On the fence. Any issues with 340?

TKStormSmoker

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New to the forums here - and I'm on the fence between a 340 and 590. I like that the 340 is "portable" and leaning towards that one because it has a slightly smaller footprint. I'm also limited in space (small balcony) and the wife would like me to be able to move the smoker down to the garage when not being used. With two people, have yall been able to easily move this grill around with a full hopper?

Also...
I've seen some people complain about the shutdown cycle of the 340. Have any of yall had issues of the fire pot causing the auger / hopper to start smoking?
 
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I have had mine a year and I initially had wild temp swings but a change to Pitt Boss pellets fixed that. I found mine was hard to move around until I built and installed these handles. Otherwise I was taking mighty short steps. I initially made them so they'd swing down but when the hopper was full and I ran it down the ramp I use to get it off the patio it would tip away so I put a heavy duty self drilling screw in them to make them rigid. Yes, I've had smoke coming out the hopper after a hot(500*) shutdown. It's been advised here to bring it down to a lower temp before shutdown. It hasn't happened since I read that. Sounds like some stairs will be involved to move it down to the garage. My advice is to build or have built some handles like mine for each end. They wouldn't have to have the hinge function like mine which isn't being utilized anymore.
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I have no issues with cool down.
From what I read here it gets to temp much faster than the larger grills it also gets hotter. (Not as hot as a Bullseye). This is a fantastic and under rated grill.
 
I've had one auger fire, it was my 1st try at chicken. I had used something like 375 and shutdown directly from that temp. Since then I have turned the temp down to 225 at the end of a cook and shutdown after it gets to the lower temp. I've had no other occurrence.

I can move my grill okay on a solid surface, like the driveway. Moving it around the yard is tougher, have to go real slow. I think the wheels are too small for such. I think you'd be okay on a deck, but I've not tried it. Officially, you are supposed to fold it down to move it.
 
My 340 stays put on my patio, only getting moved around to clean the patio. I haven't had any fire issues to temp related problems. My typical cooks are less than 350, at most. This thing heats up quickly and holds temps well.
 
Even though the 340 is considered “portable”, I would not want to move it up and down stairs as a normal routine. It is still pretty heavy and a bit bulky, so it will be a PITA if you can’t leave it on the balcony.
Yeah I can imagine. We live in a community of town houses w/ a shared driveway alley thing. I've seen most people just grill / smoke in front of their garages so maybe we'll just do that to avoid having to move it all the time. I do like the idea of occasionally brining it to a friend's place or a park since my car has a 12v output in the back (and using a converter).
 
I have no issues with cool down.
From what I read here it gets to temp much faster than the larger grills it also gets hotter. (Not as hot as a Bullseye). This is a fantastic and under rated grill.
From what I read the 340 gets hot enough to sear, yes? Especially with the searing accessory? Buckeye eh? We're moving out of Ohio at the end of the month back to Texas which is when I'm looking to buy my first grill / smoker ever.
 
Sorry for late response, late baseball games this week.

The 340 can sear with grill grates. I figured a picture is worth 1000 words.

I think I had it 500 on back side of GG for 8 minutes. The meat was raw.
 

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Sorry for late response, late baseball games this week.

The 340 can sear with grill grates. I figured a picture is worth 1000 words.

I think I had it 500 on back side of GG for 8 minutes. The meat was raw.
That looks great! I see you used the grates flat side up.
 
I had a fire using the sear plates cooking burgers at 500. Partially (or maybe totally) my fault for not cleaning the drip pan 1st, so I just don't do burgers anymore on it. No damage from the fire.

The one thing that is misleading is the 340 sq inches of cooking space. The interior of the grill may be 340, but the cooking grate is only 300 and drip pan is about 250-260. So the true cooking area is about 75% of the 340. I bought the small shelf, primarily so I could cook a whole pound of bacon at once. Other than that, it mostly doesn't affect me.
 
I have had no issues besides a pellet jam here or there. I used all different kinds of pellets. It's just random. Unfortunately they have been on overnight cooks and even my alarm didnt wake me. Seems the app kinda farts out after a while and does not report. I'm assuming this can happen with any pellet grill. I'm very happy with mine. It is well worth the money. I live near the beach so rust is always a concern with grills. This thing has had no issues with rust for over a year now. I do keep it covered when not using it. My masterbuilt tower smoker thinking rusted out in a few months. The RecTec is doing better with rust than my f250 undercarriage. :confused:
 
I have had my 340 for a year and have exchanged the fire cover because of warping. Also a few weeks ago when cooking at 300 which was a first, the drain pan warped and was touching the grate. They replaced it and i have written on it a couple times but will do so no more. Seems like they do not want suggestions which could make it better and not warp but still use china metal and as long as that continues it will warp. I use it only for smoking meat, at 225, 235, 250 but it holds the temp. That is why I bought it but others are of better quality and after the warranty of july 2022 i will check them out. Give it a 70% satisfied.
 
The 340 produces excellent food! It is a bit on the smaller side but that definitely helps with high heat grilling. I’ve had mine up to 500 a couple times and the sear plates from “Grill Grates” get smoking hot (648F w/Infrared probe).

And yes! I’ve had auger/hopper smoke EACH TIME after shutdown. I figured I’d set it at 250 for a while before the shutdown but that’s. It enough apparently. Seems you really need to go to LO and let it run there until it actually comes down to that temp.
 
New to the forums here - and I'm on the fence between a 340 and 590. I like that the 340 is "portable" and leaning towards that one because it has a slightly smaller footprint. I'm also limited in space (small balcony) and the wife would like me to be able to move the smoker down to the garage when not being used. With two people, have yall been able to easily move this grill around with a full hopper?

Also...
I've seen some people complain about the shutdown cycle of the 340. Have any of yall had issues of the fire pot causing the auger / hopper to start smoking?
Have had mine for two seasons. Added a front shelf and all weather vents and a second shelf. I have done briskets and 3 racks of ribs. For me that is all I need. Has been flawless
 
Owned RT-300 for 4 years. Used frequently year around. No problems, always get excellent results. Had first problem last week (would not hold low temp-spiked 40-60 degrees). Fixed with 1 call to Rec-Tec; adjusted auger rate. Hold low temps perfectly again. Great service. If I was to buy a new smoker, I would get the 590 model to have room for bigger turkeys and more racks of ribs!
 
Have had mine for two seasons. Added a front shelf and all weather vents and a second shelf. I have done briskets and 3 racks of ribs. For me that is all I need. Has been flawless
What are "all weather vents"? I just pulled the trigger on a RT340 and it will be used in Midwest winters..so I would like to get it prepped for it. Thanks
 

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