Help on my next cooker

[Moose_mi]

Ive used a Primo XL for about 5 years and love it but I need more capacity. I’d like my next cooker to be an option for smoking summer sausage and bacon (smoke at 140F-ish). My last batch of bacon was 2 pork belly’s and it caught my Bradley on fire. Oh well…was never happy with it anyway

Ive been looking at the Assassin GF28 but I dont think I can run that at 140F. Im also a little on the fence about the cost of GF vs a Reverse Flow Insulated Cabinet but I dont think the RFIC will run any lower than the GF anyway.

Ive wondered if anyone else has found a high capacity cooker that can run 140-260F. I looked at the rectec 2500 but I dont think I want a pellet cooker.

I wondered about using a hot plate in the bottom of RFIC for summer sausage/bacon…probably a terrible idea?

 

[luv2smoke]

I cold smoke regularly with my RFIVC.

 

[CivilTrojan]

I cold smoke regularly with my RFIVC.

Would like to know more details about how you do this. Like how cold is it outside and what temp is it inside when you do it?

 

[luv2smoke]

Would like to know more details about how you do this. Like how cold is it outside and what temp is it inside when you do it?

I usually do my cold smoking during the cooler months as my combustion air source is the outside air. If the outside ambient air temperature is 100 degrees or higher I don't do any cold smoking :roll:as it's tough to maintain cold smoking temps. With cooler ambient air temperatures no problem it's all about managing how much fuel is burning at one time.

 

[Moose_mi]

I usually do my cold smoking during the cooler months as my combustion air source is the outside air. If the outside ambient air temperature is 100 degrees or higher I don't do any cold smoking :roll:as it's tough to maintain cold smoking temps. With cooler ambient air temperatures no problem it's all about managing how much fuel is burning at one time.

Restricting cold smoking to when ambient is <60F would not be a problem at all for me. Hell, I live in Michigan…we got cool ambient…no worries.

You mind sharing a little more about the cooker and temps that you can sustain? And tricks for controlling how much fuel is burning…do you line charcoal up in s single file line like dominos or something?

I’d be very excited to learn this can be done…thank you

 

[Big George's BBQ]

I smoke salmon and have done bacon on my Large BGE at 150* without much of a problem and have used the Egg as a vessel to cold smoke with a Pro Q Smoke Generator

 

[luv2smoke]

Restricting cold smoking to when ambient is <60F would not be a problem at all for me. Hell, I live in Michigan…we got cool ambient…no worries.

You mind sharing a little more about the cooker and temps that you can sustain? And tricks for controlling how much fuel is burning…do you line charcoal up in s single file line like dominos or something?

I’d be very excited to learn this can be done…thank you

I usually do my cold smoking in about 50 degree weather. I've done some at lower temperatures (single digits) and some in warmer weather about 75*.
I control the heat like you mentioned, I line the charcoal up single file like dominos against 3 walls of my firebox. I then will put small wood chunks on the top of the charcoal every so often and light the first briquette with a hand torch. The charcoal will slowly burn one by one in the domino line. I usually cold smoke my bacon for 12-15 hours. After I feel I have enough smoke on the bacon I will pour in a lit full chimney of charcoal into the firebox and bring the chamber temp up to 225-240 and finish the bacon until the pork belly has internal temp of 145. I've cold smoke fish and cheese as well. I usually can hold it under anywhere from 60-95 degrees depending on outside air temps. You can also run hotter for sausage or whatever simply by stacking another domino row next to one another and then light of the first briquette in each row and two single briquettes will start the trail. And of course manipulation of the air valve will raise, lower and hold the desired temperatures.

Ive used a Primo XL for about 5 years and love it but I need more capacity. I’d like my next cooker to be an option for smoking summer sausage and bacon (smoke at 140F-ish). My last batch of bacon was 2 pork belly’s and it caught my Bradley on fire. Oh well…was never happy with it anyway

Ive been looking at the Assassin GF28 but I dont think I can run that at 140F. Im also a little on the fence about the cost of GF vs a Reverse Flow Insulated Cabinet but I dont think the RFIC will run any lower than the GF anyway.

Ive wondered if anyone else has found a high capacity cooker that can run 140-260F.

Unless you're able to figure out how to drop a single file row of briquettes in a gravity feed you'd have a better chance winning a game of pick up sticks playing with your ass cheeks than you would getting a gravity fed smoker to run at cold smoking temperatures. Whatever the fire grate size is, is the amount of charcoal you'll have burning on a gravity fed unit. On a bottom load reverse flow cabinet as I mentioned above you can burn one briquette at a time or two or three if you wish.

 

[Moose_mi]

Unless you're able to figure out how to drop a single file row of briquettes in a gravity feed you'd have a better chance winning a game of pick up sticks playing with your ass cheeks than…..

HAHAHAH…that’s awesome…I’m going to use that!

I really don’t feel the extra $$ for GF is worth it for me. Not knocking them….it’s just their advantages as far as I understand them are not that big of a deal to me.

Knowing with some finesse I can do summer sausage and bacon in the RF is very very good news.

I was also looking at the AMNPS (?)…they look like they could be useful also

 

[CivilTrojan]

What is AMNPS?

 

[luv2smoke]

A-MAZE-N AMNPS Maze Pellet Smoker, Hot or Cold Smoking, 5 x 8 Inch https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007ROPJ1M/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_i_6BTGB7XSXBYV0PZHNM7P

 

[luv2smoke]

I really don’t feel the extra $$ for GF is worth it for me. Not knocking them….it’s just their advantages as far as I understand them are not that big of a deal to me.

What would those advantages be?

 

[Chester]

What would those advantages be?

Mainly ability to keep it going. Can clean the ash can out out in 10 seconds without touching the fire, and can continuously add charcoal to it. Also, can add more smoke wood easier at will, or change up the smoke wood on the fly.

Not saying you can’t do these things with a standard cabinet, but easier on a gravity fed.

For the most part, they cook fairly similar. But even two cabinets or two gravities have some differences.

 

[luv2smoke]

Mainly ability to keep it going. Can clean the ash can out out in 10 seconds without touching the fire, and can continuously add charcoal to it. Also, can add more smoke wood easier at will, or change up the smoke wood on the fly.

Not saying you can’t do these things with a standard cabinet, but easier on a gravity fed.

For the most part, they cook fairly similar. But even two cabinets or two gravities have some differences.

I can run my cabinet for 40+ hours before refueling so that's not a problem. I clean my ash pan out after the cook as the ash pan is sufficiently sized to capture the ash for whatever length I'm cooking. It takes seconds no need to be constantly empty it. I pre load my wood to suit my needs prior to lighting it off but yes I agree it would be easier to add wood on the fly with a gravity fed unit. This far I've never had the need to add more wood but perhaps the day will come?

 

[Moose_mi]

Im sort of liking the Cascade “Competitor”. Seems to have about everything a guy could want. I wonder if you can get that with golf cart wheels for easier rolling in the yard and off/on trailers

 

[Chester]

I can run my cabinet for 40+ hours before refueling so that's not a problem. I clean my ash pan out after the cook as the ash pan is sufficiently sized to capture the ash for whatever length I'm cooking. It takes seconds no need to be constantly empty it. I pre load my wood to suit my needs prior to lighting it off but yes I agree it would be easier to add wood on the fly with a gravity fed unit. This far I've never had the need to add more wood but perhaps the day will come?

Well, you’ve got a Whole Hog model correct? That’s a $7k model with a huge firebox. It’s on a whole other level than models I had to choose from.

Most IVC’s won’t be able to run for that length of time, nor be as easy to finish a pork butt at 250 using hickory wood to smoke, then fire up to 325 and drop some chicken on it and add some cherry or apple for the bird.

Every smoker design has some advantages and disadvantages. The hard part in choosing one, is finding one that suits your given needs the best. Sounds like you nailed it with what you have for your needs. Cold smoking wouldn’t be good in the gravity I have, unless maybe using a pellet smoke tube. But changing on the fly or deciding to do something different mid cook, or adding something later on in a cook, and having the ability to adjust the smoke mid cook is something a gravity model excels at. Good for us poor planers.

 

[patrickd26]

I have a GF28 from Assassin, and you can certainly cold smoke on it. I'd recommend a FireBoard controller. The food it puts out is crazy good. I'm a pan guy (learned that on this forum) to keep cleanup easy. The only "con" is that she is a big cooker. Hopefully, you have room and can keep it level where you're cooking. It's truly a "set and forget" style rig. Good luck!

 

[Chester]

I have a GF28 from Assassin, and you can certainly cold smoke on it. I'd recommend a FireBoard controller. The food it puts out is crazy good. I'm a pan guy (learned that on this forum) to keep cleanup easy. The only "con" is that she is a big cooker. Hopefully, you have room and can keep it level where you're cooking. It's truly a "set and forget" style rig. Good luck!

How low have you run the Assassin. I have never even tried running the Limo Jr. below 200. I have a Fireboard also. Just didn’t think it would stay below this temp, but might have to give a try next cook.

 

[Moose_mi]

After a ton of research and processing all the great feedback I decided to go with the Cascade Competitor. The checks in the mail!


……and now we wait….waiting is hard….