The Ugly Stick

[Big T]

I mentioned to a friend that I was looking for some material to build a smoker and he told me that he had a nice stick of

got the fire box attached

pipe that I could have. I went up to check it out and it was the ugliest stick of pipe that I've ever seen, hence the name. It's 25'' O.D. 3/8 wall pipe so it weigh's ALOT, I finally got a piece cut to a somewhat manageable size so I figured I'd get started. I'll try to take more pictures as I go but I'm working by myself so I get busy and don't think about it until I stop working.

got my B.P. cut and tacked in place

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the fire box cut to size with 1 end welded on

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I wanted to wait to cut my door opening so it would be level, it's kinda tough getting everything lined up by myself

This is where I'm at now, I only get an hour or so here and there to work on it. Thankfully my boss let me have the back corner of our shop to work on it.

[Smokeone]

That's gonna be a hefty, ugly stick! Looking good T!

[SmokinFF]

It'll get heavier from here.

[Rodcrafter]

That is going to be a family heirloom and it is not going to be ugly for long. It is already looking like a great sized cooker.

[The Czar]

Nice.... I think in the end you'll be happy… I know I would be!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Rev.Mike]

[bluecatfish]

That pipe should hold heat.

[New2Q]

[Big T]

Thanks Guys !! I forgot to mention the C.C is 25 x 48 and the F.B.is 25 x 18 all 3/8 thick with 1/4 end caps and the B.P is 3/8 also. So far all the materials have cost is a case of beer and digging through a friends scrap pile.

[Clover Ridge Smokers]

[Gizmo]

That's a nice Ugly Stick you got there Big T!




twss








sorry - I couldn't resist….

[SmokinFF]

Can't beat that price!!

[Big T]

How big do I need to make my fire basket ? My CC is about 100 gals and my FB is 33 gals. I watched Frank's video on building a fire in a RF and it didn't look like it needs to fill up all of my FB. I'm really asking more about the height of the sides than the foot print.

[Smokeone]

Most of the baskets are built to clear the door opening. Basically leave enough room that you can slide it out, and maybe a little extra so it will tip down so you can add wood or coals. Clear as mud?

[Big T]

Thanks S1, I didn't think there was a formula I just don't want to make a rookie mistake and have to rebuild it 2 or 3 times.

[Rodcrafter]

I like to have some room around it to have good air mixing all the way around.

[Big T]

A couple more questions, 1) do I need to have an air intake lower than the bottom of my fire basket or will the intake on the door at fire level be good enough ? 2) What is the best place for the top cut on my C.C. door ? I've seen some at TDC, some past TDC and some less than TDC, how far down are the ones that are less the TDC ?

[Gizmo]

A lot of builders go an inch past TDC on the top to help with rain run off and an inch below horizontal so the grate rails can be installed in such a way that the grate top sits exactly at 3 o'clock when on the rails (slide-out).

Personally I've always gone noon to 3 o'clock because I thought it made the best seal on the finished door & frame assembly. Remember if you frame your door then even if the opening is only 90 degrees the finished door panel ends up larger where the seal has to work.

[Big T]

Thanks for the input, I was hoping to have my CC door opening cut by now but I haven't made it that far. I've spent the last few days working on my over designed FB door and I wasn't able to get my air intake to work like I wanted so the whole thing is in the scrap pile. I always remind myself to K.I.S.S. but that other part of my brain kicks in and I come up with all these great ideas. Hopefully my next post will have some pics of my completed FB door.

[Big T]

Well I finished my redesigned FB door and got it mounted. I swear it took longer to figure out how to get the hinges to open the door without binding up than it did to build the rest of the door. I was starting to run out of ideas after about the 5th or 6th attempt.

nothing fancy but it is real smooth with no drag

I made the intake just a little larger than recommended and put a piece of X-metal behind the opening, just for saftey

I just put a piece of angle for a handle on my air intake

I still have to build a latch for it but my brain was kinda burnt out after wrestling with the hinges. All in all it wasn't too bad for a half a days work.

[Gizmo]

BigT you're gonna be throwing smoke in no time!

[Rodcrafter]

Coming along nice, keep it up Big T.

[bluecatfish]

Those are certainly unique hinges!

[Big T]

Thanks guys, yea bluecatfish that's not what I pictured when I started to build them. My door is double paneled so I had to get the hinge's first movement to be pulling straight out before it could swing. After several failures I finally got this one to work.

[Big T]

I finally got the mount for my stack built

I liked the look of the rounded mount since everything else is round

I will probably go with the straight cut style on my next build. I didn't think it would be easy to roll 1/4" plate but I didn't think I would have to heat it as much as I did to get a smooth arc. I just wish I could get a little more time to work on it, seems like as soon as I get going , it's time to stop.