So I revisited the ammo can yesterday. I rubbed some boneless skinless thighs and threw them on at 250 with some brats also. Lit the maze with two full rows of the apple blend and off we went. Opted for the original 3 hole configuration. The smoke was constant and not overwhelming. Really wasn't watching the clock, but I pulled the brats at 170 degrees and ate a few while the thighs continued cooking. I couldn't tell if the food was too smoky thanks to a healthy dose of Bombay and tonic, but I gave them both a sniff check this morning. Chicken didn't smell smoky at all and they were in there far longer than the brats, which did have a quite smoky scent to them. I'll eat one later with a clean palate to test. Pulled the maze out of the ammo can and it had burned almost completely, leaving a trail of white ash. I did notice it was still going when I hit the hay, but with the smoker turned off the smoke was moving out the vent at a much slower pace, so cold smoking may require a fan. Looks like it's about done. Gonna try a few more cooks to test the smoke profile before doing some bacon next weekend.
Also, the smoker had a bit of a time getting back up to 250 after I opened the door to remove the brats. I'm going to try playing with the PID values to see if that can be fixed. I have zero experience with that but I guess it's another learning session.