I don't understand

[Solidkick]

I got Black Beauty loaded like in the pic. temps are running 50* different from firebox side to outside. Outside is actually hotter. Do I need to reload a different way to even out the temps?

I NEED these done by 4. And it just started to rain.........CHIT!!!!!!!!!!!

These WERE supposed to be Christmas Gifts...............
Oh well........Farked it up good!

[willkat98]

try turning her.

I didnt know what you meant in the PM

You mentioned little or no wind. That might be a problem, for look like you need to have draw across the chimney to pull that heat up.

I don't know.

[Solidkick]

I made kind of an "anti baffle" out some heavy foil and ran up the left side of the smoke chamber to deflect some of the heat back towards the middle. That helped a lot. At least the thermometer in the door is registering now.

[parrothead]

Where you at in Missourri? It looks like the problem is you are cooking to much stuff for yourself. I will be right over. 4 o'clock you say?

You got any lawn cushions?

The problem is evident right from looking at the picture. You have the door open.

Ok, now that I got that out of my system, I would think that the way you have the bottom rack loaded up it would disperse the heat decently.

[willkat98]

Let;s see.

I can be on the 2pm flight to St. Louis, rent a car, nother couple hours... Around 6ish for me.

[willkat98]

Oh, and thnks alot

I finally now have a use my turkey fry thermoter, since I only use it 4-6 times a year.

Never thought to clip it to the chimney.

Great mod.

[Solidkick]

It don't much matter now...
I just took the nibblers off while I was wrapping the rest in foil for the next 2 hours. I must have messed up on the rub seriously as they are salty as hell. I guess I got in a hurry and doubled up the salt. Thought it looked different.
Well, I had good intentions....Merry Christmas.....here's the ribs you don't get....

[willkat98]

Don't tell me you used Southern Flavor?

Remember, its a seasoned salt.

[badger]

It don't much matter now...
I just took the nibblers off while I was wrapping the rest in foil for the next 2 hours. I must have messed up on the rub seriously as they are salty as hell. I guess I got in a hurry and doubled up the salt. Thought it looked different.
Well, I had good intentions....Merry Christmas.....here's the ribs you don't get....

Damn! You pulled a John!

Sorry to hear that! :oops:

[BigAl]

Nice PIC....damn I'm hungry, again!

[Solidkick]

All was not lost..............
As I did the nibblers last and pretty much rolled them in the rub left on the prep table, ( my wife says I'm too farking messy to be a cook) it seems that much of the salt was either left on the prep table from the other ribs, or the salt settled more to the bottom of my shaker.
Anyway.....the ribs were eatable!

[Solidkick]

Oh, and thnks alot

I finally now have a use my turkey fry thermoter, since I only use it 4-6 times a year.

Never thought to clip it to the chimney.

Great mod.

Actually, this one probably is the truest of indication of how my smoker is running overall. In my thinking, if the stack is running 225-250*, then the inside has got to be in that range too.

Open for debate or comments?

[parrothead]

I keep usually 4 of those oven thermometers that you can hang or set placed all over the inside of mine. Then, when I open the door a quick glance gives me a good picture of what is happening temperature wise inside the smoke box. Of course it has been too much time since the last cook and to much rum to remember exactly how it all works, but I do believe that I end up with a variance from left to right. I just turn the racks 180 degrees every so often. If I remember right the temp is cooler at the top than the bottom. usually around a 25 degree different. Next time I cook I will make sure that I bustg out all of the oven therms., and pay closer attention.

[Heath]

I keep a thermometer in the stack too. I use one of my generic oven thermo's. Being 6'4" tall I can look down into the stack and see it so this might not be a mod for our vertically challenged brethren. I don't use a probe because I already have a thermometer on the highest shelf I have meat on.
I use the temp to tell me how my Q is going also. When I start, the temp is always low. I can't give specific temps but I go by feel. If the temp at the start is not above 100 then I look at freeing up the airflow, it's usually blocked by too much meat. After that I look at it to tell me how close the food is to done. I've seen the meat absorbs the heat out less as it gets done, and the temp split from top to bottom will get closer also.

[Saiko]

With the heat baffle that most people have added to their bandera (including me), I have also found a slight difference between the left side and the right side. Typically the left side of my bandara runs about 10 to 20 degrees hotter than the right since the baffle is forcing more of the heat over to that side.
I just do what parrothead suggested, I rotate all the racks 180 degrees about halfway through the process and everything comes out even. Also, if I am really pressed for space and have 2 chickens on one rack, I rotate the rack AND rotate the chickens 180 degrees. That way the meat that is exposed to the outside area also gets flipped and gets exposed to the center area. If I don't flip the birds, I've always found that the two outside chicken halves are done before the middle halves.

edit: BTW, I LOVE that picture. It reminds me of what my bandera looks like when I'm cooking for one of our block parties.

[Mark]

Geez, I didn't realize that was a dial thermometer in the somke stack. I thought it was a minature satellite dish hooked up to the electronic temp probes for extreme remote monitoring . :-)

[Solidkick]

So guys let me ask you a question. Do you think that by cutting a small half circle out of the baffle would help to even out the temps? Thoughts?
I know Mark likes to research stuff like this.

[willkat98]

I really hope I have time in the am to answer this, cuz I got quality thoughts on this cuz of where I place my probes. If I forget, someont reminnd me

[parrothead]

Nice typing, Bill.

[willkat98]

Dont cut the baffle.

Too loaded to talk literate, but I will add to this later.

[brdbbq]

Nice typing, Bill.

Ands he gives me **** for mispelling detail. Maybe he should read my post after 8PM.

[OpusX]

So guys let me ask you a question. Do you think that by cutting a small half circle out of the baffle would help to even out the temps? Thoughts?
I know Mark likes to research stuff like this.

wilkat98 said not to cut the baffle, but I was wondering if a few small holes drilled into the baffle might not help even out the temps a little.

[tommykendall]

wilkat98 said not to cut the baffle, but I was wondering if a few small holes drilled into the baffle might not help even out the temps a little.


hmmmm... might be on to another mod. The right side of the box is the second coolest, next to the front.

[willkat98]

So guys let me ask you a question. Do you think that by cutting a small half circle out of the baffle would help to even out the temps? Thoughts?
I know Mark likes to research stuff like this.

wilkat98 said not to cut the baffle, but I was wondering if a few small holes drilled into the baffle might not help even out the temps a little.

There are quite a few variables that you would need to consider. One would be if you use firebricks inder the water pan. One who does that, might not get as much airflow under the pan and up the left side. I do not have them, and the left side of my chamber runs a little hotter. So to counteract that, I think I'm gonna tinker with the heat shield holes, to see if I can then draw the heat back through to the right side.

Think that is a Spring Summer experiment though, cuz its too cold to be out there farking with 6-8 thermometers to see what works best.

And what the fark was I posting the other night? Wish I knew the dateils of what I was thinking.

[brdbbq]

We do to. :wink:

[Heath]

Here's what I have in to redistribute the heat.

[willkat98]

great mod Heath!!

At first, I thought you meant that little "roast" on the first chelf redistributed the heat. :0

[BBQchef33]

solidkick. You mean cut the half circle out of the firebbox baffle? Or a re you using a baffle like heath has? the latest design of the firebox baffle
has a semi cirle in it to fit around the waterpan. Other than that, where you want to cut holes? and why? I think making the baffle smaller would
cause the heat to run up the right wall of the box, which is what were trying to fix in the first place. The idea of that affle was to direct the heat out
and away from the firebox.

[Mike(Mi)]

Just remember, measure twice, cut once. :idea:

[OpusX]

I think making the baffle smaller would
cause the heat to run up the right wall of the box, which is what were trying to fix in the first place.

I'm new here, but as I understood it, the baffle did redirect the heat from the right side, but did so a little too well and now the left side is hotter than the right. I thought a few holes in the baffle would allow some of the heat that was being pushed to the left go up the right side in an attempt to even things out a little.

[Mark]

I think making the baffle smaller would
cause the heat to run up the right wall of the box, which is what were trying to fix in the first place.

I'm new here, but as I understood it, the baffle did redirect the heat from the right side, but did so a little too well and now the left side is hotter than the right. I thought a few holes in the baffle would allow some of the heat that was being pushed to the left go up the right side in an attempt to even things out a little.Maybe consider cutting a couple of more smaller holes on the left side of the baffle you made that sit over your water pan

[BBQchef33]

Thats interesting. I have firebricks on the bottom of my smoke box, which may slow the movement of heat enuf to give it a chance to rise.

But i would think your right, if you think your baffle is shooting the heat across the chamber to well, holes would work. This is however, the first i've heard of this happening. Did you make your baffle using the template? Is it the same as most of the rest of us? Anyone else ever notice this??

[OpusX]

Thats interesting. I have firebricks on the bottom of my smoke box, which may slow the movement of heat enuf to give it a chance to rise.

But i would think your right, if you think your baffle is shooting the heat across the chamber to well, holes would work. This is however, the first i've heard of this happening. Did you make your baffle using the template? Is it the same as most of the rest of us? Anyone else ever notice this??

I didn't make the baffle yet (I'm waiting for spring to get going, just want all ideas before I begin). I was replying to Saiko saying the left runs 10-20 degrees hotter than the right earlier in this topic. Solidkick suggested a semi circle cut into the firebox baffle. I thought a few small holes might work to even things out a bit instead of teh semi circle. I like the plate with qa hole in it Heath added though. If you use that I don't think holes in the firebox baffle will matter much.

[BBQchef33]

I think the latest design of the baffle has the semi circle cut into it. It helped fit around the water pan. Craigs back, so he can enlighten us.

Buck.. you out there??

[Saiko]

My baffle was taken from an old template from the previous yahoo group (I believe it was Max's, not sure). It looks like the newer template does have a semi-circle cut into it that would allow a little more heat on the right side. With my current baffle, there is no doubt that the left side runs a bit hotter (I use up to 4 different oven thermos at various spots). It really hasn't been an issue since I just flip everything 180 degrees half way through the cooking process.
Me thinks I may make a new baffle using the latest template and see the difference.

[slat]

What if you took the baffle with the circle cut in it and switched places with the water pan. The baffle would trap the heat underneath it and should allow the heat to flow up and around the pan in a more even fashion. I may be wrong, but that's my .02.