18.5 WSM came in today! Any Tips?

[bacchus99]

Gonna put it together this evening after work. Probably won't get a cook on it not this weekend but next. I hear some people season them some don't. Some wash the components some don't.

A couple questions:

1. What do I need to do to break it in properly? I know they need a little gunk build up to run lower temps. I was just thinking about cooking some chicken at 350* or so on it to get some gunk going. How many briquettes need lighting for 350*?

2. How many briquettes need to be lit for say 250* using the minion method? What's the method for bringing it up to temp?

3. What temp do most cook pork butt, ribs, and brisket at?

Sorry for all the random questions. I'm ready to smoke something on it!

[El Ropo]

1. Couple of chix, couple of pork butts, some fattys. Basically anything that's gonna start coating the inside with BBQ gunk. Use same amount of lit briqs to start fire no matter the target temp. I'd use about a dozen. Temp will rise till you start closing down the intakes.

2. Use the same amount of briqs to light it no matter how hot your target temp is. I'd use about a dozen. Like above, temp will rise till you start closing down intakes.

3. Anywhere from 225-350. But there are many who swear by always cooking 270 and above. 225 is considered "warming the meat to death" by those folks.

Most folks will wash the unit down before first cook to get rid of any harmful residue left over from manufacture.

Don't take the owner's manual as gospel. It's perfectly fine to use Lump in a WSM. Nothing wrong with running water free too. Water soaks up the BTU's, shortens burn time, and makes it more difficult to cook at higher temps, especially using Kingsford blue. Try foiling the empty water pan for easy cleanup. Some people put sand or kitty litter in the pan, some put a clay saucer over the top of pan. Many options.

Don't be alarmed if the cooker runs on the hot side for first couple cooks till it gets sealed up by the BBQ gunk. The more large fatty meats you cook in it, the better and faster it'll seal up.

[qnbiker]

1. Just use it. Cook whatever you feel like cooking. Make sure it's round. There's a lot of info on fixing out-of-round WSMs on the Internet. Air leaks between the center tube and charcoal bowl are the most serious since they are intake leaks and affect temperature control the most. Assemble these two pieces at night and use a flashlight from the outside to see gaps. Shape the door so there are no visible gaps. Not as important. Lid leaks are least important. You only need to worry about these things if there is a problem controlling temps or if closing the vents doesn't smother the fire. To get 350, light it normally and open all the vents.

2. I light about 10 briquettes for all my Minion starts. To get 250, I open all my bottom vents about a nickel width (because I know my WSM and it will settle in at 250 in about 30 minutes at this setting). Some people open all the vents and start to throttle back the air when they get within 50 degrees of the target. Top vent always open.

3. It's barbecue - cook at any temp between 225 and 300. 300 and up is considered "high heat" and you may need to adjust your cooking method. Most people use foil when they use this method. Lots of discussion about this here. I personally cook between 250 and 275.

The best thing to do is just start cooking; your WSM may work fine without doing anything. Don't worry about about leaks or "gunk" unless you have problems. And, DON'T TRUST THE WEBER THERMOMETER.

[1FUNVET]

Send it to me for proper breakin :becky:

[realspaazz]

re: question #3: once you have adjusted your intakes down and your temperature has settled in, your thermometer will likely read some odd temp like 227* or 262*. Mine likes to settle in at 237*. Once you hit a temp that is near your desired temp, don't sweat it... just cook and don't fuss with the intakes too much. Wsm is a great cooker and really straightforward to use.

[BobM]

1) WSMs do not need to be seasoned, just use it normally and the gunk will come.

2) I fill my charcoal ring to the top, with 4 or 5 fist sized chunks of wood mixed in. I light the charcoal in a couple of places with a high output propane torch, and bring it up to my target temperature slowly. When the cook is over, I close all the vents and reuse whatever charcoal is left in the next cook.

3) You can cook anywhere from 225F-350F, depending on the meat and your method. I do pork ribs at 275F, rib tips at 250F and brisket 325F.

Good luck with it, and post some pr0n of your first cook!

Bob

[bacchus99]

Put the WSM together last night. Looks like a quality piece of equipment...wouldn't expect anything less from Weber. Can't wait to get cooking.

[NorCalQue]

Cool Bacch! I hope you have as much fun with it as I have had with mine so far.

I started my last cook (minion) with 1/3 chimney of lit coals but, I've been starting it at 3AM with an ambient temp of about 55F. I think that's why some people start with 10 lit and others 30; they have different starting temps.

I went wide open until was about 25 degrees of desired temp, then fully closed two of the bottom vents and closed the remaining one to about 1/8" - 1/4" I have no water in mine and use the foiled clay H-depot saucer, so might go with the 50 degrees of desired temps with water.

I then add the meat and temps drop and I wait until it stabilizes with very minor changes (1/8") to the vent. Make adjustment and then wait about 10 mins.

Once it is stable I go back to bed. When the sun rises it will raise the temp (mine is not in the shade) so another minor adjustment and it holds until done.

The fatties and pork butts really seemed to get it gunked up fast. My first cook was successful (per guests) with two butts and three fatties, at 270F-275F. I credit the WSM and this forum for that. I still have decades of BBQ stuff to learn.

I hope this helps.

Enjoy!

[str8upcop04]

Just got mine about a month ago and have done Ribs, Brisket, Chicken, ABT'S, and a Boston Butt so far. You'll love this machine, mine likes to settle in at @248F lid temp. I've had pretty sucessful cooks so far (knock on wood).
1.No need to wash just wipe down from factory dust and things of such.
2.Filling the charcoal basket up depends on length of cook, I usually use a half of chimmney to get mine going. They come up to temp fairly quick using minion method.
3. I like to keep my lid temp at 250F-270F but I just ordered the Maverick ET-732 today so I'll probably start cooking at the 250F range exclusivly except for poultry (300F).
Bottom line is experiment and keep a journal of your cooks so you know what works and what needs tweaking. That was probably the best piece of advice I got from the Brethren here and oh yeah frequent this forum, these people are awesome!

[FLAQUE]

3. What temp do most cook pork butt, ribs, and brisket at?

I've cooked everything on my wsm between 225-250. All the Q has come out pretty consistent. Just pay attention to the vents and where you have them. I've also heard that new WSM's cook faSter the first few times so be patient. ENJOY!