Tips on starting fire in OKJ Bronco Pro

[DNADave]

I love my OKJ Bronco Pro but it always seems I start the fire too hot and have trouble getting it down to 225° for my cook. As I'm writing, Bronco is at 256° after 30 minutes with intake at less than 1 and exhaust at 2. Not terrible, but not where I want temp to be and I don't want to choke out the fire. Any tips would be appreciated!

[tstalafuse]

How are you starting your fire?

[DNADave]

I placed a lit half-chimney of Kingsford Blue into the empty center of the basket with a ring of unlit briquettes circling the center.

[Steve R.]

DNADave, you might try starting with fewer lit briquets. Count the number of them that equal what you are calling half a chimney and go down from there. And I don't know how long you are letting it go with the lid and vents wide open at the beginning, but I give it 10 minutes before adjusting everything down.

[RonB]

Why do you want 225°? Where ever it settles between 225° and 275° is fine, and the higher temp will get your food done quicker. Some people go even higher. The 225° temp just seemed catch on at some point in the past but is not really necessary and if ya stop chasing temps, you will enjoy your cook more.

[WI Bubba]

Way to say the same as me in way fewer words Ron.

[Oak Smoke]

It took me a while to learn this lesson. I now whole heartedly embrace cooking at hotter temps. I smoke SLT ribs at 250 F, pork butt at 275 F, and brisket at 300 F. I have no complaints at all.

[WI Bubba]

Best advise I can give you is to forget about there being some magic temperature that is perfect for BBQ. Your cooker is running 225°? Great, cook at that temp. 275°? Also great, cook at that temp.

There is no magic temperature that is the key to BBQ success, and you will only make yourself crazy trying to hit one. The big downside to 225° is that you are extending your cook times with no improvement in the quality of your food. If you run too hot, then you don't give the meat enough time to break down the connective tissues and render the fat nicely. As long as you can hold reasonably (+/-15°) steady in the 225° to 300° range, you'll be fine. I generally run most of my cooks around the 275° mark.

To address your specific question, you need to have fewer coals burning at startup to avoid overshooting your desired temp. It takes a lot of experimentation to find out what works best for your cooker, and as soon as you find the perfect method, the wind, temperature, humidity, or exact makeup of the charcoal will change. Now you get to start all over again. It's just not worth the hassle. After all, we're making BBQ, not watches.

You will save yourself a lot of hair pulling if you just let the cooker run how it wants on that given day, and simply adjust your cooking time.

[RichieB]

I have a Pit Barrel so same in a sense. I like 250 to 275. IMO 225 is too low. Cook time is longer and the higher heat will render the fat on the cut more effectively. If you're adamant about 225, as already mentioned, experiment with different methods.

[Duanessmokedmeats]

PBC, PBX, PBX!

[Alan Brice]

My PBC taught, always same bottom vent adj. Regulate with rebar openings or not.
She gonna run where she wants. Too much meat requires more heat.

[DNADave]

Thanks for the advice, gang. I live in SWFL, where the stinkin' hot temps don't help. But I'm running at 270° with intake less than 1 and exhaust down to 1+. Maybe I could have built a smaller fire...

Do you all use intake as the primary temp control? I know it's a balance, but...

[Panhead John]

When I had my Bronco, I’d leave the bottom [intake] maybe 1/4 open and do my adjustments with the top [exhaust] vent. It was the regular size Bronco though, not the Pro.

[TripleB]

I don't own a OKJ Bronco, but have cooked on drum smokers and seen a lot of them in competitions and have talked with their pit masters. My 2 cents from the peanut gallery:

1. Drum smokers run hot. My PBC runs hot and my brother's UDS runs hot. Drum smokers are finding a place in competition. I would say that drum smokers make up about 50% of the equipment used in competition. The pit masters want hot and fast over low and slow. They feel it puts out a better product for some proteins.

2. What is the "sweet spot", temperature wise, for your OKJ? Every smoker, based upon it's configuration, construction, intake/exhaust vents have one. Find it and tailor your cooks to that temp. If your OKJ's "sweet spot" is 300 degrees and your trying to push the temp down to 225 degrees, you'll be wrestling with it during the whole cook with temperature swings.

3. Give your fire more time to settle down. I give the fire in my offset roughly (sometimes longer) 1 hour from start to first putting on the protein to stabilize and find it's "sweet spot".

FWIW........

[Purc]

I love my Bronco. I don't really have any major problems holding a certain temp. I too think you may have started with too large of a fire. Also, with what and where are you measuring the temperature? Are you using the stock Bronco gauge or a remote probe at the grate level? BTW, I use both vents to adjust temps and same on my Kettle. FWIW, I have been watching a number of pit masters who now are starting their smoke at a very low temp, below 200 for a period of time them bumping it up to more traditional temps for the remainder of the cook. I think as long as you are pleased with the end result, exactly how you got there is not worth stressing over because someone said you must be at this exact temp for this exact amount of time. Several of us pit members ate a Texas Top 50 BBQ recently and he started his off set smoker with Kingsford Match Light charcoal! Don't stress, enjoy the process and the BBQ you produce. As always, YMMV

[Panhead John]

you get close to your desired temps, adjust vents from there.

[Purc]

Thanks Panhead John I meant to say starting with less hot coals not
fewer coals in total. I also used tumbleweeds as you state. On YouTube there are videos
showing starting the coals with fire starters in this manner. DNADave I have smoked as long as 12 hours without refueling and smoking at temps from 225 to 250. I use a mix of B&B Briquettes and Char Logs for long smokes. Sorry for the confusion in terms, we all meant to say start with fewer hot coals.

[Alan Brice]

I always use KBB as my start pile or in the chimbley, never had a flame out. Ever.

[Potkettleblack]

1- you can start smaller.

2- you can also close the top vent down to 1.

3- but most importantly, just let it run the temp it wants to run. My Bronco can be dialed down to 225, but I find I get better results letting it run 250-280.

[DNADave]

Thanks again, everyone. I think I'll try starting with the tumbleweeds next time per Panhead John and Purc . After that, I'll try a half of a half chimney (or less) and compare. I'm only a half-dozen cooks into my new Bronco after having an old cabinet smoker, so lots of experimenting to come. I appreciate you all! (BTW, I was smoking a skin-on turkey breast so 275° was a fine temp for the cook. It turned out great -- pics next time.)

[bbqLuv]

Yep, fire management is a skill.

[Finster]

I may have to try this method of lighting fire starters right in the basket. I normally light a half chimney and dump it over the unlit coals in the basket. After 10 minutes or so, I add my wood and close the lid. From that point, I'm anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes from adding my protein because it usually takes that long for the grey smoke to go away...

Edit to add: I almost always overshoot my temp at the start, because with the 2 dampers, I find it pretty easy to get temp back down to where I am happy with it.

[bep35]

I have a PBC and assume the Bronco is similar, but they like to run hotter (250-275) which is okay. That's just what they do. If you are committed to 225 as your low and slow goal, you could try a fan with controller such as Fireboard Drive or Thermorworks Billows with Signals. Have fun!

[DTro]

I fill my basket leaving room on one side. I drop in 5-8 burning coals in that space. Leave the lid and intake open for 10 minutes. Close the lid and open the exhaust. Once you get within 10 degrees of your desired temp close down the dampers.

Dropping the burning coals in the center allows to much charcoal to burn at once raising your temps.

[Murdy]

I start mine with 2 or 3 tumbleweeds spread out around the charcoal basket. I leave the vents open all the way and shut them down some as it approaches the mid 200s. Mine seem to like to settle in around 240, and once I hit that, it'll stay there for a long time pretty much unsuprevised.