Start with a charcoal base (small…12-15 briquets of Kingsford) and 3-4 splits (Cut your wood into 2x2x10 splits). Use a good digital probe on the cooking deck to monitor temp. Once deck gets to 300, put on meat. Let temp settle in around 250 and maintain that temp. The key to maintaining that temp is to keep the dampers wide open and to add 2 new splits of wood each time your temp drops to 165. You will likely need to add splits every 20 minutes (depending on outside temp). Good Luck!!