Manufacturer: Landmann
BBQ Smoker Type: Charcoal
List Price: $591.98
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When looking for a quality food smoker, you have a couple of different options. The most popular choices are either gas or charcoal smokers, and each one has their advantages and disadvantages.
When looking for a charcoal smoker, you need to consider temperature stability as well as the different types of flavored charcoal for the results that you are looking for.
One of the best charcoal grill/smokers we have tested is the Landmann 590135 “Black Dog” Charcoal Smoker.
The Landmann 590135 Black Dog Charcoal Grill & Smoker
The Landmann 590135 has some strong features. Each Landmann 590135 has a…
- Primary cooking size of 506 square inches
- Smoker Box cooking size of 255 Square inches
- Charcoal grate that adjusts to multiple positions by crank handle
- Large 17 inch front doors for easy access to the fire
- Cook by smoke and indirect heat with the offset firebox; includes side door for adding charcoal or wood with ease
The Landmann 590135 Charcoal Grill & Smoker Online
This Landmann 590135 can be found online for just under $600; and it shipped free and arrived in 6 days. It was very heavy at around 150 pounds and unpacking and assembly took about an hour.
Once assembled, it is a sturdy and stable steel smoker; with plenty of space for smoking even the largest roasts. This is ideal if you smoke a large quantity of food; and it works equally well on meat, chicken or fish.
Here is a snippet of a testimonial about the Landmann 590135 Charcoal Grill and Smoker
“I have owned this grill for about 2 months. So far, I would have to say I am pleased with this product. The construction for the most part seems solid and sturdy. The charcoal box is easily accessible via both the lid and the side door. The handy double doors in the front make it easy to add charcoal if used for direct grilling. The slide out ash tray is also a huge asset. This is a large grill allowing lots of space for preparing meals. I have performed a few modifications such as adding a heat deflector to even the heat distribution and a charcoal basket to hold the coals in place. This grill is able to maintain steady temperatures in excess of 6 hours easily and the firebox responds well to…
It is a combination grill and smoker; which we generally do not prefer as these multiple units never do any one particular task very well.
However, this Landmann 590135 was the exception to the rule.
The food we smoked came out moist and tender, and the grill actually functions like a normal charcoal grill should; and the adjustable crank allows you to get the coals as close to the grilling surface as you’d like.
The Landmann 590135 Charcoal Smoker Temperature Stability
One of the most difficult things about using charcoal smokers (as opposed to gas or electric smokers) is keeping a stable temperature over time. As the charcoal burns, the temperature tends to fade, and you need to keep an eye on this.
With the Landmann 590135, this is very easy to do using the vent doors. Once you load it with the flavored charcoal (we’ve tested it with both hickory and mesquite Kingsford charcoal), keep the vent doors closed.
As the coals begin to fade, opening the vent doors allows air flow, which makes temperature control remain between 225 to 250 degrees. But you do have to keep an eye on the charcoal if you plan on smoking your foods for three or four hours.
Monitoring the temperature is one of the issues we discovered with this Landmann 590135 charcoal smoker. It comes with two temperature controls; one on the smoker and one on the grill.
Both of these thermometers are not very accurate, which seems to be a common problem on most smokers; whether gas, charcoal or pellet fired. That is not that big of a problem since we found more accurate temperature monitoring by using a wireless digital thermometer placed inside the smoker itself.
Here is a snippet of a testimonial about the Landmann 590135 Charcoal Grill and Smoker
“I’ve had this smoker for about four years now. Mine is a slightly older model without the lower storage doors. It’s been a great smoker, and it’s a fantastic value in this size range. It’s solidly built, and I haven’t had any problems with it. The only criticism I have is that the built in thermometer doesn’t seem to be all that accurate. I’d recommend using a digital probe thermometer instead.
The vent doors make it easy enough to control the heat. I usually load the fire box with two Weber chimneys worth of Kingsford charcoal. Start with the fire box vent closed, and you’ll get about 250F in the smoke chamber. As the coals begin to fade, open the vents to maintain the temp. I make a lot of ribs, pulled pork, chicken, and salmon. They all come out great…
The Landmann 590135 Charcoal Smoker
The Landmann 590135 is a well constructed, solid unit that is ideal if you smoke a large quantity of foods often; if you don’t smoke that much, you may be able to get away with a smaller, less expensive charcoal smoker.
But our experience with this charcoal smoker indicates a great value for the money, with a well constructed, stable smoker that, unlike most grill/smoker combinations, works great as a charcoal grill as well.
With plenty of space for whatever you want to smoke, the Landmann 590135 is great for full blown entertainers; or even the occasional backyard smoker as well.
