Is The Hasty Bake Roughneck The Best Barrel Smoker?

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We take a deep dive into the new and improved Hasty Bake Roughneck barrel smoker.
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Featured Products in this Video (BBQLAB10 for 10% off)
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► Hasty Bake Roughneck: bit.ly/4eCqDp9
► Hasty Bake Roughneck Fully Loaded: bit.ly/3RBoQXu
► Hasty Bake Rib Rack: bit.ly/4cbyyZ6
► Hasty Bake Firestarter Gel: bit.ly/3VxZ7At
► Thermoworks Thermapen One: bit.ly/3L5KXlJ
► Renaissance Warming Drawer: bit.ly/4ctnOVF (free gift with code BBQLAB)
► FOGO Charcoal: www.fogocharcoal.com/?ref=ovk...
► Meater 2 Plus Thermometer: bit.ly/3QJ1Bd6
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[@TheBarbecueLab]

Save 10% with code "BBQLAB10" at checkout: www.hastybake.com/?rfsn=7912504.75d3c1

[@Mr2004MCSS]

Nice review and some great cooks. I've had a Corten Steel Roughneck since they were first introduced in November of 2022 and it's been my most used cooker since then even though I have many other cookers including several other Hasty Bake models.

[@dynodansmoking]

I have a gateway and a rough neck and the RN gets used more because of the versatility

[@kdranchaz3240]

Excellent review of an excellent and versatile cooker. I have the Cowboy Kent Rollins edition made from Corten steel which rusts on the exterior and patinas over time. It’s a great rustic look and fits well on my ranch. It does not disappoint.

[@CTP-bbq-HundHutte]

I love my Roughneck

[@dank9288639]

HB makes amazing grills n smokers.

[@gosman949]

A couple of years ago I mentioned my 40-year-old Hasty Bake Country Club legacy grill. You said you had never heard of them! Glad to see that you are finally getting to review their excellent products. By the way, the ash collector pan, like their legacy grills, is the exact size of a large sheet of aluminum foil. Simply lay that foil down and then after your cook, pull the foil out with the ash and replace with new foil. So simple to clean! Say goodbye to your kamado grills!

[@TheBarbecueLab]

You’re a trend setter! A lot has changed for us in the last few years, and we really enjoyed our first experience with this Hasty Bake.

[@MichaelW166]

David thank you for the review. Melissa thanks for the great camera work as well. These videos are like "seeing" the product in person and feel safe to order them over the internet. So I thank you again for the amazing review

[@TheBarbecueLab]

Thanks for watching Michael. We enjoyed cooking on the Roughneck, and I’m scheduling a few more cooks here in the future to really put it through some tests. I can’t believe how much this will cook in such a small form factor. If you’re thinking about an order, “BBQLAB10” will save you 10% on your order.

[@guythecookingsam2588]

I considered the roughneck, but decided I could use a legacy the same way with a few tricks, plus have the advantage of the adjustable chacoal basket. Worked out fantastic. Definitely not enough Hasty Bake content out there. Glad you gave them some love!

[@TylerNally]

The only thing im not to keen on with barrel smokers 8s having to REACH DOWN INTO a hot cooking area. Otherwise, the flexibility is exceptional.

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I hear that. It can be hot if you’re cooking hot and fast. I find that as long as I’m wearing my grilling gloves and cooking under 350 it’s been fine for me. Bare handed, that’s a no go for me. I use my heat proof gloves all the time.

[@gosman949]

Tyler take a look at the Hasty Bake regular grills. They have a crank handle that moves the charcoal box up and down. Invented in 1948!

[@TBizzell68]

Good lord you made me hungry! I just ordered the corten steel one, great video, thanks.

[@surfingonmars8979]

As usual, one of the best review/analyses. TBL is about the best channel on BBQ there is.

[@TheBarbecueLab]

Once again, the kindest commenter on the internet, and we appreciate it!

[@mrmudcatslim1004]

Take a basket of some kind and fill it up with charcoal. Place it on the lower rack. That could raise up the fire and allow you to cook at a more comfortable level.

[@dynodansmoking]

Looks like they updated the heat deflector

[@chadwilson6550]

I’ve got to say that was an excellent video. Could I ask what temp did you smoke the ribs at?

[@magdiamin2471]

Hunsaker drum smoker is my favorite to smoke on

[@TheBarbecueLab]

Haven’t smoked on a Hunsaker yet, but I have friends who use them in competition cooking that like them for sure.

[@Crankinstien]

The best grill I’ve ever owned

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I’m glad you’re enjoying it!

[@thetakeout]

Tomahawks aren’t canceled out this way! Great video. Thanks for the review.

[@jamesj5469]

It honestly seems more like a chud box than a barrel smoker. Cool looking grill though

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I haven’t cooked on the Chud Box yet, but they do have similarities for sure.

[@bjenksesq]

like for @chudsbbq

[@jaybooth4815]

Does this cooker need to be seasoned before your first cook? If you’ve followed Cowboy Kent Rollins, he’s been using Hasty Bake cookers for a long time. I like the crank design on the ones I’ve seen before. You mentioned powder coated but not sure what gauge the steel is? They’re USA made and that’s a plus in my opinion! Thanks for the review! Cheers.

[@tomm9493]

May I ask what in the world do you do with this extereme amount of food you cook up? I mean, holy moly that's a lot of food!

[@TheBarbecueLab]

The Tomahawk was dinner one night for the family. We all shared it. The beef cheeks and the chicken thighs were for a group of 30 that we had over for taco night at the Lab, and for the ribs, I sent a text to a group of local friends and said I was doing a rib cook and if they brought ribs, I’d cook them for everyone. Someone brought 5 racks to share with some families going through some difficult times, and a few others brought 1 or 2. They picked them up that night to take and eat. The burgers were for lunch here while we were shooting.

[@Breitman123]

Appreciate this gents reviews. However, I’m quite honestly confused by the HB products. They seem to have a cult following, but I’ve never seen a video where they appear to be well built. The materials seem thin and maybe stamped construction… are they good, or are there just a ton of fan boys out there..? Truly curious.

[@TheBarbecueLab]

This is my first experience with Hasty Bake, but I’ll say that I thought that the build quality was great. It doesn’t feel like something you’d buy at a big box store, it’s heftier than that. Thats a good point though, I probably should have covered more on build quality, weight and dimensions. Thanks for the reminder.

[@Breitman123]

@@TheBarbecueLab Nothing on the video, sir. Your videos are ALWAYS great and very thorough. It’s just that when interacting with the grill, it sounds thin. Thing is, I’ve never seen a bad review about the HB products. There must be something to them in person. Truly just curious what those that have touched and worked with them think for real. Thanks!

[@smarcanthony]

Is charcoal the recommended fuel for this? Or could you also use hardwood?

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I think charcoal is what’s recommended, and I certainly mixed some smoking wood chunks into the charcoal for some good wood smoke. You might be able to run it with just wood, but I’m not sure that’s how it was designed. I’ll let Hasty Bake chime in here if I’m mistaken.

[@rainsadventures8367]

I’ve had my Roughneck for a year now and I will start the fire with charcoal and then add a small wood split on the fire. That one wood split and charcoal will last for a long cook.

[@mikeminarich1159]

I’m sure that’s a week or two worth of cooks in cooking sequence but that felt like a whole lot of food for 1 meal

[@surfingonmars8979]

Quick Question: Any intention to review a Keveri H1? Looks interesting to me. I just need “one more” grill (bwahahahaha)…like I need just one more surfboard………just one………..

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I had to look that grill up. I hadn’t heard of it yet, but it seems like a charcoal outdoor oven? Interesting. I haven’t chatted with them about it since I wasn’t aware of it, so it’s not in the current plan. I am intrigued though.

[@surfingonmars8979]

@@TheBarbecueLab between the. Hb and Keveri and Lonestar, it is a tough choice

[@Baldheadbarrelcooking9803]

That's a nice cooker, but to me, that's not a barrel cooker. Every barrel cooker I've seen and used is round, I'll stick with my round barrel/drum cookers

[@TheBarbecueLab]

I get it. Barrel cookers are round. I’m not sure how else to categorize this one though. It has a charcoal basket like barrel cookers, it has multiple levels of cooking directly over the coals, a deflector is you want to use it, the ability to hang ridiculous amounts of ribs over the coals… so many things are like every other barrel cooker I’ve ever used, but it’s square. Maybe they should call it the square un-barrel cooker? Then there’s others that are octagonal or six sided that function the same way. It’s hard to categorize for sure.

[@rainsadventures8367]

That’s an amazing argument… lol It’s a pretty awesome cooker though, I’ve had mine for about a year and it gets used more than my offset, Santa Maria grill or my Recteq pellet grill. Unlike most barrel type cookers, you have easy access to add or adjust the fire during long cooks without having to remove any of the meat or cooking racks to get to the fire basket. It’s an open, direct fire cooker just like a barrel cooker but has more square inches of cooking space due to its shape. With the deflector, it will roll 275 degrees for most of the day to cook some pulled pork or brisket. It’s a very versatile, modern design of a barrel smoker.