Small scale smoking--what changes?

Howdy folks,

Any big changes that need to be done for smaller scale smoking?

I see all these threads about people packing their smokers to the brim--multiple butts, rack and racks of ribs, 2 full packers etc. I've not seen much about changes for smoking in smaller batches. Do you need to do anything special for just smoking 1-2 racks or a small brisket flat (3-4 lbs)? It seems the only big differences should be in the speed it takes temps to move, but I could be missing something.

I ask because it's just my wife and I and, even with throwing leftovers in the freezer, we usually don't need 10 pounds of smoked beef on hand. If I did that, then I'd only be able to smoke every few weeks and that's not fun. I want to be able to run small batches so I get to play with the WSM more often.

In the past I did this on a kettle and had that wired in. Now I'm trying to see how to make this work on the WSM 18.5.

Thanks

It's usually just my wife and I too, so if I buy a packer brisket I cut in half for 2 cooks, one cook flat portion, the other flat and point.
Butts I normally do whole, but the last one I bought was cut in half for 2 cooks also.

In the 8 years of owning an 18" WSM I only recall using the bottom rack once or twice, once was when I was cooking 4 butts for a party.
Two years ago I got the 14" and rarely use the 18" anymore.

One butt or six, one slab of ribs or four, you need to fuel up the same with the biggest difference being the cooker coming up to temp with all that mass of cold meat.

The more meat in the cooker, the less you need water in the pan. It's important to have humidity in the cooker and a big load of meat will provide plenty of humidity as it sweats. For small cooks, you might oughta use water to provide humidity.

Jeff

Like Bob said, same story for Barb and me. I've only done a full packer once to say I did it. If you nailed it on the kettle try using the same technique with the WSM and go from there.
And like Bob said we use the 14.5 much more than the 18.5,you might want to look into getting a 14.5. Less fuel and easier to manage.

If I'm doing butts I'll usually do at least two. Dealing with the second butt only adds maybe an hour to the whole process, while doing that butt separately would take 14-15 hours. Pulled pork freezes well, particularly if you have a vacuum sealer.

I've done one butt. I've done four butts. Same basic process. About the only difference is needing to rotate the butts halfway through. I've not tracked fuel consumption. Might be a bit more with a full load. It certainly doesn't differ by a huge margin.

I'm in the same boat unless the family comes over. For me the only thing that changes with smaller cooks is less work.