Yep, that will work with charcoal just fine, but to use a wood fire it may need to vent some of the heat through the CC. I would recommend a shadow plate/baffle above the damper so that the cooking racks aren't blasted with direct heat and smoke. I made mine go all the way to the sides of the rack guides, so the heat and smoke go up along the walls and the dripping fall into the drip pan/baffle plate. This works like a dream.
Current Smokers: Backyard RF Offset and Hybrid RF Offset trailer rig with Cowboy cooker and fish fryer, always room for more........
So I have a build question. What is the best way to match the contour of the cooking chamber with the door gap framed out in flat bar? It is not far off. The door itself is good, it is just the flat bar at the top that is not contoured and leaving this gap. I think it is more that the left side in this picture is higher than the right side by about 1/8"
Last edited by Elmacho on September 27th, 2018, 10:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
If it's just the flat bar I'd hit it with a hammer a few times until it's tight. If you need to tweek the door then here's a link that should help you out viewtopic.php?f=87&t=3344
Or you could use some fire rope for a gasket and let her go, it would work great! Then just toggle clamp the door shut and you would have a very good seal.
Current Smokers: Backyard RF Offset and Hybrid RF Offset trailer rig with Cowboy cooker and fish fryer, always room for more........
Option 3, tho expensive, is kinda exciting. One could have a piece of plate rolled so the door is one piece and perfectly curved to fit the pipe. I called the local shop and they want $100 for rolling and I have to supply the plate.
I figured with the seal that I had planned to use I would just even out the gap and weld it. Turned out pretty good. I will start a fire in it today and heat the whole thing up before sand blasting it.
Last edited by Elmacho on September 27th, 2018, 10:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Started a fire to see how she was pulling. Appeared to pull great and I must say very efficient. 4 hours later I ended up having to pull the splits out and dowse them in water so I could put her back in the garage.
Last edited by Elmacho on September 27th, 2018, 10:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
So as I am counting down til my first cook, what should I do to season the smoker? I have tried searching for a process but have not came up with anything specific. What temp should I get it to? Should I wipe everything down with some type of cooking oil?
If I'm building from a used tank or scrap pipe I always fire it up before I season it and run it as hot as I can get it for a few hours just burn out anything that might be left in there. I let it cool all the way down and then I spray the everything inside of the CC with a light coat of cooking oil, fire it up and get it around 350 or so for a couple of hours and then I back it down to around 225-250 and run it there for a while. I don't normally put any meat in there for this process but some guys throw some bacon or other type of fatty meat in there just for a little extra fat. I like to make adjustments to my intakes after I've let it run hot for a couple of hours just to see what effect they have on it and how much wood it takes to maintain temp.
Trying to figure out where to place Thermometers in the cooking chamber door. Looking at the plans it appears right above the top rack but I wasn't sure if it was just under the top rack. Any suggestions?