I really would like to get good with this smoker as it is before i do any major mods to it. I've never even modded my
WSM i like the way she runs stock. Although i am open to the idea of mods in the future for the MES as i would love to do jerky and cheese aside from the normal meats to be smoked. Also i am wondering how well a rack of ribs would fit in the MES 30? Would they need to be cut or bent?
That's OK. Mods are not necessary, just ways to make the smoker work better for you than box stock.
Always good to evolve slowly anyway. Or not at all, if that works best for you.
In my opinion, box stock,
Masterbuilt's work best in 225° to 275° range in box stock configurations, and for briskets. The design is focused on that range, that meat. All else is second fiddle.
That range makes smoke, with the designed chip dumper, in a perfect world. As long as the Chinese electronics work.
In my case, I wanted my MES 30 to work for me from Ambient (AKA: Cold Smoking), up to the 275° that
Masterbuilt has designed as the ceiling for these smokers.
And like
Mosparky said, a "mailbox" mod allows control of the smoke separate from the smoker box itself. Which can be a nice advantage at times.
I do stuff like Nuts, Cheese, and things I would melt down with too much heat. So the "
mailbox mod", and also
a by-pass mode was in order for me. So I could add a tiny bit of heat and keep the temperature in the 60-70's range overnight, or higher.
But take it in steps.
