dont sweat keeping it at 250. Let it run where it wants to within reasonDoing a brisket toady. I started it at 0720 and three hours in the meat temp is 154.
Having a time keeping the smoker temps as close to 250 as possible. Seems like one heck of a juggling act for sure. I keep my smoke stack wide open, then I use the fb vent and sometimes the ash tray to regulate the heat. I just can find a good place with either to keep a steady temp. I am using wood splits of oak. They are really are not too big plus I cut them in half so they fit in the coal basket I have.
I have the expanded steal coal basket sitting on the grate inside the FB. The basket sites about the middle of the vent. Maybe I need to put some legs on it to raise it up a bit to get better air flow.
keep starting with smaller and smaller fires. Use smaller sticks if needed. Let the fire heat the pit up completely before starting cooking. You can always add another stick if its not hot enough, but give it time to settle outYes, it looks great! And I agree with everyone else. 10* is great. I have gone to 100% stick burning and now it's hard to keep my temps down. As of now, I enjoy playing with my smoker and what I can control. I may get sick of it after a while....who knows. Just keep at it and you will figure it out. Good luck!
I picked up a piece of 16 guage sheet from Lowes. I then cut it to fit the width of the bottom where the lower grates sit, then cut a piece off for the deflector part and used the rest for the tuning plate.Newbie here, long time researcher but just signed up. I just bought this same smoker on Sunday, unfortunately I did not get the $150 deal. I did a lot of research on here prior to buying so I did take care to seal it up good while assembling it. I am getting ready for my cure but have been wondering about the tuning plates. Can you tell me what gauge steel you used and the dimensions of your plates? I went to Lowes tonite to check out what they had but not much of a selection so I am going to hit the local machine/welding shop this week to see what I can get from them. Any info would be much appreciated.
This is what I purchased.do you know what the length is? I would love to get the temp on this as close as yours is.