Two 12lb turkeys in the #2

[Gjevans00]

I will be smoking two 12lb butterflied birds in my #2 for thanksgiving. Both will be brined & rubbed.  The question I have is, what would be an expected cook time for them @ 250F?

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[newmexsmoker]

last year I cooked a 19.33 pounder at 235 deg it took 9 hours in a number 3 to reach 165 deg

[swthorpe]

I did a 12# turkey in my #2 and it took about 4.5 hours at 235F.   

[jbauch357]

I'd be amazed if you can get two 12 pound turkeys in the #2, the 14 pound bird I just did took up well over half of my available capacity.

That said it took ~5.5hrs for my 14 pound bird to hit 165 in the breast and maybe another half hour for it to hit 170 in the breast and crest 160 in the thighs.  Due to how cold it is outside it took about an hour to ramp up to 250 though, so you may want to consider initial outside temp in your planning.

[DivotMaker]

last year I cooked a 19.33 pounder at 235 deg it took 9 hours in a number 3 to reach 165 deg

I would strongly discourage you from smoking a bird that big this year.  About 14 lbs is the max you can smoke safely.  Any larger, and the meat stays in the "danger zone" between 40 - 140° way too long.  You run the risk of growing things you don't want.  Better to do the really big ones in a hot oven, not 235.  Poultry doesn't benefit from low and slow, so I would also recommend using 250 for your poultry, not 235.

[gregbooras]

You could always smoke the first bird half the way and then finish in the oven.

Greg

[Gjevans00]

It looks like there is going to be enough room for 2 birds. I'll take the backbone out and butterfly each one right onto separate racks, keeping them towards the top of the #2.  Temp probe will go in the bottom bird.  Would it be wise to rotate the racks half way through cooking, or keep the door shut till fully done?  Does 7 hours total cook time be about right to hit 165 IT?   

[Gjevans00]

Two - 12# birds @ 250F for 6hrs to reach 165IT. Brined, spatched and injected.

[DivotMaker]

Nice-looking birds!