Tempe, AZ
Quoted from Spyderturbo007:I left most of the fat cap and just removed the hard fat that probably wouldn’t have rendered. Nothing that I would consider aggressive.
I sent my wife to the store for a heating pad and have that set at 160 degrees and in the cooler with the brisket. Current temperature is 159 degrees. I’m hoping I can hold it for another 2 hours.
As long as I don’t get down towards the danger zone at 140, I should be fine. I think the worst case is that it’s mushy from being held so long.
How do you brisket experts handle timing? I’ve read 1-1.5h per pound. Mine got done in 37 minutes a pound. Something seems off....
How can you possibly plan a party around a brisket?
Finishing early is always better than 2 hrs late. 
I’ve smoked @ 15 briskets all from Costco and every single one has been different. The whole ‘it’s done when it’s done’ is truer for brisket than any other BBQ in my experience.
I usually aim to have it done 2.5-3 hrs before I want to serve in case it stalls and so I’m not freaking out when guests arrive. If you finish way too early, as crazy as it sounds, you can put it in the oven at 180 degrees and it actually won’t dry out too much. I have a bottom oven that actually goes that low and have used it in a pinch.
The other thing I would recommend is to get a food scale. I have bought a 14lb brisket before and got trim happy and it went down to 11lbs by the time I was done...that will definitely impact when you decide to start it.
