Bull What A Newbie Needs to Know...

[CurtisK]

I’m on my second recteq now and I’ve learned a lot from the first one.
1) Don’t but the recteq ultimate blend pellets from Amazon. Recteq no longer makes these pellets so the ones from Amazon are very old and caused temp swings and flame outs.
2) If you want to keep the stainless drum clean around the edges of the lid, seal the lid with lava lock high-temp grill gasket.
3) Keep a close eye on fatty meats being cooked at high temp to prevent fire. My first grill caught fire and I didn’t catch it until it had bubbles the paint in the lid.
4) Always clean the drip pan or change foil after cooking fatty meats like bacon.
5) Don’t use cheap pellets.
6) Don’t buy the RT-340 because you’ll wish you bought the Bull!

Thank you! Good to know about the pellets. I bought the 220 lbs. deal RecTeq is currently offering, then I'll need to figure out what I'm going to use. I have the lava lock ready and waiting for the Bull to get here, tomorrow

 

[C. Keeper]

I’m on my second recteq now and I’ve learned a lot from the first one.
1) Don’t but the recteq ultimate blend pellets from Amazon. Recteq no longer makes these pellets so the ones from Amazon are very old and caused temp swings and flame outs.
2) If you want to keep the stainless drum clean around the edges of the lid, seal the lid with lava lock high-temp grill gasket.
3) Keep a close eye on fatty meats being cooked at high temp to prevent fire. My first grill caught fire and I didn’t catch it until it had bubbles the paint in the lid.
4) Always clean the drip pan or change foil after cooking fatty meats like bacon.
5) Don’t use cheap pellets.
6) Don’t buy the RT-340 because you’ll wish you bought the Bull!

#7 should be "Don't buy a Bull because you wished you bought the BFG."

 

[Greg Jones]

They have stated that they have no intention to quit selling recteq pellets, but that could/may have changed. I’m going to be at recteq next Thursday, so I plan on asking them.

 

[Redeye]

I wish someone told me I could get a better grill cover for the 700 then what rectec sell at half the price. I purchesed a acoveritt grill cover from amazon it has a raised area for the smoke stack and is very generous in size its easy to put on and off and only cost 28$

 

[SeaJayR]

Weight and beer consumption will increase.

what he ^^ said

 

[CurtisK]

I wish someone told me I could get a better grill cover for the 700 then what rectec sell at half the price. I purchesed a acoveritt grill cover from amazon it has a raised area for the smoke stack and is very generous in size its easy to put on and off and only cost 28$

I had my grill cover a few weeks before the Bull arrived, lol. I went with the Unicook, which was also about $28. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VG12YXS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Greg Jones]

1) Don’t but the recteq ultimate blend pellets from Amazon. Recteq no longer makes these pellets so the ones from Amazon are very old and caused temp swings and flame outs.

As promised, I visited recteq yesterday and asked about recteq pellets and their future. They are still very much in the pellet business and the bags have been updated with the new recteq name and graphics. The price when picked up direct is $20 for the 40# bag. They sell a lot of them still-keeping pallets of them at the loading dock for customer pickup. I witnessed two pickup trucks arriving and getting a good size load of them while I was leaving. I expect, but have no evidence to support my theory, that this is how the Amazon sellers get their supply.

 

[CurtisK]

As promised, I visited recteq yesterday and asked about recteq pellets and their future. They are still very much in the pellet business and the bags have been updated with the new recteq name and graphics. The price when picked up direct is $20 for the 40# bag. They sell a lot of them still-keeping pallets of them at the loading dock for customer pickup. I witnessed two pickup trucks arriving and getting a good size load of them while I was leaving. I expect, but have no evidence to support my theory, that this is how the Amazon sellers get their supply.
View attachment 9786

Thank you for the update!

 

[Simarti28]

As promised, I visited recteq yesterday and asked about recteq pellets and their future. They are still very much in the pellet business and the bags have been updated with the new recteq name and graphics. The price when picked up direct is $20 for the 40# bag. They sell a lot of them still-keeping pallets of them at the loading dock for customer pickup. I witnessed two pickup trucks arriving and getting a good size load of them while I was leaving. I expect, but have no evidence to support my theory, that this is how the Amazon sellers get their supply.

Thanks for the clarification. A wise man once said, “the advice you receive from me is worth what you pay for it”. That’ll have to be my new disclaimer . I still would not recommend buying from Amazon. Bought 2 bags of recteq pellets and put them to use right away, had a couple flame outs and if they did actually burn, the temp would fluctuate constantly. Called recteq figuring maybe it was an auger or thermocouple issue. We ran some tests and concluded that it was the pellets. Changed over to a bag of Kingsford I had and had no issues. Amazon reviews later revealed that others have had the same issue.

 

[Greg Jones]

I would agree with that advice. Probably applies to any bag of pellets shipped by UPS or Fedex. They are just too easy to make into dust.

 

[MikeyB]

I had my grill cover a few weeks before the Bull arrived, lol. I went with the Unicook, which was also about $28. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VG12YXS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Curtis, does this cover fits your Bull?
I reached out to Unicook last week and they told me they didn’t have a cover to fit the RT 700.
I even sent them the specs on the grill.
thanks

 

[CurtisK]

Curtis, does this cover fits your Bull?
I reached out to Unicook last week and they told me they didn’t have a cover to fit the RT 700.
I even sent them the specs on the grill.
thanks

Yes, it fits pretty good. If I remember, I will take some pictures of it on, tonight. One of the reviews on Amazon is from someone who states it fits their 700 as well.

 

[MikeyB]

Great thanks, I’m looking at another one as well.

 

[Tozymomo]

So how about something that actually helps the person who asked the question?

Things I learned early was to clean out the ash from the burner on a regular basis. I just make it habit to do mine before I pull it back inside. Also, covering the heat deflector is a big help on cleanup. Lastly, and I just did this a couple weeks ago, putting a high temp gasket around the lid seems to help it stay more true to the set temperature. I did this one on Amazon but there are many out there "1/2" x 1/8" Lavalock High Temp Nomex BBQ HT gasket smoker seal, self stick grey"

 

[CurtisK]

Great thanks, I’m looking at another one as well.

Here ya go...

 

[CurtisK]

So how about something that actually helps the person who asked the question?

Things I learned early was to clean out the ash from the burner on a regular basis. I just make it habit to do mine before I pull it back inside. Also, covering the heat deflector is a big help on cleanup. Lastly, and I just did this a couple weeks ago, putting a high temp gasket around the lid seems to help it stay more true to the set temperature. I did this one on Amazon but there are many out there "1/2" x 1/8" Lavalock High Temp Nomex BBQ HT gasket smoker seal, self stick grey"

Thank you. I added the Lavalock before I had it put together. Do you use tin foil to cover the heat deflector?

 

[MikeyB]

Here ya go...

I say that fits the Bull pretty good. Thanks again, I’m going to order one.

 

[CurtisK]

I say that fits the Bull pretty good. Thanks again, I’m going to order one.

Very welcome. Enjoy & Happy Smoking!

 

[Bullzye]

I ordered a Bull yesterday. This will be my first pellet grill, and first time using any grill in about 15 years. I purchased a cover, grill accessories,, shelf, etc. What are some things you wish someone had told you about when you got your bull, or first pellet grill? I appreciate the advice.

As has been pointed out by others, RecTec seems to have an issue with their temperature probes being calibrated from the factory. I would highly suggest calibrating them yourself before relying on them for any critical cooks. Other than that, my bullseye and my bull have bothperformed flawlessly. One other tip, if you're trying to sear your meat, remember the grates take longer to heat up than the ambient air so once you're up to temperature I usually wait about 15 more minutes to make sure the grates are hot enough to actually sear.

 

[MikeyB]

Here ya go...

Ordered the cover yesterday and came today.
Fits great, real nice quality. And the price was right.