New smoker

[carpetride]

Welcome to SMF, biggest mistake I see is not having patience ie low and slow

 

[azrocker]

I think experience ( and there is a ton of it here) and patience make for a good smoke! Welcome!

 

[oldschoolbbq]

Welcome to the SMF!!!
First , the brisket is essentially the Pectoral Muscle of the Beef. It is not a good choice for the begginer, try a Pork Butt and move on up to more difficult cuts and types of meat.The others are right on reading the 5-day course, it will enlighten you!
As for too much smoke, I pre-burn all my wood(notice I said WOOD)IMHO charcoal stinks like lighter fluid-even after it has turned to coals, and the highly proported Lump Charcoal is too costly for my budget.There is plenty of found wood around from neighbors and friends. Any fruit or nut tree does well(with a few exceptions).My smokers give off a good TBS when I put the coals in her:




Hope this helps and Smoke Happy

 

[cowgirl]

Welcome to the forum! Glad to have you aboard.