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WSM sizes for ribs

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all about the que

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My team currently cook our ribs on 2 18.5" WSMs. We are thinking about upgrading to a 22.5" WSM to cook our ribs on. My question is how many racks of spare ribs can be cooked on a 22.5"? We usually cook 4 racks at a comp, 2 on each cooker. We prefer to only cook on the top rack for convenience. I'm assuming three racks would fit on thew top rack of a 22.5" WSM. Is that realistic?
 
with rib racks you can get close to 10 per shelf. i've never had the best luck doing it this way, but it does work.


i've also seen people make a grate extension, like one for a bge.
 
I just did 3 yesterday on my 18.5 with a rack. On the top rack only.

I think I could have done maybe 1 more if I'd wanted? Not entirely sure I like the rack, but it probably just takes some getting used to . . .
 
If you still want to cook 4 racks, all on the top grate of one 18" WSM, trim them to about 11 bones/rack. Use a Weber rib rack (usually holds 5) but only put 3 racks on it, one in the front, one in the middle and one on the back. That will help with smoke/heat flow around both sides of the ribs. Then lean the 4th rack against the other 3. That will work for you.
 
For comp cooking, I would agree with 3 racks flat on a 22" WSM for proper airflow and keeping the racks looking neat/presentable for turn-ins. The heat around the edges of the racks that are not protected by the water pan will cause your edges to get over done also.
 
I've always used a 22" for ribs... 4 racks on the cooking grate. If the racks are wide, I'll trim a couple of the racks down to 9 bones and cook those on the outside, saving the 2 longer racks for the middle. No problems at all...
 
I've done 4 on the top rack of a 22.5 with good results. You have to lay 3 side-side with one over the top (or under the bottom) of them. It's tight but do-able and also depends on how close they are trimmed.
 
Personally I wouldn't do more than 2 racks of ribs on a 22 WSM, there isn't enough protection from the heat on the edges, unless you start rotating them. I would just use the 2nd grate, which I've done with good results.
 
When I did ribs on the 22.5", I did two slabs on each rack until wrapping. Post-wrapping, I stacked all four slabs log cabin style on the top rack. When I did three per rack, the edges got darker than I preferred. This is at 275 with St. Louis spares.
 
Last edited:
22.5---I cook 3 on top and 3 on bottom at a comp...Good cookers for no more than they are...I've won my money back on them.
 
all about the que said:
Thanks, we were thinking three on the top and if we wanted to keep cooking 4 racks we could always place the fourth on the lower rack.
Click to expand...

I cook three racks on the upper level on my WSM 22.5. You can slide the fourth rack on the bottom by opening the firebox door and you can remove it with tongs or a long rib spatula. The only issue is that you will get grease drips on the that particular rack.

I don't remember having a problem with the end bones being overly done because I cut them down to a decent size for the WSM. If the edges got too done I wouldn't care anyways because those bones are simply to protect the interior bones that I plan to use.
 
I have run 6 (3/3) St. Louis on my 22 with no issues. Running 250ish. Once I foil I swap top to bottom and have won 1st place doing it that way in a small comp.
 
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