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

[Smokin' Greene]

Terry,
I don't use the water pan of the smoker, but I do use a disposable pan on the bottom rack or under the bottom rack to catch drippings, and at the beginning of the cook I fill it half full of water and never refill.
I also use KBB charcoal (I know a brethern sin) and mesquite which I believe is the smoke ring answer. On a brisket cook I use 6 to 9 ~4" chunks about 6" long spaced out evenly throughout the basket. I fill the basket with charcoal, set the guru at 225* put them on at 10 pm and they are usually ready by noon the next day not usually wrapped (if I do wrap it will be in butcher paper). Then rest as long as I can.
Maybe this helps.
Good luck!
Jason

 

[pjtexas1]

Smokin Greene, you have to let me know your secret for getting that smoke ring. I barely get one at all. Love everything else about the way the brisket turns out.

Try putting your brisket on at a lower IT. In my cabinet I get better smoke rings when the brisket is not set out to "come up to room temp".

 

[THoey1963]

Terry,
I don't use the water pan of the smoker, but I do use a disposable pan on the bottom rack or under the bottom rack to catch drippings, and at the beginning of the cook I fill it half full of water and never refill.
I also use KBB charcoal (I know a brethern sin) and mesquite which I believe is the smoke ring answer. On a brisket cook I use 6 to 9 ~4" chunks about 6" long spaced out evenly throughout the basket. I fill the basket with charcoal, set the guru at 225* put them on at 10 pm and they are usually ready by noon the next day not usually wrapped (if I do wrap it will be in butcher paper). Then rest as long as I can.
Maybe this helps.
Good luck!
Jason

I don't use water either, and do have pans in the bottom. Not really a fan of water in the smoker, but I'll try adding some water once to see. I also use KBB and like it. Brings back memories. I'll try getting a little Mesquite too to see if that helps.

Thanks.

Try putting your brisket on at a lower IT. In my cabinet I get better smoke rings when the brisket is not set out to "come up to room temp".

I have been doing my briskets over night lately and using the Guru to keep it around 235* until the next morning. Rub them down earlier in the day and hold them in the fridge until time to throw them on. Still barely getting any ring. Thought about cheating and using a little celery powder, but don't want to go down that road. Plus, they taste good the way they are seasoned now.

The ring isn't that important, I know, but since everything else is right, I'm looking for that final piece of the puzzle.

 

[Kaptain Kadian]

I put my brisket in when the smoker is at 150. It makes a big difference in the smoker ring.

 

[pjtexas1]

I have been doing my briskets over night lately and using the Guru to keep it around 235* until the next morning. Rub them down earlier in the day and hold them in the fridge until time to throw them on. Still barely getting any ring. Thought about cheating and using a little celery powder, but don't want to go down that road. Plus, they taste good the way they are seasoned now.

The ring isn't that important, I know, but since everything else is right, I'm looking for that final piece of the puzzle.

My fridge runs at 34. When I put a brisket on its still a little frozen in the middle. The maverick won't register a temp because it's still frozen in the middle. I've never tried mesquite but I do use a lot of pecan chunks all throughout the charcoal basket but they are smaller chunks. I never use water. Hopefully one of the 2 ideas will work. I'd try the mesquite and water first since that has proven to work in the LSG.

 

[kkegans]

This is an interesting read on the smoke ring...
http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/mythbusting_the_smoke_ring.html

 

[TedW]

That's a GREAT article. Thank you for posting that.

The article referenced charcoal essentially being pure carbon. All charcoals are not alike, and they are not yet pure carbon. They still have oils, which are flammable. Pure carbon isn't particularly combustible. We've all seen lump that was leftover from the original burn. It's the same size lump, but much lighter. The heat of the burn vaporized the oils, they were combusted, and a lighter carbon frame was left behind with a lot less oil. The point being, lump charcoal taste and performance would vary by tree species and the pyrolysis temp used to create the charcoal.

The other issue they mentioned was the distinct value of a water pan. Personally, I take issue with this. The scenario is that the water evaporates from the pan, and then condenses on the meat... While I have zero data, this intuitively strikes me as BS. I can totally understand basting the surface to keep it moist and trap smoke particles and gas. I just don't think a slightly humid convection oven environment would promote condensation on the meat surface.

These are picky points. The article was excellent. I love data driven articles like that.

 

[THoey1963]

Y'all are making me want to do a brisket this weekend just so I can try it out... :mrgreen:

 

[Southstar]

Does anybody use the heating element with a handle to start up their fire ? I always use mine to fire up my Green Egg. I have ordered the T Plates with my smoker and was wondering if anybody else uses one. Seems like it would work well for starting a small section.

 

[THoey1963]

I use a weed burner to light the charcoal in the front left side of the basket. Takes about a minute and then I let it build itself up. Cost about $30 plus a propane tank that lasts a long time.

But, I am sure one of those would work.

 

[Kaptain Kadian]

I use a fish fryer to light a chimney of charcoal

 

[cheez59]

I use my weed burner occasionally but most of the time I just use the side burner on my gasser that sits right beside of Bertha to light the chimney.

 

[jwbwx1]

Chris (lonestargrillz),

How tall is the LSG with the 10in run flats? Trying to make sure I get the correct enclosed trailer to move it around.

Jerry

 

[Big Swole]

Subscribed

 

[THoey1963]

Chris (lonestargrillz),

How tall is the LSG with the 10in run flats? Trying to make sure I get the correct enclosed trailer to move it around.

Jerry

I'm not Chris, and maybe he can give you a more exact answer. But as far as I know, I am the second owner of a full size LSG cabinet with the run flats. I didn't pull the cover off, I have been drinking, and it is 4:30 am here, but running a tape measure from the ground up shows about 66". I'd say anything around 6 foot will give you plenty of room.

 

[jwbwx1]

Wow. 66", or even worse 6', is a huge opening for a trailer door. Maybe I need a toy-hauler

 

[Ribeye Republic]

Chris (lonestargrillz),

How tall is the LSG with the 10in run flats? Trying to make sure I get the correct enclosed trailer to move it around.

Jerry

I have the 10" run flats on mine and I can load it in my enclosed trailer with room to spare. I'm not sure I would go with these tires again. They are really stickey and hard to maneuver on asphalt and concrete. I would like to push one around with the original wheels to see how it compares.

BP

 

[Ribeye Republic]

Does anybody use the heating element with a handle to start up their fire ? I always use mine to fire up my Green Egg. I have ordered the T Plates with my smoker and was wondering if anybody else uses one. Seems like it would work well for starting a small section.

I pull out the ash tray and start 1/2 a chimney on the tray with gelled alcohol. Works well for me.

 

[THoey1963]

I haven't had to maneuver mine with the 10" run flats much. Off the trailer and into the garage, from the garage to a spot in the back yard, and then from that spot to it's final resting place. A more permanent location is in the works and I did tell a friend that I would bring it with me to help him on a comp later this year. So, I really only plan to move it a couple times a year. But I like how those run flats rolled a LOT easier over the grass in my backyard...

 

[jwbwx1]

I have the 10" run flats on mine and I can load it in my enclosed trailer with room to spare. I'm not sure I would go with these tires again. They are really stickey and hard to maneuver on asphalt and concrete. I would like to push one around with the original wheels to see how it compares.

BP

If you dont mind, what type/size of trailer do you use? The 5x8s I have been looking at don't seem to be tall enough.