Hi Tumpy
You will probably find yourself using both. They are both different animals and you will need to learn to use the offset as it will behave differently to
the kettle. The main differences are temperature control and heat gradient in the cooking chamber. You will be able to get good results with the Landman but it will almost certainly require a lot mote maintenance during the cook to keep that temperature stable.
Firstly you need to ensure that the firebox is sufficiently sealed to allow fine temperature control. If it leaks too much air then the vent will be less effective and temperatures will rise too high. You may need to add a little stove tape around the lid of the firebox and around the air vent door.
Do not worry too much about sealing the cooking chamber lid unless you get a lot of smoke coming through the gaps. Small wisps are quite normal. Too much leakage though and it will reduce the air draw from the flue. If you see gaps then you may need to add some stove tape here too.
You can still use briquettes. These give a good consistent base for the heat and you can add wood/pellets on top for flavour.
Buy/make yourself a wire mesh basket to fit into the firebox. This will allow you to create a minion in there that will greatly help with temperature control.
With small offset smokers like this you will get a significant temperature gradient between the firebox end and the flue end of the cooking chamber. To counteract this you will need to turn your meat at regular intervals to ensure even cooking.
For long cooks and controllable temperature I would stick with the Heat Beads. You can use lumpwood or splits (and many people here do) but you will need to tend the smoker more often if you do.
Looking forward to the photos
