Lone Star Grillz Vertical Insulated Cabinet Smoker-For the new Owner

[pjtexas1]

your maze looks about right and should give you 12-20 hours of cook time depending on temp and if you use water.

here is what i would try...
start closing the ball valve when you get within 50-75 degrees of your target temp. much easier to catch the temps on the way up as you know once you go over it is just "over" for good. might also try starting will less lit too. relax...if it takes an hour to get up to temp then that is what it takes. again, better than fighting the cooker.

if all else fails add another piece to the maze to make it like a W or M shape vs the U or S shape. in my insulated cabinets i pretty much know just about how much charcoal i need for x amount of hours. towards the end of my maze i start thinning out the charcoal so the temp will stay steady vs continuing to rise because once they get hot they don't need much of a fire to keep them hot. i don't know if you are trying to cook for 8 hours or 20 but the cooker you have can do anything between with a single load of charcoal.

 

[THoey1963]

I am just trying to think what you could correct to make it burn the way almost everyone else that has one these has it burn. Looks ok from those pics.

Are your doors sealing tightly? Are you catching the temp on the way up? Are you closing the exhaust valve some like Chris recommends?

Make sure your goals are stacked to the top and fairly tight. When I light mine as shown above, I light the front left corner with my weed burner. I don't light much, just the coals in the first couple inches of the basket. It takes about an hour to warm up. Mine likes to run around 250*, so at 200*, I close my rear ball valve all the way, and the front halfway. At about 225*, I close the front ball valve to about a pencil size and close the exhaust about half way. Soon after that it usually settles in some where in the 250* area and that is close enough for me.

These things are so efficient. If you let them get over temp it will be difficult to get it to drop back down. Also, because they are so efficient, they need barely any air to keep a hot pot hot.

 

[THoey1963]

Oh, and stop using water unless you are trying to smoke at a very low temp. We got enough humidity in the air....

 

[mmotown]

Guys thanks for the replies. Actually I burn through charcoal quickly and maybe the mistake I was making was shutting the bv down when I reached the temp I was trying to achieve. I only used water if I was running hot and trying to bring the temp down. I could replace my gaskets however I do not have any smoke seepage unless I close the damper and then it's only in a couple of places.

This weekend I am going to do another cook. I may call Chris and order his T-plates...

 

[pjtexas1]

If I remember correctly chris recommended the firebricks before everyone started requesting t-plates because firebricks can be a little hard to find. I think with lighting less charcoal and cutting back before you get to target you should be good.

 

[Kaptain Kadian]

Just get some fire bricks. I tried the skinny and regular ones. I like the regular ones better. I found some at an outdoor fireplace and patio place. Really cheap.

 

[kkegans]

Well, I got the not so welcomed news today from Amber that my vertical insulated cabinet was still 1-1/2 to 2 weeks from starting the build. Since yesterday was the start if the 11th week since the order and payment was made, it basically looks like about 14 to 15 weeks from order to ship, not the 10 weeks I was quoted on 4/14. Bummer, I am anxious to get a fire in the box!!!

 

[cheez59]

Well, I got the not so welcomed news today from Amber that my vertical insulated cabinet was still 1-1/2 to 2 weeks from starting the build. Since yesterday was the start if the 11th week since the order and payment was made, it basically looks like about 14 to 15 weeks from order to ship, not the 10 weeks I was quoted on 4/14. Bummer, I am anxious to get a fire in the box!!!

Did you send your down payment in on the day it was quoted? Orders don't go into the rotation until payment is received. Did you talk to Chris to find out how he could miss an estimated delivery so bad? They usually hit it pretty close.

 

[kkegans]

Did you send your down payment in on the day it was quoted? Orders don't go into the rotation until payment is received. Did you talk to Chris to find out how he could miss an estimated delivery so bad? They usually hit it pretty close.

I started I started counting from day they received an 80% deposit. No, I didn't speak with Chris. I emailed Amber and got this response, "Yours is 2 groups back from being started so roughly another 1 1/2 -2 weeks until we start on yours. I apologize we are running behind right now. Let me know if you have any questions! Have a great weekend!". :sad:

 

[Ribeye Republic]

Fired up Big Red and cooked two chickens and a rack of ribs today in the heat. Damn this thing runs like a champ with the guru.

 

[THoey1963]

Kurt, they have had a lot of storms down that way. I think the massive amount of humidity has given them paint booth issues. I feel for you, but trust me, when you finally get her, it will be worth the wait.

 

[DBBQ]

It is worth the wait. Love it! I just lit mine up 2 hours ago, it is so efficient, and so stable it is easier to light tonight for a 0300 SNR brisket. Going Umami style- Harry Soo style.

 

[kkegans]

Kurt, they have had a lot of storms down that way. I think the massive amount of humidity has given them paint booth issues. I feel for you, but trust me, when you finally get her, it will be worth the wait.

I know it will be worth the wait, but I am disappointed that their production time has slipped by 40 to 50 percent to 14 or 15 weeks while they are still quoting a 10 week production time.

If they are that affected by a couple weeks of weather, they might want to invest in an environmentally controlled paint booth. Considering the fact that the humidity is normally high (annual avg. is 73%) in their area of South Texas, I would be very surprised to find out that the humidity would cause a 3 to 4 week hiccup in their production schedule.

Are any other brethren waiting on LSG Vertical Insulated Cabinet? If so, has your expected delivery been extended to 14 to 15 weeks?

 

[kkegans]

THIS QUOTED POST WAS 6-18-2016 @ approx 8:30am

As of today the Insulated Smokers are estimated at 10 weeks give or take a little.

Chris

Chris,

Are you sure that this hasn't slipped to 14 or 15 weeks within the past week or so?

 

[cheez59]

THIS QUOTED POST WAS 6-18-2016 @ approx 8:30am



Chris,

Are you sure that this hasn't slipped to 14 or 15 weeks within the past week or so?

So you are just going to continue to bad mouth a well respected pit builder and member of this forum without even talking to him? WTH?

 

[TomRaz]

I agree with Cheez, give Chris or Amber a chance to respond, I am going to guess they refuse to makes comprises in quality so that might be the explanation for they additional delays

If they were to invest in the paint booth you mentioned I suspect the base price of their products would increase to pay for the new booth

I was quoted 10 weeks in early June but if it takes longer to get the quality correct then I am willing to wait

 

[Smokedawg86]

The time is an estimate, not a contract. It is very likely that historic massive flooding could have an impact on day to day operations for a bit. Remember, you chose Lonestar, not the other way around. I'm sure they're working hard to complete orders, and I'm sure you enjoy yours a ton when you get it. Good luck with the wait and congrats on pulling the trigger.

 

[kkegans]

I agree with Cheez, give Chris or Amber a chance to respond, I am going to guess they refuse to makes comprises in quality so that might be the explanation for they additional delays

If they were to invest in the paint booth you mentioned I suspect the base price of their products would increase to pay for the new booth

I was quoted 10 weeks in early June but if it takes longer to get the quality correct then I am willing to wait

I am happily willing to wait, that isn't my complaint. What I am trying to bring to the table is that they are quoting 10 weeks on the same week that my 10th week passed and telling me that my build will not start for 2 to 2-1/2 more weeks. I don't think that is fair to prospective customers, or good business. I did give them an opportunity to respond, and the response was simply "we are running a bit behind". Yes, I would say that 40% over the quoted time is a bit behind, but more importantly they are still quoting the same 10 weeks, knowing they are actually running at 14 weeks at this time.

As for the paint booth, with an average humidity of approximately 73% in their part of the country, and the fact that almost all automobile paint that is legally used these days is water based the paint booth is almost a necessity as water-based paint does not dry well at humidity levels above 50%.

 

[kkegans]

The time is an estimate, not a contract. It is very likely that historic massive flooding could have an impact on day to day operations for a bit. Remember, you chose Lonestar, not the other way around. I'm sure they're working hard to complete orders, and I'm sure you enjoy yours a ton when you get it. Good luck with the wait and congrats on pulling the trigger.

Smokedawg,

Yes, you are correct I did choose Lonestar, based partially on the information they provided, including their expected build schedule!

If they told you they used 10ga exterior metal, and you found out later that the skin was16ga, would that be acceptable? That is about a 40% delta in metal.

 

[Smokedawg86]

I would say comparison of build quality and lead times are apples to oranges. I understand the frustration. Part of your anxiety stems from being excited about receiving said quality product, which says a lot about their pits. Having to adjust delivery time vs using a completely different quality metal is not a fair comparison. You maybe waiting a couple weeks longer for the product vs getting a completely different product is really not at all the same discussion.

I hope you get your pit ASAP. There are just variables that come into play. What if LSG randomly gets 100 orders tomorrow. Whatever they quoted at the time will obviously change, so be patient brother. They aren't purposefully misleading anyone. It's just the nature of doing any business. If they could tell the future, believe me brother, they would give the exact second that every single smoker would be delivered to every single purchaser.