I trimmed about a lb. of fat leaving a fairly even 1/4" cap or so of fat across it. After reading many posts from Tom and Smokin advising us to keep the brisket simple, I merely rubbed/applied Texas BBQ Rub--Brisket Blend (twice) to that beauty. Let it set in the refrigerator a total of 9 hours and tossed it into my smoker at 9:30 last night. Fat side down, middle shelf position, 225* smoker setting, 5-6 oz of cherry, meat temp 37*, Maverick probe, Elite probe(I didn't have to fold the brisket since it fit perfectly on the Elite shelf). At midnight, holy cow, that thing was already at 135*. Being a little concerned, I turned the smoker down to 200* and went to bed.
Got up this morning at 6:45, and there was no more sleeping since I had to get up to check things on the patio. Not bad, the brisket temperature was 168* so I turned the smoker temperature back to 225*. I really should have more faith in what Tom and Smokin tell us and just left it at 225* all the way. Oh well, no harm. Went in and made some coffee.
Going to see my son's baseball game this morning. He's in an adult league, the highest you can be in without being a pro. Pretty good ballplayer at age 29. Made the All Sacramento High School Team when he was Junior. Expecting the brisket to be pretty well done when I get back. I love that smoker. Working my tale off sleeping and watching a live baseball game while smoking a brisket. Only thing that could possibly make life easier is if that Maverick could broadcast over 5 miles.
By the way, my smoker was smoking like a bandit with the oven temperature at only at 160* last night. It pleasantly surprised me cause, if you remember, I had trouble getting smoke initially until I let the wood set in the sun for a week. Can't emphasize enough to make sure your wood is seasoned/dry as one step to insure better smoke. Certainly, don't leave the wood sit and tied up in the plastic bags it came in.
You'll be opening a can of worms with the Administrator who has full rights.