Royal Oak Made in America

XF15Loader

Had a little rain this evening so I'm sorting some lump in the house when I came upon this in the bag.  Is this a usual occurance in Royal Oak?

hoosier_egger

XF15Loader

LMFAO...what happened to my post?  Sorting LUMP...and drinking Heineken!  

XF15Loader

Anyway, I found this in the bag

Carolina Q

What is this "sorting lump" thing?

Killit_and_Grillit

RRP

Trust us...don't have a cow over ANY foreign debris you might find in ANY brand of lump! Lump making is not a hospital related operation. Rocks, bullets, barbed wire, insulation and many other substances show up in all the brands. The manufacturers are NOT ripping you off! 

tarheelmatt

That's either a mouse or some 60 yr old that never shaved their pubes before gothe lodged in the bag... somehow. 

XF15Loader

Lmao..you guys are great.  Ok, I won't freak about it.

As for sorting...the first time I did an overnight cook, I sorted and built my lump pile.  It cooked 14+ hours without problem.  The second time I said the hell w it and threw in the lump...I ended up finishing 2 butts in the oven.  Because of this I've decided to pay attention to what I'm doing.  

Mayberry

Lmao.....that's a rare find.  I've found some strange things in lump, and some things that concerned me.  But, luckily, I have yet to run across an animal of any sort.  Honestly, even though Royal Oak is one of the most affordable around, I've found less foreign material in their bags than most others.  Size is on the smaller size, but it burns well and is really cheap.  

Killit_and_Grillit

When you just need BTUs...use your Royal Oak. 

Sorting it is like courting the high school hussy. You're going the long way for the same result. 

Long cooks...just buy better charcoal. Get some Rockwood. Statistically less pubes. 

RRP

I just don't get this "big lump sh*t" fascination! Presently I have a 20 pounder RO with big chunks and I hate it! I have set it aside to take to my side yard and beat it into small pieces! Ever try to cook on a small or mini BGE with 2 or 3 lumps?

NPHuskerFL

Sorting Lump 

Carolina Q

XF15Loader said:

Lmao..you guys are great.  Ok, I won't freak about it.

As for sorting...the first time I did an overnight cook, I sorted and built my lump pile.  It cooked 14+ hours without problem.  The second time I said the hell w it and threw in the lump...I ended up finishing 2 butts in the oven.  Because of this I've decided to pay attention to what I'm doing.  

I have never sorted. If I had to do that, I would just buy a gasser.

Mayberry

I tried sorting.....once.  It was messy, a massive PITA and just not worth it.  I just pour into the grill when grilling. When I have a long low and slow smoke, I empty the firebox, clean the Egg, and hand place 10-12 larger pieces along the bottom. From there, I pour the rest in, layering some smoking wood as I go into the lump. I'm sure a perfectly stacked fire with only larger pieces maybe would burn more efficiently, but I've never had a problem with my temps skyrocketing or my fire going out. So, I just pour in and light it. It works

XF15Loader

I agree w/ Mayberry.  I don't sort like THAT.  I just pull the largest lump for the bottom to keep airflow open.  No, I don't sort the whole bag...screw that...lol

lousubcap

@RRP - The only time I have ever put new lump into my SBGE was for a low&slow cook.  Otherwise, it gets LBGE left-overs tossed in.  Does just fine with that sourcing process.  

Hans61

This guy sorts his cobras 

caliking

Never sorted lump. Had a fire go out twice... Because I forget to open the bottom vent. I knew someone who sorted a bag of Rockwood and threw away what he considered to be the small pieces. What a dumbass.

Those fuzzies are bits of their kiln lining (I think). A pretty common finding in RO, for some reason. 

RRP

caliking said:

Those fuzzies are bits of their kiln lining (I think). A pretty common finding in RO, for some reason. 

I have always speculated that RO is more prone to that due to the many kiln sites they have amassed over the years. Obviously smaller producers may not have rebuilt their kilns and were going out of biz when RO came along and bought them. That type debris - NOT the metal and rocks - but the kiln lining debris. Maybe I'm wrong, but it makes sense.

Skiddymarker

lousubcap said:

@RRP - The only time I have ever put new lump into my SBGE was for a low&slow cook.  Otherwise, it gets LBGE left-overs tossed in.  Does just fine with that sourcing process.  

As a side note - using the leftovers makes for a spark free torch start. All of the snap, crackle and pop has been burned out of that experienced lump. 

Best thing I've found in lump was this well used dust mask. 

Botch

Specially-marked bags of RO now come with a Brillo pad prize, to clean your grate with.  

Carolina Q

Mayberry said:

I tried sorting.....once.  It was messy, a massive PITA and just not worth it.  I just pour into the grill when grilling. When I have a long low and slow smoke, I empty the firebox, clean the Egg, and hand place 10-12 larger pieces along the bottom. From there, I pour the rest in, layering some smoking wood as I go into the lump. I'm sure a perfectly stacked fire with only larger pieces maybe would burn more efficiently, but I've never had a problem with my temps skyrocketing or my fire going out. So, I just pour in and light it. It works

Clean the egg? Place larger pieces? That's a "messy, massive PITA". I stir the old before every cook and dump more in if I need more. Whether for a 15 minute chicken thigh or a 15 hour pork butt, new gets dumped right out of the bag onto the old. I rarely touch a piece of lump. Been working for me since I bought this thing in 2009.

XF15Loader

I will try that, @Carolina Q.  I usually pull everything out, clean up the ash and add new lump.  Everything I've read says the left over won't burn long enough for low n slow cooks.   

Smokin_Trout

Skiddymarker said:

lousubcap said:

@RRP - The only time I have ever put new lump into my SBGE was for a low&slow cook.  Otherwise, it gets LBGE left-overs tossed in.  Does just fine with that sourcing process.  

As a side note - using the leftovers makes for a spark free torch start. All of the snap, crackle and pop has been burned out of that experienced lump. 

Best thing I've found in lump was this well used dust mask. 

That's like underwear- turn it inside out and keep moving. 

Mayberry

I only remove and clean it out to get the inevitable buildup of ash out from behind the firebox.  Probably not needed, but I hate when it don't clean it out and the temps start getting erratic due to all the ash buildup.  I probably pull my Egg apart once a month, whether I'm slow smoking or not.  I always do it before a long, overnight cook.

Markarm4119

Sort lump, a waste of precious beer drinking and bullsh@$#ing time!

JohnInCarolina

Some of y'all have spent way too much time thinking about all things lump related. I'd tell you to get a hobby but then the BGE is likely your hobby already so back to square one we go.

Thrilla_in_my_grilla

I had been buying Royal Oak at Walmart for 9.98/ 15 lb.  found these to have lots of dust as well as rocks and at least one metal strap.  I bought a bag of Royal Oak at Lowes for $2 bag more.  Noticed much less dust, larger pieces and no foreign debris.  The bags look identical except the Lowes bag has a small flag with "made in the USA", the Walmart bag does not.  Is there  different suppliers for Royal Oak or did I just randomly get a couple of bad bags?

Zeiger88

@ Thrilla_in_I have been buying royal oak at Walmart and I have only found the occasional rock and  minimal dust I think it depends on how the bags are handled most of what I have gotten has good sized chunks 

henapple

Any lump... Pork and go. Royal Choke... Yuck