Where's the smoke ring?

GrillMeister

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Ironwood 885, Century 22, BGEx2, GMG Davey Crockett
I've had my Ironwood 885 for almost a year and love the way it cooks, but I must say, I am extremely disappointed by the lack of smoke rings on my briskets.

Take a look at this one. I even had a smoker tube in there in addition to SuperSmoke on till I wrapped it 8 hours later. I know the Ironwood's have issues with the door leaking smoke and I'm leaning to this as the culprit. Thoughts anyone before I reach out to Traeger Support?

 
I got a bit of a smoke ring in mine. Definitely not a pronounced smoke presence in the flavor. This was with Traeger mequite pellets and a smoke tube extended to 6 hours. I only used super smoke for a couple of hours. Next time i would increase that time
 
Nice lookin brisket otherwise! I get a really good smoke ring on my IW885. I've also sealed the door and do my best to do a few hours at 165F with super smoke to try and amp up the smoke flavor, maybe that is what gets me a good ring...
 
Nice lookin brisket otherwise! I get a really good smoke ring on my IW885. I've also sealed the door and do my best to do a few hours at 165F with super smoke to try and amp up the smoke flavor, maybe that is what gets me a good ring...
Yeah, I think I will need to seal the door. Ridiculous on a $1,500 grill.
 
According to Aaron Franklin (who I tend to believe on this topic) the smoke ring is not indicative of quality and they really don't strive for it at Franklin BBQ. If you are really after a smoke ring, keep your brisket in the fridge as long as possible before cooking.
 
I've had my Ironwood 885 for almost a year and love the way it cooks, but I must say, I am extremely disappointed by the lack of smoke rings on my briskets.

Take a look at this one. I even had a smoker tube in there in addition to SuperSmoke on till I wrapped it 8 hours later. I know the Ironwood's have issues with the door leaking smoke and I'm leaning to this as the culprit. Thoughts anyone before I reach out to Traeger Support?

View attachment 1508
That looks extremely succulent.
 
Yeah, I think I will need to seal the door. Ridiculous on a $1,500 grill.
Have not done a Brisket yet on my 885, but have had no issues generating smoke rings on other cooks. Here is a photo of some baby backs from last weekend. I do use and always have used a smoke tube on my rib cooks. Could make the difference.
 

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Nice lookin brisket otherwise! I get a really good smoke ring on my IW885. I've also sealed the door and do my best to do a few hours at 165F with super smoke to try and amp up the smoke flavor, maybe that is what gets me a good ring...

I do agree that the leaky door is ridiculous (mine leaks too). I just wouldn't worry about getting a smoke ring. If it tastes good, its tender and it has good texture, what more do you really want?
 
I used this on my lid and all the leaks are gone.
Also I use Camp Chef pellets. I like the flavor and I get a decent ring. IMHO!!
 

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I used the lava rock weather stripping sold on amazon to seal the door on my Pro 780. I’m not mad at my smoke rings.
 

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I also lavalock'd my door for this reason. I start most of my cooks without bringing the meat to room temp and start 200 or less with super smoke for a bit before switching to a higher cooking temp. Like some of the others, I picked up an extendable smoke tube and plan to use it on longer cooks like briskets and pork butts. Oak, Mesquite and Hickory woods should produce the most smoke.
 
My brisket had a smoke ring ... 575 - no tube ... I would not say it’s a lot, but it is there
 

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