Charbroil 505 temp and smoke issues

[leingod]

Hi guys. Completely new to smoking. Been studying like crazy. Just got my smoker today and wanted to do a trial run. Im already hitting a mass amount of issues.

First is the varying temp. It's a simple analog temp gauge that just says low med or high. Im getting temp fluxuations of 75 degrees. The element will turn on u til it hits 275 and then turn off until it drops to 200. Rinse and repeat. Im just using the junky built in thermometer that's on the smoker.

Second issue is smoke itself. Im not generating literally any smoke. I had the smoker cranked to high before I got glimpses of smoke at 300+ degrees. The second I dropped back below 250, everything disappated. I'll buy an amaze box if it'll help the smoke issue.

What should I do? Idk if I should return it and get a digital model or look into something else completely??

 

[leingod]

Slow moving board haha. I'm debating on getting a digital probe to monitor the temp instead of using the built in gauge. 75 degree temp swings seems excessive from the element cycling on/off. As for smoke, I'll just forgo using chips at all and buy the AMNPS with some pellets. Would really like to hear from some experts though before purchasing more stuff I may or may not need. I'm scouring this board like crazy for all alleviation for temp swings, but none are as drastic as what I am seeing. 

 

[goldmine1965]

Sorry, can't really help much on that specific model. But I would get a digital probe like a Maverick ET 732 or a Thermoworks Smoke. The built in thermometers are notoriously inaccurate. Most folks I read on this board do not use wood chips anymore. They use the AMNPS with pellets. You can even do a search for "mailbox mod" and see if that would work for your model too.

 

[leingod]

I appreciate the help. I just ordered a dual probe maverick model. The cheaper $40 variant. I also purchased an AMNPS with hickory pellets. And finally ordered some RTV silicon to better seal the door. If all goes well, I will add the mailbox mod to make the AMNPS easier to deal with. If none of this works, I am shipping it back and buying a MES30. 

I spoke to a CS rep from char broil and he recommended setting the unit to high to get the chips to smoke and smolder a bit before lowering the temp. He said the temp swings should be roughly 30 degrees. Still seems excessive to me. We shall see tomorrow when the probe and amaze box arrive.