Smokin-It User Forum!

General Discussions => Mods and Adjustments => Topic started by: BBQueen on December 10, 2020, 10:56:39 AM

Title: Mods to SMokin-It #2
Post by: BBQueen on December 10, 2020, 10:56:39 AM
I know I just bought it....but here is a big one...

I added the Smokemiester 2

I went with a no power needed smoke generator but I was torn...I burned it in on a 40 degree day and the internal temp only reached 70 degrees. That was with the sample wood pellets. I am now doing a test burn using apple wood chips. It is currently 31 degrees and the temp inside holding at 50 F.

Also on order which I will have photos  in a few days of the installation is a 1/2 NPT pipe bulkhead fitting and a Measureman 3" dial, analog thermometer, scale 50 to 400 degree, with 4" shaft. I will drill a 1" hole in the door, install the bulkhead fitting. The reasoning behind this is if you are going to measure the temperature inside the smoker then you should do the measurement the same way each time. SO for a reference temp...that I know is from the same place and I can get a feel for the heat. I went with a stainless bulkhead fitting so I could swap out for a lower thermometer of something like 0 to 200 F when I am cold smoking. I know this is pretty nerdy. But hey...its all good.

Here is the thermometer and bulkhead fitting...I'll add a pic when I fit it.

Oh also I ordered a Auber PID Temp controller. A Single probe...version.

Title: Re: Mods to SMokin-It #2
Post by: old sarge on December 10, 2020, 08:54:52 PM
Looks good. Enjoy!
Title: Re: Mods to SMokin-It #2
Post by: OldeSmoker on December 14, 2020, 12:55:43 AM
I am not familiar with the Smokemeister CSG. I have the Bella CSG from SI. If folks aren’t cold smoking in their SI they are missing out on some good eats. Enjoy your new setup.
Title: Re: Mods to SMokin-It #2
Post by: BBQueen on December 15, 2020, 10:43:00 AM
Here is a snap of the thermometer installed. I opted for 1" from the top, and more or less dead center. The top of the etched oval pretty much marked the spot. I went with a 1-1/8" hole the bulkhead fitting flange was 1" so I went a bit bigger. The problem I ran into was the thickness of the door. It is thick enough that I wasn't able to screw the  bulk head fitting nut on. The threads were still inside the wall of the door. So I reverese the fitting and just left the nut loose on the thermometer thread and screwed the thermometer into the flange. It tightens fine but it is a bit of a kludge. So...I will be looking for a longer bulkhead fitting...

But the thermometer works exactly how I wanted and provides excellent feedback of the temperature without twiddling with a electronic thing.
I cooked a rack of ribs trimmed St. Louis style and the rib tips yesterday and they came out delicious. And I was able to watch the thermometer...its nerdy and probably overkill but I like it...it is super accurate, looks cool and was cheep...

Also coming is a Auber PID. The newer one that is just a single probe channel and 1200 watts.

Also here is a pic of the smokemiester 2 in action...on some cheese I smoked...it works really well...it generates just enough heat to create a draft and it really fills the box with plenty of smoke. I used chips...will try pellets next time. My only concern is it creats too much smoke for the box size...I may experiment with a pellet tube inside the  smokemiester to reduce the volume of smoke and get a longer burn from a smaller amount of wood. Might be a tube smoker trimmed to fit inside...