DennisLinkletter

Another great spice store is World Spice Seattle.. I buy most whole, store in a FoodSaver Vacuum Zipper Bags then suck the air out with the small pump.  Keeps spices fresh for much longer.  The bags have a valve in them and can be reused.
They also grind as it goes out if you are Stateside.

https://www.worldspice.com

Amazon: FoodSaver 1-Quart BPA-Free Multilayer Construction Vacuum Zipper Bags

On 8/12/2020 at 11:26 AM, PVPAUL said:

 Now I just need to figure out how to keep the cold smoker going all night! Mine never stays lit and I’m using quality pellets etc etc.

Cheers!

Try putting the pellets, chips or chunks in a bowl and microwave on high for 5 minutes or until when you blow on it you don't feel steam.. Removing the +- 10% moisture helps the wood smolder.. Also use the lowest airflow setting on the pump that keeps it burning, this increases how long it burns significantly. A low setting fills the grill with lots of smoke in just a few minutes and the lower the burn temp in the smoker the cleaner the smoke.  I always put my meat in cold this crates more condensation of the smoke vapor on it. I'm guessing you should not need to run it all night to get a good solid flavor profile,

Here are the spare parts

https://komodokamado.com/collections/23-ultimate-spare-parts

If you need more just leave a message on the chat window and my staff will take care of you.. If you have any questions, please feel free to call me should you have any questions or there is anything I can do for you.  I'm online taking calls and chatting daily EST from 1pm to 5-6pm and then you can also try from 10pm to 6am (hit or miss)

Dennis 
• Los Angeles  (424) 270-1948
• Whatsapp    +62 818 850-860
 

I suggest wrapping those big wood smoking chunks in foil to channel the gas down into the burning charcoal from little holes in the bottom of the foil pouch.. you will get a much less bitter acrid smoke flavor profile..

Argh they have a photo of a 23" and with text and pricing for the 42"  
and call it a Komodo not Komodo Kamado...
I've written the author

On 7/2/2020 at 11:33 PM, skyros said:

Thanks Sr. Member. for the note.  I was just asking for clarification in a neutral manner. I think you misread my tone in the message.  Frankly, it's a bit of a complicated device if you really think about it. Also, I also was inquiring if there was a way to improve the design by making the motor a hex drive. I'm not an engineer, but was just wondering since we were discussing it. I'll reach out to the OneGrill folks to ask them about that idea and if makes any sense in reducing any slippage. Yes, good call on the cleaning of the cradle. I suppose the cradle could be good for cooking fillets of fish or smaller pieces of meat. I know I hate opening the grill to flip meat once the temp is stable. And the Spit is not limited to size. Always good during Thanksgiving Turkey Day here in the States. 

Let's see if I can help you understand the how's and why's..   trust me it's really not all that complicated.

First of all other rotisseries I know of have one shaft that goes directly to the motor. Most rotisseries are also over open coals or wood with no lid. 
The square roti spit sits on supports and goes directly into the motor that has a square socket. 
This is a ONE socket system.  The play in the one socket system is 1/3rd that of the KK's three socket system.

I wanted a way to run the roti with the lid latched and completely airtight.  Rather then make up a wedge and run it with the lid cracked, I installed a drive shaft that runs thru the body.  So on the right there is a socket inside the grill attached to the driveshaft in a sleeve with needle bearings and another socket on the outside of the KK in the middle of the side accessory plate. The motor of course it the third socket.  This is a three socket system.
The first version was all square sockets.   Think of the second hand on a clock very little movement at the center creates much more movement at the outside/tip.   Because of the tiny bit of play in each socket X 3,  the cradle would come around and at some point would fall forward about an inch.  Some roti motors also  have some slack in the gears and added to this movement.  I felt this was unacceptable and gave it a less than quality feel.   My solution that reduced the movement by 2/3s was to change the two sockets in the drive train to hex.  The hex socket having more faces for the shaft to make contact seemed to do the trick. The motor of course it still square, so the outside the grill shaft is square on the motor side and hex on the KK side.  
You may be limited by the 23" Ultimate's cradle being 8"  but the 32" Big Bad's 10" cradle should hold any turkey you want to throw at it.

 

2 hours ago, skyros said:

Can someone please explain to me the why there are three options when trying to select a rotisserie for a 23" Ultimate. 

1) It is unclear to me about the actual difference between the 23" Ultimate 5/16" SS Rotisserie Spit (Square) vs. 23" Ultimate 5/16" SS Rotisserie Spit (Hex). Which part is Hex and what part is Square? Why does it matter?

You state: ****PLEASE CONFIRM YOUR RIGHT SIDE DRIVE SOCKET INSIDE THE GRILL IS HEX NOT SQUARE - THE DRIVE SIDE OF THIS SPITROD IS HEXAGON**** for BOTH models. 

What to you do if you have a KK with a square drive?

2) A Rotisserie cradle vs. a Rotisserie Spit? I'm not Rotisserie expert, but some web site copy about the actual differences or features and benefits would be helpful to the consumer here. I'm not sure which one to buy. Or what am I missing out on if I buy the wrong one? 

Thanks, Bill

Originally all KK's had square drive sockets and shafts.  There are three sockets in the no-airflow KK roti drivetrain. One in the motor, one outside the grill and one inside the grill. 
Square sockets have a bit of play.. this play X 3 created a situation where the roti cradle would fall forward an inch or two at some point in the rotation.   HEX sockets have much less play, so we changed the outside and inside sockets to hex and the corresponding shafts.  The motor is still square.. the motor shaft is square at the motor side and hex where it goes into the KK.

Can't argue with success, the roti has some movement but it's usually from the motor not play in the drivetrain sockets.  We still supply parts and accessories for every KK ever built. 

3 hours ago, AJR said:

If I were independently wealthy, my setup would look something like this.

 

 

I like the way you think!!

4 hours ago, k2krunk said:

Just got a 19” lil’ isla...have had a lot of fun cooking on it!
looking forward to meeting you all and hearing more about the KK universe. 
I will post some photos soon.  Cooked my first brisket ever. Also had success with baking beer bread.
It takes a while, maybe 2-3 hours +, to get to higher temperatures. Not sure if this is normal or if I’m doing something wrong. 
Cheers!
- Kyle

Congrats on your new grill..

Temperature is airflow.. My guess is that you poured the charcoal directly out of the bag.  And even worse possibly poured the bottom of the bag into the charcoal basket.  These smalls nestle between the larger pieces and cut off airflow. For higher temps always pour the lump into a container shake a few time to let the small crap fall to the bottom. The larger pieces should be used in the middle and the smalls can be used around the very outside against the refractory cement fire box. Please remember this mantra... Temperature is airflow..

On 5/8/2020 at 5:55 PM, gsmelb said:

Hi,

I logged on to the forum after years away, our 23" is nearly ten years old. Still looks great, a few bangs from moving house 3 times, I have replaced the lid spring and had a new basket but we are by the coast so no surprise there. I am finding the ceramic doesn't hold the heat like it use to. I can ramp it up to 550 degrees  but struggle to hold it much above 400 and the lid is now too hot to leave my hand on, compared with until recently it was only ever warm. I am not sure if the ceramic liner composition changes over time and it loses some of its insulating properties.

I am mainly low and slow or chargrilling so not losing any sleep

Regards

Guy

Heylo Guy..

First of all there is no ceramic in a KK grill.  The hot-face is a high alumina cement, extremely durable.  The insulation is vermiculite,  a natural flaky mineral (similar to mica) that expands like popcorn when heated. Vermiculite is used in insulation, fire retardants, and in our case cement aggregate. Both of these are designed to be used in blast furnaces at very high temps. Outside of the porous insulation is an acrylic, UV resistant industrial insulation. It's the flexible, waterproof jacket that the tiles are attached to. The ceramic tiles are standard glazed tiles..

The hot-face and insulation does not effect getting to high temps or your ability to stabilize them.. That's simply airflow..  When I hear people say that they can't get hot,  I know that they are pouring charcoal from the bag into the grill and all the crap smalls are blocking your airflow which in turn is limiting how much charcoal can burn.

If your grill has moisture inside/under the acrylic jacket, the water vapor will/could carry the heat more efficiently to the tile jacket.  If not, you have just forgotten, that if you wait long enough the outside heats up if you are at high temps.. you won't blister your hands touching it but you won't touch it long because it's HOT..

I can assure you nothing breaks down and changes the performance of your KK..

10 hours ago, Aussie Ora said:

Fried up some bread and bacon .....and plated with some thick cream .Yum..
 

Did it pick up much charcoal flavors? 
Do you think it would have had more flavor/ been better left open?

Argh.. a larger Table Top.. This one is already difficult enough to move around the factory during production!

BTW I'm in the process of making teak removable counter fillers.. something like the left side here..
This is only a photoshop-ed mockup.  The idea is to fill the square hole in counters.

TelTru is in Rochester, New York and was shut down by the governor.  I bought everything on Amazon and a few online grill stores and still ran out.  I have 100 on order but will still be  few weeks they say.  These are the least offensive ones I could easily buy scores of. Of course I’ll send out the proper TelTru when I get them.

For a brisket on a 19" you may need to take a bit off the flat to make it fit. 
They are 19" left to right  and 17" front to rear.  Just a tad small for full sized ribs and briskets.
But both can be reduced and the balance cooked on the upper grate at the same time.

6 hours ago, Antonio Colmenares said:

Hell Dennis, question? The smoke generator works like a pellet grill o smoker pit? 

Neither.. It creates a consistent, uniform slow smolder of wood chips that does not create enough heat to make the gas in the wood turn to smoke/vapor.. the gas is burned off in the smolder, what remains is the secondary vapor.  This is the smooth one, the elusive blue smoke.. The air pump creates just enough vacuum to keep it burning but not enough to get hot.

On 5/24/2020 at 5:13 AM, tony b said:

If you haven't tried the Franklin method for brisket, I highly recommend it. The key is once you clear the stall, around 165 - 170F, wrap the brisket in pink butcher paper for the rest of the cook (IT = 203F), then wrap everything (yes, leave the brisket in the paper) in foil, a towel and toss into a cooler for at hour or so. Then unwrap and enjoy a nice, juicy brisket. I won't shuck out the bucks for Wagyu, but I will pay for Prime grade. 

The only deviation, is if you want to make burnt ends, separate the point from the flat before you put it in the foil; then wrap the flat per the above. The cube up the point, season (wet or dry or both), put into an open foil pan and put back on the KK for about another hour. Meat Candy!

Sounds like Franklin cares more about the color of the brisket for when to wrap.. Not related to the stall.
He also does not always wrap.. 
Talks about it in the first two minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMIlyzRFUjU

1 hour ago, brett said:

@DennisLinkletter - interesting about using larger chunks, thanks for the tip. I'm just dumping the bag in (lump) with mixed stuff... charcoal dust and all... I'll try chunks next cook. I am using my BBQ guru as a full-time fan during my cook - with the probes out of the KK so it thinks it's in ramp-up mode all the time. I assume the fan-speed injection is better than just opening the door? 

The smalls definitely fill in the space between the pieces and kill airflow.  Every time someone says their grill is stuck at 300º I know they poured the crap from the bottom of the bag in the grill..  The hot air escaping with the the lid latched and the top damper open  creates vacuum and forces air thru the charcoal. It's actually forced airflow also. You really do not need to use the Guru fan at all. 

You always want to remember that temperature is airflow.

If you want high temps you need high airflow. To get this it's best to use only medium to large or all large pieces of charcoal.
We're talking large tangerine or more.  This with your lower draft door open and the draft door open will get you hotter than you need to go.

For Napoleon cracker crust  pies, I wholeheartedly suggest using carbon steel / Baking Steels.

Click here to better understand how it works

If the inside of the round hole has a stainless sleeve, then it's plug and play ready. Most are.

           Please feel free to call me should you have any questions or there is anything I can do for you.  I'm online taking calls and chatting daily EST from 1pm to 5-6pm and then you can also try from 10pm to 6am (hit or miss)

Dennis Linkletter
Owner/ Builder
Komodo Kamado
Bali, Indonesia
VoIP toll-free call to Indonesia:
• Los Angeles  (424) 270-1948
• Atlanta          (404) 418-6648 
* Sydney         (02) 8006 0968
• Whatsapp    +62 818 850-860
(please leave a message if no answer)

I suggest heating what ever wood you are using in the microwave.. this pulls lots of moisture out and helps the material smolder.
I heat the wood in a bowl, then open the door and blow on the wood to remove the steam, while doing this you can gauge how much more moisture is in the wood.  But most smoking wood will have a moisture content of about 10%.

I also suggest running the smoker at the lowest airflow you can and keep the material smoldering.  Lower burn will produce cleaner smoke, don't worry it's not enough it builds up.

And put your meat into the grill as cold as possible, the vapor is transferred to the meat by condensation.

I received so many emails from people wanting to order a 16" before they were discontinued, I changed my mind and put them back on the new website. I will just carry fewer of them then before.

A stick burner
Pros:   Probably the cleanest smoke flavor profiles in BBQ.  Produces vapor without any of the wood's unburned gas vapor. Very clean flavor because they burn wood with a flame which consumes the nasty gas which is bitter and acrid.  Great Bark.  

Cons:  Burning wood with a flame requires lots of airflow which can be very drying over a long cook.  Needs skills to balance heat and babysitting when the ambient temps change.. not much sleep involved.  They are pretty much limited to low and slow cooking.. no grilling, roasting or baking. Wife thinks they look like a choo choo train..

Komodo Kamado
Pros: It's all about the airflow.. Copious amounts of insulation simply holding the heat in. Charcoal always burns at the maximum volume for the allowed airflow. If you can burn less fuel to maintain your cooking temperature, you have less airflow, less evaporation, and and of course more retained moisture in your meat, and that's the holy grail of BBQ.  And the reduced airflow creates longer/more retention time for the charcoal vapor/smoke.. the longer the vapor is in contact the more condensation takes place creating more Q flavor.  Basically set and forget temperature wise.  You will get plenty of sleep and complete novices can get great results.  They excel in low and slow, roasting and baking. You can also grill on multiple levels and create 2 zone cooking. Wife thinks they look great..

Cons:  You can't just toss big chunks of wood into your grill while your meat is in there.. the lack of oxygen will create a thick nasty grey bitter acrid smoke.. This can be resolved using foil pouches, cast iron pots or external smoke generators.  Heavy, not available in your local retails stores.. 

Smoke Generator.. my latest tweak is I microwave the chips or chunks until they steam nd then until most of the steam is gone..
Taking the moisture content down seems to be the ticket to smoldering.. I then turn down the air-pump to as low as I can go and still keep it lit.   No need to have it blasting as the heat generated from more airflow can create bio-gas fog which is what we are trying to void.

On 5/8/2020 at 7:03 AM, Wingman505 said:

Is the coffee char extruded as well?

No the Coffee Charcoal is natural lump.. 

BTW those are last containers 22 lb boxes.. this container has 44 lb poly bags and 12 lb boxes.

Ahh you gotta love third world living.. I have a full time gardener who lives on the property. 
My grates are automatically cleaned the day after he smells smoke!
It's a dirty job...