From the virtual Weber site:
Firing Up Your Weber Bullet - The Virtual Weber Bullet
"[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
The concept behind "The Minion Method" is simple:[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Place a small number of hot coals on top of a full charcoal chamber of unlit briquettes.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Using the bottom vents, carefully control the amount of air entering the cooker to keep the fire burning low and steady.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The unlit fuel catches fire gradually throughout the cooking session, resulting in long burn times of up to 18 hours, depending on weather conditions.[/FONT] "
This is what I did on a windless, 55F, sunny day with my smoker on the corner of my porch and basically starting at 250 and trying to dial it down to the magic "225" I kept reading about. This is why I thought I would get a much longer burn than the 4-6 hours when things started dying out. This is why I said that the lump charcoal I used must not have been any good. I can't imagine the conditions one must have to get 18 hours before more fuel is needed. Desert Q?
And this is why it's confusing to learn this craft from the internet, but like I said, I'm certainly not giving up. The meat came out, it's my methods that need worked on. I'm hoping with a fuel change I can get a little closer to that long burn time, but I also know now not to rely on that. I need to learn when to recognize that I'm losing my heat before it gets so low, but I also don't know how much time is required inbetween vent adjustments for things to settle in. Someone later told me 5-10 minutes, but I wa giving it much longer.
Live and learn.