Baby Back vs. Spare pork ribs

Mornin',Rob.

They will take about 2/3 to 3/4 of the time,usually.

Of course that depends on what weight spares you used and what weight loinbacks.

If they are true babybacks,well below 1.5 lbs.,they will take less time yet.

Hope this helps some.

Glad to see this addressed right now. I usually smoke spares, did baby backs but was not impressed with the taste vs. the cost. However- my son is giving me some baby backs, so with that being even cheaper than spares, I am going to fix them. I don't want to ruin them, though, and here is what I plan to do:
smoke 225 for 4 hours depending on size, haven't rec'd them to know the weight. start out meat side down, at about 3 hours, turn, check, spritz if necessary. finish cooking. Plan to use pecan. and as for the foil or NOT to foil, what I had planned was to cook them w/o foil in the CS, but foil them and toss into ice chest for holding, maybe crisp on grill before eating. Now I am in a quandary since I am dealing with BB. Does anyone see a better way to do this? I am open for any suggestions, ( well- concerning this project) LOL and I take criticism REALLY well.
Thanks-
pj

Haven't cooked spares yet,but smoke baby backs often I sometime put mustard and rub and sometime just rub and put in the frig. over night and smoke at 225 and to have them pull off the bone easy it takes about 4hours they are done in less time but I like mine tender.

thanks, Ricky.
do you turn them when you check them? also- do you spray them with anything while cooking?
I take it you do not foil?
pj

just did a full load (6 racks)of baby backs. I left them in for 4 and a half hours, but I like the meat fallin' off the bone, overdone in most circles. I only open the smoker at the half way point to swap the top and bottom racks so they cook evenly. As others have posted, I give them a good sprinkle of rub and leave them in the fridge overnight. Cook at 225 and they're done when the meat has pulled away from the end of the bone about a quarter of an inch. I take them out and brush them lightly with sauce and wrap them. Never had a bad batch! Made the load today to bring to a july 4th party. Looking forward to the crowd reaction! Have a great fourth everyone!

All the above are great points about BB's.

Many people "tell" me they have problems with ribs. The problem is solved if you keep great records and realize that 1/2 pound difference in rib rack weight can mean a half hour to hour difference.

Baby backs will be done much quicker because they are much smaller in weight and the bone is bigger and "seems" to transmit more heat than spares (not fact, just fiction)

Many people prefer them falling off the bone and there is nothing wrong with that. I too like the theory that 1/2 way through the smoke, put some flavor one (a good mop) and then I also mop them when I foil them (if I go for the "store in the ice chest technicque).

Just make sure that you test them and by pulling on one of the bones. If they're how you want them, pull them and wrap them, if they're not, just put them back in until you're satisfied.

pjw51, I have turn the ribs,but also just left them alone and it work out fine both ways.
They don't make it to the foil around here so I just gave up on foiling unless I have to hold them. I don't mop them but I might after SmokinOkie comment. I don't like to open the CS until I have to.

Moppin' is a personal preference. I don't mind if I have to add time to my smoke, it's the finished product I care about most.

Depending on the rack of ribs you may or may/not need to mop. Look for racks that are relatively uniform in thickness. Some racks are cut so that they are pretty thin on the end. Those ends will cook very fast and the thicker ends much slower.

And of course, you can add other flavors with mops if you like.

Smokin'

Ok here is what I do...

1) Keep the ribs chilled and then using a screwdriver (flatblade) or a dull butter knife I remove the membrane.
2) I rub the ribs with French's Sweet Onion mustard and then rub and sprinkle with my choice of dry rub.
3) I then wrap the ribs with plastic wrap overnight.
4) Next day I take ribs out and place in smoker (I use any variety of smoking woods and I place some lump charcoal next to the elements)
5) I smoke at about 210F for like 1-2 hours then baste with either apple juice or a dark amber beer and rotate the ribs 90 degrees.
6) Smoke for another 1-2 hours or until the internal meat temperature is 180F.
7) I then take ribs out of smoker and baste with a liquid bbq sauce and let rest for 15 minutes.
8) I then place on a hot charcoal grill for 10-15 minutes and crisp them up.

I have had grown men fight and women faint for these ribs...they are so good!

Take care,
PrestonD