Big Chief Top-Load Smoker

Used this the first weekend we got it, made the most fabulous ribs ever. Nice little smoker for a beginner. Lots of room in it for plenty of smoked meat. You won't be disappointed. Plus its a great price that can't be beat.

I wore out my older Big Chief smoker after years of use. I found out the top loader smokers were still available, so I searched for it. I found three or four sites that offered the smoker, however, Walmart was the least expensive, and had very reasonable delivery times. Very happy with my Walmart experience.

I already have the Mini Chief smoker and have used it for years. The Big Chief top load is very similar only 3 times as large which will allow me to make a huge amount of Jerky in 6 hours instead of two days of smoking.

This item is great. It's trile and error till you get it wright, but once you do your neighbors will love you for the wonders of this smokehouse can produce. Simply amazing. Good luck.

This product has been around for many years. It is not too durable, but for the money does the job well. I had mine shipped to the store. It had a few small dents, but works great. I would recommend that you use some of the larger wood chunks to help the smoke last longer.

Very Fast Shipping!!! Arrived on time in perfect condition. Not much to assemble and very easy to use.

I like the fact that it's easy to use it will hold a whole rack of ribs I don't like that it is very thin metal and you have to be careful if it dents or creases to me it should have been built better but still a good product

My Little Chief top-load smoker lasted me 28 years and I only replaced the burner once. Something inside the plug receptacle finally failed though, so I finally bought the Big Chief that I've wanted since buying the Little Chief :). The lightweight aluminum structure makes it easy to take on camping or fishing trips and I can't complain about how long it lasts ...unless someone thinks 28 years of faithful service is bad. The NEW Chief series smokers however are much improved. The smoking racks now slide in and out of the frame like a drawer and the heating element is fast and effective ...rolling smoke in minutes. I cold-smoke by putting a small piece of plywood over the top that has a 3" by 8" hole in the middle, then the rack sits on that, and the carboard box doubles as a cold-smoke smoking chamber by flipping it upside down and lowering it over the rack ...works great. You can't do this trick with the front loader and the front loader makes the kitchen end of the job a hassle... where do you put all those racks? With the top loader, you just carry the frame inside and load that up ...easier than doing the same by carrying the whole front-loader inside the house. These smokers have been a favorite in Alaska for many decades and there are reasons why... they last and they work. The new ones are even better. And no, I have no affiliation with the company. I'm just a happy customer and I finally got my Big Chief after all this time! The only reason that I didn't give the smoker a full 5 stars is because it would be neat to be able to regulate the temperature a bit. That said, the standard temperature that it runs at is fine for 99% of your smoking needs, especially if you use my cold-smoke trick. This smoker is a great value for its cost. Brian Fox, Alaska

Good product pan should be cast iron and top loader is bad idea. Front loader would be way easier. Basic smoker does really well. Thought the fire department was gonna show due to all the smoke. A water pan would be a good idea too. A smoke generator for cold smoke would have saved the cheddar cheese. Once you break the learning curve you have a useful tool but it gives odd heats and lots of it. Not a cold smoker what so ever unless you buy a heat generator separately.

thin metal dented, rack holders too far apart (dont hold racks), embarrasing to say 'made in america'