FINALLY Finished! Here is my new smoker with it's own home :)

[DukeNukeIt]

OK, so I bought my Bradley back in January of 2012 (almost one year ago), and have finally got some free time to finish all of my mods.  I did the 900W heater, recirc fan, 8-rack, front feet, cold smoke adapter, DIY PID control, and finally a home to store it all.  There will be a couple of more posts that will highlight the actual mods soon, I'll post links later on this topic.



The storage unit is lined with a water heater blanket so I can keep a very accurate temperature in any weather reguardless of ambient temp or wind.  I have a simple work light for those late night smokes  8)



My first smoke was just a simple chicken.  I brinded the chicken for 6 hours, and then just smoked it naturally with no rub for 3 hours at 220, then for 2 more hours at 250 until I measured 170 in the thigh.  The stepped heat control was done automatically with my dual PID I built, and the temp with the 900W heater never varied much  :D



The chicken had a good smokey flavor and was moist, but the skin was lackluster which is to be expected.  Next time I'll try a bit more brine time, and an application of Jan's Rub with a quick finish in a high heat oven to crisp the skin.

Next was a pulled pork dinner for New Years Eve  ;D 



I cut 2 pork shoulders in half to make 4 four-pound roasts.  I rubbed the pork with a Cajun rub mix I use for my Jambalaya, then let them rest in the fridge overnight.  The next morning I started the smoker at 5am and smoked the pork with hickory for 5 hours at 220.  I then wrapped each pork roast in foil, then continued to cook them at 220 for another 5 hours till the meat was 200.  I then let them rest FTC style for 2 hours before pulling.  MY GOD was that the most tender, moist, succulent, meat I have ever had!  If there would be any improvement, I would have only liked a bit more smoke flavor.  Next time I will try Jan's rub, with a little bit of apple juice added when I first wrap the pork in foil after 6 hours of smoke.  This should be some fun experimenting  ;)



Thanks gang!

Dave

[GusRobin]

Nice set up - what are the internal dimensions of the cabinet?

[Quarlow]

Nice work and that pulled pork looks to have come out real nice.

[3rensho]

How does the smoker stay so shiny???

[bostonsmoker]

Nice job. Exactly what I'm looking for. What make/model is the cabinet?

[mikecorn.1]

Nice set up and the bird looks great.
Smoker needs more use, it looks brand new for a year old 8)


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

[beefmann]

good looking setup. like the wheel setup on the cabinet... great looking food as well

[DukeNukeIt]

The smoker is only shiny because I've not used it till now...   :'(  But that should change soon.  I'm hoping for a nice flat black textured faux finish  ;D

The cabinet is from Lowes Home Improvement.  It's a Suncoast brand, but I'm not sure on the model.  I'll have to check the internal dimensions when I get a chance.

[squirtthecat]

Very nice, indeed!

[bostonsmoker]

The cabinet is from Lowes Home Improvement.  It's a Suncoast brand, but I'm not sure on the model.  I'll have to check the internal dimensions when I get a chance.

Great. Thank you.

[Salmonsmoker]

Nice build Duke. You'll want to insulate your smoke stack. As soon as hot moist air hits that cool stove pipe the moisture will condense and you'll get black rain on what ever is sitting under the vent opening. The inside is too shiny-need my sunglasses.  ;D