brand new smoker in wichita kansas!

[razman]

my name is rick, i'm in wichita kansas! just purchased a char griller with the side fire box. i have grilled over charcoal for years, but have NEVER tried to smoke meat before. i haven't tried it yet, but am anxious to get going. so far my understanding is this: use lump hardwood charcoal for heat, and add a few chunks of wood for the smoke flavor. i bought some hickory chunks and apple chunks. am i basically on the right track? also, i have been reading quite a few threads on here over the past few days, i noticed that alot of people make mods to there units. is this totally needed to get decent results or is just a way to tweek and improve things? can i expect to do ok with the smoker without any mods? thanks for any input. and.......GO CHIEFS!!!!

 

[wutang]

Welcome to smf. I also have a offset smoker and I have not made any mods. So far I have been happy with the results of the smoking I have done. I do have to contend with a hot spot near the firebox that the baffle mod would help correct. I would like to add a charcoal basket to the firebox so that I can tend the fire a little less often.
Again, welcome.

 

[werdwolf]

Welcome and enjoy the site. Can't help you since I have a MES. this should bump you back to the top.

 

[longshot]

Welcome,
I run a gasser so I am of no use to you. But there will be someone along soon to tell you what you need, which is likely nothing but practice!!

 

[richtee]

Welcome to SMF Rick. The baffle/tuning plate mods would help ya out. Like Wu said you can get by...but you can use the WHOLE thing when ya tweak it right. Enjoy your time here!

 

[ronf]

Welcome Rick. I never smoked anything until I joined this forum a few months ago. As for the modifications, I found that they were worth doing. I too have a sidebox smoker. I also sealed up the firebox for easier temperature control. Good luck.

Ron

 

[smokin365]

Welcome to smf! The mods arent a must, but they do help. I Turned the charcoal pan in my GCSP over and hung it in there and put aluminum foil between it and the end of the smoker on the sfb side. that helped my temp stay more consistant from left to right. I used a piece of 3" dia. dryer vent to get the exhaust down to grate level. It seems like it holds the heat for a longer time and i use less charcoal. One BIG thing about using a charcoal, leave the damper on the stack open at all times when u are smoking. This prevents stale smoke from staying in there and causing creosote to build up on your meat. A charcoal basket would be a great add on to the CGSP, you will find that the first time that you do a long smoke, you will have a melted charcoal grate. I fixed this by welding 1/4" cold rolled steel to the bottom of mine. Also, get yourself an oven thermometer to put on the grate while u are cooking as the one on the lid is completely useless due to inaccuracy. The rest is just practice. Hope this helps you out

brian

 

[razman]

thanks for all the welcomes and responses, i really have learned a bunch in just a couple of days on here. what a GREAT site! another question: several people have suggested that a FATTY would be a good first smoke for me. how long does one of these usually need to cook? i am thinking about making one out of ground beef and some stuffins. thanks again, rick