Old Country Wrangler- Owners Thread

[millerbuilds]

Well, I gave in... yesterday, I got my grinder out and I cut that baffle out. I had good cooks with this smoker but it just required too much attention, so, I am going to see how it cooks without the baffle.

I bought a select grade point from HEB and it is cooking right now (I did not want to waste a whole brisket if things go wrong). We'll see how it goes without that baffle - but, early impressions are that it breathes better...

We'll see.

Looking forward to hear how it works.

Jason

 

[Retired Spook]

Looking forward to hear how it works.

Jason

Hey Jason - how you been?

I posted my cook here: Not Franklin Barbecue

Much better without that baffle!

 

[Newglide]

I cut mine out a while back and and now I wonder why I was so worried about it. I use it as a water pan shelf. I put it on 2 bricks on the grate in the cook chamber on the firebox side and put it on them. I also extended the stack. Completely different cooker now. I have a Pecos not a Wrangler, not much difference

 

[Retired Spook]

I admit that I was hesitant to do it until now but after doing so it is a night and day difference! My wrangler cooked really well without that baffle but without a stack extension - which could be a result of the smaller cook chamber size on the Wrangler?

Nevertheless, cutting that baffle out is a must do on one of these cookers - in my humble opinion.

 

[Newglide]

cutting that baffle out is a must do on one of these cookers

Agree 100%

 

[millerbuilds]

Hey Jason - how you been?

I posted my cook here: Not Franklin Barbecue

Much better without that baffle!

I have been good, been a busy year and our backyard was tore up for quite a bit of it with a project. Looks like I need to finally give in and cut the baffle out.

I will check out your cook.

- Jason

 

[Retired Spook]

I have been good, been a busy year and our backyard was tore up for quite a bit of it with a project. Looks like I need to finally give in and cut the baffle out.

I will check out your cook.

- Jason

It cooks much better without that baffle - in my humble opinion. Much easier fire management and more consistent temperature across the cook chamber.

 

[Newglide]

I need to finally give in and cut the baffle out.

You won't regret it. If you don't like it without you can always put it back in

 

[Retired Spook]

I hesitated, for a long time, to cut that baffle out - I figured the manufacturer had a sound reason for it being in there and I was afraid that removing it could be detrimental to the cooker's performance. I tried everything - baffle plates, stack extensions, big fire, little fire, full open firebox door, adjusted the firebox damper through every possible position, and while I did have some good cooks - it just required too much attention, and would burn the bottom of whatever I cooked if I did not rotate the food way too often.

Whatever the manufacturer's reason for that baffle is completely lost on me. The cooker worked MUCH better without it.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Baffle is there to make the firebox end of the grate usable by protecting it from direct heat.

Cutting out the baffle does take away that end of the grate but its worth it.

What Old Country does on that cooker, on the Pecos and the Brazos with the baffle and then putting the exhaust at grate level is a conflict. It directs air under the meats.

Horizon, Yoder, and the old Okie Joes exhaust in the top of the cook chamber and then use what they call a " convection plate " , which is just a huge baffle that extends almost the length of the cook chamber. Makes them bottom up cookers.

Its got to be one or the other, can't do what Old Country does.

Horizon convection plate.

 

[Smokin Okie]

I'll add, that back in the early days of the PBS " BBQ with Franklin " series and in Aaron's first book, he talks about putting a license plate inside his New Braunfels smoker to deflect the direct heat from the firebox.

Old Country could've very well followed his lead there, because also in those early days, he was cooking on an Old Country smoker, something similar in size to the Wrangler.