I can tell you that the charcoal basket is one of the best mods you can make, especially if you are using the SMJ silver. I smoked with just an ash deflector for about 4 months prior to building my first charcoal basket. The difference in temp control and fuel efficiency was night and day. The charcoal when basketed burns cleaner and leaves less ash.
I've got to agree with Addertooth, if we just accept that this way or that way is the best way or the only way, we'd still be piling brush outside the cave to smoke our meat.
...and sometimes the wheel doesn't need reinvented. If you two can find a way to get the cleanest of burns other than a 10 dollar piece of expanded steel that's proven over and over and over then we're all ears for sure.
There are always better ways to cook something, cure something, better recipes or procedures etc... If y'all can come up with a better way to keep a clean charcoal fire then we'll be all ears and appreciative....In fact the whole BBQ world would.
So, if there is no better way, why are you here?
You're making my point for me. And that's exactly what Addertooth is trying to do. All of the better ways to do something came from people just like him who enjoyed, or out of necessity, experimented and tested theories to try to make things just a little better. That is why sites like this are so much fun. It gives members an opportunity to share ideas and experiences with like-minded people, and to learn from and teach each other
The simple concepts don't change is what i'm saying. I'm not against improvements in fact I have several BBQ related inventions I'm working on though none of the inventions change those simple concepts i'm talking about. The mini is an incredible, dependable, versatile, fantastic little cooker but it isn't a rocket ship is what i'm saying. I've ran tests with Guru's and IQ's, basket and no basket etc...etc..etc.. but come back to simple for the best results.
I agree that some simple things don't change (fire, smoke, air, etc.) and I believe Addertooth agrees with that too. I believe that a clean fire produces the best results, and I believe Addertooth agrees with that too. I agree that you and I are not against improvements, and I know Addertooth isn't. So, what's our problem? The charcoal basket across the entire BBQ world? I have a charcoal basket for my side firebox smoker, but I never use it. It's not necessary in a wood fire, it just gets in the way. So it's not across the entire BBQ world. Is that our argument. I thought it was that there was no way to improve upon the charcoal basket in a Mini-WSM.
I have built every kind of fire my mini-wsm. With and without the basket, with and without the ash guard. With the ash guard no basket, with the basket with the ash guard. Basket only, no ash guard. I have used lump, briquettes, even straight wood. I have used the snake method, the minion method, the side light method, the full lit chimney method. To date the most efficient method I have used involves using the basket and the ash guard. That's my findings.
See, you qualified your findings with "To date". It just bugs me when someone tries to shut down other posters with a "STFU, my way is the best way." type of remark.
Much appreciated addertooth. Case, myself and others have collaborated and experimented with failures, successes and ideas for a while now long before this dedicated mini thread was here. Is there more than one way to skin a cat sometimes...Absolutely. It's nice to see you recognize our past trials. Definitely keep on experimenting and when y'all have an idea ask if any of us have tried it because there's a decent chance someone already has.
