My new smoker.

[Guest sL1k]

I have been using a small charbroil offset smoker that walmart sells for a couple years now. I have been able to do some amazing things with it, but the biggest problem Is the size. Why smoke something for 10-12 hours and have so little to show for it?


That was the justification I needed to buy a new smoker. Enter the brinkman trailmaster 57inch offset vertical smoker. Purchased from home dept online with free shipping for $269



Brinkmann has mostly horrible reviews and for good reason that I will go into in a moment.

I looked past all the bad because of the design... it just makes sense! Heat travels up. You may ask why I didn't just get a regular vertical smoker?
I like an offset smoker vs a regular vertical smoker for the ease of adding more charcoal and chips for smoking, lift the fire box lid, add, close lid, and done. I can control the temperatures so much easier and add a ton of coals to it. I primarily use lump charcoal but with this larger firebox I can use wood!

There are 5 cooking grates, a water pan, and at the very top there is a meat hook ring to hang sausage from. With my old smoker I could only smoke one brisket, Boston butt or small Turkey at a time. Now I can smoke 6 briskets or butts and at least 3 turkeys. Im also going to attempt cold smoking with it.



Unless you have already owned a smoker that you have done some mods too i would almost steer away from this one. There seems to be some quality control issues/hardware issues.
1. mine had a big dent in it no big deal i was able to get it almost back to the original shape.
2. the fire box had gaps ALL around it i am sealing this up using high temp rtv and stove gaskets
3. the finish was scraped in multiple places even though it seem packed well.
4. the mounting hardware for the side handle did not include washers and the holes in the smoker box were drilled wide so you can align the handle meaning there are 4 places for smoke to leak out of.
5. the door was bent on the latch side to where there was a gap from top to bottom. (im removing the door/bending back to remedy this).
6. The door thermometer is about 100 degrees off.
If this was my first smoker i would have been VERY disappointed and sent it back. thats the bad.

I made a coal basket using heavy expanded metal, this is a great mod to do for any smoker it keeps the coals together (and off of the fire box floor that can cause the paint to peel/weaken the metal) the other great thing is you can shake the basket to make the ash drop through.


After all the mods I did to seal it up I seasoned it last night which consist of coating the interior with vegetable oil and running it for a couple hours similar to seasoning cast iron. It ran very consistent temps and other than adding chips to my cookie tin smoke box it was very low maintenance.
(Greatest tip I can contribute is to take one of the danish cookie tins or Christmas tins, drill 3 or 4 small holes in the lid, burn the paint off. Add chips out it above the coals and you get a large volume of smoke for a long period of time).

Here are the finished pictures.

[Caster]

So what time you want me to show up for supper?

[Guest sL1k]

Im planning on its maiden smoke on Sunday :D I am thinking 3 boston butts.

[Dad03]

I have a similar design vertical in an old New Braunfels smoker. That charcoal basket works great in just about anything. With the weather turning cooler and football it's definitely time to start smoking.

[reed1285]

Ha you said butt....

Looks like a good setup man, what kind of wood are you gonna be using to do the smokin

[Guest sL1k]

Ha you said butt....

Looks like a good setup man, what kind of wood are you gonna be using to do the smokin

I have actually taking a liking to mesquite here lately. I need to locate a good source of local firewood.

For my smoke I have been using jack Daniels barrel chips.

[bersaguy]

It has 5 shelves but your only gonna do 3 butts???? Have you ever tried smoking fish in one. Smoked Salmon is great on them. I have a buddy that does a lot of smoking and he says the sky is the limit on different things that he can smoke on his. He has given me some Turkey, Chicken, Pork Shoulder, Beef Brisket, and Salmon and a month ago he smoked about 40 Trout for my Son in law and me. They were killer great. He also does a lot of deer on his also. He said the most important is the right seasoning makes al the difference. Don't know how true thta is but all I know is he has not brought any thing over that was not kick butt good to eat......... :up: :up:

[Guest sL1k]

It has 5 shelves but your only gonna do 3 butts???? Have you ever tried smoking fish in one. Smoked Salmon is great on them. I have a buddy that does a lot of smoking and he says the sky is the limit on different things that he can smoke on his. He has given me some Turkey, Chicken, Pork Shoulder, Beef Brisket, and Salmon and a month ago he smoked about 40 Trout for my Son in law and me. They were killer great. He also does a lot of deer on his also. He said the most important is the right seasoning makes al the difference. Don't know how true thta is but all I know is he has not brought any thing over that was not kick butt good to eat......... :up: :up:

Lol only doing 3 because one is staying home the other 2 are going to work with me 3 boston butts should get me 20lbs of bbq.
I have not tried fish yet that will be one I will attempt with this smoker.
Seasoning/marinade is a big part of it. I like to do a spicy bbq.

[bersaguy]

Lol only doing 3 because one is staying home the other 2 are going to work with me 3 boston butts should get me 20lbs of bbq.
I have not tried fish yet that will be one I will attempt with this smoker.
Seasoning/marinade is a big part of it. I like to do a spicy bbq.

Talking about spicy BBQ, that is one thing my buddy has to ask folks before he cooks it for them. He brought me some one time and my eyes were watering just reheating it and it was like putting hot coals in your mouth. I managed to get a couple sandwiches down and gave the rest to my neighbor because he loves hot stuff...... :rock: :rock:

[Guest sL1k]

Talking about spicy BBQ, that is one thing my buddy has to ask folks before he cooks it for them. He brought me some one time and my eyes were watering just reheating it and it was like putting hot coals in your mouth. I managed to get a couple sandwiches down and gave the rest to my neighbor because he loves hot stuff...... :rock: :rock:

Haha I don't make it that spicy. I just give it a little kick.
I figured I would take some to share because every time I heat up my bbq at work half the building smells of smoked bbq and people complain the don't have any.

[bersaguy]

LOL......my buddy lives right on Old Hickory Lake and if guys that know him are on the lake when his smoker is in operation boats are up at the dock wanting to get a little of what he is cooking...........it's really funny  to watch folks come off the lake to bum a sandwich...........lol    About like your buddies at work............ :yum: :yum: :yum:

[peejman]

Nice.  I've got the cheap-o smoker grill and it works quite well, after a few mods.  The expanded metal coal basket helps a bunch.  Check the temp at several points over the length (height) and see how much variation you get... I'm curious. 

[Guest sL1k]

Nice. I've got the cheap-o smoker grill and it works quite well, after a few mods. The expanded metal coal basket helps a bunch. Check the temp at several points over the length (height) and see how much variation you get... I'm curious.

I will let you know on that. Im going to drill holes right below 2 grates and one at the top to install candy thermometers. Along with replacing the door thermometer. The duct comes out right below the water pan so im pretty sure I should have pretty good heat distribution from top to bottom.

[frankmako]

nice i need a new one.

[Dennis1209]

Love smoked meat!

 

I have the standard vertical smoker and I'm toying with the idea of doing our Thanksgiving turkey in it, maybe? I've never done a full size turkey in it, just turkey breasts a number of times, and that has taken roughly 5-6 hours. Any idea how long a full size turkey will take?

 

I've kept my trap shut around here about doing that because the family loves smoked meats, the wife would love not having to do the turkey in the oven, and there's no way I'm getting out of bed at 3:00 A.M. for a turkey. It's become a custom to chow down at 1:00 P.M. Thanksgiving day, maybe I can change it to late night Thanksgiving supper?

 

I also have a turkey fryer and fried turkey tastes just O.K. to me. I like it best oven cooked stuffed with dressing or smoked.

[Guest sL1k]

Love smoked meat!

I have the standard vertical smoker and I'm toying with the idea of doing our Thanksgiving turkey in it, maybe? I've never done a full size turkey in it, just turkey breasts a number of times, and that has taken roughly 5-6 hours. Any idea how long a full size turkey will take?

I've kept my trap shut around here about doing that because the family loves smoked meats, the wife would love not having to do the turkey in the oven, and there's no way I'm getting out of bed at 3:00 A.M. for a turkey. It's become a custom to chow down at 1:00 P.M. Thanksgiving day, maybe I can change it to late night Thanksgiving supper?

I also have a turkey fryer and fried turkey tastes just O.K. to me. I like it best oven cooked stuffed with dressing or smoked.

Make sure you get your turkey to almost room temp before you start the smoke. This is probably the most important thing I can tell you. Cook that turkey upside down!

If you run your smoker at 235 you are looking at 30 minites per lb.
If you run it at 250 its 25 minutes per lb. I would suggest 235/240.

[peejman]

Love smoked meat!

 

I have the standard vertical smoker and I'm toying with the idea of doing our Thanksgiving turkey in it, maybe? I've never done a full size turkey in it, just turkey breasts a number of times, and that has taken roughly 5-6 hours. Any idea how long a full size turkey will take?

 

I've kept my trap shut around here about doing that because the family loves smoked meats, the wife would love not having to do the turkey in the oven, and there's no way I'm getting out of bed at 3:00 A.M. for a turkey. It's become a custom to chow down at 1:00 P.M. Thanksgiving day, maybe I can change it to late night Thanksgiving supper?

 

I also have a turkey fryer and fried turkey tastes just O.K. to me. I like it best oven cooked stuffed with dressing or smoked.

 

 

 

I've done several turkeys in mine.  It's not hard, just slow.  Here's a few things I've learned...

 

Find the smallest turkey you can, which will be about 12-13 lbs.   Leave the 18 lb turkeys for the oven.  Be sure you give it plenty of time to thaw... it'll take 4 days for a frozen turkey to thaw in the fridge. 

 

Some folks like to brine a turkey, I never have.  I'm on a low sodium diet anyway.  Let it sit out for an hour or so before you start cooking.  I usually brush a thin coat of olive oil on the outside and stuff it with a cut up apple, onion, and whatever herbs and spices suit my fancy.  I've tried herb butters, rubs, and injections, but I like just plain ole smoked turkey best.  Perhaps I'm just boring. 

 

It'll take about 10 hours cooking time, plus however long it takes to get your smoker going.  In the water pan, I typically use a mixture of water, apple juice (if we have any) and cheap beer (the good beer is for drinking).  I check the temp in few places with a meat thermometer and pull it off when it's 160-170 deg.  Let it rest for about an hour before carving, though the cook is permitted to sample it and verify it's suitable for consumption.  ;)

 

While I'll admit that it's best "hot off the smoker"... cooking it the day before works just fine and avoids that 3am wake-up call.  It also gives you an option in the event something goes horribly wrong. 

[Guest sL1k]

I always cook to temp and use the hours as a guideline.
The greatest thing I have purchased was a wireless temperature probe from Walmart for $17.00 I will put the probe in towards the end of the smoke.
Im seriously considering buying the igrill. Its a bluetooth temperature monitor that can use multiple probes so I can monitor temps from my phone hehe.

Edited October 30, 2013 by sL1k

[peejman]

I always cook to temp and use the hours as a guideline.
The greatest thing I have purchased was a wireless temperature probe from Walmart for $17.00 I will put the probe in towards the end of the smoke.
Im seriously considering buying the igrill. Its a bluetooth temperature monitor that can use multiple probes so I can monitor temps from my phone hehe.

 

 

I got one for my Dad and he's never used it.  A friend at work has one with alarm settings for set point temp and if it starts dropping, he loves it. 

[Guest sL1k]

I got one for my Dad and he's never used it. A friend at work has one with alarm settings for set point temp and if it starts dropping, he loves it.

I may just buy another cheap one over the igrill not sure yet.

I just lucked up and got 80lbs of os&d mesquite lump charcoal from a load shift that happened with my company :D that just made my day.