A little help please

I don't cook in elevation so take this with a grain of salt.

Temps are fine, you are rubbing 30 minutes to an hour before? Not too thick on the rub also.

Try cooking for 1.5hrs bone side down first, then hit with the juice as you turn them bone side up at the 1.5 hr mark. Then continue hitting with juice every 30 minutes until done. Don't use too much AJ when spritzing and make sure the juice is not cold, just room temp.

Does it take an hour to get to 276?
I start mine(3-3.5 pound loinbacks) @ 276, coat ribs and put it while it comes up to temp (more smoke that way). Place bone side down and don't open door for 3 hours. Remove and place bone side up on foil with sauce/honey/aj top & bottom. Wrap & back in smoker 1 hour. Check @ 4 hours. If you want to crisp up remove from foil & bump temp for ~20 minutes +/- glaze.

MountainMan
What type of ribs are you smoking?

How many racks do you normally smoke? What is the average weight of the ribs?

Do you have 4 or 8 shelf side rails?

At which rail position do you place your ribs?

Are you laying them flat on the racks or using the CS vertical rib gismo?

I rub the ribs about an hour before placing them in the smoker.

My FEC is a seven rack version and I'm a one man show, so I place my one rack of st Louis ribs diagonally across the grill bone side down and insert it in the center. I've found that placing the meatier end to the rear helps as well.

I've been using this technique since 2012 and have been happy except lately the bark seems heavier.

Standing in the shower (where all good ideas originate) this AM, it struck me that I'm getting towards the bottom of my container of rub. Now I do try to shake it a bit to redistribute the spices but I cannot guarantee that I do it every time.

Could the Turbinado sugar crystals have migrated to the bottom and be causing a thicker bark? I can't say the ribs are tasting any sweeter and I eat them dry.

I'd say it's the turbinado sugar combined with the constant spray of orange juice. Kinda like mixing cement.

The increased amount of Turbinado might be creating the crustier bark.

Try lowering the temp to 250 and giving them a spritz of plain water next time around.

Thanks folks..........
That and possibly wait an hour to start spraying.....

I lost my membership in the AJ sprizting club quite a while back. With the torture of getting squirted each 30 min..it would seem a miracle to get any bark at all. Kindly quit complaining..lol. Sounds like you are having some issues of a similar nature as me using a bit of honey in the wrapping phase of the 3-2-1 method. It gave them a case hardened effect like a crunchy candy coating. Bound to be that rub trying to play the same trick using sugar. Just guessing of course. Yes shake it up. See it that helps. Might need a fresh batch. What brand is it? If you dont mind a person being nosey of course.

This was the last of a container of Rib Tickler. I alternate between it Texas Grand Champion and Cookshack depending on what I'm in the mood for.

Sounds good. I use Head Country all purpose on everything..when I have some. Putting a couple of butts on in the early morning using Bad Byrons Butt Rub. Which is hard to beat on butts in my book. Its way expired...as in out of date..but still tastes better than some fresh bought Adkins. That stuff tastes like sugar with celery salt. Cant believe I started out using that stuff. I tried Texas BBQ Rub original on chicken. That was very good but only had a small evaluation sample.