I got my smoker set up for 250* as I was smoking a butt.
Taking the advice I've heard hear, from people who know such things, I built a small fire and waited for the smoker to stabilize. It stabilized all right. It stayed right there at 250* with the only changes happening when I opened the lid or the firebox. Remember, the stems on these thermometers are 6 inches long...that helped. I think the smoke level was just about right, too.
Now, for the meat...Not a drop of sugar anywhere in the rub. Salt, pepper, granulated garlic, granulated onion, paprika, and cinnamon powder - applied without a coating and kept overnight. Pulled at 203* and left in a foil tent to rest for 45 minutes. We pulled it and pour the au jus from the foil and mixed well. We STILL haven't put any sauce on it.
PLEASE understand that I ain't braggin' - can't brag when everything I know about BBQ came from someone else - this was the best pork butt we have ever cooked. No pics because you see one, you see 'em all.
here's a video of how the smoker was performing. Does the smoke look right?