I bought a David Klose of Houston.
http://bbq.about.com/od/smokerreviews/gr/aapr042505e.htm
I know they are bank, but the old adage is you get what you pay for applys. The guy has worked out all the bugs and included little features in the desgn that make BBQing more effortless. They really are well thought out units, that pay attention to little details. I had him build mine with a 1/2" steel plate firebox to retain the heat even better. No problem using hardwood logs, Hardwood charcoal or regular charcoal. I think a good idea would be to include a Gas burner in the firebox to facilitate lighting and for those long 12 to 18 hour pulls for Brisket. At the time I bought mine he didn't have that feature as an option.
The New Braunfels are nice units but the gauge of metal is toooo thin, they require constant refueling to keep the temp constant, even with a water pan. The reason for the water pan is so that U can keep a constant temp.
Remember shipping one of his units is expensive because of the weight involved. These are not mamby pamby units.
The question is would I spend the bank and buy one of his units again. You bet I would, as a matter of fact I wish I had gone straight to one of his units and not have screwed around with the other units beforehand. This is essentially the LAST BBQ Smoker you will ever buy. It is a professional level unit, that will do just about anything you can think of BBQing.