What Charcoal Grill/Smoker should Smoke Get?

[smokeasaurus]

Come on down, make sure you bring your cowboy hat with ya

Smoochy will be on the look out for ya

[veryolddog]

It is a "beast".

The only thing that I suggest is that you purchase a nomex gasket while your unit is a "virgin". and place it arount the entire area of the lid. This will insure that there is absolutely no smoke or heat leakage when that lid is down. When that lid is down, it will hold the heat for over an hour without tending to the fire or air flow. You will get to learn your box after a few cooks.

Since I have the firebox, I use the heat management plate as a heat diffuser to evenly distribute the heat across the cooking area. You may want to purchase a couple of surface temperature thermometers for $8.00 ea. and spread them on your grill to see what is happening. Good information. One of those lasers will do as well.

For your charcoal basket, you may want them to create a steel plate maze effect so that the charcoal will burn continuously through the box.



Here's my Yoder Cheyenne. It is the Abilene 16 inch with the firebox.



Here's my next Yoder after I get my hip replacement and if I am still alive.



It is so much fun to get a new "toy", especially a new smoker.

Ed

PS: My Dixie would love to play with your Smoochy.

[smokeasaurus]

Ed, when ya get your next Yoder, me and Smooch will roll by and I will keep your Yoder company and Smoochy can hang out with Dixie. 

[veryolddog]

I have had that Crowbar since 1970 when I bought my first of 28 homes. As a young man, I put up additions to these homes such as a new family room and a two garage, etc. That crowbar was one of my favorite tools. I really have not had much use for it and even in a tag sale, I could not sell it. So I have dragged it with me for all of these years.

I needed a fireplace stoker for the firebox on the Yoder Cheyenne. I looked all over in the stores for one and on Amazon. While in the garage one day, I saw it hanging there and said: What the hey! So I grabbed it and started using it to stoke the fires in the firebox. It works very well and since it is black and heavy steel, it will last longer than me.

Ed

[smokeasaurus]

Talked to Eric and instead of grabbing the Abilene, I am going to follow Very Old Dog and grabbing the Cheyenne Off-Set. I am getting mine with the pot warmerl. This will allow me to heat up my mini-splits before I add em to the coal base.

Hey, if I am going back to charcoal, I might as well go all the way back. I haven't met an off-set, I can't master....Hey..it aint braggin if it is fact...........and thats a fact jack!! 

For some reason I stored all my mini-splits this last winter, I got peach, apricot,apple, Texas post oak and pecan.......bring on the smoke     almost like I knew the return was imminent..........

[drholly]

Talked to Eric and instead of grabbing the Abilene, I am going to follow Very Old Dog and grabbing the Cheyenne Off-Set. I am getting mine with the pot warmerl. This will allow me to heat up my mini-splits before I add em to the coal base.

Hey, if I am going back to charcoal, I might as well go all the way back. I haven't met an off-set, I can't master....Hey..it aint braggin if it is fact...........and thats a fact jack!! 

For some reason I stored all my mini-splits this last winter, I got peach, apricot,apple, Texas post oak and pecan.......bring on the smoke     almost like I knew the return was imminent..........

I'm looking forward to some great posts!

[veryolddog]

Talked to Eric and instead of grabbing the Abilene, I am going to follow Very Old Dog and grabbing the Cheyenne Off-Set. I am getting mine with the pot warmerl. This will allow me to heat up my mini-splits before I add em to the coal base.

Hey, if I am going back to charcoal, I might as well go all the way back. I haven't met an off-set, I can't master....Hey..it aint braggin if it is fact...........and thats a fact jack!! 

For some reason I stored all my mini-splits this last winter, I got peach, apricot,apple, Texas post oak and pecan.......bring on the smoke     almost like I knew the return was imminent..........

Wow!

That was a slight change in direction. But, you may be happier with this choice as this will afford you a little more versatility. I do not think that you will be disappointed, at all. With the 16 inch Cheyenne, there still is a lot of grill space. I would suggest that you take a hard look at the heat management plate as an option. I also added the full charcoal grate for the interior of the pit, although I have not used it at this point. It is still in the original carton in which it is packed. You never know when this might be handy.

Now you will have a Yoder 480 and a Yoder Cheyenne sitting on your patio. Those are nice smoker alternatives.

That's great.

Ed

[Pappymn]

Talked to Eric and instead of grabbing the Abilene, I am going to follow Very Old Dog and grabbing the Cheyenne Off-Set. I am getting mine with the pot warmerl. This will allow me to heat up my mini-splits before I add em to the coal base.

Hey, if I am going back to charcoal, I might as well go all the way back. I haven't met an off-set, I can't master....Hey..it aint braggin if it is fact...........and thats a fact jack!! 

For some reason I stored all my mini-splits this last winter, I got peach, apricot,apple, Texas post oak and pecan.......bring on the smoke     almost like I knew the return was imminent..........

Ole Smoke is back! Lookin forward to years of great food

[sparky]

he hasn't cook nothing yet.  lol.  I like your new choice.  I will be good to learn the in's and out's of a offset smoker.  very cool.   

[smokeasaurus]

Talked to Eric and instead of grabbing the Abilene, I am going to follow Very Old Dog and grabbing the Cheyenne Off-Set. I am getting mine with the pot warmerl. This will allow me to heat up my mini-splits before I add em to the coal base.

Hey, if I am going back to charcoal, I might as well go all the way back. I haven't met an off-set, I can't master....Hey..it aint braggin if it is fact...........and thats a fact jack!! 

For some reason I stored all my mini-splits this last winter, I got peach, apricot,apple, Texas post oak and pecan.......bring on the smoke     almost like I knew the return was imminent..........

Wow!

That was a slight change in direction. But, you may be happier with this choice as this will afford you a little more versatility. I do not think that you will be disappointed, at all. With the 16 inch Cheyenne, there still is a lot of grill space. I would suggest that you take a hard look at the heat management plate as an option. I also added the full charcoal grate for the interior of the pit, although I have not used it at this point. It is still in the original carton in which it is packed. You never know when this might be handy.

Now you will have a Yoder 480 and a Yoder Cheyenne sitting on your patio. Those are nice smoker alternatives.

That's great.

Ed

Thanks Ed. The heat management plate is also on order along with the full length charcoal grate for the smoking chamber and a cover. With the discount for LTBBQ members from Simi Pellet Grills, that is my one stop shop for everything Que related......

[Jaxon]

DANG!!!!!! How did this thread fill up so fast???

1st - Thanks, Smoke for a great story...I hope everything works out as planned.
2nd - I liked the idea of having me inherit the smoker...of course, I'm the one who may pass the "baton"
         before you do.  That gives me an idea to work on.
3rd - that Yoder is a stick burner, isn't it?  Mine is designed to burn 16 inch pieces...I imagine Ed's is, too.
I'd hate to think of using charcoal to cook with - especially on the 8 hour cooks.  IF YOU FIND that charcoal is better, lemme know.  I'm just a backyard jack and I don't know any better.

I am really lookin' forward to pics and posts about your techniques with charcoal or wood.

[veryolddog]

I usually start my wood fires with Lump Charcoal. I get that burning nice and hot and then place the logs on top. Then it takes off. This process usually takes 30 minutes to an hour and then the meat can be placed on the smoker grill surface. Then I simply refresh with wood as the case may be. A couple of large pieces of lump along the way does not hurt either.

I guess that you could use mostly charcoal with a few chunks of wood to accomplish the same thing. But, for a six hour cook, it really doesn't seem to use that much wood at all.

Ed

[smokeasaurus]

I usually start a base with charcoal and then add hot mini-splits. The mini-splits I use are only 6 inches in length. These should just fine because the smoking chamber is 16".  If it was a 20 or 24 incher, I would get some longer splits.

[smokeasaurus]

Sams sells 40# bags of lump

Is that the best of the west mesquite lump, Captain?

[smokeasaurus]

Of course, since the patio is clear and I have to fill it up. What to fill it up with?  This is a smaller offset with a 16x36 smoking chamber. I think I can get away with Kingsford and add mini splits...........

What to use for heat?

Kingsford  or   Lump