First Offset Smoker build

[McBroom]

I just finished my first build and there are a number of things I found would have been much easier to do first:
1. cut the cc/fb opening before you mount
2. build your smoker cart and make sure it's level before mounting your cc/fb to it.
3. attach your CC and FB before you mount them on the smoker cart.
4. Anything that needs to be welded inside the CC - reverse flow plate, rails for racks, drain pipe, etc - should be done before you mount on your rack so you can work from above the CC instead of standing on a stool to reach down into the CC.
5. if you build a manifold or smoke smoke collector for your stack, give yourself room to weld the top seam on the collector where it attaches to the CC on one side and the stack on the other. It gets awful tight between the stack and the CC to put down that final bead if you don't leave a couple inches of space.

My back and knees are still recovering ... lol

All great advice. You da man of the day. [emoji109]

Claud McBroom

[dacolson]

Thanks guys. I am running gasless. Polarity is correct


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Any luck getting it dialed in?

[andysmoked]

Thanks guys. I am running gasless. Polarity is correct


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Any luck getting it dialed in?

I think so. It’s now up to me. A good tradesman never blames his tools. I’ve put the build aside while I’ve been doing practice welds on scrap. I want to get my welds at least half decent before I continue.


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[dacolson]

I can appreciate that. It's much more gratifying showing off a product with decent welds than one with decent looking grinds! God knows I've got plenty of those. My wife wanted to know why it's so dusty in my shop. Not from all those perfect beads I've been laying down!! Good luck and keep at it. It's a very rewarding hobby for me.

[ajfoxy]

On the flip side, don't get overly fussed by the look of your welds. If they are strong then leave them with just a little touch up. Unless you are a professional welder you'll be years away from the perfect "show weld". In the meantime you could be enjoying the fruits of your labours with less than perfect looking but perfectly strong weld. And the imperfect looking welds says it was hand built by an enthusiast not a factory!

[andysmoked]

On the flip side, don't get overly fussed by the look of your welds. If they are strong then leave them with just a little touch up. Unless you are a professional welder you'll be years away from the perfect "show weld". In the meantime you could be enjoying the fruits of your labours with less than perfect looking but perfectly strong weld. And the imperfect looking welds says it was hand built by an enthusiast not a factory!

Thanks ajfoxy

A very valid point


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[dacolson]

Great advice Foxy. Us new guys get so wrapped up in “ripples,” etc we forget its about the end result. I want to look like a pro in months when it takes years. Great call.

[andysmoked]

I’ve finally been able to get back to my build, & today I made a start on the FB. I initially was going to fold the plate, but realised that even after grinding the line, you can’t easily bend 6mm plate, so back to the cut & weld idea.



So I cut four sides & began welding. The first corner turned out like an advertisement for Dodgey Bro’s. Welding.



By the time I got to the fourth corner, I’ve got a weld that I don’t desperately want to take a grinder to.



I got sick of losing all my calculations so wrote it on my tank, & yeah it’s a small smoker.





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[dacolson]

Coming along nicely Andy

[Big T]

Just keep reminding yourself that you're building a cooker not a sculpture so thoses ugly strong welds will be fine

[Dirtytires]

Just a thought, am I’m by no means an expert welder, but your first picture looks like it could have had a bit of rust and scale on it. I always find that welding thru such metal gives crappy results so might suggest a bit more time on joint preparation and see if it helps. It was the hardest part of welding for me as I just want to pull out the welder but quickly learned that prep work is 70% of welding.

[andysmoked]

Thanks guys, and DT , I’ll be sure to take your tip re prep work.

I’ve also decided that my door needs a gasket. Which also means my hinges won’t work. I wasn’t happy with them anyway, so I’ve spent this arvo making up a different design of hinge. I think it will look and function much better.





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[andysmoked]

Could someone please cast an eye over my throat size please. The calculator brings it in at 1.725 inch cutout height, & in my mind I imagined it bigger than that.


Also I’m unsure which way I should put my FB. It is 14x14x10. Should I place it with the depth @ 10” (top to bottom), or 14” top to bottom? Hopefully the following 2 pics will explain what I mean.



Or



Thanks


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[Dirtytires]

Your tank is 14 inches wide. I would mount the firebox as 14inches wide and 10 inches high. That would give you a out 5 inches for a firebox and still have 5 inches of headspace.

Your numbers look ok to me...everything looks good.

[towtruck]

Just make sure not to have the fire too high in the box. You want some room for the smoke to go or it chokes out the fire. 5" of space above the fuel is about right.

I run charcoal in an 11" tall fire box, 3" of space under the basket and a 6" basket. That leaves 2" of air space above it. When the basket is full the smoke will choke it out a little...it burns the best when the coals get down to 3" high leaving 5" from the top of the fire box. I could get away with 2" under the fire basket but I'm not going to remake them just for that. I just don't over fill my basket.

[andysmoked]

Another question, does anyone have, or know of a pictorial or video explanation of how to mark the cutout for where the FB slots in? Let’s say my top cut (the horizontal one) needs to be 12”. If I have a 12” piece of string & bend it across the end of the tank, the distance between the two ends will now be less than 12”. Am I over thinking this or what?


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[dacolson]

use a piece of cardboard and scissors. Cut out an approximate of the curve of your tank end as a template. Get it close by checking the fit on your tank. Then measure the center point and got left and right from that to mark where your end points on the curved side need to be. Transfer your marks to the tank and cut away.

[Dirtytires]

Template for sure then small cuts on the tank and keep re-checking for fit. Once you get a notch cut in a little bit and you get everything on the same plane it will be much easier to see where you need to adjust.

[hogaboomer]

Put the FB up against the CC where you want it to be. Find a flat circle of some kind with a hole in the center. Grinding wheel with a center arbor or grinding wheel backing plate. Something with a raised center is best.
Lay it flat on top of the FB up against the CC. Hold a soapstone in the center hole for marking on top the FB. Run the wheel along the contour of the CC where you want the cut, making your mark on the FB as you roll it along. I'm pretty sure there is a better way to do this, but it worked for me just off the cuff.
This is how I marked the pipe firebox that goes on my propane tank end cap, it came out very close, except the small spots where I didn't hold the torch perpendicular.

[dacolson]

Put the FB up against the CC where you want it to be. Find a flat circle of some kind with a hole in the center. Grinding wheel with a center arbor or grinding wheel backing plate. Something with a raised center is best.
Lay it flat on top of the FB up against the CC. Hold a soapstone in the center hole for marking on top the FB. Run the wheel along the contour of the CC where you want the cut, making your mark on the FB as you roll it along. I'm pretty sure there is a better way to do this, but it worked for me just off the cuff.
This is how I marked the pipe firebox that goes on my propane tank end cap, it came out very close, except the small spots where I didn't hold the torch perpendicular.

That’s a great idea for transferring/scribing the curve from the tank to the box. I like the cutoff wheel idea. Could just use a compass as a scribe as well.

@andysmoked - are you trying to cut the firebox to match your tank or your tank to match the firebox? Not sure which would be easier? Maybe the tank b/c it’s pretty much straight lines?

[andysmoked]

Wow, great ideas, thanks heaps. I am planning on cutting the tank to fit the FB. That way, the top of the FB will be the starting point for the shadow plate.


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[hogaboomer]

I tried the compass method, it was a little awkward. I got a more accurate line with the wheel.

[andysmoked]

That wheel idea is a neat trick for other applications as well.


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[hogaboomer]

I get a decent idea every now and then.

[hogaboomer]

This is the one I did with the wheel, I just went out and tacked it on. I tried to do some measurements in my head and lay out the saddle, it came out a mile off, so I had to start thinking of a different way.