Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker Review: 14-inch Superior Performance
Last Updated on December 5, 2022
Why choose between a smoker and a grill when you can
get both for the price of one with the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker 14-inch
This outdoor cooker consolidates all of your barbecue needs into one ultimate smoker grill combo cooker.
Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker Rating: 4.8/5 Reviews: 4000+  | Quick Overview # Solid construction from a trusted brand. # 3 different sizes available. |
Specifications | weight: 23lbs | height: 31.4" | diameter 14.75 | color: black | 10yr ltd. warranty |
With a household name like Weber, I was eager to see if it’s as good as it’s made out to be.
This is what I found:
A sleek, bullet-shaped vertical Weber Smokey Mountain 14-inch cooker with dual capacity for grilling and smoking and all within a compact, convenient size.
I like that it can satisfy any barbecue needs, whether you want to grill a chicken at home or slow-cook succulent ribs by the lake.
The Weber Smokey Mountain 14-inch combo grill is right at home in small spaces and fits nicely in the trunk of your car, on your patio, or on deck.
The perfect little charcoal smoker you can take with you RVing.
It’s ideal for small families or if you’re just starting out on your smoking adventure.
The Weber Smokey Mountain cooker gives you lots of options for cooking and smoking your favorite meats.
| Note: Product prices may fluctuate from time to time due to the Manufacturer’s special deals and offers. |
In this complete Weber Smokey Mountain Review, I’ve thoroughly covered every aspect of the product so you can decide if it’s the right choice for you.
Keep reading to learn more about the Weber Smokey Mountain cooker
What’s in the box?
- Main cooking chamber
- Porcelain-enamel bowl, lid, and water pan.
- Plated steel cooking grates
- Built-in lid thermometer
- Silicone temperature grommet
- Rust-resistant aluminum fuel door
- Rust-resistant aluminum heat shield
- Full-length waterproof cover
Weber Smokey Mountain assembly instructions
Assembly guide for smokey mountain cooker (USA/UK) 48602
Covers all three sizes of the Smokey Mountain cooker. (These PDF’s can sometimes take a few seconds to download directly from the weber site)
How to prepare a Weber grill for the first time?
We always advise using fire-resistant gloves for the next part of the setup.
Four-step set-up: Weber Smokey Mountain cooker
When smoking meats and grilling, it’s essential to set the cooker up correctly to reduce the risk of injury and ensure your food is properly cooked.
The set-up is relatively simple if you follow the steps below.
Step#1: How To Add Wood and Charcoal
Before you get ready to use your combo cooker, remove the lid, the center section, and open up all the vents. From there, place four wood chunks evenly spaced along the charcoal ring’s circumference. Still focusing on the rim, add in the appropriate amount of unlit charcoal.
Step#2: Lighting the Briquettes
For this step, you’ll need a chimney starter this makes lighting the cooker so much easier.
If you don’t have one already you can use lighter cubes.
In the chimney starter, add and light the other portion of briquettes until they start to turn a white ash color. Once this happens, pour the fuel into the charcoal ring’s center.
Step#3: Add the Center Ring
Replace the cooker’s center portion with the base. Make sure the section is secure, and then add warm water to the empty water dish.
Step#4: Replace the Lid and Preheat
Now, place the cooking grills on the top and replace the cooker’s lid. Let the Weber Smokey Mountain preheat until it reaches your desired cooking temperature.
When it reaches the temperature you need, close the vents halfway.
Once you’ve completed all of the previous steps and the cooker is at the necessary temperature, you can add the meat and let the smoker cooker go to work. Enjoy that succulent, juicy smoky flavor.
To assist you further in getting your Weber Smokey Mountain Smoker ready for cooking watch the video below.
Features and Benefits
Construction: The bullet-shaped metal body has a black enamel coating that’s highly durable.
Weber designed every metal aspect of the Smokey Mountain cooker for rust resistance.
The rust resistance includes the legs, aluminum dampers, fuel door, and heat shield with all-over coverage.
Moving it into the garage or placing a cover over it when not in use will protect it even further and help prolong the life of your smoker grill combo.
Air-flow dampers
The airflow is controlled by a three-hole damper on the lower part, and a built-in 4 hole damper on the lid to help you control smoke density and heat output.
Charcoal access door
A side access door makes it an easy task to load the charcoal into the cooker.
Large water pan
The Smokey Mountain comes with a water pan that helps stop the meat from drying out; this is a real bonus from Weber and is not usually seen in this price bracket.
Plated steel grates
A high-quality grilling grate is a must, and Weber knows it. Plated steel grates are long-lasting, resistant to corrosion, and help cook delicious food.
This is another reason why the Smokey Mountain cooker is a good choice no matter where you plan to grill (or smoke).
Plated steel is also straightforward to clean. The material is naturally resistant to sticking, so while you’ll still need to clean the grill, it shouldn’t take ages.
A quick wipe-down is all you’ll need in most cases, so you can get back to enjoying your delicious meal instead of scrubbing for hours. Who needs that?
Glass-reinforced nylon handle
The handle is highly durable, even when the grill heats up. Glass-reinforced nylon is super-tough and heat-resistant. It still gets warm, but it does not retain nearly the same amount of heat as metal.
Mobility
The Weber Smokey Mountain cooker’s shape and relatively lightweight design make for efficient barbecue cookouts for all of your on-the-go grilling needs and easy storage.
Built-in Thermometer
Smokey Mountain’s built-in thermometer makes checking and maintaining your food temperature extremely easy.
You don’t have to continually worry about reaching the right temperature or opening the cooker to insert an external thermometer to gauge.
This is a real bonus that you don’t often get with small combination grills.
If you require more temperature control then why not try the Weber iGrill Mini
This app-connected thermometer monitors the doneness of the food from start to finish.
It notifies you on your smart device when the meat is ready to serve leaving you free to relax while your meat cooks to perfection.
Cooking capacity
The Weber 14 combo grill has two chrome-plated grilling grates, each 143 sq. inches providing a total cooking area of 286 sq. inches.
This is quite a small cooking surface and not sufficient for large cuts of meat like brisket (unless you cut it up) but you can smoke most of what you want for your family very efficiently.
Performance
With the Weber Smokey Mountain high-quality design and superior choice of materials, the smoker cooks the meat slowly and efficiently for maximum satisfaction.
The cooker specializes in both smoking, and standard grilling and can even make pizza by adding a pizza stone.
Clean-up
To clean up when you’ve finished barbecuing, you don’t have to exert much effort.
You can easily disassemble the cooker to get into the hard-to-reach places.
the porcelain enamel water dish allows for quick wipe-downs.
The rust-resistant metal parts don’t require any specialized chemicals.
When you need to clean the grilling grates, it’s best to do so while you preheat the cooker or at least with the heat on.
The heat makes it easier to clean any residual build-up, and the steel-plated bars reduce the food’s ability to stick to the grate.
What buyers liked
- Fuel efficiency: The Smokey Mountain retains heat for hours
- Easy to assemble: Takes about 30 minutes to put together
- Easy to move around and transport
- Accurate temperature gauge
What some buyers didn’t like
- Charcoal takes some time to get used to, there is a learning curve
- Non-adjustable grill grates; multiple grates are handy but you can’t adjust the height
- The hot water pan is a little bit difficult to reach, especially during smoking
Useful tips
What is a complete smoker grill combo review without a couple of extra tips and tricks for the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker?
Preheating
Every time you use your Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, you’ll need to preheat it, this will ensure the thorough cooking of your food.
To do so, keep the cooker’s door completely shut and fire it up for between 10 and 15 minutes or until the cooker reaches at least 550 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lighting the coals
You don’t have to struggle with getting your coals lit during set-up.
For direct heat, make sure you use high-quality charcoal as it ignites better than low-grade brands.
To make burning the fuel easier, you can use a chimney starter or lighter cubes.
Water Pan
Putting hot water in the water pan initially can help save time by allowing the cooker to reach the ideal temperature sooner.
Types of Wood Chips Used for Smoking
Different types of wood chips added to the charcoal will give different flavors.
So if you like a strong flavor add more wood chips and fewer if you prefer a light flavor.
If it’s your first time then make a note of how much wood you added, e.g 10 chips, 20 chips, and then you can adjust for future cooking.
FAQ
# Does the Weber Smokey Mountain 14-inch Cooker have a grease catcher?
Yes, it does. The Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker catches and contains all grease within the reservoir at the bottom.
To make cleaning up simpler, you can place aluminum foil at the bottom of the reservoir.
# Can you use wood and charcoal in the Weber Smoker Grill Combo?
The cooker is capable of using both wood and charcoal.
Charcoal helps maintain the flame for long periods, while the wood chips help induce flavor to the meat of your choice if you want to smoke.
# How long will the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker hold heat?
It depends on how much fuel you use, but the smoker can retain heat for two to three hours after you stop feeding it.
#Can you wash a Weber BBQ cover?
#Where are the Weber Smokey Mountain Grills Made?
The Weber Smokey Mountain Cookers are designed and engineered by Weber-Stephen Products LLC in Illinois. All major parts are made in the USA, while some minor parts are sourced from other countries.
Conclusion
Is the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker the best choice for your family?
You really can’t go wrong choosing a Smokey Mountain Cooker from a trusted Brand like Weber.
The 14-inch Combo Grill is the ideal cooker if you are looking to test your smoking skills for the first time.
If you do a lot of traveling and want to take your smoker grill with you, due to its sleek shape it takes up a lot less space than other smoker combo grills.
This cooker weighs roughly 24 pounds and fits easily in your car or RV.
The Weber Smokey Mountain 14-inch is ideal for cooking smaller pieces of meat, perfect for intimate gatherings between one to four people. You have 286 square inches of grate to grill on.
This little cooker will provide all that and give you superior performance.
While some users don’t find the price appealing, keep in mind that you aren’t purchasing a stand-alone grill or single smoker, you get both.
Weber Smokey Mountain Cookers have been around for many years the 14-inch was first introduced in 1985 and updated in 2014, with that kind of record you can be sure you’re getting a quality product.
There are very few reports of any serious problems, some had concerns about rust forming around the dampers, Weber states this has now been fixed and is offering up to 10 years warranty on most parts of the Smokey Mountain Cooker Grill.
Warranty
- Bowl, lid, and center ring – 10 years
- Plastic components – 5 years
- All remaining parts – 2 years
What if I want a larger size?
There are two larger-size cookers for you to choose from the 18-inch cooker and the Weber Smokey Mountain 22-inch cooker.
What are the differences between them?
The 14″ and 18″are virtually the same, the 22-inch model is slightly different in looks. The main difference is the size, the bigger the cooker the larger the cooking capacity.
The Weber Smokey Mountain 18-inch cooker
This size cooker can fit a half-slab of ribs and a maximum of two whole chickens if you butterfly them.
Overall, the 18-inch model offers enough cooking space to feed 8-10 people comfortably.
Great for entertaining. (please check availability and price on Amazon)
Weber Smokey Mountain 22-inch Cooker
You can cook whole turkeys, chickens, butts, and briskets. In total, you have plenty of space to work across multiple grates.
Ultimately, the 22-inch Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker is a solid option if you’re grilling and smoking for a large family or you entertain a lot. (please check availability on Amazon)
I would just like to mention here in case of confusion;
| The Weber Smoker Mountain is also known as WSM. You will sometimes see the measurements written as 14.5-inch, 18.5-inch, and 22.5-inch. these are not exact, they come somewhere in between and roughly refer to the diameter of the cooking grates. Weber uses the whole figure, 14″,18″, and 22″ so we will too. |
Overall Dimensions
WSM 14-inch 31.4″H X 14.7″W X 14.7″D Weight: 24 pounds
WSM 18-inch 41″H X 19″W X 21″D Weight: 39 pounds
WSM 22-inch 48.5″H X 23″W X 24″D Weight: 68 pounds.
Total Cooking Capacity
WSM 14-inch 286 square inches
WSM 18-inch 481 square inches.
WSM 22-inch 726 square inches,
| If you’re still unsure of what the sizes look like in reality try this; Draw a 14-inch circle on a piece of card or paper, if it looks too small then go for the 18-inch or 22-inch. |
No matter which WSM Cooker you pick, you know you’re getting a solid durable combo smoker that’s suitable for any level pit-master from beginners to competition gurus.
You’ll love the performance and the flavor you get with every meal, and I’d say it’s worth the investment.
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Thank you for reading our review.
We hope the information has helped you come to a satisfactory decision and you were able to choose a Weber Smokey Mountain or an alternative grill that meets your personal needs.
If we can be of any further help please don’t hesitate to contact us we are always here
Happy BBQ Grilling and Smoking.