---Use lump charcoal....not briquettes

---Allow extra time the first few times--to get used to it

---The Virtual Bullet site is great---Try using sand in the water pan....I
also have a new WSM. The first few cooks I used water---last weekend I did
an 8 lb. Pork Butt, and didn't want to worry about the water pan, so I
filled it 2/3 with sand, foiled it and cooked it for 13 hours--no worries !!
The pan isn't hard to clean, but no cleaning is better.

As someone mentioned in a previous post...while you have the smoker
going--fill it up!!
If I'm doing ribs, I'll throw 1-2 chickens on the lower grill (to freeze for
burritos), or some Turkey drumsticks for lunches....no sense wasting good
grill space! Today I'm doing some ribs...I got some tomatoes and a pile of
poblano peppers....so I'm going to make some smokey salsa for weekend
consumption.

---the AFB FAQ is a great resource also.....have fun