AntinOz

Ended up picking up a second hand Jr for $100 so happy with that. Some TLC and it was almost as good as new.

I typically clean up the bbq, rake out the coals, chuck in some new lump, throw a starter in the middle, light it, put on the smoking stone and grate, connect my smartfire, close the lid, leave about 2/3rds of the half moon open and walk away. My smartfire brings it up to temp, varies a little on the initial ramp up and then holds the temp +/- 5 degrees C for hours. And my Akorn leaks like a sieve, you can see smoke coming out around the seal under the lid as the fan brings the temp up to set.

I recently had my Akorn Jr stolen from my backyard. I still have my full size Akorn but found I was using Jr about as much as the bigger Akorn, especially when it came to searing steaks. Having screaming embers in 15 minutes and being able to drop the grate almost right onto the flames makes for an awesome sear. I am tossing up between getting another Akorn Jr or stepping up to a KJ Jr. I like the look of the KJ but feel the kinds of cooks it really excels at are probably more suited to the larger KJ. Looking for advice to sway me either way. For reference, down under the Akorn Jr is $250 and the KJ Jr is $800. Normally cooking for two adults and a teenager.

Yup, plenty of Akorn's over here (I have two). Reallly nice looking ribs, totally ruined by that green can

Well only a day early (father's day is in September down under) and my wife gave me a lovely new 18cm Santoku knife: It has a lovely Damascus blade, that you can't really see in the previous pic: Now I am going to have to learn how to sharpen and maintain it, and maybe add some of it's siblings down the line.

I grew up eating apple and rhubarb crumble, always took it for granted. This looks like a lovely twist, never tried it with strawberry.

Damn you all, I now have a craving for pizza!! Been wanting to play with different dough recipes so may have a play this weekend.

Just about every BBQ forum seems to use F predominantly. I have tried to develop the habit of using 'C' or 'F' in my posts as I find I flip between the two, but only with the BBQ.

Are you cooking to temperature or time?

I use exactly that setup quite often. 350 - 400F, dough appropriate for that temp (although my wife often makes the dough). Around 8 mins per pizza. Just remember to let everything heat soak first. My biggest mistake is throwing the first pizza on too soon. Also, allow the stone to recover between each pizza when doing multiples.

Wow, first time I have been on here in a while so sorry for the late reply. Life has been getting in the way lately. All of my issues with the SF are sorted and it regularly maintains my Akorn for anything from a three-five hour rib cook through to a stupidly long brisket cook. I run mine of a 20,000MAh battery which is more than adequate for any of the long cooks I have done. After the DOA fan, and the new probes I can't fault the unit. The only time I have issues now are if my WIFI drops out, and it still cooks, I just can't monitor it. My router is on one side of the house and I cook outside on the other side. My latest router upgrade seems to be much more stable for this. Whereabouts in NZ are you? I imagine after-sales support will be easier with only a two-three hour time difference if something does come up (I'm an ex-pat from way down south).

I love lamb shanks and will definitely give this a try as it looks amazing. What's that white stuff all over the ground in your pics?

Do they ship down under?

I use the SmartFire https://smartfirebbq.com and love it. It hasn't been without issues. They got a bad batch of probes from their supplier and mine arrived with a DOA fan. Fault was diagnosed and a new fan sent out on the same day. Probes have been replaced and unit is working brilliantly. It does help that I can track the manufacturer down at our local bbq competitions if necessary.

Does that include chasing the redback off my Akorn, as I had to last Monday night before pizza.