YODER Pellet Grills in Australia

[bodgy]

Bently, the Traeger and Green Mountains are in a lesser quality league. It's like apples and oranges. They are made in China using cheap thin steel. My Traegrers body started flaking metal off the inside after 9 months. I went through 2 igniters and one controller. With any cooker there is the potential for failing components. My Traeger and My Whole hog had more then I could stand. I have owned the Yoder beta pit. One of the first 20 built, It ran circle around the Traeger and the Danson Whole Hog. I currently own a Yoder YS640 production pit. Best cooker I have ever owned. If you want a lesser quality pit buy a Traeger, Green mountain or Danson. If you want a competition grade quality cooker with a sturdy body and a great warranty and service backing, buy a Yoder. I watch folks all the time come into Foot Hills looking at all the different cookers. They lift the lids on them and once they do so on the Yoder thats it. They buy it. The difference in quality is that appearent.

My guess is you won't have a big market here in Aus. Good luck with this venture, but if the price is that high that we need to contact the supplier to find out what they cost then I'd be guessing most guys won't be willing to spend the extra bucks for what you term a comp grade grade smoker, we saw it happen with the Royal kamado from Pinnacle, everyone wants a bargain price, they're not concerned that there may be no backup a year or so later.

[trentski]

but if the price is that high that we need to contact the supplier to find out what they cost

Seen the YS640 for $1299 American the YS480 for $1099 plus accessories. That's retail so subtract some to ifnd the wholesale price, add some shipping, some taxes, some mark up, some for warranty and based on most goods imported form america it will be about 3 times that

[urbangriller]

And we won't know the price for sure till some of the bulk shipment and local warehousing details are worked out. The first demo models are due to land in the next few days via Air freight, but working out the final retail price will take some time.

I know they are working on that now, so expect that to be made clear as they work out the fine detail. They are not "hiding" the RRP, but want to make sure that the RRP they set will be right. it's early days boys. Remember it took a couple of months to release the price for the ProQ's as well.

That is one of the joys of this forum, we get to hear news of new product before it is landed!

Chris

[Wingman]

You guys are absolutely right on cost being the big driver to whether its succesful or not. In reality shipping has been an issue in the states anytime an item has toi be shipped any distance. The price of fuel has doubled here and those incresed costs are passed on to the consumer. I hope they can come to some decent final cost because they really are very nice cookers to say the least.

[Bill44]

And we won't know the price for sure till some of the bulk shipment and local warehousing details are worked out. The first demo models are due to land in the next few days via Air freight, but working out the final retail price will take some time.

I know they are working on that now, so expect that to be made clear as they work out the fine detail. They are not "hiding" the RRP, but want to make sure that the RRP they set will be right. it's early days boys. Remember it took a couple of months to release the price for the ProQ's as well.

That is one of the joys of this forum, we get to hear news of new product before it is landed!

Chris

Speaking as a retired businessman I would have thought that any sane person would have worked out all their costs etc etc before even considering bringing in some units for trial. Obviously no feasability study has been done, and the costs may price the product out of the market. Unfortunately it can be expensive finding out the hard way.

[urbangriller]

There are ball park figures, but nobody releases that kind of stuff.

We are lucky to be getting a glimpse at a new product!

The official launch isn't till the Redheads Gourmet BBQ Festival in Adelaide October 6.

Chris

[Grill Pro Australia]

Just to update you guys,
We are Airfreighting the first 3 Yoder Y Series units over as we speak ( 2 x YS640 & 1 x YS480 ) which should land in Adelaide this coming week, I will post some photos once we receive them. We will have to convert them to 240V ourselves. The Yoder factory will be doing this for us ( obviously at a cost ) for all future orders.

Shipping is not cheap & there are lots of unseen costs to add up like collection & loading from the Yoder factory, container clearance, container delivery, container unloading & then warehousing in Australia. We will also be keeping a good range of spare parts so we can properly support the product.

The Yoder YS640 weighs in at 145 kgs ( around double of the Traeger & others )

We think when people compare the RRP of the Traeger & other units imported into Australia to the Yoder, we won't have any problems selling these high quality BBQs. ( in fact we have already sold 4 without fixed pricing )

Also, the Yoder BBQs are the very first "Competition Grade" BBQs that are imported into Australia. The others are more "Back Yard" grade.

We will be officially launching the Yoder range at the upcoming Redheads Gourmet BBQ Festival in Adelaide on the 6th & 7th of October along with pricing.

Regards,

Dave

[Wingman]

When I started cooking on the Yoder’s I just wanted a higher quality cooker. When I paid $999 + shipping and tax for my Traeger ($1,140 total). I was ok with that. After 6 months I felt like I easily paid $400 too much. The Yoder is competition grade but all the Yoder Pits are. They are landing in backyards more and more because when folks walk into a BBQ shop and look them over side by side the competition, they can't help but see a huge difference in quality. Allot of folks are getting tired of quality issues associated with goods coming out of China. All this said, if Traegers are making it into Australia I can't see Yoder’s not making it in and when anyone that lifts the lid on one compared to a Traeger will most likely purchase unless they simply can't afford to pay the difference. The economy and the want for such product will definitely be a key driver to the success or failure. I hope it’s a success as they are a joy to cook on.

[Bentley]

Bently, the Traeger and Green Mountains are in a lesser quality league. It's like apples and oranges. They are made in China using cheap thin steel. My Traegrers body started flaking metal off the inside after 9 months. I went through 2 igniters and one controller. With any cooker there is the potential for failing components. My Traeger and My Whole hog had more then I could stand. I have owned the Yoder beta pit. One of the first 20 built, It ran circle around the Traeger and the Danson Whole Hog. I currently own a Yoder YS640 production pit. Best cooker I have ever owned. If you want a lesser quality pit buy a Traeger, Green mountain or Danson. If you want a competition grade quality cooker with a sturdy body and a great warranty and service backing, buy a Yoder. I watch folks all the time come into Foot Hills looking at all the different cookers. They lift the lids on them and once they do so on the Yoder thats it. They buy it. The difference in quality is that appearent.

I guess I will just disagree with you then. Not here to belittle the Yoder or any pit. As far as "competition" qaulity, funny, I won 2 Grand Championships on my Traegers and 1 so far on my Green Mountain, so both of them were "competition" quality to me. Will be cooking in the American Royal on a Green Mountain, and just found out I will be cooking the Jack Daniels with my team mates on Green Mountain pits.

If you find it nessassary to slam other Manufactures to make your product feel superiour, go right ahead...A pit made of heavy steel really makes no difference in the quality of the unit. Pretty sure you are affilliate with Yoder, so if slamming where a pit is made helps your sales, go for it...Hope the good folks of Australia dont feel the same way about a product made in USA as you do about the units made in China, if so you may have an up hill Battle!

Good luck in your venture!

[Wingman]

Bentley, I'm not a dealer of Yoder nor am I from Aurtralia. I however am a consumer who has owned a Traeger, Danson whole hog and and spent some time with the Green Mountain. The quality differencs are pretty obvious. I'm not here to slam these cookers however I did say comparing them is like comparing apples to oranges and I stand behind my statement. In my defense your forum Pellet Heads has taken ample shots at Yoder products. The yoder is a far more robustly built cooker. I have visited the fabrication facility and witnessed their fabrication, tesing and quality control. I was very impressed to say the least. I have cooked on a Yoder YS640 for well over a year and I'm impressed to this day. I couldn't say that about my other cookers. I have had more exposure to the product them most. Andy Groenmon of Smoke on Wheels competes with Yoders. My point is I'm a consumer allot like most of the individuals who will be owning and operating these cookers. As far as "competition grade", you can cook on anything in a competition your cooking ability and methods have allot to bring to the table. So take that as a compliment. Although I mentioned that my emphasis was on the quality of the cooker. I appreciate the fact you compete. That however does not make you the authoritative source. For that matter me being the owner of a BBQ site doesn not make me an authoritative source. Johnny Trigg said it best. The BBQ he cooks for competition he would not cook at home. Again Apples and Oranges. What I do accept as a good indication of qulity is my experience with the product and those who have purchased them and love them. I have not had one person who has bought one after viewing my information on them not have a great experience with them. If I was a dealer, I would cary a few pellet cookers and the Green Egg for sure but my primary go to quality pit would be a Yoder. No hard feelings man. It is what it is. I wish you the best of luck in the Jack. Go get em!

[Deano]

What ever BBQ you stand behind I have to say I admire you both for the passion you bring to the table, and you also both seem pretty invested in others having a good experience with their gear also. I have to say if you lived in Australia one of you would drive a Ford and the other a Holden! People feeling this strongly about pellet poopers just reinforces that I need one

[Wingman]

You are so right Deano, I stand behind Yoder cookers in general. I'm an old school offset smoker guy as well. I also own and cook on a Yoder Wichita stick burner. I have also looged many cooks on their Durango. I just love BBQ and a great cooking experience. Nothing like tasty Q!

[Captain Cook]

And that my friends is where the competition between pellet grills and the lively discussion needs to take a step backwards.

We are talking about Australia and where the introduction of pellets grills is happening. We have only two brands, one having been established with small sales and the other just being introduced, bear in mind it has not been tested on 240VAC yet and has to be modified. The price of Both is and will be an issue. We do not have competitions here so competition grade means jack s**t.

Thank you both for your input and passion on the respective grills and there good and bad points, Wingman obviously loves his, however there are a lot of independent reviews with mixed acceptance of the Yoder, not all of them would be biased, there are also the same mixed acceptance of the Trxaeger now it is made in China.

Bottom line is we need Australian reviews of both for Australian conditions and Australian ways of barbecuing.

I love my Traeger but mine is a USA manufactured unit, I want to see and test the Yoder first hand so I can make definitive comments about it without brand bias.

I doubt if the pellet grills will be a large use item here for many years, availability and cost of pellets will always be a restricting factor, it wont matter which is the best. That is the truth of the matter. I did a survey of my friends who have had food off my Traeger as to who would be interested in purchasing a pellet grill most loved the food but none would purchase one based on price, availability of pellets and the fact that they would have to change their complete way of cooking. They said it had too many negatives.


Cheers
Captain

[Livewire]

Boy we are all lucky they were only fighting a war with pellet burners if it had been charcoal or solid wood burners things would have gotten a whole lot hotter around here

Great to see the pasion about BBQ styles

Glenn

[Bentley]

In my defense your forum Pellet Heads has taken ample shots at Yoder products.

Just to set the record straight, I dont own Pelletheads.com. I am a forum Administrator. As far as the above statement, not even sure what it means? If you are implying I have made comments on the site that take shots at the Yoder...Please by all means copy and paste them here...I dont thinks you will find one I have made.

Have Owners of the Yoder posted comments about the pit, some that are not to flattering? Yes, but it is a site,much like this, where the dissimination of information about all things pellets is encouraged, good, bad or indifferent...You will have to take their dissatisfaction up with them.