Surprise!

[sdaniels]

OK, so I finally got around to my first 'big' smoke this weekend and I'm looking for a little feedback from the folks that have done a 10+ lb brisket in their model 2.  The brisket went on at 7:45am with a temp setting of 225 on the dial.  Smoker temp hovered around 220 (never higher) and the brisket reached the stall around 1:40pm with an internal temp of 165.  From that point on the temp continued to hover around 200 and I was past the stall around 8pm.  I never made it to my target pull temp of 203 and I did end up increasing the temp to 235 around 10:30p in an effort to get the internal temp higher.  In any event, I ended up pulling the brisket at 2am with an internal temp of 199 because it wouldn't budge.  With the dial set at 235 the smoker temp still hovered around 220 at the highest so my question is this -

When doing a 10+ lb brisket should I be setting the temp dial on 250 for the duration?

I'll post a pic or two when I get home (didn't have the phone handy at 2am) but it won't look nearly as good as it did when it was hot.

[swthorpe]

I think this is something that you will need to adjust as you become more familiar with the heating temps.  I have noticed on my last couple of smokes that setting the dial to 225 gets the unit to 225 or so, but then the temps begin to decrease.  So, now I set the temp gauge just a bit higher than 225 so the temp swings average close to the desired 225F temp.

[DivotMaker]

Wow, that's a really long time for a 10-pounder!  I recently did an 11 lb packer @ 225 - smoked it unwrapped for 4 1/2 hours, then foil-wrapped when it hit the stall (the wrap is called the "Texas crutch."  Helps retain the moisture and prevents evaporative cooling, which is the cause of the stall).  Total time in my #1 to 195 internal was just under 12 hours.  Kept it wrapped, resting in the cooler for an hour.  Meat came out very tender and moist. 

Did you open the door much during the cook?  Are you using an extension cord, or plugged into a good outlet?  Sounds like something's amiss with this.  Bet the family wasn't happy about eating brisket at 2 a.m.!

[sdaniels]

No extension cord and I think I opened the door once after the stall but it seemed to recover pretty quickly.  Could just be a case of getting used to a cycling element versus the WSM so I'll try a few more things.  I definitely learned a lesson on this one - start the big meats at night and go to bed   

I contemplated using the crutch but figured I would try it without one first.