Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Backtoms Tailgate 2014
Based on random conversations with several of you it is sounding like we should try to plan our sort of annual football game tailgating for the Auburn game on October 11. We will plan on getting the same trailer we've had in the past. Shoot me an email and pass the word along so we can start trying to lock this down.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
CyberQ Wifi First Impressions
James and I gifted each other temperature controllers for our Big Green Eggs for Christmas. I finally used mine last weekend and thought I'd make some notes in case it might help anyone out in the future.
First, why would you need a temp controller? On multiple brisket sessions (~12 hours) I've woken up at the crack of dawn to find out that my temp has dropped substantially from where I want it. I think James has had the opposite problem where his temp has went higher than his target. I'm an old man and like my undisturbed sleep, so if there's a way I can sleep and keep my set temp I'm interested. We knew we wanted the option to monitor/control our temperature with our phones and iPads. The field was narrowed down to:
The Stoker can run multiple cookers at the same time, but that wasn't very important for our current needs. The CyberQ advertises an open lid detect feature whereas the Stoker appeared to make you hit a button if you're going to open the lid (if I read the manuals correctly). This seems like something that would eventually be handled by the Stoker software since the CyberQ's open lid detection just shuts the fan off if it sees the temperature ramping up quickly. After pricing out the device and fan suggested for an XL BGE the CyberQ WiFi was the less expensive option. When we ordered these in Dec 2013 it was cheaper to get them at firecraft.com than the manufacturer's site.
James received and tested his before I did. Leveraging his experience I knew I was going to need to keep the the Egg's top vent and the blower damper closed a good amount for a low and slow cook. Here's what I ended up going with.
Now for the cool part. By default you can connect directly to the CyberQ over wifi as long as you're in range. The more useful configuration for my needs is to configure it to connect to your wireless router. If you enable port forwarding on your router you can then access the CyberQ over the Internet. The web interface is pretty basic looking, but it gets the job done.
The sausage wasn't burned to a crisp, I had taken if off a long time before I grabbed the screenshot.
First, why would you need a temp controller? On multiple brisket sessions (~12 hours) I've woken up at the crack of dawn to find out that my temp has dropped substantially from where I want it. I think James has had the opposite problem where his temp has went higher than his target. I'm an old man and like my undisturbed sleep, so if there's a way I can sleep and keep my set temp I'm interested. We knew we wanted the option to monitor/control our temperature with our phones and iPads. The field was narrowed down to:
The Stoker can run multiple cookers at the same time, but that wasn't very important for our current needs. The CyberQ advertises an open lid detect feature whereas the Stoker appeared to make you hit a button if you're going to open the lid (if I read the manuals correctly). This seems like something that would eventually be handled by the Stoker software since the CyberQ's open lid detection just shuts the fan off if it sees the temperature ramping up quickly. After pricing out the device and fan suggested for an XL BGE the CyberQ WiFi was the less expensive option. When we ordered these in Dec 2013 it was cheaper to get them at firecraft.com than the manufacturer's site.
James received and tested his before I did. Leveraging his experience I knew I was going to need to keep the the Egg's top vent and the blower damper closed a good amount for a low and slow cook. Here's what I ended up going with.
 | ||
| Top Vent |
 |
| Fan |
 |
| Damper opening |
 |
| CyberQ Web Interface |
The sausage wasn't burned to a crisp, I had taken if off a long time before I grabbed the screenshot.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
My latest addition
Just picked this up earlier this week. It is the SW1911TA. Have not had the opportunity to shoot it yet.
Also went to my first Grand American Coon Hunt down in Orangeburg, SC, last weekend. Most dogs I've ever seen in my life and who knew there were so many coon hunters. Don't think I've ever seen my father-in-law ever so excited to be somewhere.
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