New Braunfels information?

[brewerdave]

Hey all,

So. I uh, did a thing today. I bought 2 old New Braunfel offset smokers today from an owner that has had them for 15+ years. He and his wife are downsizing and I couldn't resist the price. You should see the rig they're keeping,lol.

One is the Hondo model(or close enough) and the other is the same size, but not a Hondo. They weigh a damn ton, very heavy gauge metal. They'll need to be cleaned (surface rust) repainted, handles and shelf wood replaced.

Does anybody on here have a New Braunfel cooker? Better yet, can anybody recommend a book for a first time offset smoker owner? I've done some smokes with different smokers and do the grill thing every now and then, but I've never dealt with an offset. These were most definitely an impulse buy, but I couldn't stand the thought of them possibly winding up as scrap.

 

[chef jimmyj]

BOOK!?!? Search Offset Smoker Mods. Thousands of Posts on stack extension, baffles, tuning plated, door sealing and so on. Search, Offset Smoker, for general discussions. Search, (Type of meat) on an offset smoker, for stuff guys have cooked. Search, Offset Smoker Fire Management or Temperature Control, fore fire management info.
Your at SMF the Greatest Smoking Meat Site on the Web!
YOU DON'T NEED NO STINKING BOOK!!!...JJ

 

[2008RN]

ChefJJ,
You are so right there is a wealth of information on this website. I just takes time and some good searches to pull the information out. I have learned so much in the last year. I built my own smoker and have made some excelent meals because of this website. CheffJJ, thanks for your posting all of those finish and BBQ sauces. I am being forced into a very low sodium diet. Using some of your recipes, I can modify them to meet my needs. Thanks.

 

[radio]

Great score! I have two of the older new Braunfels smokers and love them! The Hondo I restored is in my avatar.
I also restored a Bandera vertical smoker and use it for summer sausage and larger cooks.
After you get them cleaned up, use charcoal to start your fire, then use wrist sized splits to maintain it. Keep the stack damper wide open and regulate temps with the air inlet in the firebox door. Do this a few times using a remote temp probe and practice regulating the temp before attempting a cook. You will need to feed it one or two splits every 45 minutes to an hour.
Without any baffles, or deflector plates, the firebox side runs much hotter the first third of the cooking chamber, so cook in the middle and stack end unless you make some mods.
I also have a Brinkman vertical and an OK Joes horizontal along with a pellet grill, but find myself using the N.B Hondo the majority of the time.

 

[chef jimmyj]

ChefJJ,
You are so right there is a wealth of information on this website. I just takes time and some good searches to pull the information out. I have learned so much in the last year. I built my own smoker and have made some excelent meals because of this website. CheffJJ, thanks for your posting all of those finish and BBQ sauces. I am being forced into a very low sodium diet. Using some of your recipes, I can modify them to meet my needs. Thanks.

You are Welcome. That was all Tongue in Cheek. I have not heard of an Offset Smoker for Newbies, book. I too had an NBA in the 90's, a gift from my MIL. I just dabbled with it for several years until I cam to SMF.
Yes it a takes some time to research here, but if you start in the Mods section, the rest comes fast...JJ

 

[Berettaclayshooter]

The Hondo is what Arron Franklin started on. A deflector plate and a water pan are two things I would list for starters. Small smokers get WAY too hot on the fire box side and need a buffer. As for a water pan, some loaf pans from the dollar tree are what I use and they were $1 each.

 

[kawboy]

I've got a new braunsfel, not sure of model, I believe hondo. I mounted a cheap cookie sheet for a heat deflector, a cake pan for a baffle/water pan, extended the stack down to the cook surface, and added about a foot to the top of the stack. Takes a bit of playing, but I've been enjoying it for about a year now.

 

[LLOYDHOLDEN69]

Hey all,

So. I uh, did a thing today. I bought 2 old New Braunfel offset smokers today from an owner that has had them for 15+ years. He and his wife are downsizing and I couldn't resist the price. You should see the rig they're keeping,lol.

One is the Hondo model(or close enough) and the other is the same size, but not a Hondo. They weigh a damn ton, very heavy gauge metal. They'll need to be cleaned (surface rust) repainted, handles and shelf wood replaced.

Does anybody on here have a New Braunfel cooker? Better yet, can anybody recommend a book for a first time offset smoker owner? I've done some smokes with different smokers and do the grill thing every now and then, but I've never dealt with an offset. These were most definitely an impulse buy, but I couldn't stand the thought of them possibly winding up as scrap.