Getting my 1st smoker (WSM)- Now what?

[crabjoe]

I've got a WSM 18 on order and it's suppose to arrive this weekend. I've been watching YT videos like crazy to get an idea on how to use it.

My plan, when it arrives is to get it seasoned. The only info I've found was from Harry Soo on how he seasons his WSM. Would you folks agree that it's a safe bet on going his way? I'm a bit worried about loading her up and just running her dry for God knows how many hours for the coal to burn out.

As for my 1st cook, I'm planning on Pit Beef, being that I'm from Baltimore.. I've got a couple racks of St Louis ribs in my freezer, so maybe I'll give that a shot too.

Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.

BTW, I ordered a 6 probe thermometer to measure temps while cooking.. Is there anything else that I might need to get good consistent cooks?

Thanks all!

[Smokin Dawg77]

I've got a WSM 18 on order and it's suppose to arrive this weekend. I've been watching YT videos like crazy to get an idea on how to use it.

My plan, when it arrives is to get it seasoned. The only info I've found was from Harry Soo on how he seasons his WSM. Would you folks agree that it's a safe bet on going his way? I'm a bit worried about loading her up and just running her dry for God knows how many hours for the coal to burn out.

As for my 1st cook, I'm planning on Pit Beef, being that I'm from Baltimore.. I've got a couple racks of St Louis ribs in my freezer, so maybe I'll give that a shot too.

Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.

BTW, I ordered a 6 probe thermometer to measure temps while cooking.. Is there anything else that I might need to get good consistent cooks?

Thanks all!

Harry is WSM king !! all his videos are great info

[KB BBQ]

For seasoning just start cooking, preferably something with some good fat content. Pork butts are forgiving and have plenty of fat so a long cook like that should start the process pretty good. Keep in mind that the WSM will generally want to run a little hotter until the seasoning has a chance to coat the inside of the cooker. Congrats on ordering your WSM, nice choice.

[HouseDoc]

After 1st burn off , use either the snake or minion method. Search for details. Take a #2 pencil and open bottom 3 vents so the pencil just slips in. Top vent wide open. This will give you a 250 temp for awhile. May open up late in cook if temp drops. Enjoy. T Roy Cooks has some good WSM videos.

[70monte]

Check out this website. It's where I went to learn about how to cook on a WSM when I first got one years ago. Go to the forums tab and look around.
https://www.virtualweberbullet.com/

[jzadski]

I personally like to run pecan when first seasoning my WSM. It lays on a nice heavy smoke to help seal up the little gaps that may exist.

[crabjoe]

Thanks for the tips folks!

Maybe a Pit Beef isn't going to be my 1st cook, since it seems I need some grease build up... I guess I need to keep an eye out for a Pork butt.

BTW, I've always heard that you shouldn't use a rub with sugar in it because it will burn. Is that a hard and fast rule or is it more based on the max temp one uses while building the bark? If I stay under 300F (I'm planning on doing most of my cooks at 250-275), will a rub with sugar be a problem?

Thanks!

[HouseDoc]

Turbinado sugar is it, higher burn temp. Available at Walmart and Costco

[HouseDoc]

Give some smoked meatloaf a try. Simple and easy. Great taste. Cook to 165 internal.
I did these on my WSM 18 while cutting grass today.

[jdolor]

Ceciltucky? I definitely know where you are. Born there, still work there.

You can't go wrong with a WSM. It was my first real smoker. Learn to control the temps while you're seasoning it. Leave the top vents open and adjust with the 3 bottom vents. Go slow and be patient. It'll come to you.

[LloydQ]

I see no need to season. Just wash the grates and start cooking. I would put water in the pan for a nice, moist environment so it will gunk up quicker.

Good choice!

[Kracken]

I recently got my WSM, any route you choose will come out fine I'm sure. What I did was a 4hr burnout at temps past 350f, then a practice run at 275f so I could learn my smoker. In the practice run, I bought a package of the fattiest bacon I could find to season it with. Next, was a pork butt for 9hrs, each session gets a bit easier with temp control.

[TC Smoke & Que]

First, Congratulations on the WSM! it is a great smoker with a short learning curve. I have a 22 and Love it.
I did a half basket burn out at that pencil opening on the 3 bottom vents and damper (top vent) full open. I seasoned it by rubbing down with olive oil on the entire interior. Then I did a 2 lb "break in Fatty", about 3 total hours @ 225*. After that, It became what ever I wanted to smoke. I smoke at 225* normally.
With the racks, I washed them and dried them and then coated the one I used with spray Pam, this makes it easier to clean.
I upgraded to a larger water bowl I got after market @ Weber Bullet.com; and the stainless Steel door, which seals better and holds heat better also at Weber Bullet.com.

Another suggestion is to get another rack for the charcoal rack, place it at 90* of original rack. This helps keep larger pieces of burning coal from dropping down in to the bottom. You can get a cheap replacement grate at Wal Mart about the same size. I wired them together.
I also use Harry Soo's method of setting up the charcoal with "hole" in middle and then about 12 pieces of charcoal in the chimney, which I pour in the "hole" after they are fully lit. The chunks of wood are inserted into the coals prior about an inch back from the "hole" before I dump the lit ones.

Hope this helps you out. It is a pretty easy smoker and you will love it Looking forward to pics of your cooks.

[Monkey Uncle]

I did not need to pre-burn or season my WSM. I just made sure that I thoroughly cleaned all the packing oil off the charcoal grate and cooking grates, then I started cooking.

The WSM is a very simple cooker. Holds temps well, even with no water in the pan (I never put water in the pan).

One thing I had to learn about the minion method, though. Before you put the meat on, make sure you let it burn for 1/2 hour to an hour so that the charcoal heats up completely and gets rid of all the nasty, thick smoke.

[PostOak]

You’ll love the WSM, I’ve had one for long time and I’m never disappointed in it. I don’t put water in the pan either, although I added a bunch of play sand to the bowl. Some people think it helps. The Harry Soo method of leaving a “Hole” in the middle then lighting the coals seems to work the best for me.

[SweetHeatBBQnSC]

Congrats you are going to love the smoker! It took me a while and advice from here to learn don't chase a specific temp with it. Over time you will see where yours likes to run. Mine is around 275*. I don't put water in the water pan except for Brisket and Butts. Also look at cooking chicken and other stuff with no water pan. It's a versatile cooker.

Sent from my SM-A215U using Tapatalk

[Sevengoals]

I've got a WSM 18 on order and it's suppose to arrive this weekend. I've been watching YT videos like crazy to get an idea on how to use it.

My plan, when it arrives is to get it seasoned. The only info I've found was from Harry Soo on how he seasons his WSM. Would you folks agree that it's a safe bet on going his way? I'm a bit worried about loading her up and just running her dry for God knows how many hours for the coal to burn out.

As for my 1st cook, I'm planning on Pit Beef, being that I'm from Baltimore.. I've got a couple racks of St Louis ribs in my freezer, so maybe I'll give that a shot too.

Any recommendations are greatly appreciated.



BTW, I ordered a 6 probe thermometer to measure temps while cooking.. Is there anything else that I might need to get good consistent cooks?

Thanks all!


Welcome!
You're going to love it!

There are so many threads on cooking with the WSM.
It's a question of informing yourself and then learning by doing.


And you will need good quality charcoal.


Good luck mate!

[crabjoe]

If you're not going to water in the bowl, why even insert the bowl?

[Shadowdog500]

If you're not going to water in the bowl, why even insert the bowl?

It will act like a heat diffuser like people put in an ugly drum.

Since you are just starting out why not try the way that smoker was designed to be used. Put Kingsford charcoal In It And light using the minion method. Put a quart of beer in the water pan then top off the rest of the way with water. Either bury chunks of dry smoke wood strategically in the charcoal, or just toss a chunk on top at the beginning and throw a new chunk on every 45 minutes or so for the first half of the cook. (Meat Doesn’t take much smoke after it hits 140°f So don’t wast the smoke wood after that.) Apple is a good mild wood to start with and it goes with just about anything. Use a mix of apple and hickory for ribs.

Leave the top vent wide open and adjust the bottom vents to achieve temp.
Have all vents wide open when lighting. Once the temp climbs to about 200°f close the three bottom vents down to about 1/4 open And let it stabilize on temp. (You can use a pencil Diameter for this initial adjustment) if it climbs past your target temp close the bottom vents a little more. If it stabilizes below your target temp open the bottom vents a little more. Don’t chase the temps. Give the temp 10 or so minutes to settle between adjustments. Don’t worry about hitting an exact Pit temp. Getting it in the ballpark is good enough. As your experience increases so will your ability to get the pit temp closer to a desired temp, but in reality 20° either way will work just fine.

The biggest thing you need to learn when smoking meats is patience. Just sit back and have a beer and don’t monkey with anything unless you know it needs it. If you aren’t sure just leave it alone.

[BBQscott]

It will act like a heat diffuser like people put in an ugly drum.

Since you are just starting out why not try the way that smoker was designed to be used. Put Kingsford charcoal In It And light using the minion method. Put a quart of beer in the water pan then top off the rest of the way with water. Either bury chunks of dry smoke wood strategically in the charcoal, or just toss a chunk on top at the beginning and throw a new chunk on every 45 minutes or so for the first half of the cook. (Meat Doesn’t take much smoke after it hits 140°f So don’t wast the smoke wood after that.) Apple is a good mild wood to start with and it goes with just about anything. Use a mix of apple and hickory for ribs.

Leave the top vent wide open and adjust the bottom vents to achieve temp.
Have all vents wide open when lighting. Once the temp climbs to about 200°f close the three bottom vents down to about 1/4 open And let it stabilize on temp. (You can use a pencil Diameter for this initial adjustment) if it climbs past your target temp close the bottom vents a little more. If it stabilizes below your target temp open the bottom vents a little more. Don’t chase the temps. Give the temp 10 or so minutes to settle between adjustments. Don’t worry about hitting an exact Pit temp. Getting it in the ballpark is good enough. As your experience increases so will your ability to get the pit temp closer to a desired temp, but in reality 20° either way will work just fine.

The biggest thing you need to learn when smoking meats is patience. Just sit back and have a beer and don’t monkey with anything unless you know it needs it. If you aren’t sure just leave it alone.

You pretty much nailed the whole cook with perfect instructions. Following this will yield great results. You shouldn’t have any issues for your first cook if you follow shadows advice here. Share some pictures and how things are going during your first cook. We love to watch :D

[HouseDoc]

One last thing, don't keep taking the lid off to peek. Sit on your hands and try to look until after the 1st two hours have passed then maybe hourly. You mentioned temp probes so just read them. It's HARD not to peek!

[Mikhail]

Ceciltucky? I had to look that up. You are pretty close to Wilmington so should have some pretty good butchers. I worked up that way for a couple months and liked the area, except for DuPont everything.

Got any Capriati's sub shops up your way? Yum.

[Shadowdog500]

Ceciltucky? I had to look that up. You are pretty close to Wilmington so should have some pretty good butchers. I worked up that way for a couple months and liked the area, except for DuPont everything.

Got any Capriati's sub shops up your way? Yum.

Thanks for mentioning the location. I didn’t realize that ceciltucky was Cecil county MD. I used to race at Cecil county drag strip decades ago, and have eaten multiple times at Woodys Crab House.

I see you have another thread that you can’t find wood chunks.

North east Lowe’s on rt 40 and rt 272 has 7 bags of cowboy apple chunk in stock on isle 24 bay 15

[jdolor]

Thanks for mentioning the location. I didn’t realize that ceciltucky was Cecil county MD. I used to race at Cecil county drag strip decades ago, and have eaten multiple times at Woodys Crab House.

I see you have another thread that you can’t find wood chunks.

North east Lowe’s on rt 40 and rt 272 has 7 bags of cowboy apple chunk in stock on isle 24 bay 15

I’ve done some time at the strip myself. Used to live about a mile away.

[crabjoe]

It will act like a heat diffuser like people put in an ugly drum.

Since you are just starting out why not try the way that smoker was designed to be used. Put Kingsford charcoal In It And light using the minion method. Put a quart of beer in the water pan then top off the rest of the way with water. Either bury chunks of dry smoke wood strategically in the charcoal, or just toss a chunk on top at the beginning and throw a new chunk on every 45 minutes or so for the first half of the cook. (Meat Doesn’t take much smoke after it hits 140°f So don’t wast the smoke wood after that.) Apple is a good mild wood to start with and it goes with just about anything. Use a mix of apple and hickory for ribs.

Leave the top vent wide open and adjust the bottom vents to achieve temp.
Have all vents wide open when lighting. Once the temp climbs to about 200°f close the three bottom vents down to about 1/4 open And let it stabilize on temp. (You can use a pencil Diameter for this initial adjustment) if it climbs past your target temp close the bottom vents a little more. If it stabilizes below your target temp open the bottom vents a little more. Don’t chase the temps. Give the temp 10 or so minutes to settle between adjustments. Don’t worry about hitting an exact Pit temp. Getting it in the ballpark is good enough. As your experience increases so will your ability to get the pit temp closer to a desired temp, but in reality 20° either way will work just fine.

The biggest thing you need to learn when smoking meats is patience. Just sit back and have a beer and don’t monkey with anything unless you know it needs it. If you aren’t sure just leave it alone.

Thanks! I have no idea how to use it. I haven't seen any actual instructions on it's use. About the only thing I've seen is how people use it in YT videos.

BTW, I still don't have the thing.. HD sent me a shipping notice the other day saying the estimated delivery was today.. They didn't actually ship it out the door till today.. I guess I won't see it till Monday now. I'm kind of pissed over that..

My 9yo son was excited to get this... and the odd thing is, I only told him I ordered it yesterday.. And now all he's asking is "what can we cook in it 1st? Can we cook beef and pork at the same time? I want some ribs." He's got me cracking up.

[Kracken]

If you want to peek at the meat without removing the lid, just shine a flashlight through a top vent hole and peek in the other. Just move the light and your eye around to get a good view of things.

[charrederhead]

Welcome to the wonderful world of weber.

-Wrap the water pan in HD foil. Wrap it so that the "end" of the foil is on the outside bottom of the pan. IOW, put the pan on a surface and put foil over it and wrap it around to the bottom of the pan. Then, leave the pan empty. There's no need for anything in it.

-Use lump charcoal. It burns cleaner, allowing you to get the coveted TBS-thin blue smoke- sooner, so you can start cooking sooner, AND it will leave about 70% less ash. You will be able to get multiple cooks done w/o having to dump ash.

-When loading the charcoal ring w/ lump, put a "layer" in at a time and then press it down and around to minimize air gaps. I just do a light pressing with my foot. Pour some in, tamp it down. This will, imo, help keep temps more stable and lengthen the cook.

-I don't use a chimney/lit coals to start my WSM. After I get it filled with the lump, I make a little hole in the middle (deep enough to fit the cube) and put a Weber starter cube there and light it. After a minute or 2 I reassemble the WSM. Top vent open all the way (it's like that 99.9% of the time). The bottom vent position will be different for each WSM. I've owned 2 18s, a 14, and now use only a 22. One thing about all of them- starting out with 3 wide open vents proved to be too much air for a target of around 250+/-. For the past few years, I usually close 2 and open 1 (whichever is facing the wind, if there is one) less than a pencil width. This method generally gets me to 250-270. But, if I'm doing poultry, I let it rip- all 3 bottom vents open all the way all the time.

-Patience! :-D When I think back to when I first started on an 18...I had a notebook to log temp readings every 20 mins, noting the vent positions, how the smoke looked, etc. etc. I worried when the temp was +/- 10 degrees from what my "target" was...ahh, the good old days. There IS a learning curve, but as everyone has said, it's not a long one. So, if I could tell my back-then self anything, it would be to relax, drink more beer, and relax. :razz:

-For first cooks, naked fatties and/or picnic shoulders are great.

Enjoy!

[crabjoe]

if I could tell my back-then self anything, it would be to relax, drink more beer, and relax. :razz:

Enjoy!


Bwahahahahaha.. The bold is easy to do.. I started brewing beer last summer, so I've got a couple on tap.

[Monkey Uncle]

Thanks! I have no idea how to use it. I haven't seen any actual instructions on it's use. About the only thing I've seen is how people use it in YT videos.

BTW, I still don't have the thing.. HD sent me a shipping notice the other day saying the estimated delivery was today.. They didn't actually ship it out the door till today.. I guess I won't see it till Monday now. I'm kind of pissed over that..

My 9yo son was excited to get this... and the odd thing is, I only told him I ordered it yesterday.. And now all he's asking is "what can we cook in it 1st? Can we cook beef and pork at the same time? I want some ribs." He's got me cracking up.


Check out the virtual weber bullet: https://www.virtualweberbullet.com/

Lots of good information there. One word of caution, though. Don't follow their recommendation on how to start the fire. They say you should pour in a chimney full of lit coals, then dump unlit coals on top. If you do that, you'll be waiting forever for the smoke to clear up.

[crabjoe]

Check out the virtual weber bullet: https://www.virtualweberbullet.com/

Lots of good information there. One word of caution, though. Don't follow their recommendation on how to start the fire. They say you should pour in a chimney full of lit coals, then dump unlit coals on top. If you do that, you'll be waiting forever for the smoke to clear up.

To be honest, I'm not sure I trust the info on that site. And it's because of what I found before and earlier today.

I had heard about seasoning a grill/smoker and when I looked it up, almost everyone says to do it. I'm just going to call this person the Guy, and I think he's the one that runs the site... He says to not bother. Ok.. I still want to season it, but if I get impatient, I might not.

Today when my WSM arrived, I went to put my WSM together and there's really no instructions on the actual assembly, not that it's hard. But what got me was these washers.. It came with normal metal washers and other "Fiber" washer... not sure what they're made of. I didn't know what washer went inside of the outside because the instructions were basically a picture... This got me googling and I found a Video by the guy who runs that site.

He basically says use the metal washers on the legs and "Fiber" washers on the outside for the brackets on the upper cylinder. But when I counted the washers, there were enough "Fiber" washers for every bolt.. And after looking at some other videos, I found the "Fiber" washers go on the outside and they're also used with every bolt, even on the legs... Oh, and he had the comments turned off on his assembly video, so no one can make any suggestions or just comment.

As for the seasoning... I'm pretty sure it's going to need to be done. The grates that came with it feel slippery, like there's something coating it. Maybe it's in my head, but it makes sense to me that Weber would coat them to make sure they don't rust. This did it for me and that site.

The site is specific to the WSM. You would think they would have had really good instructions for assembly, if nothing else.

[Monkey Uncle]

To be honest, I'm not sure I trust the info on that site. And it's because of what I found before and earlier today.

I had heard about seasoning a grill/smoker and when I looked it up, almost everyone says to do it. I'm just going to call this person the Guy, and I think he's the one that runs the site... He says to not bother. Ok.. I still want to season it, but if I get impatient, I might not.

Today when my WSM arrived, I went to put my WSM together and there's really no instructions on the actual assembly, not that it's hard. But what got me was these washers.. It came with normal metal washers and other "Fiber" washer... not sure what they're made of. I didn't know what washer went inside of the outside because the instructions were basically a picture... This got me googling and I found a Video by the guy who runs that site.

He basically says use the metal washers on the legs and "Fiber" washers on the outside for the brackets on the upper cylinder. But when I counted the washers, there were enough "Fiber" washers for every bolt.. And after looking at some other videos, I found the "Fiber" washers go on the outside and they're also used with every bolt, even on the legs... Oh, and he had the comments turned off on his assembly video, so no one can make any suggestions or just comment.

As for the seasoning... I'm pretty sure it's going to need to be done. The grates that came with it feel slippery, like there's something coating it. Maybe it's in my head, but it makes sense to me that Weber would coat them to make sure they don't rust. This did it for me and that site.

The site is specific to the WSM. You would think they would have had really good instructions for assembly, if nothing else.


I don't remember mine coming with any fiber washers (purchased 2 1/2 years ago), so I'm wondering if that is something new.

Yeah, the grates are coated with some kind of packing oil to keep them from rusting. It washes off pretty easily. I still contend that there is no need to season the WSM. I did not get any "off" smells the first time I fired mine up.

One thing I would recommend, however, is putting lava lock gasket around the door opening (that is, if you don't buy one of those after market replacement doors). The factory door is cheap and ill-fitting and will leak a lot if you don't do something to seal it.

I guess with any of those kinds of third-party websites, you need to apply your common sense rather than just taking everything as gospel.

[Shadowdog500]

My two Weber smokey mountain cookers are older and don't have fiber washers.

your smoker should have come with a manual. Here is the manual for the 18". it does not mention fiber washers. https://weber.mizecx.com/retrieve/s3/knowledge/WEBER_AG/48602/3565_48602.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAUA2JDF35TDNNDYWX&Expires=1597063129&Signature=HD5YwXMDIsKvXlpYsO7WgpWo3Bk%3D


Here is the latest manual for a 19" WSM (which I never heard of) and it does have fiber washers (along with instructions on where to put them). https://weber.mizecx.com/retrieve/s3/knowledge/WEBER_IS/63230/63230.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAUA2JDF35TDNNDYWX&Expires=1597063172&Signature=vOH0R0iSZePuEb7%2FYw8%2BypAXxKY%3D

I never needed a door gasket on my 18, it is tight enough. My 22" has a leaky door and i did buy a gasket kit but never installed it because my makeshift solution of using a bungee cord worked so well and I can wash the smoker thoroughly every spring. See photo below.


Before the first use I would give everything a good wash with dish soap and water to get the manufacturing and shipping oils off of the smoker. I usually do chicken as a first cook since it is cheap, you run a little hotter than normal which may burn off what you missed, and if there is and off taste from shipping oils, which shouldn’t happen, Tossing $8 worth of chicken isn’t a big deal.

I used to season my smokers but found it wasn't needed. There is a debate here, and other places, that seasoning is really just a dirty smoker. i wash mine thoroughly every year and get rid of the crap that accumulates. Would you cook in a pot that is used regularly but hasn't been washed in years?

Note the bungee.
https://i527.photobucket.com/albums/cc353/shadowdog500/AC53303B-BC13-43DB-B6F4-DB7DD5A78BBD_zpsmapjp690.jpeg


Look how clean inside.
https://i527.photobucket.com/albums/cc353/shadowdog500/DF36D542-8559-4224-B8E6-307E71563938_zpsooj5hibj.jpeg

[Sid Post]

Why the fan assist? Are you doing just "hot and fast" cooks? On mine, hitting 275F isn't hard and I have at times run it at 325F all without air assistance though I have at times turned the base to catch a breeze for a heavily loaded WSM..

[crabjoe]

I don't remember mine coming with any fiber washers (purchased 2 1/2 years ago), so I'm wondering if that is something new.

My two Weber smokey mountain cookers are older and don't have fiber washers.

your smoker should have come with a manual. Here is the manual for the 18". it does not mention fiber washers.

I got the term "Fiber" washers from their video and if I remember correctly, their video is 2011. I'd say based on that date, anything in the last 10 years should have come with fiber washers.

As for the manual, yes, it did some with a manual. It just ht e assembly instructions were lacking. Basically the instruction was a picture with parts next to each other.. and they didn't give the order of the washers.

[Shadowdog500]

Why the fan assist? Are you doing just "hot and fast" cooks? On mine, hitting 275F isn't hard and I have at times run it at 325F all without air assistance though I have at times turned the base to catch a breeze for a heavily loaded WSM..

That is an IQ-110 pit temp controller. It will keep your charcoal smoker at any temperature you set the dial to. I use It during all night smokes like brisket so I can get a good night sleep. I have done all night cooks without it, but prefer to use the temp controller when sleeping. I also have a pit and meat temp alarm next to my pillow in case the pit temp strays, of if the meat hits temp sooner than expected.

[MasterTinkerer]

That is an IQ-110 pit temp controller. It will keep your charcoal smoker at any temperature you set the dial to. I use It during all night smokes like brisket so I can get a good night sleep. I have done all night cooks without it, but prefer to use the temp controller when sleeping. I also have a pit and meat temp alarm next to my pillow in case the pit temp strays, of if the meat hits temp sooner than expected.

I’ve got one also. LOVE it. Makes smoking as convenient as throwing something in the oven. Set it and forget it.