Kamado Joe Classic 1 Vs 2 Grill

When you’re looking for a backyard grill, there are a lot of things to consider. Do you want a gas or charcoal grill? How big do you need it to be? What features are important to you? One option that might not be on your radar is the kamado joe. This unique style of grill can offer some advantages over other types. In this article, we’ll compare the kamado joe classic 1 and 2 so that you can decide which one is right for you.

What is a Kamado joe classic 1?

-The Kamado Joe Classic 1 is a traditional Japanese kamado-style outdoor cooker. The ceramic body, heavy duty iron hardware and flexible air dampers make it a versatile cooking machine. It can use gas or lump charcoal for fuel and the removable ash drawer makes cleaning up a snap!

Features of a Kamado joe classic 1:

Size:

-32″H x 28″W x 28″D

Price:

-$999+

Design:

-Traditional Japanese kamado design, is very simple and efficient to use with air dampers on the top and bottom. There is also an adjustable vent for direct cooking (higher temps) or indirect (lower). The ceramic body makes it very robust and durable. This cooker will last for years! If cared for properly, it won’t rust either!

Style:

– The classic 1 kamado grill looks like a regular cylinder shaped kamado style grill and this unit does in black, blue, and red colors.

Warranty:

-The Classic 1 comes with a 1-year warranty on parts and labor with the option of an extended 3-year warranty for $50 more.

Customer Service:

– Great customer service! I have had a great experience getting in touch with Kamado Joe to get replacement parts or deal with any issues I have come across so far. Their customer service is top-notch.

Material:

-Comes with a ceramic body and heavy-duty iron hardware. The grill grates are cast iron as well. The ash drawer is stainless steel which makes it much easier to clean up after cooking over charcoal.

Ease of use:

-Easy to use with adjustable dampers for both top and bottom of the unit. You can get very high temps using lump charcoal (over 1000 degrees) or you can get low temps using gas (up to 500 degrees). Great versatility. The ash drawer makes clean-up easy, only wish it were bigger though!

Accessories:

-This unit comes with a built-in ash drawer; it also has the option to purchase a chicken stand and a warming rack for this form factor.

Type of fuel:

-It uses lump charcoal, you can also use wood chips for smoking purposes to produce different flavors.

Temperature control:

-Using the adjustable dampers for both top and bottom you can control the temperature to within 10 degrees. If you use your grill often this feature will really help when cooking different items by changing temps halfway through cooking!

Temperature range:

-You can get a temperature range of 250 degrees to over 1000+ degrees. Great for low and slow cooking or fast searing of meat!

Cooking ability:

-This unit will cook just about anything you want; it is very versatile when it comes to cooking everything from burgers to roasts and even pizza! It gets hot quickly and holds the heat well which makes this ideal for direct or indirect grilling/cooking.

Grating material:

-The grate material is cast iron.

Cooking capacity:

-The Kamado Joe classic 1 is a medium sized grill so it wouldn’t be ideal for hosting a party. It does a great job cooking for a family of 4 and can accommodate more!

Kamado Joe Kontrol Tower Capability:

-The Kamado Joe classic 1 can be equipped with the Kontrol Tower accessory which is sold separately. This feature allows you to hang utensils on your grill when not in use for easy access!

Built in Thermometer:

-There is a built-in thermometer near the grate level, so you don’t have to lift the lid to check the temperature of what you are cooking!

Smoke Ventilation System:

-You can get good smoke flavor by closing both dampers and opening up the upper vent. This will allow sufficient air flow inside for smoking purposes. You can also add wood chips to your charcoal.

Gasket with Stainless Steel Latch:

-The gasket with stainless steel latches helps seal in the heat and smoke, they also make opening and closing the lid easy.

Smoker Box:

-This grill comes with a built-in smoker box.

Storage Drawer:

There is a storage drawer on this unit that can be used to store grilling tools.

Built in Tool Hooks:

-There are built in tool hooks on the side of this grill for hanging grilling accessories!

New Air Lift Hinge:

-The new air lift hinge makes it easier to open and close the lid.

Durable Hinges:

-The unit has heavy-duty stainless-steel hinges for easy opening and closing of the grill’s lid.

What is a Kamado joe classic 2?

-Kamado Joe Classic 2 is a ceramic charcoal grill. A classic kamado cooker is an ancient Japanese style of clay pot cooking where you seal up all the vents and use briquettes or lump hardwood to cook your food at a very high temperature over long periods.

This low and slow method of cooking at high temperature creates amazing flavors that can’t be achieved by most other methods.

Features of a Kamado joe classic 2:

– The Kamado Joe Classic 2 is a large grill. It measures 28 x 19 x 30 inches and weighs 84 pounds. While this isn’t exactly portable, it does store easily when you need to keep it under covers or in a garage when not in use.

Price

– You can usually find the Joes for about $600 online, but if you wait around there are always specials going on where you can get one for less. Keep an eye out every month or two and I’m sure you’ll be able to snag one at a great price!

Design:

-This Kamado Joe classic features a split top dome design that allows for both direct and indirect cooking. There is a very large and solid hinge on top, and all the parts fit together perfectly. Most of this grill is ceramic which is surrounded by a steel body that makes it incredibly durable and rust resistant.

Style

– This Kamado Joe classic has a classic but cool looking design on the outside. It’s got some nice straight lines and simple but effective graphics on it that just look great in my opinion. It will look great wherever you decide to put it, whether that be on your patio or deck or just inside on your garage floor while not in use!

Warranty

-While I’ve never had any problems with theirs (knock on wood), Kamado Joe offers a 3-year warranty for the Classic. They have a great track record of fixing things quickly and with minimal hassle to the consumer, so don’t be afraid to use it!

Customer Service

-This is one thing I’m very impressed with when it comes to Kamado Joe. I’ve never had any major problems with mine, but if something did go wrong, they would be there for me right away. The owner Paul Kirk is a well-known grilling expert and has written many books about grilling

-The Kamado Joe classic is made from a ceramic material, steel, and plastic. It’s really quieted the combination! The porcelain enameled cast iron cooking grate, stainless steel vent dampers, ash tool and all other

Material: Ceramic

–  The Kamado Joe classic is made from ceramic material, steel, and plastic. It’s really quieted the combination! The porcelain enameled cast iron cooking grate, stainless steel vent dampers, ash tool and all other materials used are high quality! This thing will last forever if you treat it right.

Ease of Use

– This kamado Joe classic has a couple of very nice features that make it super easy to use as well as maintain your food while you cook it. First, you can easily slide the top half of this grill up and down with a very sturdy and well-built handle. This will allow you to cook using either the direct or indirect methods by sliding it over to one side or another.

Another great feature is the ash tool that they include which has a spade-like end on it that allows you to clean out your firebox in no time! I’m really impressed with how easy it is to keep my cooking grate and ash tray clean after each use. This might be the easiest Kamado grill that I’ve ever worked with!

Accessories

-The two most important accessories for this kamado Joe classic are their deflector plate and cast-iron cover lifter.

Type of fuel:

-This kamado can use either charcoal briquettes or lump hardwood charcoal to cook with. These items combust very quickly which will give your food a nice number of smoky flavors!

Temperature control:

-This is one of the most important parts of any kamado grill. You’ll need to make sure that you can control the amount of air coming into your firebox because that will determine how quickly your charcoal burns, as well as how much smoke gets through. The fire grate itself comes with a nice ash pan underneath it to help keep your ash from getting onto your food.

Temperature range:

–You can easily vary the temperature on this grill by adjusting your air flow. The more you open up the dampers, the higher the heat will extend.

Cooking ability:

-As with any kamado cooker, this one does a great job of cooking and searing your food. The porcelain enameled cast iron grate surface also makes it easy to clean which is always important!

Grating material:

-This Kamado Joe Classic comes with a porcelain enameled cast iron cooking grate. This type of grate is important to have because it can withstand high heat without warping or becoming damaged.

Kamado Joe Kontrol Tower Capability:

-This kamado Joe comes with the Kontrol Tower temperature control feature. This allows you to really dial in your heat profile while you are cooking!

Built in Thermometer:

-This model comes with a thermometer built into it, which is nice. It’s always useful to know what the temperature inside of your grill is so you can adjust as necessary!

Smoke Ventilation System:

-This kamado features a 4″ smoke ventilation system near the bottom. This system will allow air to circulate and help contribute to a better set of cooking conditions!

Gasket with Stainless Steel Latch: –

This kamado features a thick gasket with a stainless-steel latch to keep it tight and sealed. This is a nice feature because a lot of other grills will have flimsy latches which can’t properly seal your grill, leading to decreased cooking performance!

Smoker Box:

-Kamado Joe does include a smoker box for this grill that attaches to the side. This helps to provide additional smokey flavor or to just help regulate temperature if you are cooking directly on charcoal!

Storage Drawer:

-Built into the side of this Kamado Joe, there is a storage drawer that can be used to keep all your cooking accessories organized. This is nice because it means you don’t have to search through boxes or drawers for grilling tools!

Built-in Tool Hooks:

-This grill has built-in hooks for your grilling tools. This is nice because it means you never have to search through drawers or boxes to find your tongs or spatula!

New Air Lift Hinge:

-This grill comes with the New Air Lift Hinge on it. This helps to provide a great seal while cooking and makes it easier to open your grill for cleaning or adjustments!

Durable Hinges:

–This grill features both stainless steel hinges and latches to help make sure they are durable over time. This is helpful because it means you won’t have to worry about your grills not functioning properly!

The similarities of kamado joe classic 1 and 2:

-Two color options: black or green

-Both use charcoal briquettes and lump hardwood charcoal

-Both have a thick gasket with a stainless-steel latch to keep it tight and sealed.

The differences of kamado joe classic 1 and 2:

-There is no hole on the charcoal grate for ash removal on this one, but it does come with an ash pan to help keep your grill clean!

-In order to adjust the flow of air from your vents, you must take off the top vent’s cowl. This can be a bit cumbersome, so if you need quick access to your vents, it might affect performance.

-The grill has two stainless steel tool hooks built into it to help you keep your tools organized.

-It doesn’t come with a built-in thermometer, so if you need one you will have to buy it separately!

The winner:

-Out of these two grills, I would consider the “classic 2” to be the winner. This is because it doesn’t require you to take off any cowl to adjust your vents, and it has a built-in thermometer which makes it easier to monitor the heat profile while cooking!

FAQs

What is the primary difference between a kamado joe classic 1 and 2?

-There is no hole in the charcoal grate for ash removal with this grill, but it does have an ash pan!

-You must take off the top vent cowl to adjust your vents, whereas on the “classic 2” you can just pull a level.

Which smoker is right for me?

-If you want the most options and flexibility, then I would go with the classic 2.

-If you don’t mind having to take off a cowl every time you adjust your vents, and generally like to use charcoal briquettes (or already own some), then this might be a good grill for you!

Pros and Cons of a kamado joe classic 1 and 2?

kamado joe classic 1 pros:

-You don’t have to take off any vent cowls to adjust your airflow

-Has two stainless steel tool hooks built into it.

kamado joe classic 1 cons:

-Doesn’t come with a built-in thermometer, so you will have to buy one separately!

kamado joe classic 2 pros:

-Has a built-in thermometer so you can monitor the heat profile more easily as you cook.

kamado joe classic 2 cons:

 -You must take off the top vent cowl every time to adjust your airflow, which might make it cumbersome if you need quick access all the time.

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Conclusions:

The Kamado Joe Classic 1 and 2 are both great smokers, but there are some key differences that may make one better for your needs than the other. The Classic 1 is a bit smaller, making it ideal for those with limited space or who want to smoke on a smaller scale. It also has a slightly lower price point. If you’re looking for something bigger or want more features, the Classic 2 is definitely worth considering. It offers an increased cooking area, as well as a built-in thermometer and heat deflector. Both smokers come with a warranty from Kamado Joe, so you can be sure you’re getting a quality product no matter which one you choose.