re: Which smokers are the best?

The Smokey Mountain is considered top of the line. There are many websites dedicated to them, including The Virtual Weber Bullet and the Virtual Weber Bulletin Board. The former provides all the info you could ever need on one, including tips and recipes. The latter is a forum where people swap recipes, techniques, modification ideas, pictures, and anything relating to Weber. With your budget, I recommend the larger model. Significantly higher capacity, and will still stay $100 under budget. It is very easy to operate and maintain temperature, which is the major concern when smoking. The cooker holds more than enough to cook for a decent crowd, and is designed specifically for smoking purposes, as compared to many other hybrid grill/smoker models. The sites I mentioned offer different perspectives for cooking and can provide help in cooking any type of meat. Take a look at the first one and read why it is so highly rated and recommended. I just bought the 18.5" and have been absolutely pleased with everything about it.