Greetings from sunny Buffalo, NY

mrbert62 · Jan 22, 2013

Greetings all from sunny Buffalo, NY. It's a cool 5' today but the sun is shining. I just wanted to drop in and say hello. I have been reading the forums and appreciating the questions and responses. I am relaatively new to smoking and BBQing but I am a well qualified eater of low and slow as well as grilled meats. I have been smoking on the lowly ECB with a few mods to make some beginner tailgating food, mostly buterflied chickens, polish sausage and baby back ribs. Through trial and error and some long sessions on that ECB I have come to realize I am hooked. Last week in the snow and wind, I tended that ECB for (4) split fryers that my neighbors and I enjoyed many hours later.

After reading many of the posts and internet articles, I think it's time to invest and upgrade to a better smoker. I have my eye on the Weber Smokey Mountain 22.5 Charcoal Smoker. I'll be picking it up in time for the Superbowl and looking forward to christen with something tasty. I am thinking about my first pork butt but that is a big jump in cook time. Not sure if I am ready but you have to start somewhere. Any tips on planning if I wanted to try for the superbowl? It starts around 6:30 pm. I am pretty handy trimming and prepping the meat, but a bit nervous about the smoker setup. Should I be using the waterpan for such a long smoking session?

badmoont2 · Jan 22, 2013

I have a WSM 18.5 and love it. I use a 22.5 to cook at work about once a month. I can feed 20+ using the 22.5.The water pan helps keep the temps steady and makes the WSM really easy to use. Some say the extra moisture makes for a better smoke ring. Pork butt is very forgiving, just give yourself some extra time.

LanceR · Jan 22, 2013

Welcome aboard. I grew up in Amherst and Nancy is from Elma. Where in the Buffalo area are you?

We have a farm in Sennett over near Syracuse now.

Lance

s2k9k · Jan 22, 2013

to SMF!!! We're happy you found us! You've come to the right place, we have over 45,000 members and over 900,000 posts so you should be able to find almost anything you want to know. Remember the search bar at the top can be your best friend for finding answers fast and the “Articles” section is chock full of good useful information and “how-to’s”!

You might want to check out Jeff's Free 5 day E-course it will teach you all the basics and a whole lot more!

If you have any questions about the forums or need any help navigating around don’t hesitate to ask or send me a PM, I am more than happy to help out!

A good rule of thumb for pork butt is 2 hours/lb, but most important is to cook to temp not time. For good pulled pork you should take the meat to about 200*. If it gets done early you can wrap it in foil and hold it in a cooler wrapped in towels and it will stay hot for hours. There are many many threads on here about butts, just use the search bar and you will find all you need to know.

mrbert62 · Jan 22, 2013

Hi Lance, I grew up on the east side of Buffalo and now reside in West Seneca in the Clinton / Harlem area. What took you to Syracuse? Big happenings now that the Bills virtually have all of the football team coaches moving to town. Most of us are excited.

mrbert62 · Jan 22, 2013

Thanks for the tips guys. Today was a day off and I took a ride out to the our local BBQ supply house (Adventures in Heat) eagerly wanting to pick up the WSM. Much to my surprise, it was closed today. Maybe they took and extended holiday and many businesses were closed yesterday. I'll start checking the threads on P/Butts and setup a planning shopping and planning sheet. It was a labor of love trying to maintain the 200 - 250 range on that little ECB in the cold and wind. I cannot wait to get the new Weber and try a test run this weekend. My tailgating friends and neighbors are eagerly awaiting as much as I am :)

I'll start the 5 day Ecourse tonight.

davidhef88 · Jan 22, 2013

Welcome!!! I'm right up the street in Rochester. I work in Buffalo and the surrounding area three days a week.

kathrynn · Jan 22, 2013

:welcome1: to SMF! Glad you joined us!

Butts are really easy! You will do just fine...even on the ECB with one!

Kat

LanceR · Jan 23, 2013

Bert, I left college at age 19 in 1976 and joined the Army and never went back to the B'lo area. Later, I had come to the conclusion that the two best places to raise a family were the Puget Sound area or the Finger Lakes and the Finger Lakes were 2,000 miles closer to family so I settled here after an overseas tour and with the exception of a few short stretches stationed elsewhere I have been here since. I retired in 2005 and as much as we love it here the workload on the place especially the taxes are causing us to look south for a permanent retirement home.

I still have a pair of ECBs kicking around and after drilling about 12-15 3/8" holes in the bottom under the fire pan so they breath easier they will hit just about any temp you want in cold weather especially with lump charcoal. Keeping it out of the wind is the biggest thing though. Just like you and me the wind really chills them down.

Good luck with the new smoker and let us know how things progress.

Lance

mrbert62 · Feb 19, 2013

Hi Lance, I had drilled out the charcoal pan and put in a grill grate with about 3/4 of an inch from the bottom. That has helped and I am sure in warmer weather with no wind I would be close to 210 - 225. I maintained 195 in our 18 degree weather this week in Buffalo. I am painting my living room and kitchen and thougt it was a great occasion for baby back ribs. I wound up restoking the ECB with a total of 4 Weber chimneys using about 17 lbs of charcoal. My ribs were great but took about 7 hours total.

In summer, I am sure it would work great but needing alot of TLC and attention. Uncle Sam sent my tax refund check so it was the perfect excuse to order a Weber WSM 22.5 :) It will be here tomorrow. I am on vacation this week and hope I can concentrate on finishing my painting while the box is sitting here tomorrow.

LanceR · Feb 20, 2013

I used lump when it got cold and added a bit at a time through the door with a little shovel for a coal parlor type stove I got from a old style hardware store. I tossed a few fist sized lumps of wood in every now and then too to help keep the temp up. I hope the new smoker makes you happy. I never even seen a WSM but have heard nothing but good things about them.

Lance

mrbert62 · Feb 20, 2013

Painting the kitchen and I get a UPS text that my WSM is out for delivery. Please let me finish the kitchen befroe the delivery guy gets here Lol!

Thanks for the tip Lance, I did try a short run with lump to do some 2 large chickens. It certainly burned hotter and the water pan needed refilling in between the 4 hrs of smoke time. The Brinkman really did its job and cooked some very good tailgating food for the Bills games. It also got me hooked on smoking meats and bringing the neighborhood guys together for horseshoes and BBQ on Sundays. :) Going to pass on the ECB to one of the neighbors when I get the WSM setup.

mackbrad · Feb 20, 2013

Welcome I'm kinda close to buffalo I live in the Rochester area welcome

mrbert62 · Feb 21, 2013

Rochester is right down the 90 about an hour. Always meet folks from Rochester at the Bills games tailgating in the side lots.

mrbert62 · Feb 21, 2013

Greetings to all the folks in Rochester. Just a hop, skip, and a jump down the 90. I always meet folks at he Bills games from Rochester during our tailgating parties. There are also better BBQ places in Rochester although Buffalo is starting to catch on. That's one of the reasons I started smoking and making BBQ myself, limited places to sit down and enjoy, football tailgating, and get togethers in the back yard.

mrbert62 · Feb 21, 2013

Thanks MacBrad. You are probably experiencing the cold and wind we have had here the past 2 weeks then.

mackbrad · Feb 21, 2013

Yea for the past couple days 40 mph with snow calming down a little now

zahlgren · Feb 22, 2013

jp61 · Feb 25, 2013

Greetings from sunny Buffalo, NY

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