jdbower

Nice moon out tonight!

The first batch was on me, I chose silken black because it would match some of the other matte black stuff I had no choices on. But it was such a success the new one was my wife's idea so her color choice. It's not bad at all, the pebble look matches a lot of the other more organic shapes in the yard (very few straight lines).

I had one of the early generation 19" and 23", when I moved to NYC the 23" came with me (probably should have been the 19", but c'est la vie!). Now we've got a place in San Diego and rather than trying to ship the 23" there, we decided it was time for an upgrade. This thing is built like a tank! And I mean the crate, the KK itself is more like a beautiful bomb shelter. I love the little details you've added over the past 15 years and the fact that 750lbs of stuff can be uncrated and moved to position by myself is phenomenal attention to detail. More pics to come, I'm sure, but I was so excited I forgot to install the thermometer before snapping this one!

I've had an "incident" where I had runaway temps with a pit probe installed (I can't remember the details, I don't think the lid latched properly, it was windy, and the top damper was open too much combining to add a lot more O2 than what the Stoker was pushing in). The wire insulation was badly burned but the probe still worked fine. Also note that replacing a probe should be feasible, it's the electronics in the plug that make a Stoker probe unique, splicing a standard probe onto that connector will work just fine. Rock will also sell just the pigtails without the probe if you need that - I bought one to hook it up to a relay for a proofing box. Instead of the Stoker turning on a fan, it turned on a heating element.

I would not recommend a standard wet/dry vac - the ashes are pretty fine and will probably blow through the filters. There are some special ash vacuums, but that's an even more specialized piece of equipment.

I did get StokerConsole up and running, it's much nicer than what I put together but only runs locally. There doesn't seem to be a great solution for what I want, monitor the Stoker from my web server and access it on my phone/tablet/laptop/TV at will - StokerWebConsole is a step towards that but since it's still an applet the phone/tablet aspect won't work. I've also started playing with Pit Pal which seems to work well on my tablet, this may be a better solution for me since it's more portable.

I wrote my own monitor (very ugly), but I may have to play around with this when I have time: http://gatogordobbq.com/app.php/products/stokerwebconsole

I just slowly bent mine by hand (maybe I used a pair of pliers, it's been a while). A torch may kill the element inside.

Electrics brings up another useful feature - network connectivity. You may want to run an Ethernet cable from out of the house to someplace weather resistant and put a WiFi hotspot and little switch out there. Depending on where your KK will sit, having a counter with a drawer next to it with a way to get the cables out could be useful if you ever plan on getting a Guru/Stoker/CyberQ. Worse case, you can also look into underground conduit to the KK location so you can run your own 1/4" extensions. Of course, you can also look into cable if that's how you get your TV service, one of those big inflatable projection screens out on the patio could make an excellent evening.

I've been pretty happy with my SuperPeel, it works even when the dough is sticky. That said, yours looks great!

One thing I miss is my Big Kahuna monster burner - it's very versatile and 65kBTU. I would imagine that building the burner into a more permanent-looking housing wouldn't be a hard task for most. My patio also had a large built-in firepit at the far end. Adding a little embedded tubing into the ground to allow you to pop up a little spit or put a grate over it could net you a nice multi-purpose wood-burning cooking area but even without that thing had seen a lot of marshmallows in its short lifespan.

It's not a perfect solution, but I have a bunch of these for situations like this. There really is no good solution for power bricks, sideways works on half my power strips, vertical the other half. Ones that move up perpendicular from the plug work well, but not if I care about clearance. I really want a DC infrastructure solution so we can just avoid them entirely, but that means rewiring every house out there.

I've completed (?) a six year trek from NJ to MA (where I acquired my KK) and then down to NYC. For the better part of a year my KK was sitting idle at my mother's place, but as of yesterday it arrived back home. I don't know yet if I'll have much time for the forum life, but I just had to share a picture of my KK in the sky: Sadly some minor issues during the move including some tile replacement needed and a missing knob, but I'm sure I'll be able to get it back up to snuff soon enough!

Re: Future KK owner looking to touch and feel your KK! I know a little place near Chicago that may oblige http://www.ziersprime.com/

Re: extruded loading question

Re: extruded loading question I agree with Syz, I dump in roughly half a box every so often and it burns just fine for me.

Re: Gas Lighter Useful or Not Worth It? Thank You It's a matter of preference more than anything else. I use it in my 23" because I've got it, but realistically I'm a little ambivalent towards it. Using an external torch is probably a bit more practical since I can use it with all sorts of things, but the built-in burner is nice in that you light it, plug it in, come back in 15 minutes, remove it, and you're done. Having a 20Lb propane tank means I rarely need more fuel. I do remove it once things are started, otherwise you've got issues about cleaning out the ashes, wondering if you've left it on, and moving the propane tank away from the lit KK just in case the Stoker goes crazy and brings it up to 1500F is a little piece of mind. Note that my 23" is extruded coconut charcoal. For my 19.5" with regular lump either a paraffin wax packet or a chimney starter (usually if I've got the firepit going) is my weapon of choice. Or tell a joke at my wife's expense and her glare will get me to temperature in no time flat!

Re: Gumbo for Cotton Bowl Cajun and BBQ have a lot in common, I love red beans and rice as a side to my BBQ.

Re: Attachment Downloads There's no real way to know whether a picture was downloaded just to view or if someone actually downloaded it to save it. What I'm uncertain about is whether the counter records the number of times the image is viewed or the number of times the image is clicked on (which typically brings up a larger view). Most of the downloads in a forum are just to view the image, but once it's been viewed the user can always save it by right clicking on the image and selecting "Save As." Since the browser already is displaying the image, the server doesn't need to know when this happens so it's kind of hidden from us.

Re: outdoor kitchen The legs on a KK don't remove very easily (I'm sure it can be done, but you'd need some masonry skills and tools to do so without compromising the structure). However, Dennis did special craft one for swalatee79 - you can see a picture of it here (scroll down for some detail shots with the KK). Personally I like having the wheels so I can move it around if I need to, but his 19.5" does look right at home in his kitchen.

Re: Gonna buy one Monday!! I've yet to meet a person with buyer's remorse, congrats and make sure you charge the camera batteries!

Re: Foreign objects in lump charcoal Hopefully you don't find bits of Phineas Gage in there...

Re: Foreign objects in lump charcoal

Re: outdoor kitchen I do burgers on the main grill all the time, unless you're looking for "black and blue" burgers you can probably even double up and use the upper grill at the same time. Steak is a little more difficult depending on the type (I like my sirloin at mid-high, but my filet seared), but typically the final/initial sear is done quickly so doing the bulk of the cooking, transferring to a plate (or second KK), and doing a quick sear assembly-line style seems pretty feasible as well. However, I don't tend to cook for very large groups (I want to say 8 was my limit so far). What I don't like about the big gasser on the side is the propane vs. charcoal flavor. At grilling temps and with "junk meat" like burgers it's a bit more subtle, but it's still there - even if after the A1 or hot sauce it's mostly in my mind Edit: The rotisserie is a neat toy, but personally I haven't found much use for it (which pains me because I know Dennis put a lot of effort into integrating it!). The tools you get for removing the grills are fantastic helpers, especially if you want to do a sear and remove the main grate while it's still hot. Beyond that, a GrillFloss for rough scaling, silicone gloves, and a long set of tongs are good additions. You'll have to figure out for yourself how you like to light the thing. A charcoal chimney is good, many people like a MAPP torch, there's the propane option, and the little paraffin-foil starters. Many of these are best when paired with a chimney, so that's a good first purchase.

Re: New to ceramic cooking I liked Chris Lilly's book - probably the only cookbook I've read cover-to-cover.