Bryan, god of chuck rolls, is, also, the (secret) god of the false-cap-of-the-butt. He knows.
I thought if they are open all the way that's not the right way to do it. Im still very new at this.
Perectly fine to be new at this. The vents are for temps/temp control. Closing the vents somewhat or all the way reduces the amount of air available to the lit fuel. Opening them increases the amount. The trick is (and you'll get this after a few more cooks; it's like learning to drive--in the beginning you think about it constantly then, all of a sudden, it's second nature and you laugh at yourself that you ever thought you'd have a problem 'getting' it), that in the very beginning of the cook you use the vents to allow or limit air intake to try to hone in on a desired cook temp. For a standard method start-up you'll likely close all vents to disallow air intake and cause the temps to lowr; for a Minion start-up you'll leave them fully open till the temp is ~35-50 degrees lower than your target, then you'll close them partially (often to about 1/4 or 1/3 open) and let the temp rise slow, then stabilize. Once this occurs (or, if using the standard method, once the meat is in and a little time has passed and the temps settle), you then can feel free to cheat the vents open or closed--
slightly--in order to more closely hone in on your target cook temp. Two important things: It often takes 15-35 minute after a vent adjustment for the full affect to be realized--so be patient; and it is not a good idea to 'chase temps', i.e., make contant tiny vent adjustments to target THE temp you had in mind. You'll make yourself crazy. A precise temp is not needed.
Me, I like to pull the butt when the bome is loosening but not yet loose. I let residual cooking (that takes place during the early part of the rest) finish it. You might want to get a better therm just so that, at this stage of the game, you know what's what. You'll soon get to a point where you will seldom bother with a therm but it is a good tool to use while you are learning. Just don't depend on it to tell you 'done'. Use the way the meat feels and other, non-therm-visual cueas to tell you that.