AmazingRibs.com is supported by our Pitmaster Club. Also, when you buy with links on our site we may earn a finder’s fee. Click to see how we test and review products.

ThermoWorks PT1438 Dial Thermometer Review

Share on:
ThermoWorks PT1438 Dial Thermometer Review

The ThermoWorks PT1438 Dial Thermometer has good accuracy and a long probe for in-oven/in-food measurements. It can be calibrated by adjusting a nut on the back side of the dial.

We don’t typically wax enthusiastic over bi-metal dial thermometers, but this one works well enough. It has a wide temperature range and would work well if stuck into a large roast. Unlike a digital thermometer that can read to 0.1º, dials tend to be limited by their inherent size and scale markings. The graduations on this thermometer are every 5º, and trying to interpolate between markings is an exercise in wishful thinking. Nevertheless, they do have their niche.

We’ll give this a Bronze medal subject to the limitations above. It’s an inexpensive way to have an in-food thermometer that will give you a fairly good idea of internal temperatures.

  • Thermometer Function:
    Leave in Food, Leave in Cooker
  • Item Price:
    $ 19.00
  • Where to buy (buying from this supplier supports this website):

    Thermometer: ThermoWorks

     

  • Probe:
    Length: 8" (20cm), diameter: 0.15" (3.75mm)
  • Battery Type:
    n/a
  • Battery Life:
    n/a
  • Safe Operating Range:
    50 to 550ºF (25 to 275ºC)
  • Min & Max Temp:
    50 to 550ºF (25 to 275ºC)
  • Display Precision:
    5º markings
  • Actual Temp at 32 Degrees:
    n/a
  • Actual Temp at 130 Degrees:
    125
  • Actual Temp at 225 Degrees:
    220+
  • Actual Temp at 325 Degrees:
    325
  • Speed from 32 to 212 Degrees:
    n/a
  • Speed from 32 to 212 Degrees:
    n/a
  • Numbers Display Size:
    Diameter: 1.5" (38mm)
  • Water Resistance Rating:
    Not specified
  • Weight:
    1.35oz (37g)
  • C/F Switch:
    No CF swich
  • Backlight:
    No Backlight
  • Adjustable Options:
    1
  • Color Options:
    Stainless steel
  • Thermometer Sensor:
    Bimetal
  • App:
    No
  • Logging:
    No
  • Included:
    Thermometer
  • Available Accessories:
    None
  • Alarms:
    None

Published On: 5/7/2014 Last Modified: 1/28/2021

  • Bill McGrath - Bill McGrath is AmazingRibs.com's Thermometer Maven. He has sophisticated equipment, an electrical engineering degree from Cornell University, and an MBA (almost) from UC Berkeley. Despite being mostly retired, he is still the person responsible for developing and updating all of ExxonMobil's training modules.

 

High quality websites are expensive to run. If you help us, we’ll pay you back bigtime with an ad-free experience and a lot of freebies!

Millions come to AmazingRibs.com every month for high quality tested recipes, tips on technique, science, mythbusting, product reviews, and inspiration. But it is expensive to run a website with more than 2,000 pages and we don’t have a big corporate partner to subsidize us.

Our most important source of sustenance is people who join our Pitmaster Club. But please don’t think of it as a donation. Members get MANY great benefits. We block all third-party ads, we give members free ebooks, magazines, interviews, webinars, more recipes, a monthly sweepstakes with prizes worth up to $2,000, discounts on products, and best of all a community of like-minded cooks free of flame wars. Click below to see all the benefits, take a free 30 day trial, and help keep this site alive.


Post comments and questions below

grouchy?

1) Please try the search box at the top of every page before you ask for help.

2) Try to post your question to the appropriate page.

3) Tell us everything we need to know to help such as the type of cooker and thermometer. Dial thermometers are often off by as much as 50°F so if you are not using a good digital thermometer we probably can’t help you with time and temp questions. Please read this article about thermometers.

4) If you are a member of the Pitmaster Club, your comments login is probably different.

5) Posts with links in them may not appear immediately.

Moderators

  Max

Click to comment or ask a question...

Spotlight

These are not paid ads, they are a curated selection of products we love.

All of the products below have been tested and are highly recommended. Click here to read more about our review process.

Use Our Links To Help Keep Us Alive

Many merchants pay us a small referral fee when you click our “buy now” links. This has zero impact on the price you pay but helps support the site.


Our Favorite Backyard Smoker

The amazing Karubecue is the most innovative smoker in the world. At its crux is a patented firebox that burns logs above the cooking chamber and sucks heat and extremely clean blue smoke into the thermostat-controlled oven. Click here for our review of this superb smoker.


Bring The Heat With Broil King Signet’s Dual Tube Burners

3 burner gas grill

The Broil King Signet 320 is a modestly priced, 3-burner gas grill that packs a lot of value and power under the hood including dual-tube burners that are able to achieve high, searing temps that rival most comparatively priced gas grills. Click here to read our complete review.


GrillGrates Take Gas Grills To The Infrared Zone


GrillGrates amplify heat, prevent flare-ups, make flipping foods easier, kill hotspots, flip over to make a fine griddle, and can be easily moved from one grill to another. Click here for more about what makes these grates so special.


The Pit Barrel Cooker May Be Too Easy


The PBC has a rabid cult following for good reason. It’s among the best bargains for a smoker in the world. This baby cooks circles around cheap offset smokers because temperature control is so much easier. Click here to read our detailed review and the raves from people who own them.