The heat transfer of stainless steel is low compared to plain carbon steel (and both are quite a bit lower than aluminum, let alone copper). Much like the recent discussion on copper vs brass, the wall thickness also comes into play.
As for corrosion, obviously the nod goes to stainless steel. Painting of carbon steel isn't bad on performance as the paint thickness is normally only a few mils, but surface preparation is key to long paint life. Without sufficient prep, lingering rust spots, oils, sharp edges/burrs, etc., will all accelerate the breakdown of the paint.
One warning with stainless if you have something made yourself: If you bend stainless using a die that has been used for plain carbon steel, you'll get rust along the bend lines due to material left on the die. It's purely cosmetic and won't affect the stainless, but looks like crap. Same goes for using wire brushes that are not stainless.
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