Its been a long time since I used charcoal and am still learning now much to use. This smokergrill is just fantastic. I cook several days worth of food at a time and the extension is super. The table was very expensive so I made one like it and adapted it to the Primo for less than $70.00. One problem is that the hardware in some areas has already begun to have rust spots, I will use a little steel wool and put some clear poly on them and see what happens from there. Be prepared at delivery, the truck driver helped out but there was no lift tailgate and there was no dolly so we had to carry it across our yard about thirty yards and the sucker is heavy. After putting it in its table I can not imagine a better smokergrill at any price. Very, very satisfied. http://vintageluxcol.com/4646