OP you are somewhat correct that smoking is done in the first 1/3 of the cook at least for larger cuts like brisket. But it's the quality of smoke/flavor that's put into the meat in that first 1/3 that matters.

I'm not much help on the burners but here's a site that provides some good information to make sure your smoker has good flow.

http://www.feldoncentral.com/bbqcalculator.html

I did both of my brinkman smokers.

got all my stuff at the hardware store, one thing to remember is run some pipe from firebox long enough to let the heat go down before the hose is attached. I put a brass valve on the side of firebox so I could adjust the flame and shut off easier than at the tank.

not hard to do, just have to take some precautions so you are not what gets smoked.

We are building it for our annual band bbq and we�ll use it to smoke turkey legs at football games.

Our growing season was horrible. Way too much rain. I actually just disced up the entire garden yesterday. Going to replant cucumbers and going to try my hand at pumpkins.