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Weber 721001 18.5-Inch Smoker
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I’ve found all aspects of this cooker to be exceptional. Being a lifetime griller, I do admit that as a newbie to smoking, I also purchased Low & Slow: Master the Art of Barbecue in 5 Easy Lessons by Gary Wiviott and Colleen Rush to help me get a good start. This book, if followed, will pretty much guarantee BBQ perfection. The cooker itself came well packaged with good documentation. Assembly required a flat screwdriver and either an adjustable wrench or a 7/16″ socket or nut-driver plus about 20 minutes. In addition to the WSM and the book, I purchased an oven thermometer, a Weber Chimney Starter and after a couple smokes, a second bottom charcoal grate. While many, including Mr. Wiviott say the thermometer in the lid of the smoker is worthless, I’ve found it to be very accurate when compared to the oven thermometer I place inside on the rack beside my meat. I’ve rarely seen more than 5 degrees difference. I do concur with those who say that small pieces of lump charcoal will slip through the lower grate. This is why I purchased the second grate which I set 90 degrees to the original. I’ve also observed that when you get down to the small pieces of charcoal, it takes a little extra effort to get sufficient air circulation. This of course, has nothing to do with the smoker and is just an observation.
The really neat thing about this smoker is that once you’ve got the coals hot and placed the food on the grates, there’s nothing else to do for the next four hours, or so. The temperture gage stayed at a consistant 225 degrees for the next four hours. Just ensure the coals are hot (or starting to ash), all vents are open, and the water pan is full (I used hot water), and that’s it. Then, prepare yourself for the best tasting ribs, (beef or pork) chicken, or brisket you have ever cooked.
Over this past weekend, I smoked my first pork butt roast which was just under 8 lbs. It smoked a total of 10.5 hours and turned out great. If the charcoal ring is filled full, the WSM will consistently yield just over 5 hours of heat. It is fairly easy to add more charcoal for longer smokes.
If you want a smoker I highly recommend this unit. It will easily cook a turkey and a ham or pork butt at the same time. I’ve seen pictures of people cooking a total of 50lbs of pork shoulder perfectly. This smoker rocks and will last a long time, after all it’s metal and comes with a 10 year limited warranty. My old electric smoker that lasted approx a year before it died had a 90 day warranty and was poor quality at nearly the same cost! Stick with American made, high quality and get yourself the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, you won’t regret it!! Well…maybe you’ll regret not getting it sooner!