My New (to me) Smokin' It Model 1

[mneeley490]

Picked this up 2nd hand about a month ago for $80. It appears to be one of the early models, as it does not have the side-grip handles or cord-wrap rack on the back. But it was very clean and in good shape, and came with a cover. I didn't want to have to bend over that low, or buy a separate stand for it, so I made a platform out of some spare plywood so it wouldn't accidentally roll anywhere, and now it sits on the table of my Weber Performer. I'm trying to make a 4.5 lb pulled chuckie on it today.

I had a little problem with the wood at first. My chunk of pecan combusted and the temp shot up, so I pulled it out and replaced it with a chunk of sugar maple (all I could grab in a hurry) that was partially covered in foil. That seems to have worked better.

 

[kit s]

Looks a lot like my Cook shack...you will smoke some good stuff in it I think.
Modified mine some...drill a small whole in side wall about half way down from top for probes...had an issue with creosote running down on my cooks.

 

[mneeley490]

Looks a lot like my Cook shack...you will smoke some good stuff in it I think.
Modified mine some...drill a small whole in side wall about half way down from top for probes...had an issue with creosote running down on my cooks.

Did you have any problem with combustion?

 

[kit s]

Did you have any problem with combustion?

No...don't think you should have either ...maybe your temp controller is bad or your the temp therm just above the heat element is bad....might be able to write manufacture and ask them....they usually are more than willing to suggest probable problem and solutions.
kit

 

[Nutshell]

Great smoker for a great price!

 

[crazymoon]

MN490, Nice price for a smoker !

 

[mneeley490]

Someone on their forum board suggested setting the dial at 170° for the first 30 minutes to keep it from happening, so that's what I did. I thought there might be a little overshoot, and waited for the temp to swing back down, but the temp on my Maverick rose to 243° before I realized what was going on and pulled it out.

 

[mneeley490]

My chuckie came out pretty good. There was a good smoke flavor, not too much. No creosote flavor, thank goodness. I can see why you only need a few ounces of wood with these things. It cooked faster than I thought it would; a 4.5 lb chuckie only took about 5-1/2 hours. But now that I know what to expect, I won't have to babysit it.

 

[kit s]

My chuckie came out pretty good. There was a good smoke flavor, not too much. No creosote flavor, thank goodness. I can see why you only need a few ounces of wood with these things. It cooked faster than I thought it would; a 4.5 lb chuckie only took about 5-1/2 hours. But now that I know what to expect, I won't have to babysit it.

Yea ...found mine cooked faster also....if you set at 170 and went to 243....them your dial setting (controller) is wrong...or the therm coupler is off.....think mine is also...

 

[oldsmokerdude]

I have a Model 2 that I used for years and years. Great tasting food out of it. You got that smoker for a great price!!! I've never had issue with my smoke wood combusting when using either chips or chunks, but as others have said, I would look at the internal probe and make sure it is clean or replace it. Smoke can build up on it and cause the temp to do wild swings.

Glad you like your smoker.

 

[mneeley490]

Yea ...found mine cooked faster also....if you set at 170 and went to 243....them your dial setting (controller) is wrong...or the therm coupler is off.....think mine is also...

The temp shot up pretty quickly, so I'm still thinking it was the wood catching fire. The same thing happened in my fridge conversion a few years ago. (I based that design on the Cookshack/Smokin' It/Smokin' Tex models. Just ramped up the size a bit. ;))

 

[801driver]

I have had the Smokin-it II for several years set on 225. Only had it belch one time on start up. I had some different wood in it. Saw something on their site about it, but can't remember where right now.

It was related to the wood being way too dry and putting out a lot of smoke at one time on start up, like a piece of paper that flames up a lot. The smoke had enough non burnt smoke stuff it was igniting and causing the belch.

I would try some different wood. I hope you enjoy yours as well as I have mine. Good luck to you.

 

[mneeley490]

Yeah, I'm aware of the belch. It didn't do that. Just caught the wood on fire, and you're right, it may have been too dry. I will use different wood in the future.