Had a little time yesterday and could not wait in any longer to try this new smoker out. It was really a little early in the process since I don't have all the final handles and air flow control levers installed but I have been waiting a long time and the need for Q out weighed the added difficulties of dealing with hot handles or no handles in some places. I found that a hammer will knock a sliding vent open without a handle and the claw end will work to pull it back to close down some if needed. I ended up cooking 2 - 8 pound Boston Butts and 3 racks of Baby Back ribs. Q-Views follow:
Here we are all loaded up on the lower rack. Took the top rack out for this
cook but could have loaded up a lot more on the single rack if need be.
Heres a q-view or two of one of the Boston Butts. It was really
good and there will be some for days ahead. I love how the bone
just falls out.
Did not really get a good pic of the ribs for some reason. It
could be because they were gone in about 2 minutes from the
time they hit the table. I must say they were probably the best
ribs I have ever had. They were literally "fall of the bone and Melt
in your mouth tender".
This is what the ribs looked like literally just a few minutes later.
All in all it was a very sucessful smoke. The smoker performed well. It was very easy to control heat wise and was not the fuel hog that I know many big units can be. I really think the firebox tucked up under the cook chamber is the way to go. Oh! One more hugh thing. The Maverick ET-732 wireless Thermometer is the best thing since sliced bread. To be able to set alarms for low or high heat levels in the cook chamber and walk off and leave it for a little while was wonderful. Not that I don't want to stay out there with it but it was nice to be able to come inside and mix up some baked beans and other stuff knowing that all was well with a quick glance at the remote. The weather looks good for the next few days so hopefully I will finish up those handles and get some paint on this thing finally.
