) is the core of any review system, and Yoder has absolutely rejected any negative feedback on their store front. It's 5 out of 5 stars or the feedback is rejected. That isn't right, and forces people to leave feedback elsewhere or not be heard. I don't agree that negative feedback gets more attention. I typically see many more positive reviews for good products and they always outweigh a couple of disgruntled customers. However, when a product has real issues you'll see higher numbers of negative reviews, and that is valuable feedback that can eventually lead to product improvements when the company realizes their product doesn't meet expectations.
I'm left handed myself, and so is my wife and our 2 boys. Lots of lefties over here, and I've definitely learned to adapt to right-handed products over the years. I had to use a right-handed violin in school, and then took up right-handed guitar. I also use right-handed scissors, computer mouse, and shotguns or rifles (tricky because I shoot lefty and the shells eject in front of my face). Nobody is in their right mind at my house.
Aside from saying Yoder isn't part of the problem, that's a very good synopsis of what has evolved during the discussion here, and nobody has tried to hide their feelings. What started out as a personal discovery of quality and performance issues, led to a host of past and present customers chiming in via posts and PMs here and on other forums, and eventually an astonishing level of cover-up by Yoder via bizarre training videos, blaming customers, deleting or rejecting customer feedback, and finally some public statements about listening to customers and making plans for improvements that ultimately fizzled and ended with a renewed campaign led by Yoder Herb stating that nothing will change because their cookers work as designed. In addition, all inquiries about issues on their forum are now being handled via telephone so there are no public discussions for potential buyers to read.Dirty Dawg wrote:So, you feel like Yoder has slighted you and has deceived hundreds, likely thousands, of their customers? Maybe Yoder isn’t the problem. Maybe it’s time to admit you have a problem with Yoder, beyond how they designed their cookers?
Aside from saying Yoder isn't part of the problem, that's a very good synopsis of what has evolved during the discussion here, and nobody has tried to hide their feelings. What started out as a personal discovery of quality and performance issues, led to a host of past and present customers chiming in via posts and PMs here and on other forums, and eventually an astonishing level of cover-up by Yoder via bizarre training videos, blaming customers, deleting or rejecting customer feedback, and finally some public statements about listening to customers and making plans for improvements that ultimately fizzled and ended with a renewed campaign led by Yoder Herb stating that nothing will change because their cookers work as designed. In addition, all inquiries about issues on their forum are now being handled via telephone so there are no public discussions for potential buyers to read.
The fact that you can overlook all that and find fault with the messengers (I'm not alone in this) is disheartening. Doesn't it bother you at all that the guy in the last video spent near $15,000 on 2 Yoder smokers only to discover they had awful backdraft issues? Remember, he came to that conclusion with no help from me. What about the guy who needs a fan to keep his Kingman flowing? He also came up with that idea on his own. I'll bet they both wish they had known about the backdrafting/smoldering issues before they laid down their cash. These discussions are helpful in my opinion.
I have also expressed many times that I'm looking for a replacement smoker, but I'm sort of waiting for Franklin's new smoker line to be released before I make a decision. If they get rave reviews, then I might just add my name to the waiting list and end up with a smoker that uses an open door for venting - now that would be ironic.