Newbie to this forum

[West Coast Kansan]

Yea, gotta be whole to be novel.  Sent an email to Mikes Meat. The local butcher.  ;D  ;D   ;D

[Gizmo]

Be interesting to find out what the length and weight on a little guy is.

[LilSmoker]

Hey guys, i just found this:

http://www.dunstangame.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=31&products_id=40&osCsid=02045c07123d65c116a60854d9285fb2

So it weighs about 20+ lbs and is approx 26" long, but i wonder if the 26" is nose to tail?, coz i'm thinking if the legs weren't stetched out too far it might fit?

I'm gonna measure my 4 rack and see if it would fit diagonaly even?

There must be a way to do "Hog in a box"  ;D ;)

[West Coast Kansan]

http://mcreynoldsfarms.com/recommended_links.html

See the link above.  A little bit of a tourist trap that you pay for but is a source. 

I am going to do this thing. Will wait for Mike to get back to me. He is pretty good at getting prices.

LIL S.  24 is it for the 4 rack like you say.  It will be a head down affair which should work pretty good.  The sholder always takes longer than the ham to cook.

Can put a tee shirt over his head once ears start to cook to protect them a little.  Want to maintain presentation appearance.

I think I will deal with the legs just like when you strap them onto a spit.  Pull them under and over each other while smoking. Should be no issue.

Not sure about how to finish.  Would think I would grill finish after all is up to temp. But thinking of Basting in a hot oven. Will monitor IT at sholder and Hams.

Thoughts  ???

[LilSmoker]

Hi WCK, well i measured my OBS diagonaly from the drip pan, and it's around 23 and a bit inches, so i think unless a real small piggy is used i don't think it will fit :'(

I did notice on your link though that they state 10-24lbs, so i reckon a 10 pounder would go in quite comfortably?, although 10lb minus head feet etc, wouldn't yeald much meat when it comes to carving up, would still be nice to do though.
Think i'll search around see if i can find something about 18lbs, i was meant to go to a farm yesterday but ran out of time, they may supply lil'pigs?
Maybe the 6 rack owners could do a 20+ pounder?

I have a family gathering in a few weeks and i would love to present a lil'piggy smoked in the BS  ;D

Consiglieri : You've really started something here!  ;D

LilSmoker

[Consiglieri]

I LOVE IT!!!!!

I went away for the weekend knowing that there'd be some great ideas here when I got back.  I'm going to think about this a bit more, but I think chicken wire might work better than the t-shirt, and would help offset the weight.  Chez had a sausage rack cage that slipped into the vault that could suspend the carcass, but I don't see that item on the site anymore.

LS: a few more thoughts.  Heat distribution between top and bottom of the cabinet are going to be very important.  You'll have to move the critter top to bottom and twist it too from time to time.  I don't have the circulation fan set up, but think that it'll be necessary if I try this one out.

I wonder if we shouldn't move this discussion to a new thread?  Get the gearheads working on this puzzle.
Good work.  I so want this to work!

[West Coast Kansan]

Lil S, It will work. Just gotta score a hog. 10 - 12 lbs is not going to be a huge feed but should do 4 folks to sample.  It is about food BUT will be more about fun  ;) for the next family feed.  Going to do one soon for practice.   ;D

Meat man should get his emails tomorrow. Deliver pig Thursday, Prep on Thursday Night , Make smoke Friday Night to Saturday.  ;)


C...i,
Need to take advantage of the heat at the bottom.  Shoulder will need more heat to finish at the same time as the ham.   :) So this is good.

The tee shirt will protect his little face from over cooking... rotation will be from front to back not top to bottom... So the plan goes  ::)

Will lay out the flaws as they become obvious.  :D Then we can all do it right.  Seems like a holiday must do...  ;D

The smoking will be nice but the finish still has be wondering.  Not going to be able to slather this guy very frequently - thinking of an oven basting period at the end  ???

[Gizmo]

WCK,
The digital is 26 inches from the top of the edge of the vtray to the top of the cabinet. 
Also, if you need to have 36 inches of grillin space, just give me a heads up.  The ranch grill is available to help out if you like.

[West Coast Kansan]

Gizmo, first call I make. It should fit the grill I have but still leaning toward the oven.

Never did a pig outside of a pit.  Fact is whole hog is not hard just heavy.  This is like doing a miniture pig in a miniture smoker and you cant just open the door to paint and you cant add wood for heat. Might be kinda fun!  ;D  ;D  ;D

[Gizmo]

Many times its the jouney not the destination.

Oh yah,
I bought you a little Tennesse dry rub.  Next time we get together, I'll bring it along.

[Consiglieri]

I love this place!  WCK: please share the pics.  You are definately Johnny on the Spot with this project.  How are you going to manage the weight distrib?  Dowels? Bars?  How about maintaining the integrity of the carcas as the collagen breaks down and piggy wants to pull apart?

I wish I were down in San Diego to witness this.  Cheers!  I will definately be toasting you this weekend while I'm making sure the house is presentable for a baby shower.  Somehow, I don't think smoking ribs or a but is going to work for me this weekend.

[Consiglieri]

Slathering/mopping puzzle:  Maybe injection of some mopsauce before loading the vault?  Some "time release" moisture in the cavity like a slitted pineapple (or two) soaked in the mop sauce for a couple of days? 

As for the exterior, maybe remove the hide after 8 hours of smoking and every other hour or so mop with something more viscous like a honey based sauce, more at the top.  With heat and drippings, the mop should follow gravity over time. 

Anyone technically proficient enough to move this stuff over to its own thread?

[LilSmoker]

WCK: Yes you're right, i have to source myself something in the region of 10-12lbs, even though it would small, would still make a great centre piece on the table, i think your idea about cooking him head facing down would work best, and maybe foil the ears to stop burning?  ;)


Consiglieri :

Lot's of good ideas on the smoke/cooking process, but i suppose there's only one way to find out ;D, i agree with you, this subject certainly warrants it's own thread, but only a mod or admin can do that, unless we start a new thread ;)

[Consiglieri]

Started a Whole Hog thread, and attempted to summarize discussions so far.  Good luck to you guys if you're diving in.  I will be keeping an eye out for news this weekend!