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We have now built 13 55gal UDS and 3 30gal UDS. We light each the same way.....about 8 briquettes that were previously lit in the charcoal chimney are dumped onto the top of the charcoal in the charcoal basket and then some of the chunk wood is thrown around the top for the smoke. We light each of t...

I dig the shelves out of what looks like an old cold saw blade. Very nice.

I just updated my initial post with photos from the build and the finished product. Holy crap am I impressed with these. Needless to say, I am going to be sporting an army of them soon.

I finally bit the bullet and decided to build a few UDS smokers, while waiting for some shop time to build a couple of Gravity Fed Dual Pan Cabinet Smokers off of Frank's plans that we purchased. Seems those gravity fed smokers might end up being a winter project at this point. And with that, the or...

It does not. I spent yesterday poking through some of the settings in the controller, then shot an email to Koike. Our controller / model does not cut expanded metal. So now I am going to see if i can blow through it with my oxy torch on the unit. Just trying to cut some shapes for grills and for a ...

I have a Koike Plate Pro Extreme 2500 Plasma & Oxy Burn Table at my shop. My unit has one ThermalDynamics Ultra 300 Plasma Unit, one HyperTherm Scribing Unit, and 2 oxy torches with an 8ft x 20ft water table. It is all being controlled by PromotionNest software on the controller. Since we are a stru...

Looks great. Did you follow any plans or have any plans you can share? Also curious what the fire chamber area looks like (drip tray, heat plate, etc).

A buddy and I are going to embark on our first pellet smoker builds, and I keep having this debate in my mind. In a vertical cabinet pellet smoker (much like the FEC1000) will you get more even temps throughout the chamber by using thicker steel (bent in 1 piece for the walls) as opposed to going wi...

Well, I am back. The smoker works great and has turned in to a helluva hog smoker. But it is just too darn big to use regularly at the house. So....it is time to build a pellet box.....I will start a new thread as this build develops.

--Matt Tucker

Well, I have now officially seasoned my new reverse flow smoker and did a cook on it. Below are some more pics. Second Seasoning With A Little Pork https://scontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/1234728_10201754907142084_206094230_n.jpg I couldn't resist putting some Jimmy Dean Sausage and a few p...

What do you guys think. Fire it up on Wednesday?

All Blasted, Sanded, Wiped, Cleaned, & Ready For Paint. https://scontent-a-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/559334_10201732410099672_471569632_n.jpg Having it sandblasted, really saved on prep time for the paint, along with two air powered sanders and a roll of 220 paper, and a friend that does autobo...

love the counter weight Matt ! This was my / our first smoker build, so I was completely surprised how much fine tuning the counterweight took. We ended up cutting three different thicknesses & sizes of the counterweight, in addition to placement on the door. It was definitely a learning experience...

Thanks for the compliments guys. I ran it over to our coatings / sandblaster that we use quite a bit and he is going to blast it for us. It tows rather nicely and I will get some better photos together as well soon. At his recomendation we are going to use a SW KEM Hi-Temp Coating 850 Series paint f...

Here is the latest update. After today, all the accouterments will be welded on the trailer / smoker and the shelves will all be built and installed. The Counter Weight Installed https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/1238122_10201694750038194_458395799_n.jpg We were able to go with a 3/8" thic...

Well, the smoker build saw some progress today. I should be painting it by next weekend after all the fit and finishes go on it. Our First Attempt At A Counter Weight For the Door https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/1236193_10201660701386999_994311149_n.jpg I recently got off my butt and joi...

SWAG percentage (scientific wild ars guess)

I like that.

I am kind of at a standstill currently with how to open the door. The door is damn heavy at roughly PL 5/16 x 24" x 3' - 6" and almost 89lbs or so. We were thinking cable pulley and counterweights, but that sort of messes up the storage basket idea i have for the back side of the smoker (or if i wan...

Guys, I am in the midst of my first build, and we are reaching on the best method to lift a large heavy door on my first build. We have settled on using a cable / pulley system -- but there just aren't many photos of those type doors on the interweb that I can find. If anybody is running a pulley / ...

The door lift is going to be an aircraft cable / pulley system we are dreaming up with a pipe filled with slugs as a counter weight. We haven't worked through that yet, but that is the direction it is going.....because that door is HEAVY.

Thanks for the all comments and pointers guys.

Yeah, I am pretty sure I could have bought one from a local manufacturer for about what I will have put in this one. That being said, I haven't seen many that are built out of 5/16 and 3/8 plate....so there is that. #-o But in the end, if it will hold steady temps, drafts properly, and will cook mea...

The smoker build is coming along, surely but slowly. I ended up at NortherTool on Monday night and dropped close to $700 for the trailer parts (axle, hubs, wheels/tires, trailer coupler, trailer jack, light kit, leaf springs and attachment kit). But it will sure be nice when it is done. The Firebox ...

Holy guacamole !!!!!!!!!!! I guess this is what happens when a structural steel guy decides to build a smoker in his shop.....1200lbs later. I ran in to a little issue with my axle and had to cancel the order. I was having one manufactured and was told 1 to 2 weeks, and when i called to check on it...

We are making forward progress. The cook chamber is all welded up, the exhaust stack is in, and the firebox is almost done. Still need to cut the door, make a door for the firebox, build the rib box / warmer on top of the fire box, and mount it to the axles (which have not delivered yet), then add a...

What is the most preferred method of probe ports for meat thermometers? I want something that can be completely sealed off when not in use, and is fairly air tight after the wire is ran through. What is everyone using? Also, was thinking of putting two thermometers on the smoke chamber about 1ft in ...