# Smoke Daddy Pellet Pro Vertical Smoker



## jbinfla (Feb 27, 2021)

Well I bit the bullet and bought one.  While I was doing my research I couldn't find much information on this smoker.  There are quite a few YouTube videos, but they are all by the manufacturer or people that I think are affiliated with them.  I don't mind this, but it's not what I would call an objective review.  So, I figured me, regular guy looking for a smoker, might post something here in hopes that Google will crawl it and others looking for info can find it easily.  I won't go into the details on why I picked this one, suffice it to say I wanted something I thought would last, would hold a temp well, and had enough room to cook for large gatherings.

A bit of a background on my smoking first.  I started with a small offset smoker.  Used it, sometimes with wood, sometimes charcoal, and had mixed results.  It was small and seemed I couldn't get the fire "just right", either too big or too small and this led to less than desirable results.  I ended up getting a Masterbuilt Pro gas smoker and have had it many, many years and got my go-to ribs down to a science on there.  I do have to watch because it seems it's either creeping up, or creeping down on the temp so I was always fiddling with it to keep it where I like to smoke (225° but reality was 225°-275°).  Used wood chips and replenished them often to get a nice smoke flavor.  My smoker finally gave up the ghost and although I tried to repair it I did see the bottom was rusted out, etc.  So I started looking, and really I don't know what the best bet was I was open to a vertical charcoal smoker, a kamado style, but didn't want another offset.  Plus I have a nice grill so I only wanted a smoker.  I ruled out the Kamado because I don't think on the few times a year (pre-covid) that I had large gatherings it would be large enough for my needs.  I ruled out the charcoal because my original budget was sub $1000 and I couldn't find one that I liked for under $3500.  Yes, the Smoke Daddy blew my budget a bit.

The Pellet Pro Vertical was out of stock for several months, and I have been sorely missing smoking meat!  I had emailed and talked to Dan a couple times anxious to put in my order.   Very helpful.  He finally called less than 2 weeks ago to tell me they were in stock, and I put in my order.  Also got the Big Kahuna cold smoker because I have never used a pellet smoker and some internet post question whether pellet smokers can give a good smoke flavor.  Just in case, I wanted to be able to add it.  Well, I think it was about 8-days from order to arrival.  Shipping from Illinois to Florida was 3 days.  They shipped it on Wednesday, and it showed up on Friday.  I can say this, it is packaged WELL.  Very well.  I would venture to say if you order one and it comes damaged it was hit by a Mac truck or something. 

I spent last night assembling it because I was quite desirous of using it.  Putting it together wasn't hard, I did spend a couple hours doing it but I took my time.  I have not installed the recirculating fan yet, but will.  I will do that the first time I smoke some cheese.  I can say it is built very well, and the size is astounding.  I have a picture of it next to my old Masterbuilt.  I could probably cook 20+ racks of ribs.  My masterbuilt I had to cut them in half, and could get 6 racks in there which was fine but not the best.  Really I could double that if I bought 4 more racks since these racks are 7-8" apart and I could do ribs with half that clearance.  I could probably do 16 pork butts without problem.

Today I seasoned it.  I was worried it would be quirky or somehow not be as simple as I had it in my mind.  My one time using it has been a breeze and I am happy.  I set to 350° per the instructions and it got up to temp and held it there, spot on according to the pellet PID controller temp guage.  I am also using a Thermopro 4-probe Bluetooth temp monitor, with one probe up high and one down low.  They read 343 and 344 respectively.  The temps never fluctuated more than 1-degree once it was up to temp, the graph was amazingly flat.  Wow.  This is what I was hoping for.  I will get some boiling and freezing water and see which one need to be calibrated but really it doesn't matter to me it holds temp and I can adjust if necessary.  I did note there was tape on the Pellet Pro probe during assembly that I took off but I did not clean it with alcohol or anything like that.  There may be residue that needs to be cleaned up but either way I am happy.

Tomorrow I'm going to try some ribs.  That was always my favorite.  One of the big reasons for getting a pellet grill was the desire to add briskets and other long smoke time meats to my menu.  Given a brisket can run 16+ hours, if I want to serve dinner at 4pm, that means starting about 10pm night before (includes resting time).  There's no way I can stay up all night, then enjoy myself the next day at a gathering, I need a smoker that I can set and forget.  I don't mind waking up at 6am or something to check, but I can't babysit all night.  So, once I can convince myself this thing is a steady as I've heard (and as todays test indicates) I will buy a packer and give it a go. 

And that's it for now.  I will update this periodically.  I couldn't find much when searching so hopefully someone else coming along will find this useful.  In the mean time, below is the only real pic I have of it now, next to what it is replacing.  I appreciate the heavy duty castors, I will be able to roll it in and out of my lanai for smokes easily.

- Joe


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## chef jimmyj (Feb 27, 2021)

Congrats on a Sweet New Smoker...JJ


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## SmokingUPnorth (Feb 28, 2021)

Oh man that sucker is big. What’s the filter canister looking thing?


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## TNJAKE (Feb 28, 2021)

Nice looking smoker. Congrats


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## jbinfla (Feb 28, 2021)

The filter canister looking thing is the Big Kahuna cold smoke generator.  I'm about 2.5 hrs into my ribs I'm hoping to eat for lunch :)  I have been monitoring remotely and temp is staying pretty flat so I'm happy.  I just went out and checked and the chips in the cold smoke generator were burnt.  I think you only get 1-hour out of this one using chips.  I may get some chunks too.  Instructions say best is a mix of chips, chunks and pellets.  I am not sure what to expect, some of the forum post lead me to believe pellets will not satisfy me (who likes heavy smoke) others say it does just fine.  So, this is my test.

Normally I do the 3-2-1 method but I'm thinking of not wrapping these.  Not sure if I will regret that or not.


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## jbinfla (Feb 28, 2021)

Okay so my first smoke was today.  I guess I'm happy, and sad, with the results.  Happy because it kept the temp right where I wanted it, sad because it didn't get the smoke flavor that I'm accustomed to.  Really sad because if I can't get that heavy smoke that my family has came to love I'm gonna have some regret about going the pellet route.

So I do have the Big Kahuna cold smoke generator.  I filled it and lit as I was preheating the grill.  It was still smoking when I added the ribs.  I have a remote thermometer so I didn't even go out and look for 2.5 hours.  When I did the cold smoker had burned out and there was ever so slight smoke coming out the stack.  So, I refilled and relit the cold smoker.   I checked an hour later and it was burned out, so I really am not sure how long it smokes.  I also know I was burning wood chips only so I will get some chunks to add.

Also of note is that I DID NOT PUT IN A WATER PAN.  I don't spritz, but I've always had a water pan in my other smokers.   I think this was a mistake to leave out.  Ribs were otherwise good, done how I wanted them maybe a little refinement left but not dry or tough.  What I am wondering is if the water pan adds humidity which will help the smoke flavor set in.  There was a smoke ring on the ribs, just not that smoke taste.  And it wasn't just me, my wife and youngest who was over also commented on the lack of smoke flavor.  I'm probably guilty of "oversmoking" usually, but this is what we like so I'd like to get that out of this smoker.  As far as temperature control it is exactly what it promised, except when I opened the door it maintained 225° - 231° the whole time.  Opening the door the temp would dip to 190° then after closing spike to about 250° before normalizing.

I guess now off to figure out how to get more smoke to flavor the meat.  They do make something called the "Heavy D" heat diffuser which you can load some wood sticks but I've read it can cause heat spikes.  Any way, I guess there's a lot of info to read about smoke flavor and pellet grills.  The stuff I see on youtube people have their Pit Bosses with no cold smoke generators, just regular pellets and they say they do great smoke flavor.  Maybe I need to start off at 180° or something to get more smoke?  I don't know.  Any way just where I'm at after smoke #1.  I plan to do another smoke next weekend and use wood chunks with the chips in the cold smoker and add a water pan to add moisture.  I think I'm going to skip the wrapping this time.  I may put some chips on the diffuser to see if I can get more smoke.  I always kept a pan of chips above my fire on the gas smoker so maybe that's the easy answer.

Until next smoke...


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## RCAlan (Feb 28, 2021)

jbinfla said:


> The filter canister looking thing is the Big Kahuna cold smoke generator.  I'm about 2.5 hrs into my ribs I'm hoping to eat for lunch :)  I have been monitoring remotely and temp is staying pretty flat so I'm happy.  I just went out and checked and the chips in the cold smoke generator were burnt.  I think you only get 1-hour out of this one using chips.  I may get some chunks too.  Instructions say best is a mix of chips, chunks and pellets.  I am not sure what to expect, some of the forum post lead me to believe pellets will not satisfy me (who likes heavy smoke) others say it does just fine.  So, this is my test.
> 
> Normally I do the 3-2-1 method but I'm thinking of not wrapping these.  Not sure if I will regret that or not.



A few helpful tips when using the SD Smoke Generator...  SmokeDaddy recommends to not use Wood Pellet in  their Smoke Gen. Canisters because a full canister of pellets will impede the airflow.  What I’ve found is that if you use good quality Hickory, Oak or Mesquite Lump Charcoal as the heat base...  about half canister full, then add a mixture of 50% CharHickory or Hickory LumberJack Pellets to 50% Hardwood Chips.  This setup will give you a nice, clean, steady smoke.  You’ll benefit from the TBS Smoke Profile of the Lump Charcoal and the clean smoke of the pellets, plus the Hardwood Smoke from the Chips.  Also, using Pellets and Lump Charcoal will also help decrease the production of creosote and make the fire and smoke management easier.  Will the interior of the canister still darken when used?   Yes, but the production of creosote will be decreased and the cleaning maintenance will be much easier as well.  Hope the info and tips help.  

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## jbinfla (Mar 2, 2021)

Thanks for the tips.  I'm going to try again this weekend with some more ribs.  It is really important to me to get the smoke flavor, otherwise it's just a glorified oven.

I'm going to go full tilt boogie this time.  I have an AMAZN tube gonna fill it with Mesquite pellets.  Gonna get some lump charcoal, more chips, and some chunks and try and keep the cold smoker going.  I'm guessing I'll check every 30-minutes and add chips/chunks.  This is a lot of work but if I can get the smoke flavor added I will be happy.

I also read some post on here about using "sawdust", basically pellets that were broken into the dust and packed into the AMAZN tube for longer, thicker smoke.  Mostly it was done for cheese, so I'm not sure if it's something I should try or not.

Here's to my next smoke!


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## jbinfla (Mar 6, 2021)

Well smoke #2 under way.  Today it's supposed to rain so doing this on my Lanai...  Wife does not approve, but it's far from the worse thing I've done :)  Tomorrow will be beautiful and before this one even gets going I'm already planning it.

I bought some extra-fine wood chips, a bucket of oak and a bucket of hickory.  I tried to pack the AMAZN with these chips and couldn't keep it lit, so went with Mesquite pellets I got from Smokedaddy.  I also have my Big Kahuna loaded, I started with chips, put some chunks on top, then some of the fine wood chips, then some more chips.  Right now it's billowing nice smoke.   I guess I'm gonna keep up on the Big Kahuna and try to keep it full and smoking, hopefully the AMAZN will stay lit.  It should, I've used it before on my gas grill with pellets stayed lit.  This extra fine stuff not sure why it wouldn't stay lit I thought for sure it would be similar to the sawdust I see but maybe not.  I will have to try that different. 

So, if I can get enough, or too much, smoke on these ribs I'll consider this a win and maybe do a pork butt tomorrow.  If ribs aren't smoky I'll do it again...


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## RCAlan (Mar 6, 2021)

jbinfla said:


> Well smoke #2 under way.  Today it's supposed to rain so doing this on my Lanai...  Wife does not approve, but it's far from the worse thing I've done :)  Tomorrow will be beautiful and before this one even gets going I'm already planning it.
> 
> I bought some extra-fine wood chips, a bucket of oak and a bucket of hickory.  I tried to pack the AMAZN with these chips and couldn't keep it lit, so went with Mesquite pellets I got from Smokedaddy.  I also have my Big Kahuna loaded, I started with chips, put some chunks on top, then some of the fine wood chips, then some more chips.  Right now it's billowing nice smoke.   I guess I'm gonna keep up on the Big Kahuna and try to keep it full and smoking, hopefully the AMAZN will stay lit.  It should, I've used it before on my gas grill with pellets stayed lit.  This extra fine stuff not sure why it wouldn't stay lit I thought for sure it would be similar to the sawdust I see but maybe not.  I will have to try that different.
> 
> So, if I can get enough, or too much, smoke on these ribs I'll consider this a win and maybe do a pork butt tomorrow.  If ribs aren't smoky I'll do it again...


Good luck...  The more you use the Big Kahuna, the better you’ll get at using it and what works best for you...  FYI...  Keep it clean, keep it hot and keep on Smoking.

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## jbinfla (Mar 7, 2021)

A couple things:

1) Don't smoke in a screened in lanai.  It was raining so I  It got hard to bear at some times since the air doesn't move through it quite like it does outdoors.  Wife does not approve, and every time I went outside some smoke got in house.  Lesson learned.
2) I couldn't keep AMZN tube going with smoke chips, so replaced with pellets and couldn't keep it going.  I'm not sure what the deal is with this, next smoke I will get this going before the meat gets added.  I didn't want to keep opening / closing it but I wonder if there's not enough air in there to continue to burn?  Maybe I didn't light fully?  Dunno
3) I over seasoned the ribs.  To much rub.  I bought a new rub and it was salty.  I shouldn't change things up until I figure this out.
4) I was able to get the Big Kahuna smoking, and I added wood chips every 30-minutes for the first 1.5 hours.  Then I got busy, and didn't add any until about 4 hours in.  Didn't get a big smoke flavor.  

The smoker stayed on point for temp.  Wasn't what I was hoping for again.  I will try again next week, I think I'll start the AMAZN tube with just pellets (how I've used it in the past) before I start the smoker.  Give it 15-30 minutes to smokes to make sure it can smoke in there and it's not too air tight or something.  Then if that works I'll start preheating and give it another 15-30 and see if it stays lit.  If so then I'm going to start the Big Kahuna and put ribs on.  I'm also contemplating putting a tray on the fire box cover full of chips.  That's how I did it in the gas smoker put chips in there.  So, next go around I'm going to add that.  Three smoke sources.  if I can get over smoked then I'll start backing it off.    I am sure I sound like a rookie as I suspect most pellet smokers have already figured out the smoke.  One thing I haven't, and don't plan to try, is the low temp smoke setting on the smoker.  I want to have to change all my temp/times if I don't have to.

So, next week I'll post some more let you all know.  If I get something good I'll post some more pics.


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## retfr8flyr (Mar 7, 2021)

IMHO you will never get a great smoke flavor with a pellet grill of any type, I don't care what extra smoke device you add too it. I love my Traeger grill but I never expected to get heavy smoke flavor from it.  Pellet grills give off a cleaner, lighter flavor, that many prefer. I really love the way my Traeger does poultry and think it can't be touched doing that. I feel the only way you will get heavy smoke flavor is with lump charcoal and wood chunks, or a stick burner. The very nature of pellet grills just doesn't allow them to give heavy smoke flavor.


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## RCAlan (Mar 8, 2021)

jbinfla said:


> A couple things:
> 
> 1) Don't smoke in a screened in lanai.  It was raining so I  It got hard to bear at some times since the air doesn't move through it quite like it does outdoors.  Wife does not approve, and every time I went outside some smoke got in house.  Lesson learned.
> 2) I couldn't keep AMZN tube going with smoke chips, so replaced with pellets and couldn't keep it going.  I'm not sure what the deal is with this, next smoke I will get this going before the meat gets added.  I didn't want to keep opening / closing it but I wonder if there's not enough air in there to continue to burn?  Maybe I didn't light fully?  Dunno
> ...



Jbinfla, I’m not trying to highjack your thread...  I just want to share some valuable information that will help you get the best out of your Smoke Gen and good, quality Hardwood Smoke from your Big Kahuna Smoke Generator.  I have a few questions for you, at what temps are you setting your Pellet Smoker when you’re using a Pellet tube or the Big Kahuna Smoke Gen.?  Anything above 250* degrees will produce very little smoke...  Even using the Big Kahuna or even a pellet tube, the pellet smokers fan is always running and at higher temp settings, even harder.  The air pressure produced within the Smokers Cooking Chamber makes it very difficult to produce great smoke volume at temps above 250*-300* degrees.  That’s why many Posters with pellet grills and some who don’t, will tell you that it’s impossible for any pellet grill to produce smoke like a true Stick Burning and Charcoal Burning bbq grill, no matter what you add or what modifications are done to it.  I must be one of the few that says and knows, that if the right modifications and methods are applied, then you can come pretty close to a Stick Burner. I know people are trying to giving you their honest opinion and I truly believe they are...  I’m not here to debate opinions, but I can share with you what has worked for me with my Pellet Pro Austin XL to produce a good hardwood and charcoal smoke flavor profile from my pellet grill.  I knew that there had to be a way to make this work...  and with a few mods, I was able to accomplish this.  FYI. By its general design, a Pellet Smoker is an oven that’s fueled by wood pellets.  The Pros to this is with a decently designed pellet grill, you’re able to have an almost Set it and Forget it bbq approach and enjoy consistent temps without the hassle of babysitting the smoker constantly throughout your cook.  For many, that’s a winner by itself.  The Cons or the trade off is that by its design, it will never duplicate the smoke production of a stick burner.  The key to Great bbqing is learning your grill and learning your equipment... Every bbq cooking tool has its own nuances. Pellet Grills are not Off-Set stick burners, they have their own steps and procedures to follow too get the best results. Always, plan your work and work your plan with your equipment... Pellet Grills are not designed to go Hot and Fast for great smoke production ... They are designed for Low and Slow bbqing for the best Smoke production and results... And when I say Low and Slow bbqing, I mean temps that will allow a Pellet Smoker to produce and maintain a certain level of quality smoke within the cooking chamber and not have it blown out by a high running fan...  and that’s when using the Big Kahuna or a Pellet Smoke Tube as well.  For
the most and best smoke production from any pellet grill, you have to start your cooks at the ideal smoking temps for pellet smokers and maintain those temps for a certain amount of time to enjoy a decent smoke flavor profile on your bbq’d cooks.  When using a Smoke Generator like the Big Kahuna or the larger Magnum P.I.G., you can enjoy true Hardwood and Charcoal Smoke when it’s operated and maintained correctly.  Does this require extra work?  Most definitely, but these Smoke Generators are like adding an off-set stick burner add on to a pellet smoker and running a Stick Burner correctly requires some work to produce good quality smoke.  Here a few pics of the Mods. that I’ve done to get Good Hardwood and Charcoal smoke from my pellet grill and to also maintain the volume of smoke as well.  I added 4 more holes to the bottom canister cap to help maintain a better burn.





Stainless steel sleeve...  Better Smoke results and easier cleaning.





Shutoff valve to dial back the volume of smoke if necessary...





Relocated smoke outlet to obtain ideal smoke throughout the grill...  Not effected by the Pellet Hopper fan air pressure.





Smoke Gen. smoke only...





Another option also is adding a Smoke Basket that can be loaded with lump charcoal and hardwood as well...





Smh...  Hardwood smoke is not possible from a pellet grill... Yeah right...






I wish I could post a few videos as well...  Here’s a few good reads that have great information on Smoke Management and info for the SD Big Kahuna as well.





						AMNPS & Smoke Daddy Myths?
					

Are the following statements facts or myth's?   AMNPS produces no creosote.   Smoke Daddy creates excessive amounts of smoke and creosote making products taste bitter.  The following are the results discovered while cold smoking three country cured hams, but first, the ham that was smoked in...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				









						Understanding Smoke Management - updated 12/08/14
					

Understanding Smoke Management  Recently, on several meat smoking and BBQ forums, including this one, I’ve noticed an uptick in the number of threads pertaining to the color of the smoke being produced, specifically Thin Blue Smoke (TBS) vs. Thick White Smoke (TWS). Various posts on the threads...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				









						SmokeDaddy Magnum P.I.G and Pellet Pro PID upgrade for my PB Austin XL
					

Wow...  Where do I start.?.   Well, I upgraded my PB Austin XL to a Modified Pellet Pro Austin XL.  I added the Pellet Pro 35lb Hopper Assembly with their PID Controller to the Austin XL, I also added the SmokeDaddy Magnum P.I.G. Cold Smoke Generator along with a few other much needed mods.  The...




					www.smokingmeatforums.com
				




And if you have any questions, ideas or need help, just ask.  Good luck.

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## jbinfla (Mar 8, 2021)

RCAllen, thank you so much for the tips.  I know I got good wood smoke from my gas grill, so it can be done with chips / chunks just a matter of using what I got.  I'm not opposed to redoing everything I've done just to get a good baseline to start from.

As to temp, I'm smoking everything at 225°.  It produces a very faint smoke if looking out the exhaust stack.  And you're right, there is a pretty decent outflow of air, so that leads me to believe my AMAZN tube didn't go out because of lack of oxygen it went out because I didn't light it fully.  I will give that a whirl.  I have not cleaned out my Big Kahuna yet.  Is that what you have, or is that the Magnum PIG?  I spoke with Dan and he said the Magnum will not fit without rubbing up against the enamel.  I've got a metal pan I'm going to put on top of the firebox guard (forget what it's called, heavy metal plate that sits over fire).  I'm going to load that up with chunks and chips, cover with foil, poke some holes and give it a whirl.  Already thinking about another smoke this weekend.  Once i can get the ribs nice and smokey I'll venture into a brisket, which I've been dying to try.


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## RCAlan (Mar 8, 2021)

I


jbinfla said:


> RCAllen, thank you so much for the tips.  I know I got good wood smoke from my gas grill, so it can be done with chips / chunks just a matter of using what I got.  I'm not opposed to redoing everything I've done just to get a good baseline to start from.
> 
> As to temp, I'm smoking everything at 225°.  It produces a very faint smoke if looking out the exhaust stack.  And you're right, there is a pretty decent outflow of air, so that leads me to believe my AMAZN tube didn't go out because of lack of oxygen it went out because I didn't light it fully.  I will give that a whirl.  I have not cleaned out my Big Kahuna yet.  Is that what you have, or is that the Magnum PIG?  I spoke with Dan and he said the Magnum will not fit without rubbing up against the enamel.  I've got a metal pan I'm going to put on top of the firebox guard (forget what it's called, heavy metal plate that sits over fire).  I'm going to load that up with chunks and chips, cover with foil, poke some holes and give it a whirl.  Already thinking about another smoke this weekend.  Once i can get the ribs nice and smokey I'll venture into a brisket, which I've been dying to try.



I have the SD Magnum P.I.G. attached to my pellet grill.   I went with the largest Smoke Generator that SmokeDaddy sells.  No more excuses for the lack of hardwood and charcoal smoke...  The Magnum P.I.G. can putout some serious smoke.  Oh and definitely give those links I posted a good read and keep the interior of  your Smoke Generator clean..  You don’t want a buildup of creosote in the canister.  Creosote will definitely effect the quality of smoke being produced by the Smoke Gen.

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## bill1 (Mar 8, 2021)

In addition to RCAlan's great suggestions, you can also add some resistance to the power lead to the induction fan.  The less air you move, the more it starts behaving like a conventional smoker, giving more smoke flavor, less wood consumption.  I have 50, 100, & 200 ohms in series, with 3 switches across each, so I can successively dial in 8 different speeds...about a $5 mod.  Caveats: you may lose a little temperature control, esp if you're not careful in how you switch these in, and you raise the risk of errors on under-temp (fire out) and pellet overflow, which if you're not savvy can subsequently lead to a serious fire issue,  so if you truly want set & forget, don't mod an engineered design.  

Another suggestion is to add a little electric heat.  The idea is when you're in "smoke mode" the temp doesn't drop as quickly so you can stay in smoke mode longer.  I discovered that somewhat by accident when I added a hot water heater element to my pellet smoker water pan to increase the effect of a simple water pan in a pellet machine.  Of course, moisture potentially helps large, complex smoke molecules stick to meat better--so I was somewhat adjusting two variables at once--but you get the idea.  

Akin to the RC Alan's charcoal basket, replacing the first heat diverter with a cast iron pan containing chips  and/or pellets works pretty well too, at least for an hour or two.  In my vertical pellet machine, that pan is easily gotten to so is easily tended; in my pellet grill where everything loads from the top, not so much.


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## RCAlan (Mar 8, 2021)

bill1 said:


> In addition to RCAlan's great suggestions, you can also add some resistance to the power lead to the induction fan.  The less air you move, the more it starts behaving like a conventional smoker, giving more smoke flavor, less wood consumption.  I have 50, 100, & 200 ohms in series, with 3 switches across each, so I can successively dial in 8 different speeds...about a $5 mod.  Caveats: you may lose a little temperature control, esp if you're not careful in how you switch these in, and you raise the risk of errors on under-temp (fire out) and pellet overflow, which if you're not savvy can subsequently lead to a serious fire issue,  so if you truly want set & forget, don't mod an engineered design.
> 
> Another suggestion is to add a little electric heat.  The idea is when you're in "smoke mode" the temp doesn't drop as quickly so you can stay in smoke mode longer.  I discovered that somewhat by accident when I added a hot water heater element to my pellet smoker water pan to increase the effect of a simple water pan in a pellet machine.  Of course, moisture potentially helps large, complex smoke molecules stick to meat better--so I was somewhat adjusting two variables at once--but you get the idea.
> 
> Akin to the RC Alan's charcoal basket, replacing the first heat diverter with a cast iron pan containing chips  and/or pellets works pretty well too, at least for an hour or two.  In my vertical pellet machine, that pan is easily gotten to so is easily tended; in my pellet grill where everything loads from the top, not so much.



Great info bill1...  Thanks for sharing.  The more sound advice given, the better the outcome for those who need proven information... and not just someone’s opinions... .02

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## kstone113 (Mar 11, 2021)

Hey Bill1,

RCAlan and I and other have a long thread about the magum pig through smokedaddy on here.

I wanted to throw in my 2 cents as I have a similar background as you.  I started "smoking" meats on my gas weber with a smoke basket.  Then I got a vertical propane smoker similar to yours.  I wore out that smoker(kind of like you) and went the pellet route.  I got the RecTeq Bull.  While I LOVED the convenience, I noticed there was not as much smoke flavor as I was getting my vertical propane that I would have to refill with wood chips/chunks.  So like you, I went searching for answers.  I initially got the Heavy D by Smokedaddy which was better but still not what I was looking for.  I eventually got the magnum PIG and have LOVED IT!  Your big kahuna is fine for what you need.  

With pellet grills, you want to go low, the lower, the more smoke but also the longer cooks will take.  One thing I have noticed with my Bull is that the more you use it, the more smoke will absorb to your food and less to the walls and such.  So just using it alone more, you should get better results.  It just won't happen over night or even over a month.  Just takes lots of cooks and time and getting to know your grill.  

All the tips above are great!  The chips on top of the heat diffuser is something a lot do(I haven't in awhile though).  So I'm probably repeating RCAlan again but with the cold smoker, fill it up 75% with charcoal.  Either put in hot from using a chimney OR light only the charcoal with a propane torch, turn the air pump on high and let it go 15 to 20 minutes until most coals are white/hot.  Then add a chunk or two on top of those hot coals.  I do usually check every 30 to an hour.  Sometimes as the charcoal goes down the canister, I will add wood chunks and some more charcoal.  

I do use a smoke tube from time and time when I don't want to go through using the smokedaddy.  The tube does need enough air flow to keep it going.  One thing I do is I alternate pellets and wood chips in the tube.  That does add some real wood chip smoke along with the pellet smoke which does help.  

Keep smoking and learning the smoker.  I live in IL about 50 minutes from SmokeDaddy headquarters.  I picked up my magnum PIG in person and met Dennis....great guy!  I have seen your smoker in person and it is a beast!!!!  

From knowing a little bit about that smoker, are you opening the vents on top and the reverse flow one on the side?  I know from videos closing off the top and just opening the side vent can help with smoke staying in and getting more smoke flavor.  

One other thing you can do is use 100% variety pellets.  I personally like 100% hickory pellets and also 100% cherry pellets.  The blend ones are fine but you do get more flavor from the 100% ones.  The blend ones are more for pellet grills on getting higher temps.  Since you are only doing smoking with this smoker, stick to 100% varieties.  

Good luck and I believe over time, things will work themselves out with all the options you have been given in this thread.


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## RCAlan (Mar 11, 2021)

Great reply Kstone113...  but I think you are referring your response/post to Jbinfla, the original poster and not Bill1.  You know it’s funny when I read from other posters, what you can’t do with a pellet grill and what won’t work when trying to add real hardwood smoke to a pellet grill.  Smh... If you try hard enough, all things are possible.  In my setup, I can have 3 smoke systems going at the same time.  Facing my grill from the right, I can load my Smoke basket with lump charcoal and wood chips and chunks.  The volume of the hardwood and charcoal load is almost triple the amount of what the SD Heavy D Stick Burning diffuser could hold.  From the center of my Pellet Pro Austin XL,  I get the heat source and pellet smoke from the burn pot and from the left side, I get hardwood and charcoal smoke from the SD Magnum P.I.G. smoke generator.  Some work and time was required to get everything figured out and all dialed in, but now it’s all good and my set-up works...  FYI...  Smoke from when I first got the SD Smoke Generator and not knowing what I was doing...





TWS...  lol...  and now with my modifications.  





To the Original Poster jbinfla, you can put out some great bbq with your Pellet Pro Smoker and Smoke Gen...  just don’t take any shortcuts in the proper operation and maintenance of each.  Good luck.

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## bill1 (Mar 12, 2021)

kstone113 said:


> ...the more you use it, the more smoke will absorb to your food and less to the walls and such.  So just using it alone more, you should get better results...


Now that's definitely not expected.  The newer the walls, the cleaner and smoother they should be, and hence the LESS smoke  would stick to the walls, leaving the meat the sticky thing.  Then again, smoke in a pellet machine doesn't "loiter", it shoots through pretty fast, so any smoke not _passing_ by the meat really isn't sticking to the meat and so anything you do to keep smoke away from walls and direct it toward your meat is a good thing (if you want more smoke flavor).  

Which is why I think in any smoker, paying some attention to baffling is a smart thing, and of course that varies whether you're cooking a pork butt "sphere" or a batch ("plane") of burgers .  Pellet machine makers fret so much about grease fires that the drip trays are huge.  Yes this diverts fats and oils to the outside, away from ignition sources, but it also diverts all the internal smoke to the outer walls.  If your meat is directly over that silly drip tray, the smoke shoots right over the top of it.  This is why it pays to stuff in foil balls, empty soup cans, etc around the periphery of your meat...anything to force more smoke to pass closer to the meat.  Of course for a given _volumetric_ flow, reducing the flow _area_ increases the flow _velocity_.  You want turbulent flow, but not too much, so another reason to add some series resistance in the induction fan power lead, reducing the cfm's you're pushing through.


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## jbinfla (Mar 13, 2021)

Wow thanks all.  That is a lot of info to digest.  I have made another smoke on Friday and maybe will do another tomorrow.  Here's what I did, and the results:

1) As to wood chips on diffuser, unfortunately when I tried to put a pan on there the grease tray above it would not sit right.  There's only an inch or so between the diffuser and grease tray.  Sooo, I set the pan with wood chips / chunks on top of the grease tray.  Did not get ignition so I will have to revisit this.  I'm worried if I remove the grease tray I'll start a fire, and not the good kind.

2) I lit the AMAZN tube with Mesquite pellets, let it go for 15-20 minutes before I fired up the grill to confirm it was burning.  It stayed burning for most of the smoke (5.5 hours or so) so I'm glad for that.  I can only guess last time that it didn't stay lit, I didn't do a good job of lighting it!

3) I used the Big Kahuna.  I had to reload it about every 30-40 minutes.  I put a layer of chips on the bottom, then chunks, then chips.  I believe this is so much smaller than the Magnum PIG that the two probably aren't the same.  I did get TWS for the duration of my smoke, but oddly didn't pick up a lot of the smoke flavor (but a small hint did come through).  I was very hopeful when I realized if I added another couple chunks, and some chips, every so often I could keep it going with smoke.  Perhaps the fact the air is moving so fast makes a difference.  Not sure.

As to the vents - I do have top vent closed and side vent open.  I'm thinking about fixing up something to close the side vent and open the top just a little bit.  I saw one of the Smoke Daddy videos and they had the side closed and the top open.  This is something I'm thinking about anyway.

4) Temperature held steady though I did see some times it got up to 10-degrees hotter.  Not sure if that was related to me adding fuel to the Big Kahuna, seemed to be tied to that so maybe it adds a few degrees for a bit.

Since I wanted to be apples to apples, I did the same cook times / temps / wrap schedule I normally would have done.  I also was in the habit of cooking my ribs the day before eating so I did that this time too.  I find the wrap method great but the rib meat falls off the bone when done, and I don't like that.  By happenstance one day I had to cook some ribs for a large Kingdom Hall gathering and I did them the day before so we could just throw on the grill and warm up day-of at the park.  Turns out they were so much better, still tender, same flavor and smokiness, but the bones didn't fall out (meat did come cleanly off bone just not accidentally).  So, once I realized that letting the meat congeal in the fridge over night, then grilling for 30-minutes the next day makes, for me, the best ribs.  SOOOO, long story short, I wanted to be apples to apples and followed the same routine for this cook.  Cooked Friday, and ate ribs for breakfast this morning :)  Gotta love that

Results?  Very slight smoke aroma.  Normally, the next day when I unpack the ribs the smoke aroma would be strong and very noticeable, you could tell they were smoked ribs.  Today a very close sniff and I could "kinda sorta" tell but not what I was hoping for.  It was better than the last batch.  I thought for sure the TWS from the Big Kahuna would have made it taste bad but it didn't.  So, I didn't get that taste I like.

I'm a bit nervous about removing the grease tray to put a pan of chips on the diffuser but a pan of chips / chunks burning always worked on my gas smoker.  I just need a way to get the chips there and still be able to access the chip / chunks to add more if needed and under the grease tray that isn't happening.  Anyone have thoughts on this?  Is it a severe fire hazard to remove the grease tray?  Maybe put a pan under the ribs?  For now I'm only doing one rack testers so easy to do, but when I have a large gathering and a dozen racks, not so sure about that then.

What do I think I need to do?  I'm contemplating how I can fit a Magnum PIG on there, or maybe make my own but I really don't have machine tools so not sure that's an option.  I believe the PIG is so much bigger that it works better.  I'd have to break lump charcoal into smaller pieces to fit into the Big Kahuna, the PIG looks to be much larger.    I'm also contemplating starting my smoke at 180-degrees or something to see if I can get more smoke out of the pellets but I hate changing my temps and cook times because then I'm dealing with another set of problems.  That's the whole reason I'm just doing ribs now, one thing I knew how to cook routinely and very well.  Once I get these I'll venture into other meats, and maybe try that brisket I've been dying to do.

Anyway, long post, but I wanted to be thorough.  I'll keep posting here until I get it just the way I want them.  For now, here's a pic shortly after I replenished the Big Kahuna.

- Joe


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## RCAlan (Mar 14, 2021)

jbinfla said:


> Wow thanks all.  That is a lot of info to digest.  I have made another smoke on Friday and maybe will do another tomorrow.  Here's what I did, and the results:
> 
> 1) As to wood chips on diffuser, unfortunately when I tried to put a pan on there the grease tray above it would not sit right.  There's only an inch or so between the diffuser and grease tray.  Sooo, I set the pan with wood chips / chunks on top of the grease tray.  Did not get ignition so I will have to revisit this.  I'm worried if I remove the grease tray I'll start a fire, and not the good kind.
> 
> ...



For your ribs, if you’re doing the 3-2-1 method, I would recommend switching up and either don’t wrap the ribs at all or try 4-1-1 instead.  Wrapping for 2 hours can definitely over tenderize your ribs and that’s 2 hours less that your ribs have exposure to your grills smoke production.   The Magnum P.I.G. smoke  generator is definitely larger then the Big Kahuna, but before you go out and buy the Magnum P., I would recommend try using a Smoke Basket...  It’s a lot cheaper investment and you can load it up with charcoal and hardwood.  To give you an idea, here’s a couple of pictures of the $4000.00 IronSide Smokers Vertical Pellet Smoker and how they burn real hardwood in theirs...  










You can add a Smoke Basket to your Vertical Smoker for about $30.00-$50.00 dollars and you would also have easier access to the basket then you would in a traditional pellet grill to reload it as necessary.  The  IronSide Smoker has more available space near its burn pot, but you can do something similar by adding a Smoke Basket to your Pellet Pro Smoker.  Sometimes you have to think outside the box and be creative.  FYI.  Also, always start your bbqs at the optimal Low and Slow temps for the first couple of hours to maximize the smoke production within your smoker as well.    Good luck.

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods...  In SoCal and Always...  Semper Fi


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## kstone113 (Mar 15, 2021)

I apologize, RCAlan is right, i mean to reply to  Jbinfla, not bill1 so apologies on the confusion.  

Jbinfla  - I know the Big Kahuna is smaller but try filling it with charcoal instead of wood and then adding chunks.  You may need to cut chunks smaller to fit but chunks are better than chips for better smoke.  I sometimes have to cut chunks to even fit into my magnum PIG.  I saw someone make a mod where they curved the air pump pipe so it didn't go right through the middle so it is easier to put bigger chunks.  Even with the cold smoker (kahuna), I would start your pellet smoker on low for an hour or more.  I assume since your smokedaddy is PID controller, the fan would go off/on like my Recteq Bull?  That is assuming it is hot outside and the fan does need to adjust but the fan going off/on would allow the smoke to stay in longer.  

One other thing I suggest is you change your or try changing your method on ribs.  I like you was a 3/2/1(or something modified) guy.  I tended to go 3 1/2 to 4 hours of smoke, 1 to 2 wrapped and 30 minutes or so unwrapped but lately(a year into having my pellet smoker) I finally decided to try the unwrapped method like other had suggested.  I think ribs on pellet smokers come out better unwrapped.  I do spray every hour with apple juice/apple cider vinegar which does help with smoke absorption.  Since pellet smoker  smoke is not only lighter but b/c of the fans, it moves along faster, this makes the case for no wrapping.  I think you will be happier with the smoke flavor if you go unwrapped.  To me, wrapping is to speed up the process and/or stop smoke absorption because of so much smoke.  If and when I get an offset smoker, I would go back to 3/2/1 but with a pellet smoker, it is a different ball game.  

I do think overtime as you learn this smoker more, you will go to love it.  You can put wood chips right on the heat diffuser.  You don't necessarily have to have in a pan.  Or you could make a foil boat with wood chips on the diffuser also.  Even with only an inch, if you user foil or just put the chips directly on there, should work fine.  

Good luck!


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## jbinfla (Mar 15, 2021)

Yes I am so glad I've had such great comments, it helps to have experience guide you.   I am sure I will end up loving this, just got to figure out how to get the smoke.

I will try the chunks directly on the diffuser in a foil boat as you mentioned see if I can't get some thick smoke.  From everything I hear, smoke absorption by the meat is usually only in the first few hours and after that the meat is too warm, or it's set, or something I don't recall all the details just that I remember somewhere hearing that the smoke flavor is established in the first few hours.  SOOO, if I can get three hours of smoke without any intervention, and I can taste it, then I'll say I've got exactly what I wanted.  For now, I've got mostly what I wanted and honestly I'm kind of enjoying the experimentation.  I may have committed a sin tho, I'm afraid to admit to it here.  But, since this is therapy I guess I have to be honest.  I bought a bottle of liquid smoke from Amazon, just showed up.  It's the hickory stuff no funny ingredients just condensed smoke and water.  I think next smoke I'm going to do two racks, no wrap, one spritzed with apple juice and other one spritzed with apple juice and some liquid smoke.  This is for educational purposes only, of course I would never do anything like this :)  Unless it works.  Never tried it but I'm getting desperate.  My mom got her COVID shot and hasn't been out of house since March so I'd like to have my family over for my famous ribs (hey, my nephew thinks they are).  Sadly, right now, they are not what he remembers but it's been a year since they've been over and I'd like to get this dialed in and first time in a year have my whole family over.


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## JWFokker (Mar 18, 2021)

The forced airflow in the pellet burner makes evaporation take place faster, so you could in theory power through the stall faster. Higher temp settings also increase the fan speed, so evaporation can happen even faster, but smoke is thinner. The case can be made that low and slow is the way to go on pellet burners except when cooking poultry. I usually run mine at 180-200F and turn the temp up to 250-275 whenever the color looks good to break out of the stall and finish.


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## bill1 (Mar 19, 2021)

JWFokker said:


> The forced airflow in the pellet burner makes evaporation take place faster, so you could in theory power through the stall faster...


+1 on all JWF said.  
Also, clever use of manifolding or channeling your smoke flow makes a big difference...  

On a pellet grill, arrange empty beer cans or foil wads around the empty perimeter of your meat so the smoke is re-directed to flow closer and faster to the meat.  Same thing with the space _above_  the meat.  I have a 2nd row of grates I hardly ever use, and my meat is seldom so tall it reaches them.  So I wrap them in foil (or replace with steel sheet) with only a single hole directly under the chimney.  

In a vertical pellet smoker (like the IronSide) place steel sheet (in place of factory grates, or hung under the factory grates) to force the smoke to meander left and right like a snake instead of heading straight up to the exhaust.


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## jbinfla (Mar 24, 2021)

Okay so this past Sunday I did another smoke.  This time I did the following:

1) Set smoker to 225°
2) Lit one AMAZN tube with pellets
3) Lit one AMAZN tube with fine wood chips
4) Put wood chunks on top of heat diffuser
5) Tried to keep the Big Kahuna cold smoker going (it requires attention every 30-min or so)
6) Cooked ribs 6-hours, no wrap.  Normally I would do 4-2, then refrigerate night before and grill briefly next day to warm up (they were usually a bit too fall-apart after 2 hours in foild)
7) I added a few tbs of mesquite liquid smoke to my water spritzer.  No juice wanted to see the flavor.

How did it go?  Pellet tube seems to last just shy of 6 hours.  Tube with chips last about 4 hours so I did refill it.  Big Kahuna maybe could go 1-hour but the last 20-minutes it'd be little smoke so I add chunks/chips every 30-minutes.  I don't like that maintenance schedule.  I will probably look into ways to add the Magnum PIG, with a bend or something if I have to.

Results:  As always it maintained a pretty solid temp, but I did notice opening and closing the door every hour to sprits causes temp to drop to 170-180, then it goes up to 250 and settles back at 225 over next ten minutes.  but once it hits 225 it's pretty solid at 225.  Ribs had a mild smoke flavor, so compared to the "out the oven" flavor of the other ribs this is a step up.  The outside was not tough, but was not as tender as I'm used to.  Flavor was good so I will say I now have ribs I am happy with, but I will keep refining as I would like a much heavier smoke flavor.

What am I going to do next?  I'm going to explore ways to get more wood chunks on top of the heat diffuser.  Wish there was more room to do a fire box like some others have shown.  The grease tray is only an inch or so above the heat diffuser which limits my ability.  I'd be willing to remove the bottom shelf and raise the grease tray up a few more inches and add way more chunks.  I could get more in there now as I only covered 60% of the surface area, next time I will cover 100% of surface area and then also look at ways to elevate the grease tray.  I am not sure about the AMAZN tubes.  I will use both, but the pellet one put off more visible smoke, but the fine chips (one step up from sawdust) burned faster.  I'm not sure which is better.  So, guess I'll do pellets and see.  May buy one of those smoke trays as well to put my chips in so two pellet tubes and one tray.  I know, it's getting ridiculous but I want something I do not have to tend to often that was the whole reason I went the pellet route.  Lazy, I know :)


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## jbinfla (Apr 30, 2021)

Well figured I'd update everyone since I've had a couple more smokes and have I think finally gotten the results I'm looking for.

Last weekend invited family over for a good smoke.  Make several racks of ribs and two chuck roast.

Ribs:
I cooked ribs Friday night, same 225° as usual.   I did 4-2 for the method with the St. Louis style ribs (4-hours no wrap, 2-hours foil wrapped).   I used two AMAZN tubes, both with pellets (Pecan) I've not been using the fine chips in there as I believe the pellets create more smoke.  They also give about 4-hours of smoke which is low maintenance for what I'm interested in.  I put some chunks on the heat diffuser along with some chips.  I kept the Big Kahuna going for the four hours best I could, it does require frequent refilling.  Dan at SmokeDaddy said the spring in the smoke generator is only if using pellets, and since I used chunks/chips I could remove it.  This allowed me to get marginally more in there but still less than an hour and I needed to top it off.

I did almost screw up pretty bad.  I looked at the chips/chunks on the diffuser and I noticed that they were black but didn't appear charred.  In my infinite wisdom I thought maybe I'll throw a light to them.  Bad move, they flamed up big-time instantly and I had to run and get a spray bottle with some water and put it out and in that bit of furor it spiked to 290° fast.  But just for a couple minutes so no harm.

Next day was the day everyone was coming over and I pulled them out 30-minutes before I wanted them done and threw on the grill for the warm up and final cook.  They came out pretty good if you ask me I am now happy with how my ribs work out. 

Chuck Roast:
I've never made one but saw some post about this being an alternative to brisket.  As I went to Winn Dixie after 6pm on Thursday to get the meat the butcher was gone so if I wanted I could have gotten a whole brisket packer or whatever they had in the meat case.  So I saw a couple smaller chuck roast about 3lbs each.  Figured I'd give them a try.  I did the math figured I'd need about 6-hours each at 225° so tried to time it, and thankfully around 6-1/2 hours it hit 185° my target temp and I pulled.  No stall.  I smoked for 4 hours, then wrapped in paper for last 2-1/2 hours.  I pulled off meat and it was not "medium" as I had hoped, it was more like med-well but everyone loved it.  I used a rub with coarse ground black pepper, garlic, sea salt and very little crushed pepper.  It wasn't too tough, though it wasn't this fall apart with juice running out like some of the brisket you-tube videos.  But, I'll make another again maybe next time I'll hit the butcher shop find some nicer cuts or get a small brisket just the flat or butt.  Anyway, below is a pic I took at around 160° when I pulled them to wrap.  The flavor was delicious, my only wish was if it were a bit juicier.  It wasn't terribly dry, but not what I wanted.

All in all everyone loved the ribs and the beef, too bad I forgot the chicken on the grill and brought in "charcoal" for the two who were "on a diet" :)  They had to suffer with ribs and beef!  Ohh and some sausage that I put on but I don't count that because it was pre-smoked I just added some more and warmed it up :)


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## jbinfla (Apr 30, 2021)

Ohh, for anyone who is thinking of buying one of these:

1) I've not had a single problem.  No errors or other things I was worried about.  So far, it just works.  Not sure how many hours it can go as I've not smoked over 6-7 hours at a time and it doesn't even use half of the hopper so I think I can get 12-18 hours out of a hopper.  I don't mind tending to the pellets every 6-hours if necessary :)

2)  It holds temps pretty solid.  Adding the chunks / chips to the diffuser will raise the temps a bit, so I just dial it down to keep it steady.  I may at some point stop putting wood on the diffuser and see if the two AMAZN tubes i'm using do the trick.  I may even buy more, they're easy to use and make a ton of smoke.  And, there's a lot of room inside the smoker so having a couple tubes in there doesn't limit anything.

3)  I also plan to see if I can discontinue using the Big Kahuna and get the results I want.  It requires a lot of tending and the whole point of me going pellet was so don't have to tend to a fire every 30-minutes.    I have gone out for a couple hours in the middle of a smoke and kept my thermometer on logging and it has been solid.  So it is doing what I want, it's just the smoke that I have been trying to add more of so now that I've got results I like I'll fine tune and try to "simplify"


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## chef jimmyj (May 1, 2021)

Glad to hear its working so well. Its too much smoker for my needs but Im prone to excesses and would love one...JJ


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