Seasoning Oklahoma Joe's Highland Reverse Flow Smoker

[RiversideSm0ker]

Congrats on the new smoker! To protect the paint on the new smoker on the firebox may i suggest using some mineral oil or something that i have recently discovered works well for the inside of the CC for seasoning or general greasing before cooking and the outside of the FB... Crisco grilling spray. Spray on the outside of the FB all around and when you fire it up it will bond to the paint and prevent the peeling.

Happy Smoking,
phatbac (Aaron)

Aaron great suggestion. I will have to keep a look out of this next time I'm out and about. This is something I need to start keeping around. I plan on doing that deep clean soon on my smoker and this would be excellent for the re-seasoning process. Hopefully, it will help with the new paint once I do some touch up as well.

George

 

[Xendau]

Greeting everyone... a little late to this thread. I too recently bought a factory OKJ RF Longhorn. I put it together on Friday, seasoned for 6 hours at 240 degrees on Saturday (see attachment 1). I used PAM grilling spray and Wesson veggie oil on the inside, and veggie oil on the outside. I didnt miss an inch.

After seasoning the smoker looked fine. No peeling or anything.

Then I fired it up on Sunday to do 2 butts and 2 chix.... It never exceeded 275 degrees. Ran for 5 hours at about 274 degrees front & 247 degrees at the back. (see attachment 2).

I replaced fuel, added the chickens, and got it back going, never exceeding 265 degrees. At the end, my FB was a mess (attachment 3).

I called Charbroil on that following Monday, reported what happened, and they are sending me a new firebox that should arrive today.

I expected this, but not so soon. I will season the new one with expectations of it repeating paint peel. But, this gives me the opportunity to pull the current FB clean it up, and repaint (multi-coating) with a better paint hoping to reduce this in the future.

Anyone have input on the best paint to use?

 

[Xendau]

Wasi, how are your temps from front to back? I thought mine would be less than 10 degrees, but are more like 20 degrees.

 

[Wasi]

Wasi, how are your temps from front to back? I thought mine would be less than 10 degrees, but are more like 20 degrees.

My temps are not that bad. One thing I did which seemed to help with temp control was to add a 2 LB bread loaf pan and fill it with hot water and it seemed to help a lot. Thinking about adding another pan on the other side as well.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Xendau,
My FB peeled on the 2nd cook (first cook actually....the first run was the seasoning). So the manufacturer's solution is to send another box? What good would that make - the new box will peel too.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Wasi, how are your temps from front to back? I thought mine would be less than 10 degrees, but are more like 20 degrees.

Front /back or left/right?

 

[Wasi]

Front /back or ledt/right?

Mine peeled on second smoke and only got worse. I have a can of rustolum ready to repaint soon when I get a chance. The first one is right next to the heat source by the exhaust port. If I do another one it will be near the other end.

 

[Xendau]

I guess I meant left to right... I consider the front of my smoker nearest to the FB and the back furthest from FB. I could have been more articulate.

Atomic - The new FB will peel I am sure, but it allows me the chance to take apart the first one and refinish it better than from the factory. Then I can remove the newest and install the refinished one. Ill always have one to replace the other when it comes time to repaint. :)

 

[RiversideSm0ker]

Greeting everyone... a little late to this thread. I too recently bought a factory OKJ RF Longhorn. I put it together on Friday, seasoned for 6 hours at 240 degrees on Saturday (see attachment 1). I used PAM grilling spray and Wesson veggie oil on the inside, and veggie oil on the outside. I didnt miss an inch.

After seasoning the smoker looked fine. No peeling or anything.

Then I fired it up on Sunday to do 2 butts and 2 chix.... It never exceeded 275 degrees. Ran for 5 hours at about 274 degrees front & 247 degrees at the back. (see attachment 2).

I replaced fuel, added the chickens, and got it back going, never exceeding 265 degrees. At the end, my FB was a mess (attachment 3).

I called Charbroil on that following Monday, reported what happened, and they are sending me a new firebox that should arrive today.

I expected this, but not so soon. I will season the new one with expectations of it repeating paint peel. But, this gives me the opportunity to pull the current FB clean it up, and repaint (multi-coating) with a better paint hoping to reduce this in the future.

Anyone have input on the best paint to use?

That is some serious bubbling on the paint. I've not had any problems with the paint on the top of my firebox. The issues I had were on the bottom where I never got any oil and the side of the firebox where it meets the cooking chamber. The lower part where the coals tend to lay against the side of the firebox that mounts to the cooking chamber. I've had absolutely no new issues with the finish since that initial peeling on my first cook. It's kind of odd that it never progressed after the first time that the paint flaked off. I've yet to do my deep clean and reseason. I will see about picking up some paint to try again. Could be interesting to see if it turns out better with an aftermarket high temp paint. Ideally, these things should have had a powder coat that would not have been vulnerable to this same effect but then the price would have to rise sharply I imagine. The food is still top notch coming off of my OKJ. To me, that's the part that matters most.

George

 

[Xendau]

River - I concur, it is about the food coming off. But having owned any number of COS over the past decade and a half, I am trying to be more mindful and take better care of this one. All my past ones have been under the $200 range, this one set me back $500 without the mods or the ATC. I dont plan on buying another for a few years. When I do I am looking at making a significant price jump (to about $3000). At this price point I feel this wont be as large as an issue.

 

[Xendau]

My temps are not that bad. One thing I did which seemed to help with temp control was to add a 2 LB bread loaf pan and fill it with hot water and it seemed to help a lot. Thinking about adding another pan on the other side as well.

Wasi - How far was it off before the water pans?

 

[Wasi]

Wasi - How far was it off before the water pans?

I am sorry I do not remember but if I had to guess around 10 degrees or so.

 

[Griz0146]

I am sorry I do not remember but if I had to guess around 10 degrees or so.

Hey all

 

[Griz0146]

Hello everyone,

I’m new here. I bought my Highland reverse flow a couple weeks ago.

Found at BJs for $279.

I did not use any mods.

Here’s what I’m doing to keep the temps relatively even through out. This keeps temps withen 10-15 degrees.

1. Keep the Door closed! This thing loses heat fast and temp differentials quickly get to 30-40 degrees from hottest spot to coldest. It takes 20 minutes or so to get it back in check. Don’t open it and the top right thermometer will be 15 degrees hotter than bottom left. (I’m using analog oven thermometers from Lowe’s placed set on the cooking grates that are meant for the purpose)

2. Use less fuel and keep the dampeners as open as possible. This lets the air circulate and allows the reverser to do its job.

Comments
This thing leaks smoke like something I’ve never seen before around the cook chamber door. It’s BAD. That being said, it doesn’t seem to affect its functionality.

Question
I’m thinking of putting 2 cast iron Lodge griddles in the bottom of the cook chamber to help it maintain temps when the door opens. Any opinions? Will sealing the door help this issue?

Thanks for reading. I hope I’m not jacking the thread I wanted to post a review but couldn’t figure out how! This is my first smoker and I love it. Any comments or replies are welcomed.

 

[RiversideSm0ker]

Hello everyone,

I’m new here. I bought my Highland reverse flow a couple weeks ago.

Found at BJs for $279.

I did not use any mods.

Here’s what I’m doing to keep the temps relatively even through out. This keeps temps withen 10-15 degrees.

1. Keep the Door closed! This thing loses heat fast and temp differentials quickly get to 30-40 degrees from hottest spot to coldest. It takes 20 minutes or so to get it back in check. Don’t open it and the top right thermometer will be 15 degrees hotter than bottom left. (I’m using analog oven thermometers from Lowe’s placed set on the cooking grates that are meant for the purpose)

2. Use less fuel and keep the dampeners as open as possible. This lets the air circulate and allows the reverser to do its job.

Comments
This thing leaks smoke like something I’ve never seen before around the cook chamber door. It’s BAD. That being said, it doesn’t seem to affect its functionality.

Question
I’m thinking of putting 2 cast iron Lodge griddles in the bottom of the cook chamber to help it maintain temps when the door opens. Any opinions? Will sealing the door help this issue?

Thanks for reading. I hope I’m not jacking the thread I wanted to post a review but couldn’t figure out how! This is my first smoker and I love it. Any comments or replies are welcomed.

Hey there Griz, I have the standard OKJ Highland. No reverse flow but the ides is very similar along with the fit and finish. The single mod that I did on my OKJ was to put the lavalock gasket around the cooking chamber door. I highly recommend this one mod. I don't believe that the others that most people try are truly vital to the function of this smoker. Based on my own cooking results of course. YMMV but this is a very inexpensive and easy mod to setup. My guess is that you will have much better recovery time with this mod. I know that on my OKJ the recovery time is more like 10 minutes unless I have opened the door for an extended time to foil some ribs or a shoulder or brisket. Just spritzing should not have that much of an effect on the temp. I can see ten or fifteen degrees but that's about it. I can't say enough positive things about my OKJ. Of course, I was very fortunate to find a one in a blue moon deal for only $75 new. Gotta love holiday clearance time.

George

 

[atomicsmoke]

I dont think cast iron will help much with temp drops when opening the door. This is not a defect is physics: opening the door allows hot air/smoke to escape and cold air to get in. Don't open too often and keep it short when opening. Like River my temps recover in less than 10min. But 6 unnecessary openings mean an extra cook hour.

 

[Griz0146]

Hey there Griz, I have the standard OKJ Highland. No reverse flow but the ides is very similar along with the fit and finish. The single mod that I did on my OKJ was to put the lavalock gasket around the cooking chamber door. I highly recommend this one mod. I don't believe that the others that most people try are truly vital to the function of this smoker. Based on my own cooking results of course. YMMV but this is a very inexpensive and easy mod to setup. My guess is that you will have much better recovery time with this mod. I know that on my OKJ the recovery time is more like 10 minutes unless I have opened the door for an extended time to foil some ribs or a shoulder or brisket. Just spritzing should not have that much of an effect on the temp. I can see ten or fifteen degrees but that's about it. I can't say enough positive things about my OKJ. Of course, I was very fortunate to find a one in a blue moon deal for only $75 new. Gotta love holiday clearance time.

George

Awesome Find!

Thanks for the advice. I was hopeing after a couple smokes the door would magically seal itself. It did not happened lol. Sounds like I might have to seal it after all

 

[Griz0146]

I dont think cast iron will help much with temp drops when opening the door. This is not a defect is physics: opening the door allows hot air/smoke to escape and cold air to get in. Don't open too often and keep it short when opening. Like River my temps recover in less than 10min. But 6 unnecessary openings mean an extra cook hour.

That’s a good recovery time. I guess it doesn’t help that I have to open the door to check the temp with the thermometers I’m using lol.

 

[Wasi]

You need to follow the old saying "if your looking you ain't cooking" I agree that sealing the firebox door with a gasket makes a big difference. Did you seal it with high temp sealant before you assembled it? This is another cheap mod that really helps keep the smoke inside the chamber. Those two mods are approx. $25 for both at Amazon and worth the money for sure. If you need to check temps all the time I recommend ThermoPro TP20 it is $60 at amazon and works great for getting meet temps without opening the lid.

 

[atomicsmoke]

That’s a good recovery time. I guess it doesn’t help that I have to open the door to check the temp with the thermometers I’m using lol.

Get a therm with probes. They are inexpensive . Got one from amazon for around 60cdn$. Six probes, bluetooth. Drill a hole in the smoker, plug it with a grommet - no more worries about temp drops.