...has been fun and challenging :twisted:
I have had my Assassin 48 for over a month, time to post a few meals and share some general observations. The cooker is versatile, I have used it several times as a smoker and as a grill, with charcoal, with lump, with both, and with wood chunks mixed in.
Set-up as a smoker using the v-plate deflector with a 2X2 charcoal maze, I have had a couple minor issues. On two different cooks using the same set-up, brisket point and pork butts, the length-wise maze "jumped" the tracks after a couple of hours causing the temps to jump from a steady 250 to 350. Did not affect the cook much as I was able to adjust and move the meat to cooler zones in the cooker, love the space! :thumb:
Since then I have only run one-side of the maze, and get close to 8 hours at 275ish, but the temp increases when the maze burns beneath the slotted section of the v-plate. Removing the v-plate and turning it 180 degrees helps maintain a steady temp but it can be a difficult task - heavy v-plate that expands slightly so it is harder to remove, especially when hot, and don't forget to remove any drip pans before removing. :doh: I will continue to experiment with the maze to get longer cook times if needed and to achieve controllable multiple temp zones. I have not even tried the 3/8-inch solid deflector plate yet or the Guru adapter it also came with. More fun to come.
The Assassin 48 performs superbly as grill, it has a ton of space and depending on fuel type and placement, can provide multi-zone cooking. It comes up to temp very quickly for such a larger cooker, responds pretty quickly to temp adjustments, and is surprisingly charcoal/lump efficient!
Lastly, how the heck do I insert photos into the text so that they are not all at the end of the post? TIA
I have had my Assassin 48 for over a month, time to post a few meals and share some general observations. The cooker is versatile, I have used it several times as a smoker and as a grill, with charcoal, with lump, with both, and with wood chunks mixed in.
Set-up as a smoker using the v-plate deflector with a 2X2 charcoal maze, I have had a couple minor issues. On two different cooks using the same set-up, brisket point and pork butts, the length-wise maze "jumped" the tracks after a couple of hours causing the temps to jump from a steady 250 to 350. Did not affect the cook much as I was able to adjust and move the meat to cooler zones in the cooker, love the space! :thumb:
Since then I have only run one-side of the maze, and get close to 8 hours at 275ish, but the temp increases when the maze burns beneath the slotted section of the v-plate. Removing the v-plate and turning it 180 degrees helps maintain a steady temp but it can be a difficult task - heavy v-plate that expands slightly so it is harder to remove, especially when hot, and don't forget to remove any drip pans before removing. :doh: I will continue to experiment with the maze to get longer cook times if needed and to achieve controllable multiple temp zones. I have not even tried the 3/8-inch solid deflector plate yet or the Guru adapter it also came with. More fun to come.
The Assassin 48 performs superbly as grill, it has a ton of space and depending on fuel type and placement, can provide multi-zone cooking. It comes up to temp very quickly for such a larger cooker, responds pretty quickly to temp adjustments, and is surprisingly charcoal/lump efficient!
Lastly, how the heck do I insert photos into the text so that they are not all at the end of the post? TIA
