Pit Barrel rocket

[phoccer]

fzxdoc Good point about the binder clips, I'll avoid them in the future. I ended up removing them after temps had dropped below 300 and the temps never crept back up. I made the change in the vent at the same time so I can' attribute the temp drop to one thing but the combination. My guess is that I need that vent set at the 1/8ish mark for my setup. Using Kingsford Pro and and possibly slightly leaky lid(I'll keep working on that) may let it run where it's supposed to. I know my Weber Kettle leaks a little but I'm able to control temps. It was terribly leaky when I first got it and couldn't control temps at all. Looks like my PBC may be similar. I'll get another run at it this Friday and I'm going to go without the binder clips but with the new 1/8 setting for the vent and see how it runs.

[JeffJ]

Keep in mind that the PBC was calibrated to work with Kingsford Original.

[phoccer]

JeffJ Very good point and I'm definitely well aware of that and know I'm trying to do something out of the recommendations. I know I'm going off course using KP and so far I've been lucky with my results or the PBC is that good . I got 7 hours out of yesterday's cook which I was very happy with. Probably should have tried the smaller opening to start given KP is known to run hot but I figured I'd start with everything else as recommended and just change the fuel and see how it goes. I've read a bunch on the official PBC forums about people using lump, etc and everyone says it works great. What I haven't seen is anyone posting what they may have had to do different to get the lump to work great. Fingers crossed that the smaller vent opening will result in a more desirable/consistent run on Friday. I sure enjoy the journey though and everyone's tips.

[fzxdoc]

Ernest always uses lump in his PBC, or at least he did when that wonderful Ozark Oak Lump was still available, phoccer . Hopefully he'll chime in here.

About the binder clips--I'm an early PBC customer so I have one of the original barrels. Even the spot where I used to lean the lid while adding the meat has developed a rust spot. That's how I know how touchy that barrel surface can be. YMMV with the newer PBCs but better safe than sorry.

There's nothing wrong with bolting the PBC corral and using another charcoal not specifically recommended for the PBC. It's all about getting that little barrel to do your bidding, and figuring out the best way to make that happen. That's the fun part of using the PBC in particular and smoking in general, IMO.

Kathryn

[Ernest]

You own your PBC, experiment with it. I cooked KB blue bag maybe once or twice. I hate the blue bag.
I Cooked with lump more than Kingsford. And when I used Kingsford, it was always the competition.
I rebelled against everything that Noah put out and I wasn't disappointed.

[Ernest]

One thing that I did learn and pretty much lost that battle is that PBC will run at whatever temp it wants.
Fighting it will just cause unnecessary stress.
It's a power cooker, not a smoker.

[Pirate Scott]

Good Looking cook, that temp really did get stable too.

[JeffJ]

PBC veterans can correct me if I'm wrong....I've used my new PBC once (so far). I cooked 3 slabs of baby backs in it and they turned out great. The observation I made (this is where veterans can disagree) is that chamber temperature alone does not dictate how long it takes to cook low/slow. First example: The rotisserie ring I have for the Performer. Every time I cook turkey rotisserie it takes less time in the Performer when I cook with SnS or Smokenator (which I haven't used since acquiring the SnS) even when I've measured nearly identical temps at the grate. I had a similar experience with my first run in the PBC. The first hour I was at 264 and the remaining 3 hours I was at 255. I've cooked at higher average temps in both the kettle and the WSM and it still took longer to cook those ribs than it did in the PBC. My takeaway is that grate temps alone don't dictate how meat cooks. It seems that radiant heat plays a significant role. I liken it to 2 - 75 degree days. If it's sunny, it just feels hotter (even though the air temperature is the same) and direct exposure to the sun's UV rays can result in sunburn whereas on a cloudy day it's not an issue.

[DWCowles]

Beautiful!