Oklahoma Joe's Marshal Centerbox Smoker - 23202164

I bought this smoker with an open mind. I'm so used to seeing offsets as the popular choice that I thought to myself maybe let's try something different. This smoker is great. I think that if you're a first timer that ones to try smoking and grilling this one is a perfect choice. It is easy to assemble, make sure not to lose the nuts and bolts as it comes at an exact count. It is heavy so get help to lift it. Like any other smoker you will have hot spots that will have a higher temperature than what you are aiming for so you will need to use it and learn. Get another set of ambient temp gauges as the ones this one comes with are too high to get a good temp reading on the bottom grill. The charcoal box makes it a little difficult to add good chunks of wood but it is manageable. I recommend this smoker. It has great features and it is worth it. I highly recommended.

I've had this for a few months now and absolutely love it. Had an offset before, so there is a bit of a learning curve to get temps right and understand how it works, but once I figured that out everything has come out amazing. I've smoked wings, pork butts, ribs, and a turkey so far and all of them were the best I've made. The smoker holds temps very well, is strongly built, and easy to use. I only wish it was a little easier to add charcoal to the basket while cooking. To do so you will need high heat-resistant gloves to pull the basket out, but ultimately isn't a big deal. I also recommend gaskets to put around the main chamber lid to hold the smoke in a bit better. Overall I love it and happy with the purchase

I'd love to leave a glowing review of this. It keeps temp well. Cooks great, and can maintain even temps when smoking. I got it for its possibilities as a direct fire grill as well, but the design has a major flaw. The lip that holds the grates in is too small to keep them steady. Then when the unit heats up and expands the grates just fall in the fire. That was a fun surprise to walk outside too.

1 user found this review helpful

First let me start by saying that I own several of the Oklahoma Joe Products: Bronco, Rambler, the Kettle, the knives, the Cleaver, the prep station, the gloves, the hat, so I am a walking advertisement for OKJ for free but when it comes to the Marshall, I am totally disappointed with this purchase and want to know who Quality checked this grill? 1. Racks. What good is it to have two additional racks if you can't access the food on them without getting burned. I literally don't cook with the middle shelf in and even with the top rack at the highest setting, I still get burned when reaching for items at the back of the grill, so I must wear a cotton glove to protect my hand or look to find an extra long utensil that I can use. 2. Heating chamber. Did the designer ever stand in front of this grill? WOW the heat radiating from the chamber is unlike any of the other OKJ products! Because of the heat, you must were long pants. The heat is unbearable! Also on the first cook, the paint on the back of the chamber has blistered off, making my brand new grill look like I've had it for over a year. 3. Utensil rings. If you hang your utensils from the rings which are situated right in front of the heat chamber, you better were some cotton gloves, because they will be on fire! 4. Fuel. I use a blow torch to start my fuel. However, using this method makes it dangerous to put the fuel basket in when the basket is over 500 degrees and smoke blowing in your face. And this basket is not easy going in and heavy when loaded up. This leads me to have to use a fire starter or cube to light the fuel inside the grill for safety. I won't even begin to talk about how dangerous it is to reload during a cook. 5. Leaks. One of the main reason's why I'm using more fuel than I use in my Bronco is for the leaks. The door is so offset that it cannot seal correctly. I know that they sell gasket and clamps, but that an additional cost to this already expensive grill. I can run my bronco with less fuel for 15+ hours at 250 with no problem. Not so much with the Marshall. I get make 5+ with more fuel. 6. Heat deflector. It does a very poor job of distrusting the heat evenly. Though it has two smoke stacks the left side of the grill is always 20-30 degrees hotter than the right. Which causes me to to have to stand in front of this thing, getting heated up by the chamber because I'm switching the meat around. OKJ, I really wanted to love this grill but it doesn't compare to the other grills/smokers you've produced and that I own. I spent months debating over the Judge and this one and now I am wishing that I would have went with the Judge but that too has issues with the welding on the hinge. Never the less, the Marshall does afford me more space to cook large quantities of meat.

1 of 4 found this review helpful

Great concept and really like the grill. Height is perfect too but the grill grates don't fit. They are too short and have a tendency to fall into the fire pit so I've got to unfortunately look for new grates. Maybe I got a defective set or something.

1 user found this review helpful

I've only used it twice but both times the cook came out excellent

I have zero experience with smokers so this was a first time experience for me. I found the design of the smoker quite nice, it has plenty of cooking space, and it was very easy to assemble. You definitely need two people to put it together. The smoke box holds a great amount of wood and charcoal. It has 2 thermometers on the lid that are very accurate. It's easy to move around as it's on wheels that can also lock. The air dampeners are easy to adjust when needed. I've used this smoker a handful of times now and each time it never disappoints. Whatever I'm smoking or cooking turns out amazing! I love that you can easily remove racks and change the height of them.

As a smoker I am not happy. It leaks terrible around the fire box at all corners and the lid. I tried to seal the lid with gasket but the left side is so bad it still leaks. It will not even choke out the fire. The coals will burn out. I love the concept. As a grill it's good. I wish I would have just bought the Judge. I would have much happier.

2 users found this review helpful

So far it is a decent unit. Don't seem as heavy built like the highlander I have is. The fire box door is just held in place with a couple pins. Think it could have been designed a but better. Needs the iconic steel wheels over the plastic ones it comes with. Maybe include some type of thing to seal the seems of the fire box would be best to do during assembly.

11 of 13 found this review helpful

I received thisnon purpose to try. First it is super heavy! Package weighed 240 pounds and was delivered on a pallet by freight. We hade to unbox it outside and bring it in piece by piece to assemble. Cast iron grates very durable super strong and awesome quality. Easy to use love that it can use both firewood and charcoal. Versatile. So much cooking space! Wheels are large making it easier to move wants assembled. Smokes well. Great flavor.