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New Egghead Unpacks and Assembles

jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
in EggHead Forum
For my birthday and Christmas, I asked my family for money for a Large Big Green Egg. They came through with just a few dollars to spare! The dealer offered an assembled or a boxed Egg, and I opted for the boxed one, figuring I'd learn better how it works if I put it together myself. I got the nest and side tables and they threw in a plate setter for free! The 3rd-party cover was a separate Christmas gift from my parents, and it seems to work fine.

Assembly took a while, but that was mainly due to some distractions. The online video was quite helpful although the hardware that came with the Egg was a little different than what was on the video.

I picked up some Royal Oak lump charcoal at W-M today and we're planning to fire it off tomorrow for burgers. Can't wait!

Comments

  • HotwingkingHotwingking Posts: 266
    Congratulations on your new Egg, you will love it! Ask lots of questions here, you will learn a lot.
  • Andy_in_COAndy_in_CO Posts: 49

    Congrats! You will be an addict in no time! Welcome to the party.

  • HashmakerHashmaker Posts: 149
    Congratulations! Hope you enjoy your egg. Start saving. There will be lots of stuff you'll want to buy. Just got my second egg a couple of weeks ago.
  • jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
    @Hashmaker, yeah I've been looking at extras online. So far on my list: Deep dish stone, ash pan, rig, cast iron grate, temp control device. I think BGE stuff will dominate my wish list for the near future.
  • calracefancalracefan Posts: 602
    Temp controllers are nice but it is best to know how to manually ontrol your temp, then if the controller fails all is not lost.
    Ova B.
    Fulton MO
  • Greeno55Greeno55 Posts: 635
    That photo of a boxed up Egg brings back the memory of unpacking mine and laying all the pieces out on the deck. Congrats, welcome and enjoy!!!
    LBGE (2012), MiniMax (2014), and too many Eggcessories to list.  - Sudbury, Ontario
  • HashmakerHashmaker Posts: 149
    I'm surely not Donald Trump so I use a 4 inch paint brush and dust pan to clean my eggs and went with the PartyQ temp control. 150 bucks for the PartyQ and adapter. No complaints so far. Target for the pizza stone- 20 bucks and I shop flea markets for cast iron goodies. You can find the things you want and/or need for decent prices,
  • jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
    @Greeno55, that's what I was hoping for when I took the picture :)
  • jfarleyjfarley Posts: 145
    Had a similar stack of boxes to yours back in July while waiting for my table. The anticipation was killing me. The Egg is an adventure from day one. You are in for some very good times.
    LBGE - July 2012
    Valencia, CA
  • HashmakerHashmaker Posts: 149
    edited January 2013
    I drove to Atlanta to get my large and the boxes wouldn't fit in my car. Had I known about this forum then, I would have taken pictures of it in my car. Some of the folks here might have gotten a kick out of seeing the base of my large green egg seatbelted in the front seat and the dome seatbelted into the back!
  • jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
    At least you could use the HOV lanes.
  • SkiddymarkerSkiddymarker Posts: 8,299
    Congrats and welcome....
    Delta B.C. - Move over coffee, this is job for alcohol!
  • jfm0830jfm0830 Posts: 987
    edited January 2013
    Welcome aboard!! You are in for some great food and great fun. I got my first large in August and just set up my second 5 days ago. Be warned the guys and gals around here encourage that kind of behavior.

    FWIW I am with @calracefan. I'd save the money on a controller for now and put it towards other Eggcessories. Learn to control the temps manually. Then if you still want a controller, like @calracefan says, you'll know how to control the Egg manually if it fails. 
    Website: www.grillinsmokin.net
    3 LBGE & More Eggcessories than I care to think about.
  • henapplehenapple Posts: 15,983
    Welcome...a thermapen is a great little tool.
    Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN 
  • Smokin_TroutSmokin_Trout Posts: 481

    Just a suggestion- If your band bolts are not bending, tighten them some more.

    This forum has a lot to offer and the people are friendly, so far there is only one idiot, but he knows what he is doing.

    Good luck

  • jlsmjlsm Posts: 980
    Welcome. I agree about the temperature control, unless you plan to cook butts every weekend. I find I don't need it during the day, but I would like the security for overnights. One item that I find essential, or at least very, very handy: the Maverick ET 732, a wireless thermometer that tells you the temp of your food and your Egg. I had my Egg for about eight months before getting the Maverick, and I was constantly going outside to check the temperature. Now, I just look at the monitor from inside. 

    I also find the High-Que grate extremely important. It made a tremendous difference in the amount of time needed to get roaring hot and I don't have to strip clean my Egg very often now for slow cooks. 

    I would get the Maverick and the grate long before I would get a temp control. (After almost two years, I still don't have one, though I'll admit I'm looking at the Party Q.) 
    *******
    Owner of a large and a beloved mini in Philadelphia
  • jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
    Thanks for the tips everybody. Since I'm out of money for now, I'm gonna have to learn to manually control the temp, but it is a good suggestion to do that anyway in case you ever have to.

    And about what @Smokin_Trout said about the bolts, I tightened them as tight as I felt comfortable doing. I saw the band prongs (the part that turns outward with the holes for the bolt) bend some toward each other as the nut was tightened, but I didn't see the carriage bolts themselves bend. The lid opens and closes fine and there's no up-and-down play on either band. I think I'll tighten them up another quarter-turn or so just to make sure. So long as I'm only using smaller hand tools (i.e. nothing like a torque wrench) I assume there's no chance of damage to the base or dome?
  • GriffinGriffin Posts: 7,647
    jigawatt said:
    @Hashmaker, yeah I've been looking at extras online. So far on my list: Deep dish stone, ash pan, rig, cast iron grate, temp control device. I think BGE stuff will dominate my wish list for the near future.

    Congrats on your new Egg. I'd skip the deep dish stone (but definitely get the BGE pizza stone) and the ash pan. Cast iron grate is nice but not necessary. Temp control devices are good, but also not necessary. Learn how to control it manually first. You never know if/when a pit controller might break/your power goes out. I'd invest in a good thermometer first. Thermapens are great as is the Maverick 732. The addiction has just begun for you.

    Rowlett, Texas

    Griffin's Grub or you can find me on Facebook

    The Supreme Potentate, Sovereign Commander and Sultan of Wings

     

  • HashmakerHashmaker Posts: 149
    edited January 2013
    "And about what @Smokin_Trout said about the bolts, I tightened them as tight as I felt comfortable doing. I saw the band prongs (the part that turns outward with the holes for the bolt) bend some toward each other as the nut was tightened, but I didn't see the carriage bolts themselves bend. The lid opens and closes fine and there's no up-and-down play on either band. I think I'll tighten them up another quarter-turn or so just to make sure. So long as I'm only using smaller hand tools (i.e. nothing like a torque wrench) I assume there's no chance of damage to the base or dome?" My bolts don't bend. The bolts are so tight the ends of the bands are almost touching. I think some eggs (maybe newer ones) come with bolts that don't bend. This post talks about it some, "OK my ring just slipped…. Help". Try searching for it. It may be helpful to you.
  • calracefancalracefan Posts: 602
    Be sure to check your bolts after a couple of cooks, they loosen with expansion and contraction from heat. Also good to check periodically anyway, you don't want to open the egg and have the dome hit the ground !
    Ova B.
    Fulton MO
  • MrCookingNurseMrCookingNurse Posts: 4,628
    Best of luck and welcome!! You'll love the egg and can get a lot out of this place too if you can't put up with a few of us


    _______________________________________________

    XLBGE 
  • henapplehenapple Posts: 15,983
    I would wait a while to see what you need or want...including a table. Your priorities may change once you get really rolling.
    Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN 
  • jigawattjigawatt Posts: 20
    Thanks for the tips everybody. I'm definitely going to wait and see what I really need before going out and buying anything. I can do the basics and that's good enough for now. I had a good time firing up my new Egg tonite and grilling burgers. They came out great but not perfect so I still have lots to learn.

    As I fiddled with the bottom draft intake and the chimney cap it kinda felt like when I learned to drive - you remember how that went, right? Gas-brake, gas-brake, gassss....BRAKE!! hopping all over the road. I also made the same mistake that @jfm0830 made - after I got the fire going, I let it heat up for a few minutes while I chopped some veggies (my normal procedure with my Webers). Came back and it was a little under 200 but hot to the touch. I carefully lifted the lid and then noticed the needle spining counterclockwise. Yikes! First lighting and I already got it around 900! To any first-timers reading this: once the fire is going good, keep a sharp eye on that dude.
  • henapplehenapple Posts: 15,983
    Jig, I cook my burgers reverse sear. PS in and around 250-300. Once I can flip the burgers with no problem I remove the PS and let the egg temp climb to around 550-600 and check with the thermapen. Just a thought.
    Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN 
  • TD458TD458 Posts: 4
    Have fun with it. We've found it's tough to really mess something up on the Egg. Even when we have cooked something more than we typically care for it still comes out really good.
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