Brinkmann Trailmaster Limited Edition

[newmc]

Thanks guys, that's good enough for me!

 

[newmc]

Thanks guys, that's good enough for me!

 

[brick]

Thanks for sharing this. I bought the smoker today and will add the firebox that you guys have made. What a great Idea. Also, somewhere on here I belive that I heard someone put a metal plate on top of the wood grill. Any feedback on that?

Brick

 

[brick]

I bought one today and got 10% off with a veterans discount at Home Depot.

 

[akdcwl]

Hi all, I had been looking to purchase my first smoker and a week ago I picked up the Trailmaster from the Home Depot. Fortunately my local HD had there last one assembled so I got to take my time and look over it.

I decided that for the money it seemed to be a decent unit but opted to drive the 20 or so miles to collect one unassembled. As it turns out, this was the last unit in at least a 100 mile radius! And they actually gave me 10% off!!  

I set it up and did a few of the standard modification (Thanks to you tube) and have my very first pork butt EVER in it as I type this.

I do have a question for you more experienced Trailmaster’s. I’m having trouble keeping the temp down…  I have a charcoal basket and really only have a dozen or so bricks in there to maintain a temp of 200.   When I did the seasoning, I followed the minion method and the temp rocketed to 450 with the vents closed!  Right now during cooking I’m adding just a few coals every hour and I seem to be averaging 200 and check on it every ten mins or so. Is this typically what everyone else is doing or is it that my technique needs a lot of work?

Oh by the way, Thanks everyone for all the great advice on here!! 

 

[megachunk]

Yes, great advice!

I recently bought my Trailmaster LE and used a furnace cement rated at 2000F to seal the box and stack. Did my first butt over maple and it was great! But like you ADKCWL, I've had trouble keeping temp down and maintaining it for a while. Seems to jump around, up and down. Going to make a charcoal cage today and hit the Woodshed in Orange to pick up some red oak. But any tips on keeping temp down and steady would be great. Also, any tips on sealing the lid? Thats where most of the smoke gets out. I've head of a liquid gasket make and was going to try that.

Thanks in advance.

Megachunk

 

[brick]

Leave the stack completely open and control the air flow/temp with the vent on the firebox. You'll get it down!

 

[snookdawg]

After alot of research I have decided to purchase the TMLE.  I had my heart set on a Lang but I can not justify the price RIGHT NOW.  This site has some great info on mods and I can't wait to cook on the TMLE this weekend. 

 

[brick]

Congrats! You'll be pleased!

 

[snookdawg]

So I got me tmle today and got it assembled right before I had leave and go to work. Tomorrow I will season it and get it ready for the first cook this weekend. I sealed everything with high temp rtv and bought the expanded metal for the fire box.

 

[akdcwl]

I did a lot of my modifications to my TMLE before firing it up for the first time but I’m pretty sure I would have had as much smoke leaking out around the door as out the stack!

I used some RTV high temp gasket to seal the door with great results. I masked off around the edge of the cooking chamber before applying the RTV (Last thing I wanted was liquid gasket messing up my shinny new smoker).

 I also applied some peanut oil to the edge of the door so when I closed the lid it would not stick to the wet RTV. I shut the lid and left it for about ten minutes.  Before the gasket had time to fully cure, I opened the door and trimmed back the excess from the inside and removing the masking tape. It left me with a nice clean rubber seal that works great!  

I also did this to the firebox door before my last smoke and it helped tremendously with the temp control. I guess I had way too much air sneaking in to be able to effectively use the fire box vent.

 

[bbq md]

I got my TMLE about 6 months ago,after my son in law bought his about a year ago.

Watching my son in law cook on his I right away noticed design flaws. so when I got mine I already had ideas. first like almost all here has said  use high heat silicone everywhere, second, while the ash drawer is nice, there is so much unwanted air you can not keep temps down. so i took a piece of thin sheet metal and rolled it to cover the hole. third, was to remove the stack plug the hole, I used a stack from an old walmart char griller cut a hole and installed at the same end as the original stack. but then removed it and welded an extension to put it about an inch or so off the grate. Then last thing was to add a deflector inside the pit at the opening from the fire box and line the lower grate with 6" ceramic tiles. Temps are now easy to control and heat is more even from end to end.

 

[akdcwl]

After two months of waiting, the convention plate I ordered from Horizon BBQ has turned up. I have to build a baffle to accommodate the plate but I’m looking forward to testing it out and perhaps evening out the end temps a little.

 I also like BBQ MD’s idea of removing and sealing the ash draw to prevent and air leakage. That’s now on the list of modification to be done.

By the way, I love this smoker! But I also like to tinker with stuff…..

 

[boardpuller]

My horizon convection plate  came in about a month ago. ordered it before Xmas had to call to find out what was going on. They had them in stock and shipped that day.   I am still tinkering but so far in several test burns I have maintain even heat all the way across the cooking chamber once It got up to temp. Thermos at firebox bout 6 " in ( I use a loaf pan full of water ), 1 in the middle tip even with the stock thermo, and 1 at the chimney extension. I have the plate sitting on 1 of the fire grates, I tried raising it with 1" square tubes, but didn't work for me. I also built a fire grate keeps the charcoal from falling through and helps to maintain heat longer.

 

[akdcwl]

Hey great pics Boardpuller. The plate is not an exact fit and the fire grate you used seems to do the trick.  I’m not sure why my plate took so long to receive. I looked back at the original order and it was placed early November! I phoned four or five times and got the same answer “It should be here next week” Any case, its here now and I’m happy to have it!!

I'll be sure to post some pictures when i'm finished.

 

[socalbbq]

My horizon convection plate  came in about a month ago. ordered it before Xmas had to call to find out what was going on. They had them in stock and shipped that day.   I am still tinkering but so far in several test burns I have maintain even heat all the way across the cooking chamber once It got up to temp. Thermos at firebox bout 6 " in ( I use a loaf pan full of water ), 1 in the middle tip even with the stock thermo, and 1 at the chimney extension. I have the plate sitting on 1 of the fire grates, I tried raising it with 1" square tubes, but didn't work for me. I also built a fire grate keeps the charcoal from falling through and helps to maintain heat longer.

Great add.  I have emailed Horizon many times trying to see if  theirs would fit the TMLE.  Can you let me know exactly which one you ordered so I can pick one up as well?

thanks,

Greg

 

[boardpuller]

I got the one for the 16 they will do custom ones also. I' still tweaking I took out the fire grate and added Flat bar stock 1/4 and 3/16 still working dont know if I have toextend the front or just block the open part.

 

[hoosiergrill]

Picked up my new Trail Master LE Saturday. Home Depot is apparently phasing it out, had to search to find one within 100 miles. Did not mind the drive, sunny and one of the boys along. We put it together and ready to fire up in an hour and 10 minutes. No issues, everything fit, no missing parts. I had read all of the comments here regrading bent doors, leaks, etc. With that in mind  I was going to use high heat sealant putting it  together but then me being me, I wanted to see for myself, figuring that if there were issues perhaps I might find a different way of dealing with them. Not a single complaint. Everything seals up nicely. Get a few wisps from the firebox door, a wisp or two from the big door, and no leaks at the stack (which my son tells me needs to be chrome, so off to truck pro we'll go). Not a wisp from the joint between the firebox and smoker box.  Have had 2 or 3 of the smaller econ chargrill styles over the past 20 years, they worked fine for what they were. Fired this thing up to get it seasoned and do the test drive: ran temp up to 350 - 375 then closed down the inlet and stack. Held 250f for 4 hours. Used about 7-8lbs of charcoal with a few small pieces of hickory. Test run will be a picnic shoulder which takes time and more consistent temp then other cuts. Will post results from the ham test.

 

[hoosiergrill]

Love this smoker / grill/ bbq. After some  test driving I will be making a couple of mods: expanded metal over the lower grate in the fire box, not going to build nest for the fuel, but a three sided expanded metal basket. There is some leakage around the top of the firebox door, does not seal up 100%. The simple fix is a gasket of sorts, but I will cut the two hinges off , place the door so it is closed properly, then weld the hinges back in the position they should be in. Also, an adjustable baffle at the stack end that will extend from the top of the opening down to the cook grate at about a 45 degree angle to keep the heat in a bit longer....I think this will be simpler and more effective than other mods I have seen. 

The ham turned out great...and man can you put one heck of a pile of meat on this thing.

 

[socalbbq]

Trailmaster LE Cover

Hey for those interested, I contacted Brinkmann a couple weeks ago to see if they have a cover for the Trailmaster LE yet.  I think most of us are using the oversized 82".  Here is their response,

I apologize for the delay.  That cover is now available, and you can order it over the phone at 1-800-527-0717.If you have any other questions, please let us know.Sincerely,

The cover is not listed on the website, but according to the email above they are now available,

Best,