So… how does the Weber SmokeFire V2 Pellet Grill stack up against the first-gen model? Chef Tony — our professional grill maniac — explains Weber’s revisions that breathe new life into their pellet grill line. We asked our in-house expert to research the shortcomings of the older version, scrutinize its construction quality, chase down its predecessors’s flaws and recent fixes… and even run rounds after round of performance-heavy smoking sessions! (Just look at that juicy spread of flame-kissed burgers.) After all his rigorous testing based upon quality, performance, and features, what does the chef’s professional wisdom tell him?
In short: his Weber SmokeFire II testing gave him none of the headaches of the first model. But we still encourage you to watch the video anyway. (We worked double-time on this one!) See those sizzling burgers in action, and we think you’ll come around to Weber’s hard work here. We encourage you to look at the second generation Weber SmokeFire with fresh eyes; just like Chef Tony, practically any pellet griller on the planet can soar with this smoker.
Weber SmokeFire Gen 2 Pellet Grill Expert Review:
Weber SmokeFire Wood Fired Pellet Grills:
Intro: 0:00
Quality: 0:17
Performance: 2:06
Features: 6:43
Recap: 8:33
Since its founding in 1998, BBQGuys® has helped more than 850,000 customers nationwide achieve their outdoor living dreams. The company based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, offers an industry-leading selection of grills, BBQ smokers, and outdoor living products, along with expert opinions and a free outdoor kitchen design service.
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Chef Tony Matassa grew up in the restaurant business, starting in his family’s New Orleans eatery before running one of his own. No wonder he has such vast knowledge of and passion for food science, which he puts to use every day as our jack-of-all-trades (and master of many). Longtime fans of the channel know Tony has been testing grills for more than 10 years, though we’re partial to his performance in our recent Grillabilities℠ series.
Featuring: Tony Matassa
Filmed/Produced by: Sean Richardson
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This grill has out preformed my expectations. I've only had it about a month https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugkx3c8DmtYRYEKYTiR4g7y6Yc2amUPVs_3X and have used it many times since from hamburgers and hotdogs to smoked ribs and Boston butt. I would definitely recommend this grill for anyone it's a great starter grill if you are not familiar with pellet grills. Easy assembly and temperature control is great
You did not mention the introduction of smoke wood; ie – hickory, cherry, etc. is this doable?
Have the “Guys” done an evaluation of the new smokefire stealth? Is is a Gen 3? Is the the stealth just a blacked out variant? If a Gen 3, what improvements over the Gen 2?
I have been researching pellet smokers for about a week now, don't know a lot about them but definitely learning. Reviews are all over the board, a moving target difficult to bring into focus. I am a Weber guy and have been for over 25 years, I've even bought them for my two kids and they too love them. I was thrilled to see that Weber actually had a pellet smoker, I did not know that. The thing I cannot get my head around is how the hell can a company as big as Weber, and as experienced as Weber when it comes to outdoor cooking, even introduce a product with the issues that are as prevalent as they are in the Gen 1!!!????? Did the entire R & D division all decide to just "wing" it collectively? Do they not have enough experienced staff to actually COOK on the product? Did they just think the product looked so good and had the Weber name that it would magically perform as expected? I just cannot for the life of me understand how such a disfunctional product could have actually made it into production AND into the retail market from Weber without someone, ANYONE, finding or experiencing these glaring issues. My kettle and two gas grills are just fantastic, had them for years, cook on one of them at least once a week, mostly twice. I'm mind blown about this and hesitant to pull the trigger on a Weber pellet grill, even the V2 because of it. Still looking and researching here in Florida …………………..
I've had my Smokefire since February of 2020. I've upgraded the system, so it's essentially a Gen 2. Love my Smokefire. I also love Weber's Customer Service. They've been great.
I just bought the Gen 2 stealth version. it has a big con as far as the grease drain and grease fires but normal maintenance will fix that. Some notes. 20 lb pellet capacity is more than enough for any low and slow. Note using cheap softer (less dense) pellets will make a difference on how long the 20 lbs will last. More denser pellets will burn longer and thus last longer. Checking the box every 8 – 10 hours normal and is not an issue because everyone reloads pellets when it gets low low especially when it tells you it is low 🙂
I’m not even done watching this review and I love how you explain stuff and why. So far, best review I have ever seen on YouTube. Nice job!
Would you prefer the timberline or the weber smokefire?
Do you work for the company that sells them. 😂 of course is good! 🤣 Maybe the 3rd gen will be better than gen 2 with Band-Aid.
This thing is still junk. Fix the grease pan
Hey mate. Did you personally cook on it? Looking to get another pellet smoker and gathering data. Thanks.
i own over 26 bbqs they all have hot and cold spots. not an issue with me. i have a pit boss. i all ways have to move around the pellets on it also so thats not an issue either. i am a pit boss i never leave my pits unattended. been bbqing for over 45 years. i have a nice chair i sit in.
I looked at one of these today at the local hardware store. I'll have to check and see if it was the Gen 2.
The first version was such a dumpster fire. Not sure I can justify putting any money into this
Worse purchase I ever made nothing but issues with my ex6 Gen 2
Did you say the temp was off 85 degrees? Dude, that’s a lot.
does it do direct flame if you put it on max at 600F?
I am glad I waited for Gen 2. I feel bad for those who had the gen one issues. I have had few issues, but definitely within the range of issues you can expect with any grill, regardless of type.
I love Weber grills. I have 40 years of experience with them. I couldn't say a bad word about them… until now.
My wife bought me the Gen 2 Smokefire. Just put it together yesterday and attempted to season it today.
On the first attempt, the grill made it to 400F, then smoke started to pour out of the pellet hopper. I poked around the pellets in the hopper and a bunch of them dropped down into the auger feed. Then, the temperature started to drop, and eventually, the grill went into automatic shut-down because the fire went out. I let the unit cool down, cleaned out the firepot, and tried again.
On the second attempt, the grill only went up to about 200F and went into shut-down mode. I let it cool down until the app told me it was OK to power off.
I then took everything out of the cooking pot, thoroughly cleaned the burn pot, emptied the pellet hopper, blew out the auger tube with compressed air, vacuumed out all of the ash, and unburned pellets from the bottom of the cooking pot and the grease tray and then made my third attempt at seasoning the grill.
Third attempt…ditto second attempt. At this point, I just allowed the unit to cool, powered down, unplugged, and covered to protect from expected showers.
I don't want to deal with this thing anymore. I'm calling Weber on Monday morning and looking into returning this poor excuse for a grill for a refund. I'll base my future opinion of Weber on how they deal with this.
I don't want to hate on Weber. I have a 12-year-old Weber Spirit gas grill that still operates and cooks perfectly. I've replaced parts here and there over the years, but that's to be expected because I use it a lot.
I have a WSM I bought used from a neighbor. It heats up quickly and once you get the air vents adjusted, it holds temperature rock solid and smokes to perfection.
I've literally taken Weber grills out of the trash and used them for years with no issues.
Everybody fucks up. I'm cool with that, but I'm counting on Weber to do the right thing… We shall see.
If i buy one of these will it be a gen2? Or do they still sell gen1?
I was one of the Lucky / Dumb ones that bought the Gen1. For the first 3 months absolutely no issues. I am away from home for months at a time so when I would come home and use it there would be a glitch here and there not too big a deal Then the last time I was home every problem it could have it had… flame ups, No feed , over feed , over feed and flame up, damn near burned something down. Then the glow plug quit and it would not light at all. I went to the store and bought a Traeger( by the way it works perfectly). But when I came back to work I got in touch with weber and to their credit they are sending me the parts to upgrade it to Gen 2. But I will probally keep the Traeger and sell the weber if anyone will buy it. Although I am a Weber fan and I love the larger size that it is and when it works it is awesome. But I know the traeger works flawlessly and when I come home I can cook with out having to consatntly fiddle with a very expensive Smoker. JMO To anyone thats interested and near Baton Rouge, there will be a deeply discounted Weber Smoke fire for sale in about a month 🙂
I've owned the Traeger Timberline 850 for about 6 months now and despite getting a second grill sent as a replacement, I keep having paint issues on the back of the grill which I just found unacceptable for a grill that costs 1800$. The replacement grill they sent, started having paint issues just by doing the grill seasoning alone. Ultimately I had no choice but to returning the grill and I'm now on the market for something else. This one seems like a good one. The only downside, if it can even be called that, is that the Timberline has much thicker, stainless steel grills. Are there any other things that you guys would point out comparing the two?
I was sold a Gen 2, but was actually given a Gen 1 with upgrades made to it. The upgrades are to do with an insert in the hopper that has a steeper angle (which reduces capacity), and a new auger unit. Supposedly new software. But nothing in regards to the ash/grease issue. The "full width grease/ash drawer" hasn't changed at all. My experience after 6 cooks is that almost zero grease ever makes it into the pan. It ends up in the bottom of the grill as a mixture of grease and ash, and becomes a thick sludge. I clean after every cook, but because of the sludge, each clean is a complete pain. So regarding the "elephant in the room", it appears they ignored it entirely. I fail to see how anyone can cook with the grill, and not experience the grease/ash issue. On everything from burgers, to low and slow roasts, to spare ribs, the same thing happens everytime. The only exception was when I did Polish Sausages, but that was because they didn't drip at all. On one roast, I even put a drip pan under it, but the results were the same. I'm still only 1/3 into my 100 day trial, and I'm really trying to like it, and some parts I love, but others are so far deal killers for me.
I purchased the SmokeFire 6 (Gen 1) in August of 2020. The only serious issue was over heating. I set the temp for 200 and got 350- 500. Starting over from scratch I ended up with the same results. After trading emails with Weber they sent me the rebuild kit to upgrade. I didn't get around to it till the Spring but got it done. I took a few hours to replace everything but it wasn't difficult. After downloading the newest firmware the unit runs great. It heats up quickly and the temp control seems on point. Before the revision I has issues with ash blowing around during Shut down but that seems to be resolved too. My only remaining gripe is the display. It gets hard to read the LCD when the smoker is setting under the hot Las Vegas sun. Guess it's time to build a cover to protect this monster grill!
Love the legalese “I didn’t have any issues……but there were a ton of reports ….but I didn’t experience that” caveat to preface this video LOL
85 degree difference isn’t material?? Is that a serious statement?
Looks much larger than a weber 210e.
But the dimensions say different..
If it i smaller I'm very interested!
There is a reason they are marked down, no one wants them with all the fires and pellet feeding problems.
I own one and i grill a lot, i really don’t understand how you don’t see the feeding problem. It fucks up almost every time i heat it up. It’s annoying as fuck. I already tried using other high quality pellets but they made it worse and its not able to reach higher temps with them. So you have to constantly check the pellets for bridges. Besides that i like what it can do. Would i buy it a second time? No there are others that can do it better i guess
Grll is a beast ,just like any other grill keep it clean and you won’t get any flare ups .
What is Weber design a SmokeFire Gen3. This woold be a model for smoking with a firebox on the side, collector with a stack.
I'm a little concern about the oil and grease dripping down and it does not have a plate that catches the grease and oil that would drain into a catch cup. Wouldn't this grill be harder to clean? Thanks for the video and I'm into purchasing a smoker grill because I have a built in gas grill.
Pit boss 1600 or Weber XSmokeFire EX6 (2nd Gen)
A little to little .. very Chinese cost cutting made. A $500 if that pellet grill sold for $1,200. Traeger Pro 780 is a much better choice.
he forgot one major point and what I consider a major issue with this grill. Weber opted to use the flavorizer bars so don;'t have the pan below the grill. SO CLEANUP IS A JOKE ;..How come this guy failed to mention this ? that was one of the biggest issues.Just ask Harry SOO. he said cleanup is a bitch and keeps pans under all his cooks .lol Did you get this grill for free from WEBER?
Glad to hear the Gen 2 makes the grade.
This really sounds like he was paid by Weber I would really like to see some one actually use the grill for a year
Great review – I'm just researching wood pellet/charcoal grills for my next purchase – it would have been great to have a bit more detail on the capabilities of the grill, particularly on the smoking side of the cook. Thanks!
But what did they do the solve the grease fire/ash problem? From what I’ve seen the grill has the same grease management system as the first gen version which was notorious for having grease fires.
REALLY glad they made all of the improvements with the 2nd gen. I was extremely saddened to hear about the issues with Gen 1, but now I am very excited to get my hands on this.
I wanted to see more of the grill in action, instead I see a good looking fella's face talking.
Thank you for the good non bias review. Looked at one these yesterday at a local hardware store I’ll just have make sure it’s a gem 2 if it is I’ll be smokin next weekend!
How to tell if its a gen1 vs gen2..?
Even in a oven the temperature is an average. The true temp is different almost always
thanks for the video. this single handedly helped me make my decision between the 20 different ones I'm looking at?!! i trust this brand as elite
Excellent review!! Thanks
Gen 2 still has issues, my power cord has fallen out for no reason, right now I’m waiting for it to shutdown because of a flame out… even though I literally just cleaned out the smoker… I wish I had gone with a Traeger instead
I have a Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker 22". When I found out Weber was making a pellet grill I had to check it out. My favorite thing to smoke is brisket, which take 10-12 hours. Sounds like the 8 hour low-and-slow cook time falls short, but is good for everything else. Although the short smoke time could easily be fixed by refilling the hopper once.
Have you ever tried a Mak pellet smoker?