Strange taste with new smoker, HELP!!!

jr.s

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Dec 4, 2006

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• Dec 20, 2006

• #21

Lots of good advice and tips, I'll try it out tomorrow night on some salami that I make, and a Christmas turkey on Saturday. I'll let you guys know how it goes....

So does your Masterbuilt Smokers leak smoke from the door? If not, maybe I need to contact Masterbuilt.....

 

illini

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Jul 11, 2006

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West Central Illinois

• Dec 20, 2006

• #22

No it never does leak anywhere except sometimes around the wood chip tray telling me there is an excess of smoke inside

And of course the flu expels smoke and water vapor

 

smoked

Master of the Pit

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Dec 14, 2006

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Everett Washington

• Dec 21, 2006

• #23

okay update......

after 3 hour smoke I have discovered why so many rave about fatties.....although I found that unlike others, the hot did not mild out, they stayed hot and the sage was AWSOME beyond belief!!! so to report, the wally world chips were just fine, the fatties were awsome with no strange taste......so not sure what happened to JRs, mine leaked from the door a small bit but that was only because of the therm. cable running thru the seal......here is the food porn!!!

 

illini

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• Dec 21, 2006

• #24

Good Job smoked
It's breakfast time here so pass a piece of the fattie please :P

Look at the door seal where you ran the temp probe out, there will be a small impression left there by the cable. I noticed this and now run it out the bottom seal where it wont leak smoke because of the updraft.
Just a small thing but you may create a permanent impression if you use an exit point higher up. The cable won't reach to place the magnetic indicator back on top so I stick it on the door or the side. My smoker sits on a shelf though and is easy for me to read there.

How many chips did you use to do this smoke?

 

smoked

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• Dec 21, 2006

• #25

I used roughly about a handful so say 40 maybe 50. I probably could have cut back more, but everything tasted excellent. I think however that in the future I'd actually mix two rolls togethor to make a bigger roll and thusly a better size cut pattie to fit on a bagel or english muffin..... I've given some thought to running the temp cable out the damper itself.....

 

smoked

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Everett Washington

• Dec 21, 2006

• #26

hey, pass on that salami recipe 8) I've been looking for a decent one for some time....

 

butler77

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Dec 20, 2006

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Kansas City, MO

• Dec 21, 2006

• #27

Hello everyone. I recently purchased a Masterbuilt Electric Smokehouse from Cabella's and after the first use (pork shoulder), the magnetic seal around the door came off in the top corner. I am planning on smoking a turkey for Christmas dinner this weekend so I was hoping I could get some tips on how to fix this in the next couple of days, or if it would still be ok to use if I am careful when shutting the door. I have read a lot of reviews commenting how this is a big problem with the Masterbuilts. Any tips and advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

 

illini

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• Dec 21, 2006

• #28

I have an extra door gasket hanging on the wall but guess that won't help you much :cry:

Call (don't email) masterbuilt and they will get one out to you, it comes with installation instructions.

Would be your personal call as to whether it is safe to operate now.

If you have not seen this thread read it

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=1702

I have no seal problems since doing the mods the seal pusher on the hinge side and the door latches have eliminated any and all distortion

It is a cheap and simple fixes and really cure the problem

 

butler77

Newbie

Dec 20, 2006

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Kansas City, MO

• Dec 21, 2006

• #29

I read through that discussion you suggested and I don't quite follow how the "seal pusher" works. I can not see your mod in the pic that you posted of the inside of the smokehouse. I apologize for my "newbness", but this is my first smoker and I have never modified anything before either. Is this something I could do in one day or would it take a while to fix?

 

illini

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• Dec 21, 2006

• #30

If your seal is torn or badly deformed the first thing would be a new seal.....Is the affected corner the top at the hinge side or top at the other side?

The little aluminum angle iron is hard to see but it is just against the seal on the hinge side and runs top to bottom of the door....you can see a couple of mounting screws if you look closely....the length is from inside of top seal to inside of bottom seal...read the post again and you will see where I guided another guy through it

The principle is when the smoker is hot the "bellows" of the seal gets soft and when you close the door the magnetic strip inside the seal grabs the box early...then the bellows give and the thing becomes distorted...
This mod worked exceptionally well for me

Also the latches pull the door closed tighter preventing distortion of the rest of the seal while using
I can say that the door seal is no longer a problem to me at all

After finding the aluminum angle at a local hardware store it took about 20 minutes to cut it to length drill some holes and attach it.

The latches take longer because you have to do some calculating to get it just right to pull the door closed another 1/8" or a little less when you latch them.....its like pushing the door shut tighter when you latch them.
If nothing on the seal is torn..ripped..pulled loose...or gouged I would heat the smoker to 200 or so then shut it off...open the door and massage the seal to where it should be and hold there till it cools off and takes a "set" in the proper position.
then the mods will insure it will stay in the proper position

 

jr.s

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Dec 4, 2006

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• Dec 22, 2006

• #31

Still trying to figure this thing out, here's a stupid sounding question:

What do your clothes smell like after a smoke with your Masterbuilt?



The reason I as is that with my old smoker, when I would smoke anything, my clothes would smell like WOOD SMOKE. But with my new Masterbuilt, my clothes smell like grease. Even when the smoker is smoking, you can smell the smoke, and it don't really smell like smoke, it smells like grease? It's part of my strange taste problem, but I can't see any reason for it.......

 

illini

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• Dec 22, 2006

• #32

Clothes...shed I use the smoker in....everything smells like smoke...good

To be honest I don't have a clue....must be some foreighn substance somewhere?

JR that's not a stupid question and my advise would be not to eat from it again.....call masterbuilt's 800# and get some answers quick

Keep us posted.....very curious...good luck

 

illini

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West Central Illinois

• Dec 22, 2006

• #33

Just a thought JR

Try heating the thing to 225* with nothing inside...no wood....no water...no meat....no nothing......still smell the grease?....any visible fumes coming out the top vent?

 

mdk

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Dec 16, 2006

39

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Wellman, Iowa

• Dec 22, 2006

• #34

JR,

Illini has really got a hold of these smokers. I just got one for Christmas and mine is the older style even tough it is new. My door leaked at first but I did Illini's latch fix and have not had an issue. The bottom of my door seal is deformed. I did Illini's heat and mold trick and it worked great. I did call Masterbuilts 800# and have a seal on it's way, they were great to talk to.

I am going to do Illini's angle iron sear repair as well just as a protective measure even though I have not had an issue with the seal by the door.

I seasoned mine and did some fatties and poppers and all worked great. I used a bit more chips then Illini said but not much. I am doing a Pork Butt on Monday so I will get some pics and let you all know. These guys have been a huge help. I have never owned a smoker before and am timid to try a lot of stuff right away but it seems fun. I can see I need to buy more beer for when I am watching everything come to life.

I have not had a grease smell from mine just smoke.

Good luck, it will all work out.
MDK

 

illini

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West Central Illinois

• Dec 22, 2006

• #35

MDK
Did Masterbuilt offer to send the recall fix?
If not you should get one since its free....two metal pieces....one is a roof for the wood holding box....the other piece is a false floor for the box and goes under the heating element.....both help...wood heats quicker...burns more completely...get the stuff if you don't like it you can slip it right back out and not use it

Yes I have been telling a story of the little wood to use just to get you guys to start short and work your way up

Very glad you are up and running!

 

smoked

Master of the Pit

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• Dec 24, 2006

• #36

something is going wrong big time with yours....I'm really guessing something bad is on your burner..... just did a "super fattie" tonight.....which for me is taking two of the sausage rolls and combining them becacuse I want a full size patty on my english muffin or whatnot......loving it......
still trying to understand the guy's who say it milds things down.....honestly I've not tasted that at all....the hot is hot, the regular is well....damn good....and the sage is awsome....... food porn as follows...

 

mdk

Fire Starter

Dec 16, 2006

39

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Wellman, Iowa

• Dec 25, 2006

• #37

Illini,

Mine is the older unit but it already has the box over the burner. It is updated but not with the 2007 mods.

What are you using for jerky racks? My kids, bless their hearts, bought me a Bradley jerkey racks but they are to wide for my Masterbuilt. I also got a Jerkey Shooter and it has a rack as well but it's too long.
I was wondering if you had a source for some small square holed racks.

Thanks and Merry Christmas!

MDK

 

pigcicles

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• Dec 25, 2006

• #38

MDK, not sure how big of a rack you are speaking of, but maybe a kitchen cooling rack might be about the size you are after

 

smoked

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• Dec 25, 2006

• #39

pastrami is done.......ummmmm ummmm good.....

 

jr.s

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Dec 4, 2006

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• Dec 26, 2006

• #40

Ok, I think I'm getting it figured out with a little practice and lots of help from others here. Here are my findings: (Which have all been suggested by others.....):


......Was using too many chips. The Masterbuilt manual tells you to use WAY TOO MANY! I use more than Illini, but way less than Masterbuilt says.

......Cleaning your smoker after every use is a must!! I don't think I hardly ever cleaned my old gas smoker, but it had a much bigger drip/water pan. So all of the grease dripped into the pan, and got dumped out. The Masterbuilt has a small pan, and the problem with my clothes and meat tasting like grease, was because of burning grease from previous smokes. It was getting on the bottom of the smoker, and even on the walls. Once I gave it a good cleaning, this problem got much better.

.....Got some different wood chips, they seem dryer, and they burn up better.

I have used the smoker the past couple of days, and I just need to keep it clean and things taste great!! Once my new wireless digital thermometer gets here, it'll be great. Basically it's just load up some chips every hour or so, and that's it. I love the way you can load wood without opening the door, and the way a pan of water will last for many hours without being refilled. Really easy to use, just a little more cleanup when I'm finished. That's a tradeoff I can live with....

Thanks for all the help.