Turkey stalled

[Rbiegans]

I did a 12lb turkey in my Bradley last year and followed Raichlin's advice to finish it off in my Weber to crisp up the skin. Turned out awesome. This year, I did not have my Weber, planned to smoke a 12.5 lb brined all the way till done. It was a cold day (25 degrees) but managed to get oven temp to 225. I could not get the oven temp hotter, I suppose because of the outside temp. The bird stalled at 145. After over 7 hrs total, still stalled at 145. I had time constraints for dinner plans and finished it off in the oven for 45 mins at 375. Still turned out awesome, moist and good flavor with crisp skin.  I couldn't wait for it any longer. I was surprised by the stall and amount of time. Lesson learned, smoke and finish it off in the grill or oven.

[Habanero Smoker]

I learned some time ago that there is a stall in most meats at around 140°F. This is the temperature when proteins denature (lose their structure), and release a fair amount of liquid quite quickly; which in turn will stall or even drop the internal temperature.. Since I got my Stoker, I have been able to chart this. But generally this stall is fairly short - about 30 minutes. I'm not sure why your stall was so long. If you were using a digital temperature probe, maybe the cold temperature was effecting the equipment.

[Rbiegans]

Had 2 temp probes to double check, one kept in the bird and one portable one I could use to spot check. Both measure were consistent. I did a brisket and was familiar with the stall but most smoker cook books don't mention a turkey stall. I think the problem was that I could not get the oven temp higher.

[Habanero Smoker]

Brisket also has a stall at around 140°F, but that stall is only around 30 minutes of so. The long stall generally begins around 160°F. That is when the tough collagen begins to break down into gelatin.

When I fully smoke/cook a turkey in the Bradley I stay around 225°F or below, and the stall that occurs around 140°F is only 30 minutes; one hour maximum. It's puzzling, but that what makes smoking and barbecuing interesting. Seems you had an unusual occurrence, and it's not likely to repeat.