And so the long night begins...

[Roscoe]

Smoking 2 pork butts (each about 7-8 lbs) plus 2 racks of ribs and a platter of buffalo turds...

Celebrating my son's birthday/graduation/Army enlistment tomorrow with a good group of people over.

At least they will get some sleep...

[Lone Sailor]

Do you not have a digital thermostat with low temp alarm? That was one of the first things I picked up. Being able to sleep without getting up every 2 hours to check the fire and temperature is nice.

I can see the rub on them, did you inject them as well?

[Roscoe]

Do you not have a digital thermostat with low temp alarm? That was one of the first things I picked up. Being able to sleep without getting up every 2 hours to check the fire and temperature is nice.

I can see the rub on them, did you inject them as well?

I do have it, but it's not wireless so it won't wake me up. My problem is the wood catching fire and spiking the heat to 300* until I manage it. In addition I need to check water level every few hours. It's not an every 30 minute thing, but I'm paranoid, I guess.

Rub, yes. Inject, no. Pork butt is so fatty I think I'd rather see how it turns out au naturale for my first go round on these.

[Lone Sailor]

I can't really offer much in the helpful tips department since you want to keep your smoker a secret out of fear of ridicule, which is fine. That said, you shouldn't have to add water for a shorter smoke on what you have there(11-12 hours for the butts). Maybe one time if you're on the upper end of the temperature spectrum(225-240) and using a really small pan for the water. Also, if you keep your vents open the minimum necessary that will help keep the wood from stoking excessively. I'm guessing you either have an old setup that doesn't have good ventilation or you've modified something to be a smoker that also doesn't have a good ventilation system. Speaking of vents solely for the fuel source and vents on the opposite end of the smoker for venting at the top of the unit.

[Roscoe]

I can't really offer much in the helpful tips department since you want to keep your smoker a secret out of fear of ridicule, which is fine. That said, you shouldn't have to add water for a shorter smoke on what you have there(11-12 hours for the butts). Maybe one time if you're on the upper end of the temperature spectrum(225-240) and using a really small pan for the water. Also, if you keep your vents open the minimum necessary that will help keep the wood from stoking excessively. I'm guessing you either have an old setup that doesn't have good ventilation or you've modified something to be a smoker that also doesn't have a good ventilation system. Speaking of vents solely for the fuel source and vents on the opposite end of the smoker for venting at the top of the unit.

Ok, you suckered me into it.... It's a *gasp* gas smoker.... The wife bought this for me a few years ago and I have to give it a good working over before I can probably get away with buying a new one.

I had an offset firebox style, but it was a cheap Charbroil one that was $149 from Home Depot style. Regulating temps was an absolute bitch, and aside from the wood in the tray catching fire and spiking temps, this one works pretty damn well. I'd like to upgrade to a very nice original smoker that can maintain heat, but if it ain't broke.....

The water pan holds probably a half gallon, and I'm guessing based upon the design, it evaporates much quicker than a different setup would be.

As for vents, they are wide open.

[Lone Sailor]

Half gallon is pretty small, at least IMO. I believe mine holds 2 gallons and will last through typical 8-12 hour smokes without needing to be refilled.

Gas smoker is like speaking Greek to me. Never used one. I see now how the wood could easily get the temps out of control since you actually have a constant flame in there instead of having charcoal as the main source of fuel. Seems like you could still use that setup like a conventional smoker if the fire box is big enough. That would eliminate the need of the propane assistance. Nonetheless, if it works and you like it, I have no qualms about it.

[Roscoe]

Very small firebox and I just refilled (one gallon) after 1.5 hours.

Open to suggestions on a better smoker... something up to ~$1k-ish I'm certain would get something pretty durable and reliable...?

[FreightTrain]

What time is the party? I only ask because I normally can do an 8 to 9lber in 7 to 8 hrs. Dont want you to start to early and your guest dont get to see your best work. I find my butts hold up good for 4 hours after they come off the pit wraped up in a small cooler. Any longer than that and quality starts to fall off.

[Lone Sailor]

You must have the pan right on top of the fire. Not sure how else you'd be evaporating that much moisture in that short amount of time. I never have a problem with that on my WSM.

[bcoop]

If your butts are done in 8-9 hours, you aren't cooking to the proper temp and/or you're cooking too hot. I can get one done that quick, but it at a higher temp than I like, and not as tender.

When I do pork butts, mine are usually 10 lbs and can range from 18-24 hours. Granted, it's an offset smoker. It would be a hockey puck if you went that long on a gas or bullet type smoker.

[bcoop]

And for the record, my cheap char grill pile o shit works just fine. Capacity is my biggest complaint. Sure, it's thin, but I've been using it so long I know exactly how to manipulate it for colder temps, etc.

[Lone Sailor]

If your butts are done in 8-9 hours, you aren't cooking to the proper temp and/or you're cooking too hot. I can get one done that quick, but it at a higher temp than I like, and not as tender.

When I do pork butts, mine are usually 10 lbs and can range from 18-24 hours. Granted, it's an offset smoker. It would be a hockey puck if you went that long on a gas or bullet type smoker.

If they were small butts, like 5 pounds, that would be just about right.

[Lone Sailor]

And for the record, my cheap char grill pile o shit works just fine. Capacity is my biggest complaint. Sure, it's thin, but I've been using it so long I know exactly how to manipulate it for colder temps, etc.

I started out back in the day with a POS charbroil vertical smoker and then modified it as I began getting better and realized the downfalls of the unit. Once vented correctly it made a world of difference, but like you, realizing the capacity of product you can smoke at one time was really lacking, I eventually broke down and picked up the WSM to take it's place. I still use the old smoker for small outings, etc.

[Roscoe]

One was 6.9 lbs, the other was 8.1 (pre cook weight). They took right at 11 hours to hit 190* ea.

Here's the finished product. I have a few better pics that I might get to later after pulling.

Dat's some good shit, man.

[Lone Sailor]

Looks great.