In my quest to resolve my stubborn Traeger overheat and flameout issues, I came across all this stuff. Thought I'd capture it an share before it's lost with the processed Bud Light...
(I digress a bit here...)
Smoke Daddy sells a pellet hopper assembly that comes in either a 12" or 18" auger length. The unit holds up to 35 lbs of pellets and the controller, auger, fans and pot come as a pre-assembled unit. In an existing smoker, barrel or box..., cut a small square opening and drill 4 holes and you are smoking with pellets. I think it will actually drop-in retrofit into some larger Traeger's with no modification required.
https://smokedaddyinc.com/product-categ ... ssemblies/(Now I’m getting back on topic...)
These guys also sell a Tareger upgrade plug-n-play PID digital controller, or controller, fan, auger motor and pot upgrade kit that rate very well in the web reviews. Unlike the Ortech, Traeger and Standbroil controllers, to maximize control of smoke and cook temps, their controller also adjusts the fan speed along with the auger run time Truly the cadillac of controller's and the complete controller kit is standard in the hopper assembly above.
https://smokedaddyinc.com/?s=PID+contro ... pe=producthttps://smokedaddyinc.com/product/pelle ... grade-kit/Ortech sells a drop-in plug-n-play controller upgrade that I installed in jr yesterday. It has a 'P' dial on the front that has 16 smoke/cook auger settings. Gets good ratings and they say that an experienced cooker can use this dial on the fly to address pellets burn variations and weather conditions etc. Update: It rocks!
https://ortechcontrols.com/Bought it on Amazon-
https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Thermost ... 0340&psc=1This is the RecTec Hotflash firepot upgrade that I installed. Heavy gauge stainless with a ceramic hot rod assembly. Fits most Traegers beyond the Jr as a simple drop-in install. My Jr required a 3/8” spacer plate that I fabricated myself but the thing works extremely well. The thick gauge pot combined with the fabricated steel spacer seem to hold the heat well. Even after opening the lid, it stabilized quickly and it really helps with smoking as well. Yesterday Jr was holding serious smoke down to 99 - 110 degrees for more than an hour and never flamed out. That's something that I have never been able to get my PTG to do, it always flamed out no matter what I tried...
https://www.rectecgrills.com/hotflash-c ... on-system/ In summary, invest in either the Smokedaddy or Ortech controller and temperature probe listed above. You will see a dramatic improvement immediately in both smoke and cook temp control. The RecTec flashpot firepot is the next best investment. The hot rod is ceramic and sits closer to the auger for a quicker start with far less pellets falling in the pot before reaching desired temps smoke or cook. FYI, the pot is the same dimension as the Traeger jr pot but the auger and hot rod sit lower in the flashpot vice traeger. Everything else is the same, even the connector...
The 3/8” spacer can be made out of 4 ea 3” w x 5” l x 3/16” thick flat steel that you can buy at a home improvement store. If you have a jr, the need is to raise the underside of the top of the new flashpot so that it sits niceley on the existing auger housing and base in the same hole pattern... I cut all of my steel with a hand held battery powered jig/Sabre/scroll saw and an aggressor metal cutting blade. Took about two hours to complete and install. This included battery charging delays....
Combine with the controller settings and sensitivity, this thing now rocks. Granted the PID kit is the Cadillac for sure but my effort was for now anyway... based on available funds blah, blah, blah...
Good luck!
P.S.
I found this tonight on pelletgrillaccessories.com and will be installing a hopper extension as well...
https://shop.pelletgrillaccessories.com ... tegoryId=8