Grrrrrg, MES decides to act up TODAY of all days...

[SGMan]

After several successful smokes with my MES30 (and MB mod) one thing I always noticed was my external thermometer (Inkbird) ALWAYS registered ~50 higher than the MES displayed temp. Not a huge issue - my food always comes out good.

This mornings Turkey day smoke has me a little more than concerned now. During the initial warmup the MES was set at 275 (and my Inkbird was registering in the mid 300s) Prepped the bird, got the smoke rolling and popped it in the smoker. NOW my temps appear to be really really wonky - the MES display is showing ~193 and the internal probe is showing between 260 and 280.

I dont think the ambient temp or addition of the MBmod would have that dramatic of an effect on it - it looks as if I might be in the MES going to poop on you club and have to tear into it.

At least I have the oven if worst comes to worst.
Just a little frustrated.

Happy Thanksgiving though! :)

 

[Braz]

Trust the Inkbird. Is the MES responding to inputs, does the temp drop when you lower the temp settings? If so just set it wherever gives you the temp you want on the Inkbird. Good luck.

 

[Tstealth32]

Did my turkey this morning in the MES 30. I ran to Walmart when I thought my temp probes were going crazy. But now everything is showing about right. My temp prob, built-in thermometer, and smoker display temp all show within 4 degrees.

Now my head scratcher is why a 17 pound turkey took 2.5 hours to hit 165. I checked with 3 electric thermometers, and one regular thermometer in 4 places (both thighs and breasts)

 

[smokerjim]

as mentioned trust the inkbird as long as you checked it's accuracy in boiling water, temps will drop when you put cold food in, it usually takes a bit to get back to temp. just a thought.

 

[SGMan]

LOL And now 2 hours later the temps are back to where I usually expect them to be!

Ill probe the bird here in another hour or so. This smoker is so fickle! :p

Looks like daddy might be asking for a charcoal smoker from Santa ;)

 

[SmokinAl]

So how did the turkey turn out?
Al

 

[SGMan]

The turkey came out pretty darned good!

I definitely think that the brine beforehand made a huge difference in the end result. I got it up to temp and then tossed it under the broiler for a bit to further crisp the skin.

We ate well last night :) All in all it was a success!