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Pete started smoking meats last summer, using a propane grill that my mom bought for me when I purchased my first house in 1997. (Thanks, Mom, we still use that grill at least three times a week!) He’s got a system that works great and produces excellent (m)eats, but he wanted a dedicated smoker. He was so serious about it that he’d done a bunch of research and had even picked one out, so I thought it would be fun to get it for him this year. On April 10^th I found the best price on the Char-Griller Outlaw smoker at Amazon.com, with the best deal on shipping. The smoker weighs about 140 pounds, and most places wanted over $100 for shipping; Amazon charged $39. I ordered the smoker and it arrived within 5 days, heavily damaged. The box looked like it had fallen off the back of a truck and had been taped together with at least one roll of packing tape, maybe two. (Click here or on the thumbnail image to view the smoker pics.) The smoker is powder coated and the lid had such bad dents that it cracked the powder coating, which will just lead to premature rust. It was also missing a bunch of assembly parts like bolts, nuts, and even the thermometer. I’d bet that one of the parts bags fell out of the gaping holes in the box. I sent Amazon an email with photos of the damage and they said they would send out another smoker and we can return the damaged one using the pre-paid shipping label they included in their email. The tracking number I got for the replacement says it’s being shipped to Oregon, so I call Amazon to try to figure out what’s going on. They don’t know either, but assist with getting the package bound for Oregon re-routed to Colorado and is expected to be delivered on Friday, May 1^st. At this point it seemed that things were sorted out. On Tuesday, April 28^th I went to our mailbox in town and guess what’s waiting for me? A smoker! Fine, whatever, as long as it’s not damaged and we can get on with the fun part of making some yummy food. We swap damaged smoker for good smoker, damaged smoker gets put back in good smoker’s box and sent back to Amazon on Friday May 1^st. That same day, when I get back home from town, the UPS truck comes driving up our road at 3:30 pm. Now mind you, I live in B.F.C., and for the most part no delivery company will bring packages to the house which is why we have a delivery address in town. Guess what was on the truck? Smoker number three! I went outside to stop the driver before she unloaded the monstrosity and briefly told her about what had happened. We both had a good laugh, and I refused the delivery. It is the only time Amazon has made a mistake, I just wish it would have been something less heavy. But everything’s copasetic now. Pete is very happy and is already planning his summer meat smoking schedule. I can’t wait!

Tags: Box, Char, CO, Colorado, fall, Griller, href, photos, plan, smoker, summer, work

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