Smokefire Second Wave Buyers Help Desk


 
Rich Dahl said:
Going to wax the hopper on my Camp Chef just to see if it makes a difference. I can see the grin on your face from here enjoy your new Weber.
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Rich, I used Johnson paste wax because it's a slick wax and works so good on woodworking tools. Car wax would also work just as well. I'll bet you can see my grin. I haven't stopped grinning since he pulled up. My first NEW pellet grill.

Santa arrived at 3 PM and he put it in the garage for me. That box is huge and he put it into the center of the garage for me. Then we talked BBQ for a couple of minute. I'm on step 10 of 33 so I may finish by Saturday. 😁 My old back doesn't like the bending but I safely got it on end by myself. Taking my time with frequent rest stops.
 
Lew Newby said:
Rich, I used Johnson paste wax because it's a slick wax and works so good on woodworking tools. Car wax would also work just as well. I'll bet you can see my grin. I haven't stopped grinning since he pulled up. My first NEW pellet grill.

Santa arrived at 3 PM and he put it in the garage for me. That box is huge and he put it into the center of the garage for me. Then we talked BBQ for a couple of minute. I'm on step 10 of 33 so I may finish by Saturday. 😁 My old back doesn't like the bending but I safely got it on end by myself. Taking my time with frequent rest stops.
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Very happy for you Lew, be careful I didn't realize how heavy my little camp chef was I can imagen what that huge Weber must weigh. Of course the first time I moved the beast with no front wheels there was an order put in for new front legs with casters.
Looking forward to seeing some cooks on your new toy.
 
My EX4 arrived this morning. Before opening it, I noticed the P date was 1/14/20, so I am a little scared. I’m hoping all is OK and I don’t have to replace parts, but guessing I will. Assembly went fine and seemed a little like Deja Vu ;). There was an insert pre-installed in the hopper. I removed the guard from the hopper and lubed the ramp with food safe silicone spray. I didn’t look close enough at the pics and info posted about the auger assembly and didn’t check it properly before the burn in. I thought you could tell from the motor which is a revision D, but I’ll have to drain the pellets and look closer into the chute. I don’t recall it being black. So far everything is working fine though. It got to 600 and after burn in, I turned it down to 450 and threw on some 1/2 pound burgers for lunch.

Im hoping since this was direct from Weber and had the insert already that they pre-checked the auger assembly too.
 
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Way to go Shane. My EX6 came with Rev D. motor, no hopper insert, and the silver auger assembly so I'll start with that and see what happens. The P date is 1/19/2020 so I guess it's part of the first production run. I'm OK with that. If I need to replace parts one of my grandson's will be happy to play with Grandpa's toys. I'm too old to be putting one of these together but it's together. Tight and right. Tomorrow morning I play with the app and burn it in.

I put my Camp Chef next to it and snapped a picture. My son's response to it was that's HUGE. YUP!!

Camp Chef & Weber.JPG
Rich, now you know what your grill looks like next to THE BEAST. AND I was careful and took my time as you advised. I'm sore, I'm tired and I'm having a ball.
 
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She is a beast. I had the best question ever from my brother, he wanted to know if I could fit an extra butt on for his family and I said oh yeah!! I’m doing 3 butts tonight, can’t wait.
 
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Funny. You could do those 3 and probably a half dozen more. One thing I noticed, and like, is that the cooking grates are higher off the ground than the Camp Chef. I'm sort of tall and working on something higher is easier on my back. Have fun Bruno.
 
Lew Newby said:
Funny. You could do those 3 and probably a half dozen more. One thing I noticed, and like, is that the cooking grates are higher off the ground than the Camp Chef. I'm sort of tall and working on something higher is easier on my back. Have fun Bruno.
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I’m 6’-2” and love the height, the casters I bought added some height as well.
 
Bruno said:
I’m 6’-2” and love the height, the casters I bought added some height as well.
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I‘m 6‘4” so I should do that. Though it was the hunching over to scrape down the bottom of the barrel that really bothered me more than the grate height.
 
It's Independence Day and my first impressions are it's better than I expected. This morning I turned my Smokefire on and it connected with the app and our WIFI right away. I put UHMW tape on the long ramp in the hopper and filled it with Pit Boss Competition Blend pellets. First attempt at start up failed but shutdown only took 5 minutes and it restarted on the second try. It helps to have a full auger. It got to 600° in less than 15 minutes on the Pit Boss pellets. I did see glowing embers shooting out around the grease tray. After seasoning I turned it down to 400 and, amazingly, got good blue smoke. Then I ran it at 250 for awhile and then turned it to Smoke Boost. I don't lie that it doesn't show temperature when Smoke Boost is on. I'm running it now at 225 looking at how much smoke I get (lots) and I want to see if the pellets keep feeding the auger.

Here's a picture of first smoke as it started up. I was enthralled with the grill feature so the first cook will be a Porterhouse steak for 2.
First Smoke 7-4-20.JPG
 

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Lew Newby said:
It's Independence Day and my first impressions are it's better than I expected. This morning I turned my Smokefire on and it connected with the app and our WIFI right away. I put UHMW tape on the long ramp in the hopper and filled it with Pit Boss Competition Blend pellets. First attempt at start up failed but shutdown only took 5 minutes and it restarted on the second try. It helps to have a full auger. It got to 600° in less than 15 minutes on the Pit Boss pellets. I did see glowing embers shooting out around the grease tray. After seasoning I turned it down to 400 and, amazingly, got good blue smoke. Then I ran it at 250 for awhile and then turned it to Smoke Boost. I don't lie that it doesn't show temperature when Smoke Boost is on. I'm running it now at 225 looking at how much smoke I get (lots) and I want to see if the pellets keep feeding the auger.

Here's a picture of first smoke as it started up. I was enthralled with the grill feature so the first cook will be a Porterhouse steak for 2.
View attachment 8544
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That is great that you are enjoying the grill. It is interesting that you had a failed start up. Might be the pellets. I have only had two occasions where it failed to start up in the four months I have had the grill. Might need to prime it a bit with pit boss pellets
 
Looks great Lew, wish you the best with it.
Made a big mistake showing the comparison picture of your new Ex6 and the Camp Chef which is the same as ours to Barb all she did is mutter "Ain't going to happen honey"
 
I forgot that Barb reads this forum too. Senior moment. :( Of course last night Sara looked at a picture I took and said, So what are you selling FIRST. I know what that means. Fortunately, she doesn't read the forum but I will definitely sell off a couple of cookers if the Smokefire proves reliable.

I'm pretty sure the failure to start was because of the empty auger when I pressed the start button. After it was shut down I took out the innards and emptied the burn pot. Then I pressed start and when the glow plug got hot I dropped a small handful of pellets in and they lit off almost immediately. When I cook dinner I expect it to start right up.
 
My first Smokefire cook is in the books - 1.25 lb. Porterhouse Steak. I wanted this grill because of the sear capability so I tried that first. The grill ran smooth as silk. Bruno has said software is a major determinant in performance. I have modified my previous pellet grills to get the right controller and software. Weber is getting there so I don't have to do it this time around. I know the Smokefire has problems but this one was built in January and it's doing better than I expected.

I ran the grill up to 600° with my 15" GrillGrates over the hot spot. I put the steak in the left front corner, the cooler zone, and let it get the internal temp up to about 110° . I then put the steak on the GrillGrates, smooth side up,. for a brief sear. Sara likes medium rare with a light sear and that's what she got. I got lucky. The steak was tender, juicy, and delicious.

My hands shake so I have to set up a tripod with my Kodak on it to get clear pics. I do it for you folks because you're worth the effort.
Finished Porterhouse.JPG
 
Thank you for your efforts. We are all learning as we go. I want to get some GrillGrates that are the right size. Mine are turned side ways.
 
I bought my GrillGrates to fit my Rec Tec RT300 so they're only 11" X 15" but I only use them when cooking for the two of us. I don't need more. I should have taken a picture as mine get lost on that spacious cooking grate.
 
Lew Newby said:
I forgot that Barb reads this forum too. Senior moment. :( Of course last night Sara looked at a picture I took and said, So what are you selling FIRST. I know what that means. Fortunately, she doesn't read the forum but I will definitely sell off a couple of cookers if the Smokefire proves reliable.

I'm pretty sure the failure to start was because of the empty auger when I pressed the start button. After it was shut down I took out the innards and emptied the burn pot. Then I pressed start and when the glow plug got hot I dropped a small handful of pellets in and they lit off almost immediately. When I cook dinner I expect it to start right up.
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Hey no problem Lew, Barb keeps me in check so that isn't a problem. If I got an EX4 or 6 then I would have to go out and get a smart phone to run it and learn how to us it, give up my flip phone .... no way!
I'm completely happy with my little Camp Chef I did two racks of ribs and as you know I could of done four. Compared to chasing temps up here in the wind with the WSM the Camp Chef stayed spot on and I monitor it with a Maverick. So far no hic ups with CC faultless operation even in the high winds.
Was able to spend time with our quests and not worry about my rib cook.
It's funny the first thing I did with the Camp Chef is a steak cook with the sear feature, worked perfectly, was the first and last time I'll use it as I have other grills for that..
Well you're off to a good start hope every thing goes well for you with the EX6
 
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