Quote Originally Posted by Jer View Post
FWIW your pork butt is only going to take smoke the first 3-4hrs anyway. I've found that straight applewood works the best for pork butts. I don't do any mops or sprays and instead finish with with a nice finishing sauce (mostly apple cider vinegar & apple juice plus some spices) and foil at the 165deg mark. Also be sure you're not in the 40deg to 140deg for over 4hrs as this is when bad things happen. I usually start my smoker on 250deg and then come back down to 225deg once the internal meat temp starts coming up nicely. Don't leave it in your smoker overnight as that's for sure going to go right past 203deg. I've foiled and then thrown in something like a bath towel and then into a cooler for 4-5hrs and it comes out just fine. Perfect temperature to eat. Never less than 1hr rest no matter what your desired time to eat is.

FWIW, I use a Maverick remote temp that has all sorts of alarms built in. I set it at my desired temp of 200-203 and then if it goes off in the middle of the night I have a cooler & towel ready to throw it into but you will get better at timing them so that it finishes sometime the next day for dinner although I still have some that tend to take FOREVER so don't be too discouraged.
I pretty much agree with Jer. However, I have stopped using any wrap (Texas Crutch) or mustard to hold the rub and I think it not only tastes better, but makes better bark. Also stopped spritzing but keep a pan with some liquid in it under the meat to keep moisture in the smoke. I have put both brisket and pork butts in the smoker at night and had awesome results for a noon meal the next day too. I had spreadsheets and recipes to start but I have come to realize that it is pretty simple if you keep the smoker moist and use a good remote thermometer.