Need some begining help

I not very familiar with the smoker and the pic didn't load, but the principles of firing a vertical charcoal smoker are pretty much the same regardless of the smoker model/manufacturer. That said, lump burns hotter, produces less ash, and charcoal briquettes can be your enemy if ash fall-out is not designed into the smoker's fire box/pan, as they can produce a lot of ash. It's generally not an issue for shorter smokes, such as a whole chicken and pieces, steaks, chops, etc, although with longer smoke times as would be expected with a pork butt, ash will overwhelm the fire and you will fight trying to keep smoke chamber temps high enough to cook properly.

Also, do you intend to use the minion method to build the fire, or, just add small amounts of fuel to keep temps stable during smoking? If you've never heard of the minion method, disregard for now, and keep things simple. The reason I ask is that for the minion method to work well, it seems that the smoker needs to be pretty air-tight on the lower end to allow for infinite control of intake air for fire control. If this is not possible, the fire can grow too large too quickly and run out of control with very high smoke chamber temps. It's an acquired skill to fire with the minion method, and having a properly designed or modified smoker is a basic need for it work, so maybe plan for fire tending, instead.

Wood chips do burn quickly when exposed to the nearby heat of a charcoal or lump fire, and chunks smolder more slowly. Placement of the chunks for slower smoking will help as well. Get them close to the fire, or touching hot coals to get them started, if needed, then move away from the fire just a bit to slow them down. The larger the chunk, the longer the smoke.As an alternative, smaller pieces can be made to smoke slower by limiting the amount of air/heat getting to them. A burned-out tin can with chips in it next to the fire can work well, as an example. For higher restriction of air, put the lid back on the can, loosely, to allow smoke to vent out the top, but reduce air from entering into the can, slowing the burn of the wood.

A meat thermometer is pretty much a must, and knowing what the smoke chamber temps are as well as the finished temp of the meat is also a must...time for cooking is irrelevant for the most part, and temps are everything in order to have safe meats for dining.

I'm late to the game here, and you've probably tried to make a go of it by now...hope this helps you figure out any issues you may have experienced thus far, and what steps to take next for better results and a more enjoyable smoking experience.

Come on back if there's something else you need assistance with.

If you haven't discovered it yet, check out Jeff's 5-day Ecourse found HERE...it's free, sent to you via email, and has a lot of basic info for the beginners get started with. If you have problems getting the ecourse, you could have it sent to you via a PM (private message) if I recall correctly...Jeff goes to great lengths to assure everyone can learn about smoking when they visit this site.

Eric

I just got that same smoker for Christmas, and I'm trying to read up on everything I can so I don't foul up my first smoke.  I do have a couple of questions:

-I was planning on trying a pork butt first, but it looks like that might be a fairly long smoke.  What would recommend to try first?

-With that Master Forge smoker, do you add the coals to the pan and then assemble it with the clips?  I am planning on using a chimney starter, and have been wondering what the safest way to move the hot coals into the smoker would be

Many thanks!

HarmSmoke,

I use Tongs to transfer hot coals. A bird or quarters woulds be good starter smoke. Be sure to check internal temps for min. 165* before removing from smoker.

You're most welcome, Jason.


Eric

Jason, good luck with the butt smoke.

I'll be up for a couple more hours tonight working on a project, so I'll be around for a bit yet.

Oh, on a side note, try not to disturb the coal-bed once you get meat in the smoker, including movement of the smoker, and be gentle with doors and lids, etc...if you agitate the fire much, it will cause ashes and hot cinders to go air-borne in the smoke chamber, and in vertical smokers especially, this will result in ash-covered meats...nasty grit on the surface...been there. This is why I use tongs to add fuel or smoke wood, and for positioning smoke wood. I can be precise and gentle, with little disturbance to the fire. When I pull hot coals from a chimney, I don't look inside the chimney...just point it away from my face (hot cinders/ashes/smoke) and down wind of me and the smoker, reach in a grab a few at a time with your tongs and lay them where ever you need. It only takes a minute or so to add 1/4-1/3 chimney, which is a lot of hot coals for a small vertical smoker, once the temps are up and you're already cooking.

Have fun with your new addiction, guys!

Eric

Big piece of meat, nice job...JJ

Oh YUM!  You did great!  Haha!  Now you are addicted!  I want pp now!

Nice, Jason! You're on a roll. Keep on smokin' 'em up!!!


Eric