100# patio size build, need guidance

[Puff]

Boy those Maniacs have a way with words.. ...smoke virgin? Ayup. Moved here from Vermont so, howdy former neighbor.

I love the way this project came out and some of your photos resemble high tech, specially lighted HD prints. Very nice job. A perfect size and portability. When I cook for my wife and I, the big problem is that I'm using about 3% of the capacity of the 275 RF or Gravity Feed. Great planning and good luck.

[Smokydokey]

Great planning and good luck.

You're giving me way too much credit, 90% of it is chit from the dump! But thank you for the compliments.
And Pete, duh, I never thought about cooking it all and freezing the rest for handy emergency meat. With zero experiance, I'd rather screw up one half at a time

[Rodcrafter]

With the weight you mentioned it is probably 2 in the package. I too cook twice as much of this as I need because it vac seals nice and warms up easy for dinners after work any day. But build you confidence as needed. This is one cut of meat that is very forgiving. Just take it all the way to the temp you want for what you want to do with it. You can buy store bought rub put it on over some yellow mustard then put right in the smoker. Put lots of rub on it, for sliced pork IT at about 185 for pulled pork a little over 200. You will be happy

[Smokydokey]

Ate too much to say much now, but it turned out fantastic, those are ABT's someone suggested. Halapeno stuffed with 'lil cheese smokies, cream cheese & some onions and other stuff, bacon wrapped. MMMMM Thanks for all your help!
My very first Q vue.

[Big T]

don't forget to send out samples

[Pete Mazz]

I LUV ABTs!

Everything looks great!

[Smokydokey]

With the weight you mentioned it is probably 2 in the package.

Yes Sir you guessed it, a double butt. Thanks RC.

[Rodcrafter]

I've rubbed a few butts. Lol

[Grabber70Mach]

That looks like it came out great.

[Smokydokey]

All I did was rub it with coarse kosher salt, pepper, and garlic powder the night before. I screwed up with the finish temp. Somewhere in my little brain I had 155* locked in and cooked it up to 177. Thought that I overcooked it…… until I re-read the clear as a bell advice here! It was fully cooked and had a nice pink smoke layer about 3/4" deep but was a b!tch to "pull". By the time I got it schredded and mixed, we all had our fingers in it and none of us put anything on it (sauce wise), and it was delicious!!
I'll cook the other "cheek" of the butt once my leftovers are gone, that'll be in short order for sure!

[Pete Mazz]

If your going to pull it you'll need to go 195 to 205 depending on the butt. If it has a bone, it's ready when the bone pulls easily out of the meat. If it's boneless you'll need to go by feel. If you can poke thru it easily with a knife, it's ready.

[Smokydokey]

You guy's are great!

[mag1]

I havnt been on the site in a bit, but you are doing something similar to what I built last summer. Here is my build link, lots of differnt options explored, and I have some final prints kind of shown. Works great.

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=3370

Here is where I got most of my idea's from, just scaled it down to the 100# tank size.
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/1017 ... ng-started

This might help. I can email you a pdf of the prints I created if you would like. just pm me. you would have to do some tweaking as you go depending on your wants/needs. I build mine up so I could put 1" ceramic insulation around the fire box. My buddie skiped the square portion of the fire box and just used the round portion of the 2nd #100 tank.

....OP's, I didn't notice all the other pages after the 1st one, feels like a monday, except its friday. it turned out pretty cool.

[Pennywise]

Nice!!

Yeah on butts I always go to at least 195-200. Its OK to finish them in the oven if you don't want to waste the coal/wood too for larger butts.

I heard ya on the ABT's...I did a slight spin off what I read here this weekend and they turned out awesome.

[Smokydokey]

I havnt been on the site in a bit, but you are doing something similar to what I built last summer. Here is my build link, lots of differnt options explored, and I have some final prints kind of shown. Works great.

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=3370

Here is where I got most of my idea's from, just scaled it down to the 100# tank size.
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/1017 ... ng-started

This might help. I can email you a pdf of the prints I created if you would like. just pm me. you would have to do some tweaking as you go depending on your wants/needs. I build mine up so I could put 1" ceramic insulation around the fire box. My buddie skiped the square portion of the fire box and just used the round portion of the 2nd #100 tank.

....OP's, I didn't notice all the other pages after the 1st one, feels like a monday, except its friday. it turned out pretty cool.

Thanks for the link, except it makes me look like a "copycat"! That build had some reaaallly nice ideas & detail in it! Smokin my first brisket this weekend. Fingers crossed!

[Rodcrafter]

I'm smokin 3 of them tonight take it slow it's safer and cook until its done not over done and you will be fine

[Pete Mazz]

The 2 best things you can do for brisket is wrap and rest.

[Rodcrafter]

True Pete but it must be truly done first

[Pete Mazz]

Oh, I was talking about wrapping at the stall.

[Smokydokey]

From what I've read, done is when it passes the toothpic test. You guy's agree?
I've seen the "stall" mentioned but not explained. Is there a stall in IT's rising during the cook?

[Rodcrafter]

Yep that's what Pete is talking about. Large cuts like brisket and pork shoulder tend to stall in the Internal temperature around 160* it can stay there for hours. So some of us wrap it in foil or brown butcher paper at about 150+*.

[Pete Mazz]

It also knocks hours off the cook time and keeps it from drying out. The au jus from the foil gets applied to the slices afterwards.

[Smokydokey]

It also knocks hours off the cook time and keeps it from drying out. The au jus from the foil gets applied to the slices afterwards.

AHHH, juice!! Nectar from heaven! Well it's in the smoke now (at 9:30) and @ about 250 on the point end and 220 on the flat side. I have a hard time balancing the L/R sides out. There are dampers that are L/R but the one in the door is about 2" higher than the other one. I also am VERY green with this smoker, hell any smoker but it might be used to an advantage also. Thanks for you guy's hanging in there with me.

[Smokydokey]

I'm sure it could have been better, but it could have been way worse!
I was suprised how the meat blew right through the "stall" temps. Although my temps had some wild fluctuations (first time using lump charcoal vs. bricket's) it held a pretty constant 230-250. Cooked it fat up, foil wrapped it at 175, cut off & foil/towell into the cooler went the flat at 205 while I thick (1") sliced the point, put it in foil in a foil pan with the juices (from the first "wrapping" at 175) for a few more hours. I got lost as to what to do with the point as it was real fatty and didn't seem to (or I couldn't find) have a "grain" to follow. I ended up "pulling" it for some good smokey goodness later.
Just rubbed in "s.p.o.g." because I've always enjoyed the meat as meat. I needed to salt the flat meat after sliced.
It is just as I thought…… welding up the smoker is the easy part. Lot's to learn, but that's made easier with friend's like y'all!

[Rodcrafter]

Looks like a good time with some good food.