Advice Please!: Bulk Butts to help KY

Dwight Smokem

Well-known member
Messages
125
Location
Louisville, KY
Grill(s) owned
  1. Bull
  2. Bullseye
Hello my friends, I am here in KY and unfortunately it's just the beginning of cleanup and rebuild efforts after the unprecedented flooding. My buddy and I are going to take a cooler full of 7-8 lb pork butts to the most affected parts in the backwoods of Eastern KY to relief workers and families. I do the cooking and he's the wheelman. The question I have is what is most pork butts anyone has successfully smoked (well) on a Bull RT-700 at once? Next, once you get at 4 or more, does it significantly affect cook time or pellet burn rate? Anything else to account for?
 
I have no firsthand experience, but as long as the grill isn't overcrowded with decent space between butts, temperature is temperature and your cooking time shouldn't be significantly affected. I'd probably be inclined to rotate things around a bit, but over a long cook, that's probably just my OCD kicking in. Your pellet consumption might be a little higher, but as long as your Bull is maintaining temperature (it should), you could probably load it up.
 
Hello my friends, I am here in KY and unfortunately it's just the beginning of cleanup and rebuild efforts after the unprecedented flooding. My buddy and I are going to take a cooler full of 7-8 lb pork butts to the most affected parts in the backwoods of Eastern KY to relief workers and families. I do the cooking and he's the wheelman. The question I have is what is most pork butts anyone has successfully smoked (well) on a Bull RT-700 at once? Next, once you get at 4 or more, does it significantly affect cook time or pellet burn rate? Anything else to account for?
I don’t know the answer to your question, but I want to thank you for thinking of others in their time of need. That’s what this life is all about. Be safe, and be blessed!
 
Yep, as long as they are not crowded. You will most likely get some heavy temp swings right away until the cold meat warms up.
 
Yes thank you for the Blessing that you and your buddy are doing! I go out with a faith based group and I can tell you that what you men are doing it’s a wonderful treat and a Blessing!
 
At that size, you will be able to comfortably fit 8 if you are using 2 of RT’s small shelves. I have also seen others use bricks or metal stands with open wire framed cooling racks to stretch a little more capacity on a cook. If you really want to maximize the space, you can load in stages. The original 8. Take them past the stall, wrap and put them in an oven at ~250F and reload. At that point, they will not be taking on anymore smoke. The cooking time will not be significantly altered but i strongly recommend rotating the butts 2 times during the cook to manage any hot spots (e,g., the gap in the rear of the Bull within 5” if each side of the firepot and the left side near the chimney if that is also a hot spot for your cooker). Good luck and God bless for thinking of others in their time of need.
 
I have the second shelf and I have done 8-8lbers and there was room for more. Time was a little longer but nothing to worry about. Good luck
 
At that size, you will be able to comfortably fit 8 if you are using 2 of RT’s small shelves. I have also seen others use bricks or metal stands with open wire framed cooling racks to stretch a little more capacity on a cook. If you really want to maximize the space, you can load in stages. The original 8. Take them past the stall, wrap and put them in an oven at ~250F and reload. At that point, they will not be taking on anymore smoke. The cooking time will not be significantly altered but i strongly recommend rotating the butts 2 times during the cook to manage any hot spots (e,g., the gap in the rear of the Bull within 5” if each side of the firepot and the left side near the chimney if that is also a hot spot for your cooker). Good luck and God bless for thinking of others in their time of need.
You're a smart man, thanks for thoughtful reply.
 
If you need additional shelf space, I have two small RT shelves and one large RT shelf. I expect I’m on your route to SE Kentucky since I’m almost already there,, so reach out if you want to borrow them. God Bless.
Thanks! I should be good, I have redneck engineering degree so I could make up some kind of shelf setup, but appreciate the offer.
 
Thanks! I should be good, I have redneck engineering degree so I could make up some kind of shelf setup, but appreciate the offer.
Let me know if there is anything I can do to help, donate some butts, pellets, whatever. I’ll even meet you and Buc-ee’s and fill up your tank! LMK.
 
I wouldn’t mind ”butting in” either (see what I did there? :)). I’d be happy to send you a check. Just, please, don’t use the “go fund me” website. I won’t use them.
 
Thanks to all, I will let you know if anything else is needed. Just completed a Sam's Club trip and got all 56lbs of butt they had (I left one 8lber bc I pictured me walking in and being pissed someone bought all of them, haha). My buddy is buying gas cards in $40 increments to fill peoples tanks who are commuting folks or helping with cleanup, so we may raise more money for that. They have a surplus of clothes and water, we are trying to fill the void of what family there is telling us they need.
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In case anyone is interested, Linked here is an article by author/teacher Silas House with his take/activity with the flood, specifically at the Hindman Settlement School. I know Silas-he teaches local to me at Berea College and I know the Hindman Settlement School well. Prior to Covid, we used to travel to Hindman every fall for a ‘Dumpling‘ and Dancing’‘ event that combines Appalachian traditions of food, dance, craft, storytelling, and family. The School had a dance tradition that helped create a local group, Berea Festival Dancers, that my youngest two children participated in. I myself am 8th generation Kentucky Appalachian and I sure appreciate how @Dwight Smokem is stepping up to help out my tribe!
 

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