New guy from Norco Ca.

[joekool]

Hey there party people. I was searching thru the Web for some pointers on using my new WSM. Found this site and seemed like a lot of good info on it. I'm a big Weber fan,believe in getting what you pay for and weber's been good to me with the propane grills and charcoal kettle... that said I also got a masterbuilt 30" electric smoker, but recently decided to get a Charcoal 22.5" wsm and try the old school smoking method... Any mods or tips are greatly appreciated.

 

[noboundaries]

Joekool, welcome to SMF!  There are a bunch of WSM owners here, including me, and we can be pretty rabid about how great a smoker the WSM is right out of the box.  It functions absolutely fine with no or minimal mods.  Mine was slightly out of round when I received it.  Leaked like crazy but smoked fine in the 275F range. Eventually added a gasket kit to seal the leaks and drop the temps if needed.  Also used some bonus money to buy a BBQ Guru DigiQ DX2 temp controller.  Now it is practically like setting the oven.  None of that is necessary but my wife says the controller gave her our weekends back. 

Have fun!

Ray 

 

[bluewhisper]

Welcome to the board! The WSM is probably the most versatile smoker. I've run several kettles and I need to get a new one. Right now I'm burning sticks in an offset.

 

[joekool]

Hey guys, appreciate the input. Ive seen those digi-q's... wasn't sure how well they really worked. Glad to hear it does the job though, but man are they pricey!
I think ill struggle with the vents for a lil while, & wait to see if Santa drops me one for xmas.

Im gonna attempt to smoke a couple 8lb pork butts this weekend... supposed to be calm and warm ( 94°) according to the weather man. Any pointers on how to set up the bottom n top vents? Im sure ill have to play around with some to control the temp, but i read a few threads, and saw some different methods..im trying to figure out the easiest to control temp.
Some say open top lid vent all the way, close 2 of the bottom ones and control temp with the 3rd at the bottom, another said to close all 3 at bottom and control temp from top, but to me id think that might put out my fire? And another said use the 3 at bottom for temp and the top is strictly for smoke??

 

[joe black]

Welcome from SC. This is a great site with lots of folks who are always ready to share their ideas and tips. All you have to do is ask and keep reading. The WSM is a good smoker and very user friendly. When I had one, I always left the top open and controlled the temp with the bottom vents. I tried to keep them equal, just because I thought the fire would burn more evenly. One mod that I think is good is handles on the center section to make handling easier.

Good luck and good smokin', Joe

 

[gary s]

  Good evening and welcome to the forum, from a pretty nice day here in East Texas, and the best site on the web. Lots of great people with tons of information on just about  everything.

Gary