Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Fri Sep 15, 2017 8:37 am

freddie987 wrote:No way you want to use a guru to limit airflow to a stickburner because when the fan cycles off you are starving your fire of oxygen and will either put out the fire or cover your food with soot


Thanks for the reply, they are wanting over $300 for the Guru I was recommended so I'd hate to make that mistake. Should have bought a Kingman as they have a lower firebox and intake vent.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby slamkeys » Fri Sep 15, 2017 12:17 pm

BurningStick wrote:Thanks for the reply, they are wanting over $300 for the Guru I was recommended so I'd hate to make that mistake.

T-Roy ordered a guru port for his Loaded Wichita but later said it was a mistake and he never uses it. He says to leave the door cracked so the wood burns cleanly, and I believe most of the "happy" Yoder offset owners have been OK with using the door for venting too. Either that, or remove the heat management plate for better flow and more of a top down cook (except the smokestack should really be at grate level for that). If you spend any amount of time reading responses from the Yoder employees (Yoder_Herb, Yoder_Joe, etc.) on the Yoder Community Forum, they constantly remind owners that all Yoders are designed to cook from the bottom up. However, it's that heat management plate that provides the radiant bottom heat, so removing it basically eliminates their "signature" cooking behavior.

If I was a brand new Wichita owner I'd be contacting Yoder and asking about their upcoming damper modification. They have been tight-lipped about it online when asked for specifics, but they have mentioned it at least twice recently. They might be more open about it in a private conversation. I'm curious myself, because I can't see how they could fix their damper issues without a major door change or lowering the firebox, and that will require cutting and welding, or a total smoker replacement. I guess we'll soon find out. Whatever they do, I envision a host of existing owners crying foul and demanding some kind of recall, but I doubt that will ever happen.

I have been entertaining the idea of selling my Wichita and buying one of Aaron Franklin's new smokers whenever they become available, but there still aren't any details about them, and I'll need to see some reviews first. I have a feeling there's a huge difference between cooking 60 briskets in one of Aaron's 1000 gallon propane tank smokers and cooking one brisket in a similar backyard smoker, so Aaron is going to have to prove his 1000 gallon design translates to a small backyard-sized smoker with comparable results first. Ironically, Aaron's smokers don't even have input dampers! He strictly uses his doors for venting.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Fri Sep 15, 2017 5:48 pm

I'll talk to the folks at ATB in Wichita next time I stop by. Would love to talk to the owner about that as I traded a two week old YS640 in on the Loaded Wichita because I just couldn't get the flavor out of it. Don't get me wrong the YS640 does what it's designed to do and is a best seller but just wasn't for me.

I emailed the owner about trading up to a Kingman and he replied with I'll put the numbers together for you. I loved the full packer, baby backs and whole chickens off the Wichita but Wow it took some work to get the job done.

I don't really mind the work much but for the $ I think there should be some revisions made and recalls on the Wichita otherwise why not just buy an Oklahoma Joe knowing it needs mods out of the store for a lot less.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby freddie987 » Fri Sep 15, 2017 6:11 pm

I can understand and totally accept that the Wichita isn't perfect and needs some design changes. What is confusing for me is why the Yoder team aren't actively engaging with their customers to acknowledge their concerns and clarify a path forward and a timeline. Its a PR disaster. Just can't imagine how many posts I have seen from different people across the internet complaining about the lack of drafting performance in the Wichita. Why on earth would they let this drag on so long without proper customer outreach? At the bare minimum a single blog post acknowledging the issue and what they are doing to make things right for their disgruntled customers?
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby slamkeys » Sat Sep 16, 2017 2:22 pm

freddie987 wrote:I can understand and totally accept that the Wichita isn't perfect and needs some design changes. What is confusing for me is why the Yoder team aren't actively engaging with their customers to acknowledge their concerns and clarify a path forward and a timeline. Its a PR disaster. Just can't imagine how many posts I have seen from different people across the internet complaining about the lack of drafting performance in the Wichita. Why on earth would they let this drag on so long without proper customer outreach? At the bare minimum a single blog post acknowledging the issue and what they are doing to make things right for their disgruntled customers?

Joe Phillips did say the following on the Yoder forum, and I agree that they can't rush these kinds of changes because getting it wrong again would also be disastrous:
Joe Phillips wrote:We have and always will pursue to build the best product we possibly can. We value customer feedback and continually evolve our product lines based on this type of communication. We are not interested in being right, in our business the customer is always right and we do everything we can to accommodate any and all issues or suggestions. This kind of commitment is rare in today's fast paced world. We have made the commitment to evaluate this section of our product line and see if we can improve the overall experience. We are currently doing this. We have sold thousands of wood pits across the world and have done so with great success. Nobody ever suggested that our product is infallible nor are we going to provide affirmation of something that we haven't tested to determine the source of the complaint. The customer experience dictates that we need to have a look at the product and see what if anything can or should be done. If we have given the impression we are not listening that certainly isn't the case. These kind of changes can be complicated and we need to be sure that we aren't going cause another issue down the line.
Our product couldn't be such a success without our customers. We appreciate the business and will always work hard to make the best product possible

As I've said before, my observation as an outsider is that Yoder has invested the majority of their time and resources in the development of their pellet cooker line (YS640 is their top seller), as seen by the numerous incremental changes they have made to the pellet cookers over time. On the contrary, Yoder_Herb has said the design of their offset smokers "hasn't changed in years, which is a testament to their design." Obviously, they're realizing now their original small offset design has caused many owners to struggle with fire management. In fact, one of the most viewed threads on their forum is one entitled "How to run a proper fire in a Yoder offset," which is approaching 13,000 views (seems obvious there's a problem when so many owners are seeking this kind of help): http://community.yodersmokers.com/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=810
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby freddie987 » Sat Sep 16, 2017 5:05 pm

I just looked up the Yoder Forum, and the follow on to that quote was this comment:

"

There are not any impending design changes needed. As the video clearly illustrates, the cooker works as designed.
Yoder_Herb"


http://community.yodersmokers.com/viewt ... 88859638ad
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby slamkeys » Sat Sep 16, 2017 5:49 pm

Yoder_Herb wrote:There are not any impending design changes needed. As the video clearly illustrates, the cooker works as designed.

Yes, Herb runs the forum and is doing his best to defend his employer, but Joe Phillips is the VP and he has already contradicted Herb. I wonder if they'll handle this like they tried to do before with me, which is to offer a "custom" door option for the dissatisfied customers while leaving the original design intact. That way Herb and Joe are both right and no recall is necessary. :dont:
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Mon Sep 18, 2017 9:45 pm

Next offset smoker, moving on. Who sells it...where to buy? :deadhorse:
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby ChooQ » Tue Sep 19, 2017 12:15 am

slamkeys,

Thanks again for doing all this work. When I cook on my Witchita, I use a setup based on one of your early photos (aluminum foil tray with a portion cut out and is propped up against the firebox with my ash remover). I cooked 50+ times on my witchita before ever coming across this thread back in January and struggled with the airflow/fire management issues many people have described. While using the aluminum foil tray setup is not ideal, it has made my smoker much more manageable and easier to use in that I get the smoke quality I want and it holds a temperature much longer than when I was cooking with the door cracked.

I know this is beating a deadhorse :deadhorse: but I have not been at all impressed with the Yoder customer support which is sad because one of the reasons I went with Yoder was all the positive comments I read about their customer service. I even had some email exchange with them a couple months back and asked if there was anything I could purchase that would improve the performance of my Witchita but nothing was offered instead I got a "what seems to be the problem?"

One of the things that really irked me about this whole airflow issue was Yoder's attempt to squash it with that atbbq fire management video. If you sort the video by most recent comments and do a "cntrl f" using my name you will see my exchange with someone at atbbq or yoder. Big shocker...the person pretends to have never heard of the airflow issues.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCX5C0DIrfc&t=9s
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Tue Sep 19, 2017 8:38 am

The only breakthrough I've had was with the charcoal basket, several big chunks of wood placed through out. It was a real calm day. Was able to keep the door shut, temps started dropping about 5-1/2 to 6hrs in and had to add more coals and wood.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby slamkeys » Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:29 pm

BurningStick wrote:The only breakthrough I've had was with the charcoal basket, several big chunks of wood placed through out. It was a real calm day. Was able to keep the door shut, temps started dropping about 5-1/2 to 6hrs in and had to add more coals and wood.

That's exactly my experience. The charcoal basket works as designed, and I used it with the fire door closed and the factory vent open about 1/3.

I tried briquets in the basket first, and had pretty much the same results when I used lump instead. The only issue of course is the charcoal doesn't create that smooth aromatic oak smell I have come to appreciate from my stick burning efforts, so I only use charcoal after I have wrapped my briskets. The few times I needed to use the basket I started the cook with wood until I hit the stall, and then wrapped the meat and inserted the charcoal basket for finishing the cook.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Tue Sep 19, 2017 3:21 pm

slamkeys wrote: I started the cook with wood until I hit the stall, and then wrapped the meat and inserted the charcoal basket for finishing the cook.


Great idea, I'll give it a go next time. Thats one heavy duty basket, I kinda understand the price tag, should last as long as the Wichita.
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby slamkeys » Wed Sep 20, 2017 7:05 pm

The newest customers are being told their smokers will have the latest design changes. We should have photos soon.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=226666&page=9

Yoder customer support just responded to a customer inquiry for an order placed on 8/30/17:
I have checked with the factory and all new Cheyenne smokers (including yours) will be delivered with the latest improvements. As for the Cheyenne we have lowered the airflow on firebox door for increased efficiency.
It sounds like the changes are being released as covertly as possible so they don't attract any unnecessary attention. No need for headlines here, move along please. :wav:
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby BurningStick » Thu Sep 21, 2017 2:04 am

Great news. Glad to hear Yoder is taking time out on their pellet smoker upgrades to address issues with the older stick burners. Can't wait to hear what's next...... :happ:
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Re: Just Bought A Yoder Loaded Wichita

Postby kboy24 » Thu Sep 21, 2017 11:16 am

I have a new Loaded Witchita being shipped to me on 9/25/2017 and I be Super STOKED. I had Yoder drill out the firebox for the Guru sleeve to fit/ Also picked up the Log Lighter option. Ordered me some cooking wood and got free shipping on the wood. I won't say who. I don't want to break any rules here being a newbie and all. 8)

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