Chicken on the smoker ideas?

I think you have wonderful ideas already and how nice/fun for your brother. I really enjoy a Moroccan spice rub on chicken. My recipe is 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/4 tsp each cayenne and cumin, salt and pepper all mixed in with 2 tbs of olive oil. Other times I used a Chinese five spice on chicken and serve it with a side of sweet and sour sauce. Hope this helps.

We love Cajun smoked chicken. My basic Cajun rub recipe - 2T Paprika, 1T Garlic powder, 1T onion powder, 1T cayenne pepper, 1T salt, 1T fresh cracked pepper, 1t oregano, 1t thyme. I rub this all over the chicken and let sit overnight in the fridge. The next day - smoke the chicken, we baste it every 30 min or so with Dr. pepper in a spray bottle. Turns out great every time! Good Luck!

What a nice thing you're doing! The 2 diff rubs sound great. We smoke chickens regularly but we never do any rubs. We wet-brine them simply for a day and then smoke them. We typically freeze them afterwards and use them to make smoked chicken quesadillas, smoked chicken sandwiches with chipotle sour cream, or pasta with smoked chicken, sundried tomato cream and walnuts. (So you can see why we pretty much just want the smoked flavor). Might you show him how to make a simple brine (kosher salt, sugar, water) so he might try that technique next time he smokes? I don't know your climate but here in New England it is winter now. On Xmas Day we will smoke a goose and 2 chickens together in our smoker. We will brine them overnight in a cooler lined with a large trash bag, on the screen porch where it will be cold, so we don't have to give them frig space.