Looks like you had a nice project for getting a smoke going. The pork roast has some great color inside...love the tri-tip, too. I
still haven't tried a tri-tip, to this day...sheesh! I like to experiment alot with flavor profiles myself...been accused of being the mad scientist of rub, among other things...LOL!!! Anyway, were there any flavors which seemed way out in left field? Over-powering, or too far in the back-ground?
I've never tried dried orange or pineapple, myself...I think the acidity of those may be high enough that it may give a stronger sweet/sour flavor for most meats. Well, milder cuts of pork (loin & center-cut chops) and chicken would work with a good selection of savories. Rosemary, thyme, oregano, cumin, maybe a bit of sweet basil, depending on the theme of the recipe you're looking for, should pick it up and carry more depth and back-bone to the flavor profile. I have used fresh orange and lemon (along with the zest) for marinades with pork chops, and they went over very nicely. Lemon/pepper chicken or pork chops (with garlic) is great on the grill or smoked, too. Not sure how I would bring pineapple into a dry rub, though...I'd would have to think about that one for a bit, but I'm imagining a similar treatment as with lemon or orange for savories, and possibly use a heat provoking ingredient as in your ginger, or, some moderately hot chilies.
Another thought on the citrus rubs is to blend some fruitwood (cherry, apple, peach, plum) along with a touch of hickory for some extra bite. Cherry and apple are great solo, or blended, and pecan as a third addition to the blend takes them over the top with pork and poultry. So, what you aren't getting from the dry rub, you can bring into the end product with the smoke wood you choose.
Have you looked at my Hawg Heaven Rub? Since you're playing with the ground fruits for dry rubs, this may give you some ideas on where to go with your project as well. It has cherry, apple and red bell pepper for the base...great rub for pork shoulder and milder cuts alike.
Hawg Heaven Rub Wiki
Pics got really skewed/stretched for some reason in the Wiki, so if you want a better visual, here's the thread:
Hawg Heaven Rub and Here Piggy-Piggy Brine
Another one you may want to check out is my Cherry Dry Rub. I have several variants for beef and pork, cherry spiced corned beef pastrami, etc. The Wiki is found
HERE.
Or, how about
Cherry/Balsamic Marinated Ribeyes?
Oh, I can't forget about
Cherry/Balsamic Wet Rubbed Pork Ribs !!!
When formulating a new rub, marinade, brine, etc, be sure to smell and taste before using it. You can usually tell if something in specific is too strong or too weak in the overall profile, especially with some practice. Sometimes you may get in a pinch, and have a strong flavor that you want to smooth over a bit. A sniff of this and a sniff of that, and next thing you know, you find the solution in your spice cabinet.
A few things can change in the overall profile after cooking, such as cracked black pepper becoming more intense and giving a bit stronger bite to the throat (especially with high temp grilling), but for the most part, taste and smell will tell you alot about what's going on inside that container before you toss it onto something. Experience with using this method, like anything else, will give you a better understanding of what can happen to various spices and herbs after cooking, based on what the blend smelled and tasted like before use. Practice, and patience with yourself while you build this skill are beneficial and critical to your success. Passion for the art/craft is a must...either you want this badly, or you don't...I think you already have the passion, or you wouldn't have started this thread.
I hope this helps you understand where you are now with your rubs, and what you can do to get where you want to be...getting there's the fun part, so just let it happen, 'cause nothing but great eats can come of it, and the experience and knowledge you gain from working out the details is priceless...you can't buy this with any amount of money.
I'm assuming you're smoking with an electric? Just curious, as I didn't see a smoke ring, but the lack of a smoke ring doesn't effect the smoke flavor.
Stay with it...you will be rewarded with very unique dishes and entree's that can be found nowhere else but from your cookers!
Eric