WSM 22.5 Hasn't Even Arrived and I'm Already Overwhelmed.


 
B

Ben E Lou

TVWBB Member
First off, I am THRILLED that a forum like this exists. My 22.5 is scheduled to arrive on Thursday, 12/27, and I'm getting more excited from having seen this site and forum. Thanks to Chris and anyone else involved in running it. There's so much info here that I just sent a small donation before even making my first post. :p

That said, there's such a wealth of info and tips here that it's overwhelming for someone who is a noob to using a "real" smoker. I've used indirect heat in regular ol' charcoal grills to smoke, and for the last year and a half I've used a side smoker, so I'm not entirely new to the concept in that I know what woods I like with certain meats and whatnot. However, there's so much info here that I already have a fear of doing something "wrong" as I get started. Therefore, my primary question is this:

What do you consider to be the essential "must-know" items as I get started?

Also, what modifications would you recommend early on? I'm specifically thinking of the effort/payoff ratio before my first cook. I don't want to spend half a day building stuff before I cook anything, but, for example, it would seem like wiring the charcoal grate to the charcoal chamber would be fairly fast and worth the effort before cooking. Are there other modifications like that one in terms of a short time to do but with meaningful benefit?

If it matters in terms of the advice you might give, for my first cooks, I'm thinking that I'll be smoking some chicken already cut into pieces and perhaps a boston butt. Thanks in advance.

--Ben
 
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Merry Christmas Ben and welcome. I suggest looking this over.
http://virtualweberbullet.com/
Wiring the grate is definitely a time saver and makes life easier. I would also add a stainless washer between the grill strap and WSM wall when assembling it. This makes the strap hold your grills a little more secure. Other than that there are lots of mods but I suggest using your WSM and seeing what you need as you go along. A chimney starter is also a good thing to have. Take some time and look over the different topics in the above link. There is a lot of good information there. Good Luck!
 
Thanks, Rolf, but that link is part of my problem (in the short-term, at least). To be clear, reading stuff from that page is what has me overwhelmed. I've read so much that I want to make nearly every modification that's mentioned there, cook 15 appetizers and 10 sides on my first day and just generally overkill the whole thing. ;) I think I'm more looking for the essential to-do list for a new owner. (I have a tendency to overdo things.)
 
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I've had an 18.5" WSM for almost four years now, and I've yet to modify it at all. I've found that mine works so well out of the box that I haven't really needed any mods. That said, I have been thinking about some mods recently, mainly getting the Cajun Bandit SS access door (from http://cajunbandit.com/wsm-parts-mods/ if you haven't already seen it) and adding u-bolts to the bottom cooking grate (check this out for info http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?37811-My-Choice-of-Mods-for-My-22-WSM-Thanks-to-This-Forum-and-You-Good-People)
 
Ben,

All the mods are nice to have bells and whistles. The WSM will cook right out of the box -- it's that good. The absolute must do for good BBQ is build a clean burning, consistent temp, long burning fire. Learn three temps and how to regulate/maintain them: 225-250*, 250-275*, and 325-350*. If you can keep the fire clean and in those ranges (not exact temps) you can cook anything.

Dwain
 
Ben, my suggestion would be cook on it a couple of times first. You'll know then which mods you'd like to put on.I've got the holes for running the thermometer cable. I keep saying I'm going to wire the bottom grates together but I never get to it. Good luck and good smoking. Welcome.
 
Hi Ben and welcome aboard.

"Dwain" gave good advise, just start cooking and learn how to control the temperature. When you know your way around the cooker you can figure out what mods you might like to do.

One thing that made a big difference for me was not using water. I now use a foiled clay flower pot base in the foiled water pan. I find the temps easier to control and cleanup way easier.

A Boston butt is a great first choice for a cook. Chicken is also good because it cooks fast.

Good luck,

Bob
 
OK, guys. Thanks a ton. I'll fire 'er up basically un-modded (except for the wiring) and focus on temperature for now.
 
This is not a mod , but I will second what Rolf said about having a chimney starter. That's a real time saver. I have the nice big weber one and also a smaller cheapo one. They both come in handy. I also like having a #10 can with both ends cut out for the minion start , but that's really a frill. You will make great bbq right out of the box ! Good luck , brother!
 
I pretty much agree with what has been said but I want to second Bob on the clay saucer. I did my first cook with the water pan, then switched over to the clay saucer, and now use it most of the time. It makes it so much easier to heat up and regulate temp.

Like everyone said, the WSM cooks great right out of the box, the rest is just customizing which makes it your own.

Good luck and welcome to the board
 
Ben I think you were typing the same time I was.

The clay saucer/flower pot base is just that. The bottom base of a flower pot. They can be found at lowes and home depot, but home depot has a better selection. The 12" base will fit inside your water pan and the 14 will sit right in the rim perfect.

What you do is take the water bowl, empty and cover the bottom in foil (for easier clean up), the put the 14" saucer on top, then cover that with another piece of foil. This acts as a heat sink to regulate temperature. It does the same thing as filling the bowl with water, but it doesnt take as long to get up to temp (heating the water) and you dont have to worry about refilling the bowl during a long cook. MUCH easier in my rookie opinion. Some people suggest using the water pan still for ribs and such, but I have used the saucer everytime since I switched.

Hope this helps, not sure from your post if you meant you already had one :)
 
Congrats Ben, you will love your new toy. I personally think the best mod is adding handles to the center section. You can take the section off the smoking hot coals at any time to do what needs to be done with out getting a face full of continuous smoke. This does require a little muscle especially if you have it completely full, been doing this for years with no problem. You also have to be careful if using water in the pan not to slosh it on the coals, I don't use water so this is not a issue for me. Once section is off you can place the lid over the coals to block the air to avoid temperature spike.

Home Depot has black garage door handles for like $6 each. I used the top factory hole that holds the grate strap on and drilled another to mount the handles horizontally. I see pics of handles mounted vertically on here and do not recommend to mount that way. Good luck and have fun.
 
Hey, Ben, welcome to the club.

This site is such a great resource that is it easy to feel overwhelmed, that's for sure. Which is why I would suggest you rely on what you already know. If you have been smoking on a kettle, you already posses some great skills and know-how. You will almost undoubtedly be more than impressed with how the WSM keeps and maintains temperatures over long cooks-- way more consistently than a kettle. So put it together and try one of your old recipes! Have some fun and enjoy your new toy. It won't be long before your confidence is much higher and you'll be ready to approach more complicated cooks, and you'll know which mods will be of use to you.

I know it's tempting to try to get all of your ducks lined up and make all of the mods before your smoker is all seasoned, but the way I look at it, a.) you'll never know what you want to do until you've used it as-is anyway, and b.) it's really not a huge problem to retro-fit whatever changes you want to do. Your hands might get a little dirty, but they will come clean eventually. ;-) I bought my smoker used (from another user of this forum). It was completely stock, and nicely seasoned, and it blew my mind right away. I've made some of the mods mentioned on these boards, and it wasn't a huge problem or mess to do so.

Bottom line: you have a great smoker on the way. One that will out-perform (ie., run more consistently with less intervention on your part) than anything you've used to this point, right out of the box. So get ready to relax!
 
What do you consider to be the essential "must-know" items as I get started?

As others already mentioned "Temp Control" Read on the Minion and Standard Method and practice and learn on how the WSM runs in you're backyard, not ours..
Don't get overwhelmed by all the info. Work on a need to know basis and enjoy yourself. :wsm:

Tim
 
I've had my 22 for two years and the only mods I've done are putting a hole for my Mav ET-732 probes, garage door handles on the sides using existing holes in the unit, and then a holder for the Mav732. The handles are not really necessary but I did them because I use them to hook my Thermometer holder onto the unit. I had always made my wife come out with me to help with the lid and the probes when it came time to take the meat off. It seemed to require 4 hands since the probes went through the vent in the lid. If you don't have a wireless thermometer, no mods needed in my opinion. However, the thermometer is a must to me. Its like a DVR, you can live without it easily, but once you try it you'd never want to do without it.

The mods I suggested cost less than 12 buck and are EXTREMELY beneficial to me.

I never use water on brisket or butts. I strictly do high heat cooks found on this website. Excellent results every time. You can also do but briskets/butts at the same time. I do it often.

PM me if you decide to do the mods and have questions
 
Rick Body said:
Ben I think you were typing the same time I was.
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Yup.

The clay saucer/flower pot base is just that. The bottom base of a flower pot. They can be found at lowes and home depot, but home depot has a better selection. The 12" base will fit inside your water pan and the 14 will sit right in the rim perfect.

What you do is take the water bowl, empty and cover the bottom in foil (for easier clean up), the put the 14" saucer on top, then cover that with another piece of foil. This acts as a heat sink to regulate temperature. It does the same thing as filling the bowl with water, but it doesnt take as long to get up to temp (heating the water) and you dont have to worry about refilling the bowl during a long cook. MUCH easier in my rookie opinion. Some people suggest using the water pan still for ribs and such, but I have used the saucer everytime since I switched.

Hope this helps, not sure from your post if you meant you already had one :)
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Nope, I don't have one. Perfect info. I'll very likely get one today when I make my run to buy meat for my first smoke.
 
Mike Stavlund said:
Hey, Ben, welcome to the club.

This site is such a great resource that is it easy to feel overwhelmed, that's for sure. Which is why I would suggest you rely on what you already know. If you have been smoking on a kettle, you already posses some great skills and know-how. You will almost undoubtedly be more than impressed with how the WSM keeps and maintains temperatures over long cooks-- way more consistently than a kettle. So put it together and try one of your old recipes! Have some fun and enjoy your new toy. It won't be long before your confidence is much higher and you'll be ready to approach more complicated cooks, and you'll know which mods will be of use to you.

I know it's tempting to try to get all of your ducks lined up and make all of the mods before your smoker is all seasoned, but the way I look at it, a.) you'll never know what you want to do until you've used it as-is anyway, and b.) it's really not a huge problem to retro-fit whatever changes you want to do. Your hands might get a little dirty, but they will come clean eventually. ;-) I bought my smoker used (from another user of this forum). It was completely stock, and nicely seasoned, and it blew my mind right away. I've made some of the mods mentioned on these boards, and it wasn't a huge problem or mess to do so.

Bottom line: you have a great smoker on the way. One that will out-perform (ie., run more consistently with less intervention on your part) than anything you've used to this point, right out of the box. So get ready to relax!
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This makes all the sense in the world. And yes, I must confess that part of the reason for wanting to go ahead and do my mods was simply to avoid having to do it on a used grill. :D And yeah, I think I'll do something I've done before on Thursday (or Friday if it arrives late in the day Thursday.)

--Ben
 
Rick Body said:
Ben I think you were typing the same time I was.

The clay saucer/flower pot base is just that. The bottom base of a flower pot. They can be found at lowes and home depot, but home depot has a better selection. The 12" base will fit inside your water pan and the 14 will sit right in the rim perfect.

What you do is take the water bowl, empty and cover the bottom in foil (for easier clean up), the put the 14" saucer on top, then cover that with another piece of foil. This acts as a heat sink to regulate temperature. It does the same thing as filling the bowl with water, but it doesnt take as long to get up to temp (heating the water) and you dont have to worry about refilling the bowl during a long cook. MUCH easier in my rookie opinion. Some people suggest using the water pan still for ribs and such, but I have used the saucer everytime since I switched.

Hope this helps, not sure from your post if you meant you already had one :)
Click to expand...

Oh, maybe this will be obvious after my first cook with it, but do I change the aluminum foil after every cook?
 
Random side comment: I'm quite sure that part of my "issue" is that I'm off work the entire time that I'm waiting for it to be delivered, and even worse, done with all the Christmas family stuff now. (We came home last night.) I pretty much don't have anything to do today and tomorrow but read eleventy billion yummy-looking recipes and threads on here, over-think everything, and pick up a clay flower pot base and some meat. :D

Yes, I'm rather experienced with using my ol' side smoker, but 95% of everything I knew about grilling and smoking before I found this forum a few days ago was trial and error. This place is an incredible wealth of information for someone who has never really used any sort of grilling/smoking resources.
 
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