New smoker on the way!

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kevin james

Smoking Fanatic
Original poster
Jul 30, 2012
484
384
Sacramento, CA
I’m very excited to say that I just pulled the trigger on a new Weber Smokey Mountain 22!

This will be my first time using a charcoal smoker. I started out several years ago with a MES 30 electric smoker (used with a AMPS pellet tray). That finally died and I replaced it in May of this year with a Pit Boss Pro Series 1100 pellet grill which I use with an 18” pellet tube and I am very happy with it.

I decided to get the new WSM 22 for a few reasons:

  1. I’m nervous that the pellets in my PB may draw in moisture in the upcoming rainy season which will be no Bueno as it may gum up the auger etc. and I am NOT willing to stop smoking just because of some rain.
  2. I like the idea of having options with more than one smoker and more smoking real estate in general.
  3. I like the ratio of capacity to portability of the WSM. It has plenty of capacity for doing large smokes with the two grates, especially if I get a rib rack for doing ribs, and it’s easily moveable from the back yard into the garage when not in use… which I can’t do with the pellet grill (my back gate doesn’t have enough room to get the Pit Boss or any other grill through it… I actually had to push it through my living room to get it to the yard when I got it.)
  4. And while I love my pellet grill… I’ve really been wanting to try something that uses real wood and charcoal, either a bullet or komodo, or a stick burner. I don’t think I’m ready for a stick burner yet, and a komodo is more than I want to spend and seems like it has less capacity so I decided the WSM was the winner… and I believe in buy once cry once… so the 22 was it without question.
I’m really stoked and can’t wait to try it out. It should be delivered by next Friday the 15th. As I mentioned this will be my first time using a charcoal smoker so there will be plenty to learn.

I’m sure I will be asking plenty of questions… including some probably dumb questions. Like….how to figure out how much charcoal to load depending on length of time of a particular smoke session… like how much to use for 5-6 hours for ribs… or 12 hours for a 6 lb pork butt… or for a short some like an hour or so for a trip tip. Hopefully you guys don’t get too annoyed as my newbie shows :emoji_laughing:
 
Congrats, I think you'll love it.
However, I wouldn't worry much about the pellets absorbing moisture. I leave my pellet grill out all year uncovered (Bay Area) and have never had a problem.
 
Congrats, I think you'll love it.
However, I wouldn't worry much about the pellets absorbing moisture. I leave my pellet grill out all year uncovered (Bay Area) and have never had a problem.

Yeah... but it will still make a good excuse for why I needed it when my better half see's the new smoker LOL
 
Congratulations on your new smoker. I've got an 18" WSM and love it. A 22" is on my "someday" list but realistically I don't feed enough people to justify it.

As to your question about quantity of charcoal per smoke time; Just start with a full fire ring each smoke, shut the smoker down to snuff the coals after smoking, and reuse the remaining charcoal, next time.

Nice SG.
 
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Congratulations on your new smoker. I've got an 18" WSM and love it. A 22" is on my "someday" list but realistically I don't feed enough people to justify it.

As to your question about quantity of charcoal per smoke time; Just start with a full fire ring each smoke, shut the smoker down to snuff the coals after smoking, and reuse the remaining charcoal, next time.

Nice SG.

I hear ya... I went with the 22 because I tend to do one big smoke every weekend, usually on Saturday, and load the smoker down so I have dinner for the night and enough left over to eat on all week. Plus I like to cook more than one thing at a time. Lately It's been St Luis ribs (which I'm still dialing in my recipe/process... although I think I'm 90% there), and almost always tri tip. Sometimes some chicken too. I also want to be able to fit a full packer brisket even though I haven't tried tackling doing one yet, and I don't want to cut or "roll" my ribs. With the pellet grill even though I got the large size I still use just about every bit of space so when I decided to get the WSM I knew from the get go it had to be the 22.

The SG (technically a Les Paul in this case) is my baby... a ridiculously clean original 1962 with the very rare "ebony block" tail piece. A man has got to have his toys lol. I thought using it as my picture here was a fitting way to pay tribute to one of my other main hobbies.
 
I hear ya... I went with the 22 because I tend to do one big smoke every weekend, usually on Saturday, and load the smoker down so I have dinner for the night and enough left over to eat on all week. Plus I like to cook more than one thing at a time. Lately It's been St Luis ribs (which I'm still dialing in my recipe/process... although I think I'm 90% there), and almost always tri tip. Sometimes some chicken too. I also want to be able to fit a full packer brisket even though I haven't tried tackling doing one yet, and I don't want to cut or "roll" my ribs. With the pellet grill even though I got the large size I still use just about every bit of space so when I decided to get the WSM I knew from the get go it had to be the 22.

The SG (technically a Les Paul in this case) is my baby... a ridiculously clean original 1962 with the very rare "ebony block" tail piece. A man has got to have his toys lol. I thought using it as my picture here was a fitting way to pay tribute to one of my other main hobbies.

The ability to spread out large cuts, like a brisket, is the mane reason the 22" is still on my list.

Sounds like a very special guitar you've got there. I've spent quite a few hours picking and smoking. Great combination of hobbies. I agree that a guy's got to have a few choice toys.
 
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Great Choice! You are going to love it! Charcoal and chunks is going to be new experience for you to learn. But you have arguably picked one of the easiest of all to get dialed in. Get stocked up on charcoal and chunks now while its still in the stores! Good luck on finding a good supplier to get you through the winter.

Yup. Minion Method 99% of the time for me. Then close the vents when done. Shake the basket and re-use the next time. Whats your plan for a charcoal starter?
 
Great Choice! You are going to love it! Charcoal and chunks is going to be new experience for you to learn. But you have arguably picked one of the easiest of all to get dialed in. Get stocked up on charcoal and chunks now while its still in the stores! Good luck on finding a good supplier to get you through the winter.

Yup. Minion Method 99% of the time for me. Then close the vents when done. Shake the basket and re-use the next time. Whats your plan for a charcoal starter?

Yes, this will be a new experience that will require a lot of learning, but I am EXCITED!

In regard to the vents... that may not be an issue.... as I'm thinking about getting a pit viper fan for the WSM since I already have a Firboard. I need to order the drive fan cable from Fireboard, and the fan and mounting adapter from BBQ Guru. I was reading about mods and the BBQ Guru seems like one of the most popular mods... but since I already own a Fireboard this just makes sense.
 
I have the Party-Q for the Mini WSM and I love it a lot! But if it were me, I'd hold off until you got a feel for how stable the WSM22 is without it. But then again... if your lust for gadgets get the best of you, who am I to rain on your great idea?
 
I have the Party-Q for the Mini WSM and I love it a lot! But if it were me, I'd hold off until you got a feel for how stable the WSM22 is without it. But then again... if your lust for gadgets get the best of you, who am I to rain on your great idea?

No, I totally get your point. If I needed to buy the whole setup from scratch I would wait for sure, but in my case the cost isn't really that bad at all considering I already have the most expensive piece... the Fireboard unit itself. The cable is $79 and the Fan is $44 and I know myself.... I'm going to want it eventually so might as well just get it all together at the same time.
 
So regarding charcoal... after reading some reviews it looks like I will be going with Royal Oak. Just not sure if briquettes or lump.
 
So regarding charcoal... after reading some reviews it looks like I will be going with Royal Oak. Just not sure if briquettes or lump.
I personally go with briquettes. Lump is awesome but tends to have less consistency when it comes to temps since it's more natural.
 
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I say BOTH. Depends on what I am making and the application. My mood also plays a part in that. Generally speaking I will use lump for shorter and higher temp cooks, but I like briquettes for low and slow even burning. Lump definitely has its own inherent wood flavor and have found I don't need/want to add additional wood chunks for flavor. When using briquettes, I can better choose the wood flavor profile I want. Let your experience guide you.
 
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I say BOTH. Depends on what I am making and the application. My mood also plays a part in that. Generally speaking I will use lump for shorter and higher temp cooks, but I like briquettes for low and slow even burning. Lump definitely has its own inherent wood flavor and have found I don't need/want to add additional wood chunks for flavor. When using briquettes, I can better choose the wood flavor profile I want. Let your experience guide you.

Also great info that I will keep in mind. Thanks!
 
Well the smoker came and was assembled last night. I am super annoyed and disappointed as there is damage to the top of the mid section in the porcelain finish and it is out of round causing the lid to not fit correctly.

I called Weber this morning and they wanted pictures of the damaged porcelain, the entire smoker, the inside of the lid, and the top of the mid section, which I sent them. They are also saying since the mid section is the biggest part of the smoker that I will more than likely need to do a return through Amazon which I am not happy about at all. She said her team will review the photos and she will speak with her supervisor and get back with me. Either way I guess I won't be smoking on the new smoker this weekend... or for who knows how long until this is resolved :emoji_angry:
 

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