This was my 4th smoke and my 4th disappointment with my OBS.

[TheBoz]

6 hours to smoke a 1.3lb boneless turkey breast?  what's wrong?

This was my 4th smoke and my 4th disappointment with my OBS.  A few weeks ago, I bought a OBS and the Auber dual probe PID.  I was really looking forward to easy smoking...

Disappointment 1, first smoke, my brand new Auber did not work, no power to the smoke generator outlet, sent it back for repairs.

Disappointment 2, second smoke, got my auber back, tried to smoke some meat sticks, the power outlet to the bradley tower, quit 4 hours in.  Asked Auber to just send me a whole new PID, they did.  gave up after 12 hours, never could get the IT up to 150deg.

Disappointment 3, third smoke, tried salmon, took 10 hours to get the IT up to 160deg but only after I cranked the temp up to 225 for 4 hours.

Disappointment 4, fourth smoke, To give the OBS and the Auber the benefit of the doubt, I decided to just go simple test it.  I set the Auber temp to 225deg and tried to smoke a 1.3lb boneless turkey breast, it took 6hrs to reach 170deg, last 2hrs at 250deg, at least the PID seemed to work this time...  The element glows red and it seems to reach temp quick enough, preheat to 250 took 30min.  Three thermometers all show the same temp, I feel like I'm wasting my time with the OBS and the Auber.

I've verified the temp probes in ice and boiling water, I added oven thermometers to the racks, they agree with the temps.  Why does it take 6 hours to cook one pound of meat?  I don't think the OBS is going to work for me, any one have any ideas?  Should I quit and build one with some BTUs?

[classicrockgriller]

You need to call Bradley.

They need to help you find out what the problem is.

Have you contacted them at all?

[TheBoz]

I called them to get a replacement part, the plastic piece below the door was cracked by the third smoke, started to question the quality but everyone on this forum loves them, that's why I choose a Bradly.  I'll call them to see what they say.

[Quarlow]

How do you have the vent set. For poultry you should have it wide open. Something is not adding up. Don't give up on the OBS we will help you figure it out. I have the same one and it works great. Although I have never done a turkey breast so I can't say how long it would take but 6 hrs seems too long. I have done stuffed pork loins and they only take 2 hrs and I would say that should be similar to a 1.3 lb breast. But the only thing I can think is you have the vent closed or only partly open and it should be wide open for all chicken and turkey. Because poultry has so much moisture in it you need to let it out of the cabinet. The moist air acts as heat quencher and causes the smoker to stay cool. You have to let that moisture out.

[TheBoz]

Thank you for the offer to help, my vent was 1/2 open, the outside was dried out by the time I pulled it out.  The inside was moist but under cooked.

here are the posts for my other issues.

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=17281.0
http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=17110.0
http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=17282.0

[KyNola]

Sounds to me like the heating element is not working at all.  Is that possible?

[classicrockgriller]

He stated in a previous post he has had temps up to 225.

[Quarlow]

You should try opening the vent wide open. My first smoke I kept the vent closed cause that was how my dad did our old plywood smokers. I had water pouring out all over and the temp wouldn't go past 120f.

[KyNola]

Sorry, my bad.

Sounds like Q may have a possible answer.

[classicrockgriller]

Sorry, my bad.

Sounds like Q may have a possible answer.

I cheated, I went back and read his post! ;D

[classicrockgriller]

Boz, I sent you a PM with my teley #.

The offer stands if you want to see if I can help.

[Habanero Smoker]

There is no logical explanation why it would take 6 hours to cook a 1.3 pound turkey breast at 225°F to an internal temperature of 170°F. Even moving the meat directly from the refrigerator to the smoker and not preheating the cabinet, it should not take that long. This one is a mystery to me.

[TheBoz]

I agree, this is not logical, the IT on the breast was 65deg when I started.  The only thing I can think of after sleeping on it was opening the door too many times checking the oven thermometer on the rack.  I opened it at least once an hour but the temp recovered in 5min each time.  Today, I'm going to call Classicrockgriller and try three chicken legs with no PID and then three legs with the PID, (and never open the door during the whole smoke, and vent wide open.)

I also forgot to note that the turkey breast was on the top rack and the PID probe was 1/2" below back wall mount.  Would it take longer on the top rack with only one item in the smoker?

[SouthernSmoked]

Hello TheBoz, you took the words right out of my mouth. I was going to post exactly that last night but decided to wait until this morning to do so. I have an employee that purchased one of the OBS last year and one day he came to working saying how I talked him into buying a piece of junk. He was having the same problem. He was use to a grill. He was checking in on it all the time. The cabinet temp had no problem reaching temp but as soon as it did he would open the door.

There is an old saying --- "If your looking your not cooking!"

[Quarlow]

 Ok there is another saying that goes "everytime you open the door it adds a half an hour to your cooking time". But once an hour is not that bad. Sometimes you need to rotate and switch the racks that often.
I would put your breast on the second or third rack up from the bottom.
The 3 legs test is a good start as they should not take more than say 3 hrs. 1 hr. smoke and no more than 2 hrs to cook. Of course you may want to grill them for 10 min.s after to crisp the skin. The bradley leaves the skin kind of rubbery so a little high heat on the barb-b always helps.