Welcome Aaron and congratulations on your new smoker. I too have the
Masterbuilt and it worked well for me. Just remember to be patient when smoking and to cure your new smoker. Just put some chips in the wood box and let her rip for a few hours with the dampener open. This will burn off all the oil and such.
The first brisket I smoked turned out really well. Here is how I accomplished it:
1. I familiarized myself with the suggested cooking temps that are available here
2. Used a dry rub generously all over the brisket
3. Preheated the smoker to 225 degrees
4. Placed on the top rack with fat side up.
5. Placed an electronic temp probe in the flat area
6. Opened the dampener about 3/4 of the ways
7. Basted with apple juice hourly after a good crust
started to form.
8. Only use about a 1/4 fill of the water pan as the juices will drip into the pan.
9. Prior to cooking, spray down the inside walls and racks with some no stick spray and wrap your water and drip pan with foil. Do not forget to poke a hole in the drip pan so it will drain out the back to the catch pan. This will make clean up less of a chore. The racks can still be a pain to clean though. Good ol' tire brush and Castrol Super Clean did the trick for me on the racks.
10. Depending on the size of the brisket, plan on 10-14 hours to reach the magic temp.
11. I used quite a bit of mesquite wood chips all day long as I really wanted a smokey flavor.
Hope this helps out a little. I know all the advise I read here was great!! It helped me make my first rib and brisket smoke a huge success!!
