# Here is my Merry Christmas from the Wife Unit



## ewetho (Dec 3, 2011)

It is an MES30 Model 2007011 featuring two shelves and a 1800 Watt element. Should be fun.

Oh and according to the thermometer, the water boils in my house (at an of elevation approximately 500 ft) at a grand 250 degrees! Yeah!

This is the one that was at Gander Mountain for ~$100. My first Smoker. Yet to be seasoned and cook but Christmas is coming soon enough.

Here is the Outside








And the insides too


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## tom c (Dec 3, 2011)

Sure is nice and clean, tell the wife you need to season it try it out at lease once so the Christmas meal will be perfect.


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## raptor700 (Dec 3, 2011)

$100.00  is a good deal!

It will make you proud with some great Q


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## raymo76 (Dec 4, 2011)

Great, I bet you can't wait to get it going!


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## SmokinAl (Dec 4, 2011)

Congrats!


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## tjohnson (Dec 4, 2011)

Great Deal...Congrats!!

Todd


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## ptcruiserguy (Dec 4, 2011)

Nice Christmas Score!!


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## seenred (Dec 4, 2011)

Congrats on a great find!


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## steamaway (Dec 4, 2011)

$100.? can't go wrong!


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## bobbygee (Dec 4, 2011)

Looks good but way too clean. You must break'er in.


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## BGKYSmoker (Dec 4, 2011)

Now no peeking until Christmas....HAHA

Nice smoker


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## ewetho (Dec 4, 2011)

4:20 PM CDT seasoning has begun. Got some Old No. 7 Brand chips to season with! Got to have some fun!


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## roller (Dec 4, 2011)

Looks good now give her a great big ol kiss....can`t remember when mine was that clean...


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## michael ark (Dec 4, 2011)

I'd have to sneak a can of
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





on at least .


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## JckDanls 07 (Dec 4, 2011)

just take a chub of Jimmie Deans Breakfast Sausage and throw it in there...   Nice score for a $100


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## ewetho (Dec 4, 2011)

Well seasoning is done. Supposed to let it run for 3 hours with last 45 minutes of smoke. I gave up waiting and added the wood chips for 3 hours after 1 hour of heat. Had smoke till the end when I put water on the chips to put them out, but it never got that hot. The manual electric only has a dial and Low-Med-High and was supposed to be done on Med and I went to Med-High. I know the gage reads high (water bath tested) so just under 225 is not very hot when measuring boiling water it was a 250. I was on an extension cord and from previous research on this site I am sure I need a better (heavier gauge) one and will see what happens then.

Here is the seasoning run.







Good amount of smoke when the door opens.







Was still smoking after at least 3 full hours on top of the burner. I did soak them per the directions.







Old No. 7 Brand does have a distinct odor. Nice! Got to like a whiskey cask for wood chips.


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## scarbelly (Dec 4, 2011)

Congrats on a great deal.


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## ewetho (Dec 4, 2011)

I hope my starter supplies will be fun.....


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## dewetha (Dec 4, 2011)

nice score! that looks like collection of chips I started with this summer. good luck having fun with the new toy.


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## so ms smoker (Dec 5, 2011)

Don't forget the pecan wood. It is awesome on pork!

Mike


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## michael ark (Dec 5, 2011)

X2
 


So MS Smoker said:


> Don't forget the pecan wood. It is awesome on pork!
> 
> Mike


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## alelover (Dec 5, 2011)

If 250 really is 212 then it should read around 265 to actually be 225. Have you bought a new thermometer yet? Should be able to afford it since you got such a killer deal on the smoker.


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## ewetho (Dec 5, 2011)

That is what I was thinking. Case felt warm but not hot and not insulated (was cold on the porch <40F). But when I opened the door was like opening the oven with SMOKE!!!!  MMMmmmm Smoke smelled good!

Will have to retrofit a known good Thermometer that goes into the case more and see where we are as well as get a good extension cord. Stuff for the weekend.


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## ewetho (Dec 7, 2011)

Wife just gave permission to start experimenting on the SMOKER!!!

Looks like some chicken tonight for first attempt.

Also gonna have some new thermometers to see what is going on inside.


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## michael ark (Dec 7, 2011)

Let the fun begin .
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Welcome to the obsession.What are you doing with the chicken
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





?


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## ewetho (Dec 7, 2011)

Was thinking Mesquite and maybe some JD Old No. 7 for chips and probably just flake out with some Famous Dave's Chicken Rub.

Open to suggestions.......... You see the wood choices in earlier post in this thread.


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## mballi3011 (Dec 7, 2011)

Now thats a nice wife there. If you think about it it is all good for now think about the great food that will come out of that thing.


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## michael ark (Dec 7, 2011)

Old no.7 is great .Never had famous daves.For whole chickens i do this and marinade or inject.

Rendezveous style

4cup cider viniger

4cup water

1/3 cup of their rub which is

1/2 cupsalt

1/4 cup pepper

1tbsp garlic powder

1tbsp oregano

1tbsp paprika

1tbsp chilli powder

1tbsp celery seed

simmer on stove at least 10 min Warning this will take your breath away.


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## ewetho (Dec 7, 2011)

So MS Smoker said:


> Don't forget the pecan wood. It is awesome on pork!
> 
> Mike


I promise to try a bag soon.


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## sqwib (Dec 7, 2011)

Dude you're all set.

Have Fun


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## ewetho (Dec 7, 2011)

michael ark said:


> Old no.7 is great .Never had famous daves.For whole chickens i do this and marinade or inject.
> 
> Rendezveous style
> 
> ...


That sounds interesting.......    Will have to try it.


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## michael ark (Dec 7, 2011)

This will give you a good rub left over for ribs. All though the same recipe goes world wide.http://hogsfly.com/


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## ewetho (Dec 7, 2011)

So far temps are holding around 220 with the water bath going. Before the Water bath it warmed up to 250 on a oven thermometer the door one is way off. The shell stays cooler but about 1" in and warms up. So been smoking on Mesquite and JD Old No. 7 for about 2.5 hours so far and getting about 140 or so. 

Wife got me some Skinless/Boneless chicken thighs to practice with.

How 'bout some trial QView


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## ewetho (Dec 8, 2011)

Well the Chicken was as expected a little dry and over spiced. Used Emeril's rub as I am apparently out of the Famous Dave

s rub I was intending to use. Oh well. But smoke flavor was good. Temps got up to 250 on the new thermometer. 

I did not get a  chance to try brining or any of that so it was nice to see the unit above 200. The Door thermometer was still at 200 which is weird. I think it just heat lose from the noninsulated unit. Weird.

Thinking simple bacon wrap probably would have been good too.


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## SmokinAl (Dec 8, 2011)

Sounds like you overcooked the chicken. It's pretty hard to dry out thighs.

You need to get a thermometer to monitor the food temps with.

I would suggest a Maverick 732, that way you can monitor the smoker temp & the meat temp with 1 thermometer.


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## ewetho (Dec 8, 2011)

Kind of what I was thinking but it was still a bit cool temp got to 155 when I pulled. Other issue is probing it during cooking letting juice out. But all is well guys at work really like it even COLD!!!


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## steamaway (Dec 8, 2011)

That famous Daves chicken rub is the best thing for chicken. I think. Always get rave reviews on my chicken.


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## raptor700 (Dec 8, 2011)

> I would suggest a Maverick 732, that way you can monitor the smoker temp & the meat temp with 1 thermometer.


  Like AL said, 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





    . A good set of thermos are invaluable to a smoker.


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## ewetho (Dec 18, 2011)

Well guys after seasoning and first smoke under my belt I attempted a pair of fatties today only to have my unit fail. Light on NO HEAT!!!  Lights flickered about two hours into use. 

Second smoke and unit DOWN!!!   

Booooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## JckDanls 07 (Dec 18, 2011)

DAMNNNN...  sorry to hear that..  that's why I do charcoal... only problem I will have is if the charcoals wet and won't light... just buy a new bag..


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## sprky (Dec 18, 2011)

ewetho said:


> Well guys after seasoning and first smoke under my belt I attempted a pair of fatties today only to have my unit fail. Light on NO HEAT!!!  Lights flickered about two hours into use.
> 
> Second smoke and unit DOWN!!!
> 
> Booooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Man that *SUCKS*. what ever you do don't tell them you were running the unit on a light cord. It may void your warranty. reason is light cords = low voltage making your unit draw more amps. Without going into great detail this is all due to OHM's law (P = I X E) where *P* is watts *I* is amps and *E* is voltage

Do yourself a favor and get a heavy cord. this may help you decide what gage cord, you need. If your unit only states watts (take the watts and / by the voltage) example 1200 watts/ 120 volts = 10 amps. Keep your voltage drop to around 3% max.

http://www.christmas-onthe-hill.com/extension-cord-chart.pdf


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## ewetho (Dec 18, 2011)

Unit has been on a 40 AMP 12 Gauge extension cord so that is heavier than the house. Not an issue. But understand.

Finished off the fatties in the oven so here is the pics....












They were JD Sausage with Cheddar cheese and Bacon wrap smoked two hours with Maple Wood.

Bright side is the family and daughter boyfriend loved it but I am currently out of smoke....


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## justpassingthru (Dec 18, 2011)

When I read this at first I wanted to say good deal, then when I finished reading your thread I am hoping customer services will come through for ya.

However, if I remember correctly, way back when I was in High School the higher the elevation the lower the boiling point, for your water to boil at 250° you would have to have changed the pressure on the surface of the water and that kind of pressure would occur naturally deep under water.  
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





I concur with the others , you need some accurate thermometers, ...I'm at 500' and my water boils at 211°.

I hope that helps and I hope you are back to smoking soon, ...waiting for the Q-view.

Gene


ewetho said:


> It is an MES30 Model 2007011 featuring two shelves and a 1800 Watt element. Should be fun.
> 
> Oh and according to the thermometer, the water boils in my house (at an of elevation approximately 500 ft) at a grand 250 degrees! Yeah!
> 
> This is the one that was at Gander Mountain for ~$100. My first Smoker. Yet to be seasoned and cook but Christmas is coming soon enough.


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## ewetho (Dec 18, 2011)

Now wondering if I should have gotten propane version.

I got my auto-reply for my email so I know they Know!


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## sprky (Dec 18, 2011)

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]"Unit has been on a 40 AMP 12 Gauge extension cord so that is heavier than the house. Not an issue. But understand." [/color]

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]You are good to go using a # 12 cord. I assume the 40 amp is a typo. Unless I miss my guess your outlets in your house are wired with #12 wire on a 20 amp breaker most are.Yours could be #14 on a 15 amp breaker but around here very few do that.[/color]

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]Sure hope ya get customer service to fix ya up quick.[/color]

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]BTW fattys look good even though you finishe in the oven.[/color]


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## ewetho (Dec 18, 2011)

No typo the actual cord is rated at 40 Amps. and is at least 12 Gauge wire if not 10. It easily exceeds the house.


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## michael ark (Dec 18, 2011)

A ten is 30amp 12 is good for 20 amps.


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## sprky (Dec 18, 2011)

michael ark said:


> A ten is 30amp 12 is good for 20 amps.










  if that cord is rated at 40 amps it must be a #8 cord.


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## ewetho (Dec 19, 2011)

It is LARGE..

Well they want the controller back for QC but looks like 3-5 weeks for parts to arrive as it is a new unit and NO supply yet....


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## africanmeat (Dec 19, 2011)

Congrats


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