inacoma

Welcome back man. Glad the move went OK.

I've been lurking quite a bit. Season is about to start back up...I've bought 5 large bags of lump (green egg was the best I could find locally)...speaking of which...where is our KK lump!!!

cooking will commence now. the convection of Denver air is a bit different than KC humidity...it makes for a better cook once you adjust for boiling point and what not.

k

Well, I've had my KK since last summer, but was not able to fully use it until recently due to moving from KC to Denver. Wanted to keep it all packed up for the move

so the new neighbors are like "what you doing with a kiln on your front stoop"....I just laugh...tell them Dennis's story, how I got it, it's construction, etc.

well...one neighborhood cookout later (6 racks of baby back ribs and a few vieggie patties) and they were all sold on it. I've done filets at 700 degrees easily..turn out excellent! I love this cooker and the plan was for it to be the last one I ever buy...so Dennis...Make sure all the future upgrades are RECTRO compatible!!!

I just ordered a Stoker (should be on my door stoop this friday)...I'm a techy geek kinda guy...so it's just a nice to have item

if anyone is hesitant to buy this cooker based on origin or finances..DON'T BE!!! I'm one of the most skeptical guys out there and Dennis made a believer out of me! It's not even his "primary money making business" and he puts a lot of effort towards making it for us.

Thanks Dennis!

K

Hey folks,

I did a cook for about 5.5 hours @ 250 steady on a "test" rack of baby back ribs before my big 6 rack cookout tonight. at 5.5. hours, the ribs had a really good taste, but were a little bit dry and the bone never showed....is altitude fighting me here? Should I up my cooking temp?

just used a dry rub, apple wood chunk, and left the grill alone.

any suggestions appreciated....

I will probably try to apple juice baste them every hour or so...if that helps.

thanks!

k

Anyone able to contact them? I tried email a few days ago and just tried over the phone. I want to order their product, but contacting them has gotten me a bit miffed.

anyone out there running his setup? He is out of 5cfm fans and is installing 4cfm units. I have the OTB and would think I need the 5cfm...bigger is better right

later,

k

Re: Same Trouble

I had exactly the same problem with my first cook attempt last night. I got the lump charcoal started in a chimney and filled the center ring only with it. I closed the lid and I opened the lower door and the top vent all the way. For the lower door' date=' I slid it out on its tracks. The temp rose very slowly and did not get above 275. I ended up cooking inside. At that point I could not imagine being able to sear at 600 degrees. Next time I will try more charcoal and fill the basket instead of just the center ring. Keep the suggestions coming.[/quote']

get rid of the smaller basket...fill the entire bottom up with lump. slide the bottom damper OUT about 1" or so...open the top damper a bunch of turns, watch the temp shoot up! then work the ratios to get the temp down to where you want. remember, you get this thing hot, it takes a while to come back down

later,

k

Hey Bud, did I miss the cooking photos or something?????

You gotta give us a little something here. Especially for those of us whom are living vacariously through other grillers.

-=Jasen=-

Pics looked so good that my computer ate them too!!! Really, it boogered them up during the transfer. I haven't fired the grill up since (been traveling...just bought a house in Denver, so the next cook will be there

later,

K

See now wasn't that easy???

Hey inacoma go to your front door quickly theres a band of people there, ITS YOUR NEIGHBORS!!!!! They want food!!! Now you have to cook for the whole neighborhood.

funny you mentioned that...started drinking with neighbors around 5pm and didn't quit till 2am or so. Man, rough nite

...but we were all around the KK while doing so, with a 1/2 rack of baby backs on it (yeah, small rack...wanted to learn to use the grill before putting too much meat on it). Basically everyone got one rib and they were very impressed...as was I. Of course, they had to rib me (pun intended) about the cost of the grill etc...some of them had to get "used" to the look of the grill...but in the end...the drunkards showed their true sides and they ALL loved it

Today I have some "chicken only" eaters coming over and I am about to do 3 spachcock birds...each with different rubs...should be nice. Gonna try to hold of on the drinkin' tonight should provide good leftovers for the rest of the week too

later,

K

later.

k

Re: I might have to go this route, too

I have the gas option for my mexi-krapado. I only use it for igniting the lump, but I cant see going back I ran out of LP last weekendm and actually had to use a chimney Didnt like that one bit after being spoiled. I have a 2nd draft door, so after I light with gas, I switch to the standard door to keep the burner semi clean. The burner in the mexi-krapado works for its purpose, but not for cooking. I cant get an efficient flame from it. Always orange fire, and if I turn it up too high, the whole base fills with fire...like a continuous flashback Plus, you have to use the basket with the metal flue around the base with it...since without it, the flame goes out so far its UNDER the firebox, rather than up through the hole in the middle.

It sure would be cool if Dennis could cast in some sort of line for a gas ignition option. A quick release on the outside, and a removable ignition wand that connected to the inside. wouldnt need to be many BTU, just a good steady flame for ignition.

For those of you that have a weed burner...how long do you have to stand out there and shoot the fire to get enogh of a burn going?

i like my chimney

the BEST freakin' spochkickina$$ chicken I've ever had

I swear to you...there was a little gremlin inside that KK for a good hour just injecting that chicken with juices...swear to you!!!

I've NEVER had such juicy grilled chicken before...and I've had my share of chicken.

...I barely even prepared it. Just a simple rub in the fridge overnite, then onto the grill today. Even bought the "organic" no salt added chicken...

...just WOW...I'm putting my baby backs on in a about 5 minutes if I can get the temp down low enough...I don't care if I'm going to eat them by midnite!!!!

SOLD SOLD SOLD on this grill!!!

I did take pictures, but my computer ate them somehow (no pun intended). But I can tell you it was fall off the bone chicken!!!

oh and I forgot....my dog has NEVER gone this crazy over a dish that we've made. something in the smell alone set her off. Had to break out her special treat to keep her occupied.

time to go ribbin'!

K

hopefully my last update..thanks for playing this far...

well I got busy with work and my temp dropped to 330 from 3:11 till now (3:48)...figured I shouldn't have partially closed the bottom dampers slits. So I fully opened the bottom damper blew some "fan air" into there to heat her up a bit, and will probably cook the chicken about 15 minutes more to be on the safe side.

smells GOOOOD...haven't opened the lid yet to see if she's burnt to a crisp, or juicy juicy.

so final formula for 350: 1 to 1 1/2 full turn of top damper, full slit opening of bottom damper (all of this AFTER your had her spike up a hair over 350...to about 360)...which happens very quickly.

later, gents..time to eat in a bit...

k

chicken is on the kkarby!!!

see what I did with the subject header...barby with KK..oh man, the witiness never stops

ok, so here's the update.

it was 2:22 when I closed the lid, did one turn on the top damper, and closed the bottom door (leaving the slats fully open).

@ 2:30 temp was 357-360

@ 2:34 temp was 356

@ 2:45 the temp seemed to be pretty stable at 354 degrees..bouncing up to 356 every now and again

...so I think stable temp (with outside ambient temp at 90+ degrees) can be reached within 20 minutes or less from the point of "mature" (heated), coals.

...chicken is on...spachcock style...

temp spiked a few degrees (probably because of the increased o2 from the lid being opened)

...I went ahead and kept the top vent at 1 turn and actually closed the bottom vent a hair. bottom vent is now only 3/4 open. temp is stable at just a hair over 350 with a 4 pound bird in there.

...btw, should I be using a heat deflector of sorts?

thanks for reading this far down

later,

kumar

update:

Just read you thread Curly...man trying to take my steelie away ( ... I will part with it when I get enought therapy.

ok, so I went out there after my last post...apparently curly is dead on...my chimney was 3/4 started, but the bed of lump it was sitting on was FULLY started...thus I break out the kevlar arm shields and leather gloves. ... so future note...don't let the chimney fully start (especially when you walk away). so I quickly dumped the lit chimney into the rest of the fuel, closed the bottom door (left the slats full open), spun the top damper all the way to close, then backed it off ONE turn.

now the temp has stabilized at 360...and very very quickly. I'm going to see how the grill "soaks" this temp up...i.e curious how much of drop on temp will occur as the "engineered cermamic"..EC for short (yeah, trying a new acronymn!!). Once the EC absorbs enough heat...I wonder if the same damper settings will yield a 350ish temp...will report back. btw, I've taken "timings" this time...and I will probably post them here....sometimes us newbie KKers want to know when when when!!!

later,

k

Exactly!!! You need to get the fire rolling before you shut the door. I think you could maintain with the door shut and the wheel open however in order to get it up to speed you need to pull the door out. Try this I think you will get good results, just keep an eye on it as it will get up to temp very quickly.

Tony

so need to get her up to speed before I close the door and leave the vent fully open. I kept the door closed and vent open, thus probably could not get the fire hot enough.

I'm in the process of lighting the lump right now. basically filled large lump tray with lump, took out enought to fill the chimney, placed chimney on top of what was left in lump...firing away. Once the chimney is all ashy in color (or close to it), i'll dump into the tray with all the unburnt lump. btw, I have the top open and bottom door off for this pre-lighting phase

then I gather I should put my grates on, shut the lid, open it 4 turns, leave the bottom door open 1 inch with the slats fully open.

when I hit 340ish I should probably shut the bottom door all the way and let it slowly climb to 350 so I don't overshoot it terrribly.

wow, this is getting to the point of anal retentive on my part..oh well, maybe someone else can be helped further down the road...especially have you great group of fellas to get me out of the steel age (granted the steel BBQ stays for large burger/hotdog parties.

later,

k

top: 1 turn

bottom: 1/2 open

temp probe stopped climbing after 257 degrees

top: 2 turns

bottom: full open

temp probe stopped climbing after 294 degrees

What do you mean when you say bottom 1/2 open or full open? Are you pulling the door out or are you turning the wheel to full open?

wheel, I kept the door shut.

k

Hey, get yourself a weedburner for a kick butt way of starting charcoal! Fun too.

-=Jasen=-

nice....

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/d ... mber=91037

later,

k

Hmmmmm.350 shoould be pretty ease to get to ' date=' even with only the basket full. Did you have the top damper open at all? How about the bottom damper?[/quote']

I took some detailed notes here is what I wrote down...bear with me...as I didn't want to oveshoot the temp so I took it slow at first:

pre-lit one full chimney of lump (only lump on hand was that cowboy stuff...didn't think I would be grilling and didn't have any "better" lump laying around...so one quick trip to lowes and I had some fuel...yeah yeah..not the best).

conditions...no breeze, very hot, very humid.

top: 1 turn

bottom: 1/2 open

temp probe stopped climbing after 257 degrees

top: 2 turns

bottom: full open

temp probe stopped climbing after 294 degrees

top: 3 turns

bottom: full open

large garage fan placed about 10ft away from cooker, pointed towards the bottom draft door...fan speed set to low.

temp probe stopped climbing after 307 degrees

top: 4 turns

bottom: full open

temp probe stopped climbing after 311 degrees

top: 5 turns

bottom: full open

fan: set at MEDIUM now

temp probe stopped climbing after 314 degrees

...at this point I figure I'm losing charcoal...it's been about an hour or so...but it's late and now I'm just seeing if I can raise the temp without adding more charcoal...if anything...I'm thinking this is a good "break in" for the grill.

top: 6 turns

bottom: full open

fan: set at HIGH now

temp probe stopped climbing after 323 degrees

....went to bed.

I should note that since my heat deflector didn't make the shipment, that I had put in a boiler oven pan on the lower grate...took it out before the "5 turn" section above Not much of difference.

There are some good tips in this post and I'm going to attempt this again in an hour or so...will report back with what worked.

...PS I did read the stuff on TNW website on temp control...but I think we should have our own version here for our cookers...same goes with the other forum...I could read there...but figured we could benefit from cooker specific directions. Thanks to 'drunk..' for assmbling all this into a faq...maybe we should make a WIKI for some of this stuff

later,

K

thanks.

I also read from another post where Dennis replied, that the small basket is to help keep the charcoal together for a small cook and easy light. Well, I have a chimney, so I may just do away with the small basket and just load the big basket up. Use what I use, then shut her down when I'm done,,,and relight next time I'm ready to use. Man, I'm gonna love this thing!

K

Dennis,

How is this different from the vacuum kiln drying thing you do?

isn't the vacuum kiln drying done only on the molds before the mortor and tiles are added?

...I'm not a tiling expert, but not sure if the vaccum kiln would be good to cure mortar...I thought it needed a nice controled (and slow) cure to reach proper adhesion strength...kinda like cement? But that's just me postulating

we'll here more accurate word from Dennis

later,

k

I dont have a KK, just a mexi-k, so I will defer the answer to someone who has one.

But when you say it was hot, what part of the grill were you touching? And was it hot, like 2 second before you pulled your hand off, or like touch it and yelp hot? My mexi-K will be in the 3-5 second range around the firebox area at moderate temps like that.

I would say I could tollerate it for about 5 seconds or so..maybe longer if the man in me comes out to play. the temp is prettty even all around the unit starting from above the firebox. so I guess this is normal... now i just need to learn temp control...reading up on TNW's website regarding temp control. I'm thinking of cheating and getting a rock stoker anyone fit that bad boy on yet? i may give them a buzz tomorrow.

later,

k

for some reason I thought the outer shell of the kk would be semi-cool to the touch...man I was wrong. today I didn't even get the grill to 350 (verified with two temp probes)....and the entire outer shell was darn hot! is this normal?

later,

k

Anyone out there willing to write up a KK manual?

amount of dome adjustment, amount of damper door adjustment, amount of lump charcoal...maybe brand specific:

...for

...high temp cooking

...350 degree cooking

...low and slow cooking

reason I ask, is I sat waiting for my komodo to heat up to 350 for over an hour, and it never did. It then dawned on me that I only filled up the center basket wih lump, and not the ring around. well too late now to keep experimenting...must get sleep. I guess leaving what lump I have left in the unit will do for an nice low temp burn in.

Do you folks recommend to just overfill the lump tray? maybe light the center tray with pre-lit lump from a chimney, and then put unlit lump around it in the outer tray...thinking out loud here...suggestions? Please school me....i have no clue.

btw, tried to post this in the cooking section, but it said that moderators only could post there.

later,

k

I agree with the North-South idea, but that will make the hinges trickier.

Not sure I would agree with the flap being in the back, though. could be hard to get some lump into the middle of the basket from the back, since the dome is much lower back there.

I was thinking the same thing. Shoot, I'm scratching my head trying to figure out how to get the additional lump in the small basket through the front hole that is already there while cooking...or do you guys just dump pre-lit coal straight into the outer basket from the top opening?

K

Re: Grill design mod from forum feedback

All ready in production..

What's the point of doing research here if I not going to apply what I learn .....

From your feedback, here is some shots of the new 1/4" grill with the side handles and small door handle.. lower grill is open at front.

So what cha think?

nice

I've gotta cutter and a' welder...looks like time to go buy some stainless wire, cut her up, and weld it back together...booger weld style (no tig, just mig)

later,

k

dont get too pumped... he does everybody like that

it took you one mintue to reply...man you are slow

man, dennis. he didn't even ask. he just mentioned it! aren't you supposed to be off flooring a hotel somewhere?? i was going to post that i was getting my temp guage cause i waited til june to order, just to make him a little jealous...

now i gotta stew!!!

BOOOYAAAHHHH!!!!! Dennis took care of me!!! neener neener!!!

btw, if anyone reads this far into their research of KKs' ... I'm one of the most skeptical folks out there...and buying from indonesia was a huge huge huge risk in my book...especially with the amoutn of money involved....let met tell you...dennis might be a joker, but he's no joke. He's the real deal!!!

order with confidence!

k

...shameful plugger since he's getting a thermo...the higher temp unit please