MikeUSMC: "Bury Me in Smoke"

Ok, I started with a Jim Beam barrel on Craigslist for $100



Sanded it down with a wire wheel on an angle grinder on the bands.
80 grit, then 120 grit, then 150 grit sandpaper "flapper" wheel on the oak
Cleaned it up nice


5/8" self tapping stainless screws (predrilled pilot holes) in every stave to hold the bands up, and to stop the barrel from falling apart when I cut the top off. This took FOREVER


Off comes the top, out comes the loose char. Smelled like smoky bourbony awesomeness


Little 14" Weber "Smokey Joe" for the bottom. I drilled a ton more holes in this for better airflow, and altered the legs a little so it would sit lower




Access door to refill water pan/charcoal




Four 3/4" threaded pipe air vents w/ caps to control the airflow. High-temp, food grade caulk in each stave joint



Somewhere along the way, after all the hardware was on (holes drilled), I was ready for paint. I love the textured look of this stuff. (Spray paint) "Forged Hammered Antique Pewter"



A coat of stain, and BOOM!

'MERICA.









Boss, let me know if you want me to delete any of the double posted pics. I'm not looking to get in trouble here

 

[The Hot Pepper]

DAYUM! I wonder why he didn't post that in the TD thread!

 

[The Hot Pepper]

I see the mask so I put it in the poll... like I said, errors are allowed this time, for fun!

 

[The Hot Pepper]

I am impressed with the juiciness was there staging (slices dipped or spritzed for the pic) or did it cut this wet? Staging a pic is normal but I am just wondering.

 

[MikeUSMC]

I am impressed with the juiciness

Thanks mang!

was there staging? (slices dipped or spritzed for the pic

Nope

or did it cut this wet?

Yup

One thing I’ve learned from smoking all of these briskets is that it is absolutely impossible to “overinject” them
They’ll leak out whatever they can’t “hold”

Plus, I usually wrap in butcher paper (AND foil) around 160-165ish, then drizzle some beef broth (or brisket mop) over the top of it before I seal it up too. I lay down 2 layers of foil, then 2 layers of butcher paper, then the brisket on top of that. Do the beef broth / brisket mop thing, then seal it all up and it goes back on the smoker until it hits the final temp. I’ve been pulling them at 192* lately. Once it’s done, wrap in a thin blanket, then in a moving blanket, then rest it in a cooler for at least an hour. I’ve rested them for over 6 hours before, with no problems. Lots of wiggle room, lol

No spritzing at all for the pics. Just juicy brisket
You can see the au jus in the measuring cup in a couple of the pics. That’s all from inside the foil after the resting period. After I carve it, I put the slices in the pan and dump the juices on top

I wish I’d taken finished pics of the burnt ends!

 

[stettoman]

Insane. 
 
Now I'm torn as to should I inject my next brisket, what with it having Wagyu lineage...
 
Again, insane.
 
I am going to take a hank of leftovers and take my shot at burnt ends. You inspire, Mike. 

 

[MikeUSMC]

Now I'm torn as to should I inject my next brisket, what with it having Wagyu lineage...

All I*m gonna say is that if Harry Soo injects his $250 Snake River Farms Wagyu competition briskets, it*s probably a safe bet...

(Spoiler alert: He injects them with Kosmo*s brisket injection )


Edit: video wont embed if I quote someone in the same post. Stupid phone

 

[stettoman]

All I*m gonna say is that if Harry Soo injects his $250 Snake River Farms Wagyu competition briskets, it*s probably a safe bet...

(Spoiler alert: He injects them with Kosmo*s brisket injection )

Well hell, I guess that's what injection was thought up, fer, huh....

And I bet I could find some of that Kosmos injection right around the house here...

 

[MikeUSMC]

Made some tasty ribs the other night
St. Louis cut, smoked over B&B briquettes and cherry chunks on the whiskey barrel

 

[stettoman]

E-Fookin'-Gad, Mike....

Welcome back!

 

[Downriver]

Damn, that whiskey barrel just keeps pumping out awesome que! And to be replaced with GAS? smh
 
Edit: I stand corrected! Just read the other thread re: CHARCOAL GRILL, so nevermind. The barrel lives! Carry on.

 

[MikeUSMC]

Damn, that whiskey barrel just keeps pumping out awesome que! And to be replaced with GAS? smh

Edit: I stand corrected! Just read the other thread re: CHARCOAL GRILL, so nevermind. The barrel lives! Carry on.

THANK YOU!!!


Its only 10:30 in the morning and I feel like I need a drink already!!!

 

[Ashen]

Made some tasty ribs the other night
St. Louis cut, smoked over B&B briquettes and cherry chunks on the whiskey barrel

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Pretty good cook there.

Don't worry, you'll get better once you get used to this smoking thing

 

[MikeUSMC]

Pretty good cook there.

Don't worry, you'll get better once you get used to this smoking thing

Cut me some slack!!! I*m trying my best here!!!



Meanwhile, Im in my garage right now, pounding down coffee, and pacing back and forth like a jungle cat...

(Talking to myself)
*I contacted him FOUR minutes ago!... Why hasn*t he replied?... it*s probably sold already... I probably missed it... shit... WTF is this guy*s deal?... why is this taking SO long?!?!*


Fingers crossed, boys!

 

[MikeUSMC]

I*m gonna have to move those shelves up a few inches

These 22s are a LOT bigger in person than I thought they*d be!

I wanted to fire this thing up right away and play with the vents a little, but it*s getting a little too late in the day already. Maybe I*ll do that while I*m having my coffee in the morning. I*ll probably do a little fooling around with it tomorrow and throw a couple slabs of ribs on

The bottom grate that holds the charcoal is pretty rusty, and the cover that came with it is pretty brittle. But, it*s a 2013 model, and everything else looks to be in great shape. Looks like the guy took very good care of it. For what I paid for this thing, I honestly have ZERO complaints (so far )

 

[luvmesump3pp3rz]

good deal. it looks to be in great shape. congrats.  

 

[PtMD989]

Too late, eh. I have seen pictures. [emoji16][emoji1787][emoji106]


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[MikeUSMC]

Test run on the WSM went pretty damn well. Set it up using the minion method (seems to be the most popular way of running these), using Kingsford Original briquettes and a few chunks of mulberry wood and a big chunk of apple. 3/4 of a 20lb bag ran for at least ten hours for me, running at 260*. I sniffed out the coals after 10 hours, but it was still running strong

First time using mulberry. To me, it*s a pretty mild wood, and slightly fruity. I held a chunk up to my nose to see what it smelled like, and it was tough to put into words. Smelled pretty good though, just not as pungent as cherry or apple wood. Much milder. I think this would be a killer wood for smoking some peppers for powder!

I let it run dry (no meat; just charcoal and a 3/4 full water pan) for about 4-5 hours so I could try to get an idea of how to work the vents to control the temperature. I was originally aiming for 275*F. Started with all vents, the one on top and three on the bottom, fully open. Within 15 minutes of dumping the chimney into the center of the fire basket, it was at 225*, so I closed the bottom vents down to the width of a pencil. A half an hour in, it climbed to 250*, so I closed the three bottom vents down to about half the width of a pencil. It stayed damn close to 255*, and only fluctuated from 248*-260* for about 2 hours. I was very impressed with how solidly it held the temps there, so I just left it alone. Here*s a 2 hour snapshot:
(I edited the probe name to say *Smoker Temp* now, not *Smoked Temp* )

Ended up making some more St. Louis cut ribs, with minimal trimming, and used a bunch of Malcom Reed*s products. No binder; hit them with a light dusting of his A.P. rub, then the Hot rub, then The BBQ Rub. Open smoked for 2 hours at about 260*, then wrapped in foil with the vinegar sauce for 1.5 hours, then open smoked after basting with a 50/50 combo of the vinegar and BBQ sauces to glaze for 15 minutes.

^ He makes some good sheeeeyit

The ribs:

How*s this for a dental impression?

I think my biggest takeaway from cooking on this thing would be to not keep the lid off for too long. Anytime I had to take the ribs off to wrap (or unwrap, or whatever), the temps would spike up. Rookie mistake, on my part. More air = more heat I should*ve known better, but I guess I just wasn*t thinking about it at the time. One time, it shot all the way up to 310*, but closing off the bottom vents and closing the top vent halfway got it back down to 270* within 15 minutes. I was pretty impressed with that because I thought it would*ve taken a lot longer.

Overall, I*m extremely happy with the WSM, and I can easily see why they*re so popular. My only regret is not getting one of these a long time ago

Thanks for looking

 

[PtMD989]

Dayaaaammmm, looking great as always [emoji106][emoji16].


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[dragonsfire]

Awesome!

 

[stettoman]

Real nice, Mike! I've had that damned Wagyu/Angus side for almost a week and the fookin' wind has been constant at 20-25 mph ever since. The wife DEMANDS that I do filets first, and she's boss on first cook.
 
We're supposed to get a couple more days of wind, then rain for a week. My love for June is testing me....