That's exactly how I had my metal cut. The only problem I had was too light of a gauge (.045) and burning thru and warping when trying to weld the seams. I'm not a great welder and the next one will be 14 gauge material and bent to fit with a top and bottom that gets welded.CaliforniaSmoke wrote:
1. cut identical top and bottom pieces, about 1.5" wider and deeper than the inside of the cook chamber. Then notch the four corners 3/4" x 3/4" to fit around the tubes, which would put the edges in the middle of the face of each tube, overlapping. Just tack this to the tube faces.
2. Cut the back to fit exactly between the top and bottom, but wider by 1.5" to overlap 3/4" onto the rear tubes on each side. Tack this to the face of the vertical tubes. Now instead of a butt corner joint between the back and the top it's a "T". A little easier to fit
3. Now the left and right sides can slide in and we have a "T" joint at the top, bottom and back, and a half lap onto the tube at the front.
Thoughts? It may be hard to picture from my description, but it seems like it would make fitting the interior sheetmetal easier.
Thanks Puff.Puff wrote: This is coming out very nicely. Not only did my channel come in 3/8 " too long but I've read a few posts about the same thing. Wonder in we are not constructing or placing the firebox correctly?