Buying a used FEC100

Were it me, I'd take a 4" putty knife and knock loose the built up carbon. Follow that with a light spray of Simple Green on the interior. Wipe that down with a towel & warm water and re-season with a small pork butt.

The new igniter shouldn't cost more than $110 + s&h.

As per vent, unless you're worried about wind or weather element, I'd wait. If push comes to shove you can buy a 90 o elbow vent from Home Depot for about $15.

Thanks. I'll try your method for cleaning. I bought an igniter, cover and elbow online for the FEC100 for $190 shipped so I should be set.

Like Max,says.If the walls just have a little loose crud on them,take an old credit card,or if you live where there are plastic windshield scrapers, and lightly remove the loose stuff.

If you really wanted to do a little more-it should look like a black,iron skillet,you could spray it with a little cheap lemon juice and wipe off with a paper towel.

If the igniter is the little rod in the firepot,most are broken off.A tsp of lighter gel is what most use.Folks just don't replace them,saves breaking them off in a few cooks.

Run it at 275º to be sure it is running even and that should handle the cleanup.

You don't mention where you cook,but like MAX says about the vent.Most of us cook in all weather,haul them exposed,leave outside 24/7 and never take the cover off.

I'm no expert but I have cooked around a bunch with a lot of FECs since they started.
The first gotcha is don't start changing everything Fast Eddy built into it, until you really find a reason to do it.

Many spend all their time trying to re-engineer the cooker and don't have time to cook.

Sounds like you have cooked some,so just don't fix what ain't broke.

KISS tends to work well for cooks.

Get the cover if you plan to keep it outside. It's high quality and worth every penny.

Thanks guys.

I picked up the cooker today and it's in good shape. It has a small dent in the top left on the front door but that was done during the original shipping back in 2006. The door can't be replaced separate of the cooker so the owner opted not to do anything about it. I cleaned it out and ran it up to around 320 degrees. I misted some water inside and closed the door which helped break down some grease. I let it come back up to temp and then wire brushed the racks and am now running at at 226 degrees with a pan of water/apple juice in there.

This is one heavy sucker. I hauled it in the back of my 2005 4Runner after putting down some 2x6's to raise the floor another 1.5" so the vent would clear the side trim pieces. The cooker just barely fit laying on it's back on top of cardboard and a heavy moving blanket. Getting it out by myself was much harder than I thought because it's so top heavy. I think I'll transport it in my enclosed trailer from now on after I make a mount for it. I got it home without a scratch though.

As for the igniter I replaced it however it still does not work. I'm going to post in the owners forum to see if anyone has any ideas. The contactor for the igniter rod comes on and then clicks off almost immediately when I was watching it with the control assembly opened up. I didn't get in there with a volt meter just yet but did send a note to Cookshack CS to see if they have any ideas. I would imagine it's the solid state relay or the contactor itself. The controls all looks brand new inside and the contactor contacts don't even have a mark on them. The original owner said it stopped igniting after a few months back in 2006 or early 2007. My guess is the originate Traeger igniter rod is still good.

I love how insulated this unit is though. I have the cover on order and plan to put a 36-48" stack with a non-restrictive rain cap on it. I'm not going to tweak around with it.

I just like things I have working 100%. I'm just anal like that because I love fixing things and can't stand when something is broke. haha. Anyhow I look forward to this weekend and getting to give it a try.

The three rib racks I got with the cooker are brand new. One was used only once, the other two were never used. The temp probe looks to have been used once or twice. I think I got a pretty good deal. I post some pics once I get the unit back together as I have the controls opened up right now while I troubleshoot the igniter.

You'll appreciate it more with everycook.

FYI, you don't HAVE to use the ignitor. Just use some wax tablets, or the squeeze jells. Put a handful of pellets in and light them. Once they are on fire, start the unit.

I spent the week getting the cooker cleaned up and repaired. I have fixed the igniter issue and am sending my control board to Cookshack on Monday morning to be reflashed to a newer version. Today's my first attempt at cooking on the FEC100. I'm doing a small 3 LB chuck roast for pulled beef. I've never done one before so we'll see how it goes. The one nice thing about this cooker is it seems to hold pretty good temps, especially after I installed a vent stack. I didn't use double walled material, however I will order the proper L or B vent tube when spring rolls around.

Here's some pics:

Looks great. Nice job, great price.

I just did two chuck rolls for pulled beef a couple days ago using this recipe posted by Tom a few year's back (end of the post), except I used beef broth/worcesterhsire in the foil. I cooked the chuck rolls to an internal of 200* and had difficulty pulling so I chopped. Remember to use the toothpick to determine doneness...no resistance it's ready to pull. I forgot to test with a toothpick and needed a few more degrees (Smokin...please don't yell at me ).

I noticed you didn't have the slide in grease drip pan. If they shorted you, you can use a standard sized steam table pan. To make the cleaning EZ set in a large foil buffet pan like you get at Sam's Club.

Larry,

I did get the stainless drip pan. It just wasn't in the pictures. I use two medium size steam pans that overlap one another. They fit perfectly in the OEM drip pan.

Great. Just keep in mind (like if you are doing 16 butts that kick out a lot of drippings) the stainless steel try was made to hold the larger foil pan, which works well for big cooks as it is not only full width but also much deeper. CS built the side holding brackets deep enough to hold the both the steel pan flange an the foil pan flange stacked up.

Boy, you got it cleaned up nice and shiny. I think it's a sin to have a smoker that shiny! Better get to smoking!!!!!!!!