My first 80Gal RF build... This is going to be a blast!

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Hey Alaska, how is your wife doing ?   Glad to see a post.

Gary S
 
Well guys
Hey Alaska, how is your wife doing ?   Glad to see a post.

Gary S

No bears as of yet but some friends have some bait stations out! So here is the scoop on what has happened. A new computer has gotten the best of me and I'm in the process of getting that resolved. As far as the build goes I have been slinging sparks on a daily basis. So far this is what I have accomplished.

The trailer is sitting on its own wheels until my son returns from the North Slope and notices that his spare tire for his camper is missing, hopefully he won't drag me around the yard:yahoo:

The FB and the CC is completely mounted to the frame.

Purchased and installed two thermometers on the CC - must admit it looks fairly nice

Coated the inside of the CC with lard and placed some pork scraps from the local packing house on the racks and fired it up. The insulation on the FB seems to be working great. The morning I fired it up the temperature was 34 degrees. It did take some time to get the CC up to 300. Once I reached that temp the outside of the FB was only reached 127 Is that a good thing? My temps on the CC furthest from the FB was only 7 degrees different from the other end, is that a good thing.

Filling up space on the trailer by adding a Santa Maria style grill that Im nearly finished with.

Photos will be added once I get a moment to post them.

I could not help but try my hand at smoking something so I figured chicken would do. It is obviouse that I need to read more on you guys techniques and focus on the temperatures. For a first timer I am fairly happy with the way it turned out although I had both of our Heelers showing me some teeth with I left the skeleton on my plate. Chicken was moist, good flavor and color. I used Willow (no bark) as my main fuel source.

I figured I could smooth out the stolen tire situation with my son by trying a brisket and ribs so I would appreciate some help from anyone willing to keep me out of the hospital or jail. I stashed his GLOCK, remember I said HIS:devil:

Thanks again and I'm looking forward to some feedback - Jerome
 
If you can maintain 300 in the CC and 127 on the outside of the FB, that's a wonderful thing. Less wood consumption. 7º difference end to end is very good in a smoker that size. I'll bet you can tune on it and get it even closer than 7º. Nice work.
 
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If you can maintain 300 in the CC and 127 on the outside of the FB, that's a wonderful thing. Less wood consumption. 7º difference end to end is very good in a smoker that size. I'll bet you can tune on it and get it even closer than 7º. Nice work.
Alelover - please shed some light on the tuning. Thanks
 
The RF plate goes right to the weld where the round end is connected. The end that's opposite the FB is hotter.
 
Gary - Thanks for asking about my wife. Alaska is a great place but medical care is severely lacking! We are going to New Mexico and Indiana to get second opinions!
 
Hello everyone - I didnt fall off the map I was tied up with family matters! As you may remember my wife had been injured by a drunk driver. Just when we began to see signficant progress she took a turn for the worse. The doctor highly suggested we get a second opinion on her medical situation. We have been to Seattle, Denver, Indianapolis, Cincinatti and Albuquerque for the better part of 2 months. I am happy to say the outcome was extremely favorable for her and she his now making huge strides towards recovery. With that being said she told me to "Get back to work on my build" Naturally I do what she tells me and the sparks are flying once more!

Here is what has been accomplished in the past 3 weeks:

I seasoned the grates and chamber then got a fire going over the course of a couple days. I decided to get some bones with various chunks of fat/meat attached and let her rip. After that smoked a couple slabs of pork ribs and was pleased with the outcome. I do need to figure out the venting situation but the product was good according to family. I then continued to weld on the grill portion. I made my wheel to raise and lower the grate out of round stock, that was a hoot all in its self! My neighbor had an old motorcycle in his hording pile (not a Harley) so I made him a deal if I could have it I would smoke some meat for him. He accepted and I quickly got the scooter home and removed the sprocket, chain and gear which you can see in the photo. I did not like the amount of slack in the chain so I made tensioner out of some old cutting board. As you saw in some earlier photos I am always under the watchful eyes of our two Heelers so naturally I wanted to honor them for standing by while I made my mistakes. I did a little free hand work with the plasma cutter that my some got me. I sparked the grill up for the first time this past Sunday evening by cooking a little chicken and Silver Salmon. I look forward to your feedback and I must warn you that I will once again be asking my usual 20 questions. I hope those of you that have assisted me in the past with this build will accept my apology for jumping ship.....Jerome




Question for you all - is it true that if you smoke fish in your RF build then all meats smoked afterwards will absorb that fishy smell?

 
Question for you all - is it true that if you smoke fish in your RF build then all meats smoked afterwards will absorb that fishy smell?


I found that to be true in my Big Chief smoker.... after fish, it all tasted fishy.... sooooo, now I have 5 smokers... Big Chief is Fish Only....
 
Good job, I like it, I was talking to #2 son last night about building  a couple of cookers very similar to what you built, Love the art work.

Gary
 
Ok fellas, I tried my hand at a Brisket. Please give me some feedback both bad and hopefully a little good!

It was a little chilly this past Monday AM but I was able to get the smoker up to 250 degrees. Thanks to everyone who suggested I insulate my firebox. After applying my rib I placed it on the grill at 0700hrs. At noon I put in the water pan on the FB end (does it matter which end and should I have placed it in from the very beginning. At 1400hrs I removed it and wrapped in foil (Info please) At 1830 I removed it and allowed it to sit in a cooler for another half-hour. First thing I noticed when I removed the foil is the steam which (I can only think had come from it being wrapped in foil) caused the outer smoked skin to seperate. Let me know please! Oh - according to the family and friends it taste great.

 
When cooking a brisket (or any meat for that matter) internal temperature (IT) and feel will tell you when it is done.

The time is just a rough guide so you know when to start watching the temp a bit closer.

I do not use water pans, so cannot comment on that part.

I foil when the IT reaches 160 to get through the stall quicker. The stall is due to evaporative cooling of the surface of the meat. Foil prevents this evaporation, allowing the temp to continue to climb.

When the IT reaches 190, I begin testing the meat every half hour or so. It is done when a probe slides in easily and withdraws with no resistance.

Wrap in towels in a pre-heated cooler to rest for at least one hour, preferably two hours.

Every piece of meat is unique. I have had briskets take anywhere from 30 min per pound to well over an hour per pound to get done (probe tender).

A good probe thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the flat makes monitoring the progress much easier.
 
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