What do you think about this?

I think that will be OK.

I stopped using foil on ribs and they still come out great.they may require and bit of extra effort on telling when they are done but that is the true fun of it for me. mastering the meat! lol

there are many threads on the topic on this site. I tune my process around using no foil. form the way i prep it, to mopping, to when to apply sauce.

i prefer the tooth pick method. a lot like the bend test. I usually make 4 to 12 racks a time and bending them all lets too much heat out. it's a feel thing and after a few runs you will know exactly how the pick should slide in the meat.

the key is to let the ribs tell you when they are done. most times. i find 5 hours is a bit much

there is certainly a range of time to be ready to take them.off I have cooked 12 racks at once and have had as much as a 30  min difference between the rib on the top rack vs ribs on the bottom rack.  i have had ribs finis in 3.5 hrs and other times take 5 hours.

there are many variables to nail down get specific times. the biggest thing IMHO is maintaining an even temp throughout the cook. i have learned to go with the flow(so to speak). I don't fight my smoker to get a specific temp. i may try and get to 225 but if it's running smooth at 240. i just go with 240 and know that meat will cook faster, the hot spots will be dryer.

keeping a steady temp is the best step forward.

second is no peeking. keep that heat in.I see you have a wsm in your profile. maybe you can reach out to guys that use that smoker for specific tips. fire control and smoke control

i will just sum up how i do it. after many trail runs and reviewing the messages on here there are a dozen ways to get good ribs. anything home made will be good. this is just what works for me on my smoker.

i rub the ribs with olive oil. just a little like 1 tsp per side.

put the rub on and then let sit for 45min to 1 hour while i get the smoker going.

get even temps and setup smoke for 3 hrs worth.

toss in smoker no peeking for at least 2 hours.

check to see if they need some mopping. poke with toothpick(between ribs) see where they are.

every 30mins-1 hr more depending on temps. mop/check if necessary to put sauce on .

i use olive oil as  base.i find that the ribs stay very moist when i'm not foiling so i can go a few hours without mopping. some days(at lower temps) I didn't even mop. use sparingly but cover completely. too  much oil has thrown off the taste of the rub in past runs. 

many way to go with prep and mopping/spritzing) etc. master the smoker. control your heat and amount of smoke and the rest is just paying attention and relaxing.

bradsbbq said:

so 4 hours?

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You can check them after 4 if you want. The one variable that we forget about most often is that size matters when talking about rib cook times. Baby backs 3lbs and up may take as long as 6 hours at 225° and "no foil", 2 lbs and under may take 4 hrs or less. YMMV. 4 hours without foil at 225° and your ribs will be underdone IMHO, unless they are on the small side.

Also depends on the weather and type of smoker , is it cold , windy , rain , snow ?

That's all I ever do, I never foil............and their done when their done.  Can't put a time on them.

bradsbbq said:

Ok so i am thinking of smoking baby back ribs for 5 hours at 225-250 no foil. what do you think? thanks!

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I think that's a great idea! Love ribs!