getting a 2 star for Christmas, some questions!

[KyNola]

Since this was your first smoke, the chamber had no film of grease in it that the ash will adhere to but you are going to have ash in the chamber regardless. The whole idea of the fan running among other things is to blow the ash out of the firepot. Some pellets and/or wood combinations throw off more ash than others. I don't think I read where you said what pellets your dealer gave to you in terms of brand and wood.

 

[Bithlord]

My Mak is currently getting processed by BPS, but I'm gonna weigh in here and agree the low temps may have caused a higher burn temp in the firepot and thus a lower amount of smoke. You make need an Amazen Smoke Tube for slow cooks during the winter.

When you say you cooked at a low temp, how low was it? I don't have real world experience yet but have read you need to keep it at 225 or lower for the best smoke results. Looking at the finished meat pic I'm gonna guess you had it in the 225 to 250 range.

The Greasicle shot by the way is MONEY

That is a pretty spot on guess. I had the set point at 235 for the majority of the cook. Next time I'll try setting it lower, and longer. This is part of getting used to running a pellet burner instead of a stick burner I suppose, I could get a lot more smoke (sometimes when I didn't want it) out of the logs, then out of the pellets.

But, thats why we cook for just ourselves until we know how to handle it rather than inviting a whole mess of freinds over for the first ever cook.

Since this was your first smoke, the chamber had no film of grease in it that the ash will adhere to but you are going to have ash in the chamber regardless. The whole idea of the fan running among other things is to blow the ash out of the firepot. Some pellets and/or wood combinations throw off more ash than others. I don't think I read where you said what pellets your dealer gave to you in terms of brand and wood.

I don't recall the brand off-hand (I want to say all-star BBQ, or something like that). If the ash doesn't look too excessive, I won't concern myself with it and will just shopvac it each time.

All in all, it was ar elatively easy process, and I'm sure a lot of it is me needing to get the hang of using the MAK specifically.

Thanks.

 

[Sinitron]

First cook looks good. I got my 2-star last year and had a similar experience. Longer cook times (6-12 hours) will scatter more ash around the box, but nothing to be concerned about with regular cleanings. When you ramp up your cooking to include fresh veggies, fish, side dishes, fresh doughs and pizza, it gets interesting.

I can share from experience in sub-freezing temps your indicated vs. grill temp will be about 10°F lower in the [-10F to +20F] range. It also depends a lot on wind conditions as well.

When it's super cold and window out I may have a problem with keeping it lit until it gets rolling... you may get a 'flame out' or constant beeping warning once. No big deal, just turn the unit off, turn it back on, check to make sure pellets are not stuck and free to move, etc. I pulled off great ribs in 10°F conditions on New Years for guests.

Smoke penetration varies... I see more in ribs and prime-rib than shoulders. I had great results with my first shoulder at 240°:

It's really a great product, nothing but rave reviews by anyone who has eaten any food off my 2-star. Good luck!