WSM Question

[BriggsBBQ]

Done a couple cooks on the WSM and seems pretty straight forward very batch of food turned out great. So why do so many people do the mods and if so which one's really count?

[DWCowles]

Mostly because some people likes to tinkle with things. I only used the PartyQ with my so I can get a little shuteye on the long low & slow cooks.

[BriggsBBQ]

I did end up just ordering the rotisserie, going to try to make trompo.

[Potkettleblack]

Interesting idea. I'm considering adding a rotisserie to my grill next year, and trompo al pastor hadn't occurred to me.

[Beefchop]

I agree with DWCowles. No matter how good we cook, we all like to see if we can make it just a little bit better! FWIW, I've run my WSM with no mods since I bought it about 5 years ago.

[ecowper]

I believe you could run it out of the box no problem at all. When my wife gave it to me on Father's Day, she told me to go ahead and get all the gear I wanted for it, that was part of the gift.

[airforcekixbutt]

BriggsBBQ I have a 18'5 WSM and the only mod I'm considering is the hinge for the lid. Other than that it cooks just fine!

[BriggsBBQ]

I thought the hinge would be cool too but going to see how much rotisserie I do and go based on that.

[ecowper]

Since I've got a rotisserie for my Hasty-Bake I haven't really considered one for the WSM

[ecowper]

I just got a WSM 22 .... I ordered the hinge for the lid after one cook. I hated taking the lid off and laying it on the ground. I've also ordered the door from Cajun Bandit because it LOOKS so much better than the standard aluminum door. Everything on the WSM is such high quality, except for the door, I just don't get what Weber is thinking there.

I am probably going to order a 14" charcoal ring. I think it will make my life a lot easier on shorter cooks.

[BriggsBBQ]

Yeah I am considering the door also for the looks. I have found I waste a good amount of charcoal for stuff like chicken so I might go for the smaller ring too.

[CeramicChef]

I had a WSM years upon years ago. That was long before the Internet and sites like Amazing Rib or The Pit. What I wouldn't have given for this community back in the day. I stumbled through and produced some very good que, but it was a hard ramp to climb.

There were definitely some mods that would have made life so much easier. Seals, hinges, etc. Were they absolutely necessary? No, I discovered work around. Would they have made life easier? Absolutely! Can you produce good Que without any mods? You bet! It's your cooker. Modify it to suit your style and needs.

Here's to great cooks and even better memories with family and friends!

[ecowper]

BriggsBBQ the door just got delivered. Looks so much better!

[ecowper]

Brisket is on my list for sure. Have fun

[Craigar]

ecowper did you upgrade the latch too?

[ecowper]

Craigar no, I didn't see any need to upgrade the latch. Figured if it was an issue, I could always order the latch later. Turns out no need. The original latch works fine, looks fine.

[BriggsBBQ]

Any suggestions on getting strong smoke flavor?

[CandySueQ]

More wood!

[Thom Emery]

Load the meat while it's still cold also

[ecowper]

+1000

[ecowper]

Hey BriggsBBQ ... this is what the new door on the 22.5 WSM looks like after a couple of cooks. Seals up nicely, in addition to looking much better.

[BriggsBBQ]

Nice man. I like how it overlaps the grill more. I was bored and put some bge gasket on mine and hate the look of it now but do not want to peel off the gasket to leave the glue.

[ecowper]

get yourself some glue gone type stuff and get the crud off. :-)

[Potkettleblack]

Tight seal.

[PaulstheRibList]

I have Two 22.5 Inch WSM's, and love them best with Zero of the mod's.

I've bought the hinge, the stainless doors and the gasket mod's, and the temperature control fan, because buying gear to make your stuff even better is really fun for men! That's why we buy and then tinker to make them even better!

The stainless door is cool, except that my door handle parts would fail on the new door. So I put the old door back on and it cooks great!

The fact that there is this tiny bit of exhaust that leaks out due to the imperfect seals on the door or where the lid seats is irrelevant to me - that just means you have a little more throughput out the top if you want to. Or, I just can close the top vent a little more to compensate for the small amount of air that might leave through the door.

I've cooked now hundreds of racks of ribs and other great Q on my WSM. The compound benefit of that is that I've taken good notes from different cooks and now am confident leaving her be on overnight cooks with no need for the electronic fan controller. I know, there's a bit of a risk to doing so...but I'm a risk taker!

Enjoy your WSM! Spend your money on other gear, which we all know we need much, much more of!

P.S. I'm going to Houston Saturday to pick up another smoker, so I know about the other gear purchases...

[ecowper]

I have yet to see where I would need the temperature control unit. I have only done a few cooks and the WSM is very easy to dial in to the temp I want it at. I do like the hinge and the door, but they aren't necessary. Like you said, more about being tinkering and pimping out my cooker!

[PaulstheRibList]

Exactly! #SuperFunStuff