Newbie with (probably) a dumb question

[tyweb69]

Hey everyone, 1st of all let me say this forum is awesome and very informative.  It is actually one of the reasons I went with a Bradley (with the reviews being another major factor).  I just ordered yesterday the OBS with a dual core auber.  HOPING to have everything before the weekend.  At any rate I have been perusing the forums just to familiarize myself with the smoker and smoking in general as I have never done it before.  Here is where the dumb question(s) comes into play.  What does FTC mean?  I searched the forum to find out its Foil-Towel-Cool but exactly what is the method to that (eg completely seal the foil no holes?, completely wrap the foil with the towel?).  I know its probably a dumb question but might as well start off doing things right!!  Also, again probably another silly question but, is there a min amount of meat you have to put in the smoker?  Say I am smoking something just for me that takes up less than 1/2 of a rack.  Does it matter?  I would assume the cook time might be less but I don't know if having too little in there affects anything.  Thanks in advance for your help.

[KyNola]

Welcome! No dumb questions here!  FTC, Foil Towel Cooler.  Wrap the meat completely in foil, no openings.  Wrap the foil wrapped package completely in a towel.  Place in either an empty cooler(no ice) and close the lid or your microwave oven(make sure no one turns it on!) and close the door.  The FTC or FTM method is used to hold meat that is done for several hours.  I have placed butts in FTC for up to 6 hours and them still be too hot to handle barehanded.

As for the load in a smoker, it matters not.  A larger load will cause your Bradley to more slowly recover the heat it loses when you open the door to place the load inside the tower.  Remember, cold meat will act as a heat sink, sucking up all of the heat energy your Bradley is producing.  Don't panic, it's all part of the process.

Hope this helps.  If you have anymore questions, fire away.  We're all here to assist.

[beefmann]

FTC is exactly what ky  had  indicated,, it allows you  time to hold the meat till  dinner time and allow you  time to  prepare thje rest of the meal if the  meat  gets done early
also ask  questions,, ther are a  lot  of knowledgeable people here

[hal4uk]

Like KyNola said...  There are no "dumb questions".
Well, except for maybe, "which direction is Memphis?"
(since we don't know where you are!)
[hint: update your profile]

Welcome aboard!

[tyweb69]

Thanks for the info and I just updated my location (didn't even notice that!!).  I am sure I will be a lot more active once I get going. 

[ragweed]

Welcome to the forum from Nebraska. 

[tskeeter]

Ty, not only is this an awesome forum, but the forum has a really awesome repository of recipes from some of the forum's most experienced smokers.  Check out Our Time Tested and Proven Recipes at www.susanminor.org.  I've found out how to do several things that I wouldn't have thought of, or thought were too complicated.  One of the helpful things is that, because these are pretty much Bradley specific recipes, the instructions and tips they contain are quite a bit more detailed than you will find in most books on smoking.  With the recipe site as a reference, you can tackle a variety of smoking projects with confidence.

[Saber 4]

Welcome from Texas, everyone has given you some great advice to get you started, if you haven't seen it from your perusing of the forum already I will say Keep your vent open, keep your vent open, your water in your bowl and have a great smoke.

[tyweb69]

Thanks everybody!!  Smoker arrived today!!  Gonna season it Friday night and get right to it Saturday.  I am sure there will be some trial and error but with all the great info I've obtained already on here I am confident I will be happy with the results.