Oklahoma Joe Highland

[mk10]

Hello.

I've got a BBQ coming up quickly, and just had a couple quick questions about the Highland. 

I understand that there is a wealth of information in the forums about the Highland, including modifications, recommendations, and all sorts of good things. I also saw that there was a plethora of videos on YouTube, web pages, etc.

I have a bad habit of picking things I get really, really, interested in, that require gaining more knowledge to get the most out of. My life is one large project: I bought a drill press, and wound up replacing all the bearings - spindle, pulley, and motor. I'm currently rehabbing an old Craftsman cast iron 10" table saw, and building extension wings so I can install the Shop Fox fence I got for it. I'm learning how to work on tube radios, and need to get started learning how to use the oscilloscope someone gave me. I have to build three sets of bookshelves. I spent most of yesterday re-learning how to drop the deck on my mower so I could sharpen the blades (don't ask what they looked like -ugh <shudder>), and then realizing I had to follow a set pattern of re-installation for the deck that I had forgotten - after doing it over several times as darkness fell.

I just have two quick questions:

1) One thing I can't tell from pictures, the manufacturer's website, the videos I've seen, etc., is can you just use charcoal in the firebox without modifications from the "get-go," as it comes out of the box? I see that most folks use grill baskets, but is it possible to use charcoal to start with, without purchasing/constructing a metal basket, or are you immediately at a charcoal disadvantage?

2) If I get some FDA RTV sealant and do that around the firebox/main grill area and the elbow on the vent pipe, is it possible to do a bunch of food for a BBQ party I'm having with reasonably decent results? (Celebrating finally getting a degree at 57yoa). I have some experience in indirect smoking using a variety of strange grills that most people wouldn't think were capable of getting decent results from.

As you can probably tell, I can't resist messing with things and improving them, I'm just flat running out of time. If I can use charcoal with chips to begin with, and if it'll work okay with just sealant to begin with, without getting door gaskets, drilling things inside, adding restrictor plates, a weather vane, heat-dispersion plate-thingies, making charcoal baskets, extending vent pipes to the main grill surface, adding temperature gauges, rain gauges, installing a GPS system, Bluetooth, and radar-operated Close-In Weapons System, I should be good. 

I'm use to being "in-tune" with what's going on in a grill as far as rotating through areas due to uneven temperatures, being mindful of where the fire's at, watching vents, etc. If I can use it to do a spread to begin with, that'd be great - I can have fun all summer pouring through mods and using my experiences with it to choose the ones that I think would suit my needs and style.

I also wanted a chance to say that I truly appreciate this community, so I can have a place to study all those modifications in detail, and learn more about the art of smoking in general! I'm used to reading forums where people with a lot of technical knowledge use their extensive knowledge and skills to pick people apart who don't have them to entertain each other.  :-)  Some day I'll find one of those people who wants to know about operating and repairing Lionel trains, and use their ego to mop my floor with...    :-)

Anyway, just wanted to know if I could jump in with it to begin with and have a decent result just sealing the firebox/vent pipe, or if folks thought there were things that absolutely had to be done to keep from ruining the racks of ribs, pork loins, and chickens I want to do this coming Saturday, with a "full plate" ahead of me this week. 

I thank you for your time, and thank you in advance for any thoughts you might have on my two time-crunch induced questions. Normally I'd just carve out a day or two and research it like a thesis paper, but, as they say in southern Missouri, "I'm up a-'gin it."

Chris/Mk10

 

[skunkwerx]

Yes, you can certainly just pile charcoal on the firebox grate and go for it.  The basket just makes fire management easier, and allows for a longer burn, etc. 

My opinion is, even if you don't use sealant, you should be able to cook with it.  Whether you do seal it or not, I would recommend a "Burn off" and "seasoning" fire.  I think the instructions include a seasoning session and how to do it.  if you use RTV, even though it's food grade, I say do a controlled burn, after it has cured to make sure any fumes or smells dissipate before the first actual food cooking session.    Both of the pre-firings i mention above also serve as practice runs for fuel, fire, and temperature management.

That familiarization will help. 

 

[stealthchef]

Great minds think alike! I just picked up a Highland yesterday too. About to post on it. You'll be fine even without tinkering. Best of luck on everything and congrats on the degree!

 

[mk10]

Thanks guys!

Sounds great. That'll get me going, and I can assess the situation as it progresses, adopting things to improve its performance as I go. I'm pretty good at being cognizant of shifting heat zones and rotating and stuff, so it sounds like I'll just need to keep my head in the game like I always do.

I'll do a slow-burn fire after doing up the innards with cooking oil, and then a real "test fire" once it's been seasoned to get familiar with bringing it up to temp and sustaining it before D-Day.

Thanks again for the assist and your thoughts!

Chris/Mk10

 

[joe black]

Get your CC temp a little over where you intend to cook, then adding the cold will not drop your temp too far. Remember that an offset smoker doesn't cook at a set temp, but at a range of 25-30*. If your target temp is 250, add wood when you get to about 235. The temp will probably jump to around 260 and then settle back down. Follow this cycle throughout the cook.

Charcoal will be a little harder to regulate, but when you get that tree you can switch over to burning splits.

Good luck and good smoking, Joe. :grilling_smilie:

 

[MarceloYanes]

I too am sort of a newbie with the offset smoker. I have a few burns with my Highland, and learn something with each one. I just installed the 90 degree elbow to the exhaust, and got the baffle from Lavalock as well as their thermometers and sealant tape and RTV a few days ago. They work great.

What I would add is to get a dual-probe thermometer like the one Thermoworks sells https://www.thermoworks.com/Smoke . I don't work for them of anything, just jazzed at their products. If the link is a violation, admin, please remove, and sorry. One probe for the meat, one on a stand near the meat giving you a grate-level temperature. Best of all, it's transmitted to a small remote with all the information, so you know what's going on inside. As they say, "if you're lookin', you ain't cookin'". With the dual probes, you know what's going on inside at all times.

Congrats on the degree. Apply the same techniques to learning this. Keep a log of what you do so that you can remember what worked or didn't, especially if you have to take a break in the winter. and best of all:

MANGARE!

 

[RiversideSm0ker]

I will tell you that I started to pull the trigger on all of those mods right after I bought my Highland in December. Then I thought "hey this thing was designed to cook as is, lets see how it works before getting all crazy changing it" This was actually good advice to follow. I have found that my Highland works very well as is. Now I had already purchased the gasket for around the door to the cooking chamber before I reigned myself in. So I will admit that I did put the Nomex gasket around the cooking chamber door but there is nothing on the firebox and I have found that my smoker does not leak much smoke when it is operating.

My advice for anybody that has a new OKJ Highland would be to use it unmodified for at least three or four cooks. Then decide if your particular cooker needs any changes to get what you want out of it. The one thing that I think you need to add for good results is a probe or two at grate level to watch the "real" temp that you are cooking at. Let that be your guide to when to add more fuel. It's serving me well so far. I have already made some of the best barbecue of my life and I have barely even scratched the surface when it comes to smoking. This forum is awesome and filled with true experts whether they realize it or not. I see the OP was last year but I figured since there was a recent response I would just follow up with my two cents. Thanks for listening

George