Start with pork ribs, then a pork butt, then move on to brisket once you learn the pit. I like to make sure my pit is tall enough to do a beer-can chicken (12-14 inches or so, grill to ceiling). That's the most fool-proof thing you can do, it's great for when you're learning about different temps and such. It's also one of the most tender smoked chickens you'll ever have, and you can play around with different rubs each time.
Cool, thanks for the input. Do we have a thread here specifically for tips on smoking? Also, which of the grills would you recommend from my previous comment on the last page?
From those, I would probably get the chargriller. I find the ones with the most moving parts seem like they'd breakdown quicker. I have a chargriller and it has worked well for me. I'd like to get a weber smokey mountain next.
for smoking I would go with the one with the offset smoker box. I would also check academy. they have some reasonable smokers.
Find yourself a used weber smoking mountain. It is the best smoker under a grand. If you can't find one used and can't afford one new, then get yourself an ugly drum smoker.
you should watch all the Franklin vids, but start with this one about the smoker: <iframe width="853" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gybrM6EQ6fg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
I can't tell you much about a grill without looking at it, I'm picky like that. I have to hit HD this afternoon anyway, I'll take a look at their floor models and let you know what I think. I seem to remember Academy having some decent pits/grills, you might check them out.
Reporting for duty. WSM today 2 whole chickens (butterflied....or spatchcocked if you like) 2 racks of pork baby back ribs Rudy's rub on half, Mustard's rub on the other two (Mustard's is a great restaurant in Napa Valley) today will be a good day
Let me first state that someone can smoke great meat in almost any contraption. It's more technique(knowing your equipment) than the equipment itself. That being said, having the right equipment sure makes it easier. I still don't understand why people buy cheap off-set smokers. I guess its because people see what the pros use and they want something that looks similar. Off-set smokers for under a grand is a exercise is frustration because controlling heat on them is a nightmare. Even Aaron Franklin talks about how controlling heat on his custom off-set is difficult. Go to the 1 minute 35 second mark. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TD247K8KltY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> Kamado Grills are very versatile but they aren't that great for smoking. If you overshoot your temp, it takes forever to get the temp down since the grills are so good and retaining heat. Weber Smokey mountains is where it's at if you want a smoking rig for under a thousand bucks. You can get a 22 inch model(400 bucks new) that can smoke 4 normal size briskets at a time and will hold temp for over 12 hours easy without having to babysit it. That is why a lot of competition guys who don't have 10's of thousands of dollars for a custom smoking rig use them. If you want the best smoker for smoking small quantities of meat, you get one of these or similar. http://www.stumpssmokers.com/ I was going to get one of these until my wife developed an intolerance for smoked meat. I guess its all the yummy carcinogens in the smoke.
