New guy from Greenville, SC here. I am not new to cooking but very new to the smoking world. I have a lot of friends who have great set ups so I got the itch to give it a shot. My first attempt was with a El Cheapo Brinkman I think you all call it. The results were not as good as I had hoped. Unfortunately, I didn't see the posts about the mods until after I Was three hours into the cooking or I would have faired better I'm sure. I am not in the process of taking the 5 day course and looking to purchase a better smoker.