Looftlighter is a must!

khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

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They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

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Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

techno-ag said:

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khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

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They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

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Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

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I think it's metal rather than ceramic.

schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

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They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

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Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

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I think it's metal rather than ceramic.

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Does that affect the flavor or anything?

techno-ag said:

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schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

---

They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

---

Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

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I think it's metal rather than ceramic.

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Does that affect the flavor or anything?

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as I understand it, the main draw of the kamado is the heat holding and insulative properties of the ceramic material itself. I don't know that metal can reproduce those characteristics.

schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

---

They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

---

Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

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I think it's metal rather than ceramic.

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Does that affect the flavor or anything?

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as I understand it, the main draw of the kamado is the heat holding and insulative properties of the ceramic material itself. I don't know that metal can reproduce those characteristics.

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It does pretty dang good for the price point. And now that they appear to offer a 5 yr "rust warranty", I'm tempted to buy another one. My only complaint about my old one was that it only lasted 3.5 yrs.

AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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Just saw the video on their website. That **** looks amazing! Does it really work that well? Too bad it has a cord.

03_Aggie said:

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schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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schmendeler said:

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techno-ag said:

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khkman22 said:

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TX_AG_10 said:

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I know it's not a KJ or BGE, but Amazon is having a deal on the CharGriller Akorn Kamado cooker. It's close in size to the large BGE and it's $260 via Prime.

http://a.co/h6yV3BA

---

They are matching Home Depot's price. May be easier to pick it up if it is in stock at your store.

---

Is the Akorn worth it? Anybody got one? How does it compare?

---

I think it's metal rather than ceramic.

---

Does that affect the flavor or anything?

---

as I understand it, the main draw of the kamado is the heat holding and insulative properties of the ceramic material itself. I don't know that metal can reproduce those characteristics.

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It does pretty dang good for the price point. And now that they appear to offer a 5 yr "rust warranty", I'm tempted to buy another one. My only complaint about my old one was that it only lasted 3.5 yrs.

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what happened to it in 3.5 years?!

Stored it in saltwater, obviously.

agcrock2005 said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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Just saw the video on their website. That **** looks amazing! Does it really work that well? Too bad it has a cord.

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Ive had mine for a couple months and it works great. I can get my Egg up to 400 degree grilling temp in about 15 minutes with used lump and about 20 with fresh.

There are some cordless competitors, but they had drawbacks to me more than a cord. The Bison uses fuel so you need that on hand. The Fi-Air seemed pretty wimpy to me and needs batteries. I have power right by my egg table so the looftlighter was perfect.

aTm2004 said:

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Stored it in saltwater, obviously.

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apparently

A few of the brackets rusted out to the point I decided it was best to wheel it out to the curb while it was still in good enough shape that somebody might take it as opposed to having it fall a part in the driveway. Admittedly I left it outside uncovered for most of its life. Grease, ash and water can make pretty quick work of them.

I think they cook just fine and are almost as efficient as the ceramics (may have to tweak the vents a couple of times). The longevity, or lack thereof, was the only thing that gave me pause about buying another one.

my weber Q grill is going on 10 years now and the only thing I've replaced is the cast iron grill grates that got rusty. that doesn't sound great.

agcrock2005 said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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Just saw the video on their website. That **** looks amazing! Does it really work that well? Too bad it has a cord.

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It's amazing... I just use a long extension cord to make it long enough to where i setup my BGE for cooking.

I bought it because I'd never used one and wasn't sure I want to drop a $1000+ on a ceramic. I have since purchased another Akorn it just wasn't for my house. I bought one for my in-laws lake house because it won't get used as much and will be stored under a patio.

It's been a year since I wheeled it out to the curb and I haven't replaced it because I can't decide to buy another Akorn or pony up for the ceramic. I don't have a permanent spot for a ceramic and I fear breaking it if I move if frequently. Part of me says five years of use out of a $300 grill is pretty dang good.

Can't speak for KJ's customer service but BGE has been great to me... I cracked my firebox when i moved it from my in-laws house to mine. It was replaced no questions asked. I was able to get the replacement part from a BGE retailer immediately no shipping or anything

agcrock2005 said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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Just saw the video on their website. That **** looks amazing! Does it really work that well? Too bad it has a cord.

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They are amazing. Way better than the old electric charcoal starters.

On a side note make sure that you follow the instructions... The aluminum shroud will in fact melt if you keep in in the fire after it gets going. (My dad offered to light the pit and I thought it was fairly self explanatory... I was wrong.)

Why don't you guys use a propane torch or a mapp torch instead of a looftlighter?

reddog90 said:

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Why don't you guys use a propane torch or a mapp torch instead of a looftlighter?

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I went with the looftlighter because I never have to worry about any supplies to operate it. Just plug it in.

I'm moving and selling my Akorn for $100 for anybody interested.
https://texags.com/forums/50/topics/2855392

Dr. Venkman said:

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I'm moving and selling my Akorn for $100 for anybody interested.
https://texags.com/forums/50/topics/2855392

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Interested in it

Just throwing this in here, I bought Primo Ceramic Grill and have had no regrets. Do yourself a favor and check them out before you make any purchase. Great way to get a good deal here as well.

Primo's Website

My website - contact for custom pricing

reddog90 said:

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Why don't you guys use a propane torch or a mapp torch instead of a looftlighter?

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I tried using a mapp torch but it causes a lot of sparks to shoot all over the place. Im guessing because it superheats any moisture remaining in the charcoal.

Tx-Ag2010 said:

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reddog90 said:

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Why don't you guys use a propane torch or a mapp torch instead of a looftlighter?

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I tried using a mapp torch but it causes a lot of sparks to shoot all over the place. Im guessing because it superheats any moisture remaining in the charcoal.

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I don't use a MAPP torch any more because I have 10 empty bottles collecting. I don't use quicklights because they run out. I found the looftghter is the best for me.

Tx-Ag2010 said:

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agcrock2005 said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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Just saw the video on their website. That **** looks amazing! Does it really work that well? Too bad it has a cord.

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They are amazing. Way better than the old electric charcoal starters.

On a side note make sure that you follow the instructions... The aluminum shroud will in fact melt if you keep in in the fire after it gets going. (My dad offered to light the pit and I thought it was fairly self explanatory... I was wrong.)

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Bought one today...don't like idea of having to plug it in but considering the price and reviews, it must be good. Will give it a test run tomorrow!

AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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do you folks just love extension cords and plugging things in that you can't get too close to the fire spewing out of them or they'll melt?

MAPP Torch or bust...

TXAGFAN said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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do you folks just love extension cords and plugging things in that you can't get too close to the fire spewing out of them or they'll melt?

MAPP Torch or bust...

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do you just love having to keep canisters around that just get empty and then having to refill them or get new ones?

never filling up canisters or bust...

I may have to try the looftlighter. I've been using a product called "woolywood" as charcoal starters and they work great but are kind of expensive for a bag of them.

schmendeler said:

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TXAGFAN said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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do you folks just love extension cords and plugging things in that you can't get too close to the fire spewing out of them or they'll melt?

MAPP Torch or bust...

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do you just love having to keep canisters around that just get empty and then having to refill them or get new ones?

never filling up canisters or bust...

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I'll admit...I'm not too happy about the cord because I don't have an outlet close but I'm having outdoor kitchen built this Thursday so I'm damn sure going to have an outlet put next to the Primo so I don't have to use an extension cord. Can't wait to try this thing. Idea of not having to burn some sort of chemical fire starter and also having red hot coals in less than a minute is pretty awesome. Not sure I'll ever use the gas grill I'm having put in though if I can get the charcoal grill heated up in about the same amount of time.

FIL has a gas grill and a BGE in his outdoor kitchen, the Gas Grill gets used for stuff you want to throw on quickly ie Hamburgers/Hot Dogs

agcrock2005 said:

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schmendeler said:

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TXAGFAN said:

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AdamsBQ06 said:

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Looftlighter is a must!

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do you folks just love extension cords and plugging things in that you can't get too close to the fire spewing out of them or they'll melt?

MAPP Torch or bust...

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do you just love having to keep canisters around that just get empty and then having to refill them or get new ones?

never filling up canisters or bust...

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I'll admit...I'm not too happy about the cord because I don't have an outlet close but I'm having outdoor kitchen built this Thursday so I'm damn sure going to have an outlet put next to the Primo so I don't have to use an extension cord. Can't wait to try this thing. Idea of not having to burn some sort of chemical fire starter and also having red hot coals in less than a minute is pretty awesome. Not sure I'll ever use the gas grill I'm having put in though if I can get the charcoal grill heated up in about the same amount of time.

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Every third cook or so will take a while to light. I load up my charcoal ring to the top with fresh lump and can get three normal grill sessions out of it. The first one will take a while longer to come to temp, but the next two heat up quickly. This method has also helped with cleaning out the ash. I burn through almost all those coals then just rake everything out into the shop-vac.

MemAg92 said:

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I may have to try the looftlighter. I've been using a product called "woolywood" as charcoal starters and they work great but are kind of expensive for a bag of them.

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This is why I looked at torches or electric lighters. Fire starters really start to add up, especially if you are grilling 3-5 times a week. Plus you have to keep a lighter around to start the things.

I cook a lot with my egg and have purchased maybe one or two cans of fuel? I keep an extra on hand just like I do with lump and some fire starters too in case the minimax does travel duty.

Broke in the new KJ with a couple of quick grills this week (one of which was in the pouring rain while watching the early signs of a tornado pass over).





Tried to get the KJ to settle in at 375F, and overshot both nights, but I've been able to reign it in around 390.

Tonight I'll prep an 8lb Boston Butt I picked up for smoking tomorrow. Seems like parties are split between wrapping it in foil once it reaches 165 versus leaving it open and spraying with liquid to keep it moist... Guess I'll decide when I get there.