View previous topic :: View next topic |
Author |
Message |
JoeD BBQ Fan
Joined: 09 Dec 2007 Posts: 231
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 9:38 am Post subject: Cutting my smoker in half... |
|
|
Well… not really, I divided it in half though , and I put in a second stack. Now I have a conventional offset/reverse/ two in one smoker…whatever you call it, I just hope it works! If not, I’ll make it work.
Here’s my reason for the change: I kind of knew it all along but after the first cookout, I made my mind that a four foot smoker is really all I’m going to be using the most, … ehhhhh occasionally like one a year a large get to gather BBQ with family, friends and neighbors, so I figured it if I divided the cooking chamber I could have all I need plus some. Hopefully, I’ll be able to cold smoke in one end while cooking ribs or whatever else one the other end…
Back to work, I had another piece of sckl 40, 6 inch pipe and plenty of 1/4 “ left over plate from this project. Here I’m laying out the needed pieces to insulate the fire box:
Fitting the stack using a piece of 6" PVC
Here are a couple more shots:
Three pieces made up the divider, one short piece on the bottom, (this one will have slotted holes for adjustment) the large middle piece and the top piece, all held together with 5/16 bolts (welded) very easy to remove!
The tuning plates are but- up together with a four inch opening at the end for heat/smoke reverse flow.
The final results:
Pretty soon I’ll have this baby all done…just before the stripped bass run _________________ Updates
two smokers in one
Life's too short to drink bad wine!
Last edited by JoeD on Sun Jun 22 08 5:59 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
Tom C BBQ Super Pro

Joined: 21 Jul 2007 Posts: 1851 Location: N. California
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 2:44 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Very well done Joe! See no reason she won't work that way for you.  _________________ Homemade offset smoker 24"x48"
Charbroil CB900 grill |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
BBQMAN BBQ Super All Star

Joined: 13 Jun 2005 Posts: 15475 Location: Florida
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 7:12 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Nice work Joe! _________________ BBQMAN
"I Turned A Hobby Into A Business".
Providing "IMHO" Since 2005. |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
milt BBQ Super Pro

Joined: 09 Oct 2006 Posts: 1233 Location: June-OCT N.Y. Nov-May FL
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 8:03 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I had the same idea when I built the twins.
Good luck it should work fine. _________________ Curt
www.kissmybuttsbbq.com |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
coal miner BBQ Fan
Joined: 27 Jan 2008 Posts: 107 Location: Southern Illinois
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 8:48 pm Post subject: |
|
|
JoeD
I'll tell you what .You're just smarter than a good show dog !! Seriously That is one he77 of an idea .Don't see why it wouldn't work great .I put some rod hangers in top of mine to hang the sausages. All you have to do is take out the grates and you have all kinds of room to hang them.here's a poor pic. there's a place for 2 -3/8s rod on each side.Looking good
 |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
JoeD BBQ Fan
Joined: 09 Dec 2007 Posts: 231
|
Posted: Sun Apr 13 08 9:51 pm Post subject: |
|
|
coal miner wrote: | JoeD
I'll tell you what .You're just smarter than a good show dog !!
|
That is funny... thanks, I like the sausage hanging rods idea, my upper cooking tray is only 6" from the top, so I might just remove the top tray and hang the rods on the angle iron sliders. Its a long learning experience guys. _________________ Updates
two smokers in one
Life's too short to drink bad wine! |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
ELM2627
Joined: 28 Jun 2008 Posts: 5
|
Posted: Mon Jun 30 08 12:34 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Joe
How do you open up the left side to allow heat in when using it for large cooks, pics if possible. |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
JoeD BBQ Fan
Joined: 09 Dec 2007 Posts: 231
|
Posted: Mon Jun 30 08 8:45 pm Post subject: |
|
|
ELM2627 wrote: | Joe
How do you open up the left side to allow heat in when using it for large cooks, pics if possible. |
I just slide out the cooking trays, unbolt and remove the divider plates all together which takes only 5 minutes; I adjust the tuning plates back to their original marks and she's ready to roll. _________________ Updates
two smokers in one
Life's too short to drink bad wine! |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
Cranky Buzzard BBQ Super Pro

Joined: 13 May 2008 Posts: 2385 Location: Plano, Texas
|
Posted: Tue Jul 01 08 7:45 am Post subject: |
|
|
Ya know, I am really liking the pits that are red and black.
JoeD, that was a good idea on the splitting. The MAIN reason I didn't make this last pit out of a propane tank I have is because I don't usually cook for a crowd, mainly just for me and the wife. This pictorial showing how to go about possibly splitting it kind of has my welding rod holding hand twitching a bit!
One question, now that you've done the split, have you seen a reduction in the number of sticks it takes to keep her at temp for a long smoke?
CB _________________ Cranky Buzzard BBQ FB Group |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
HillbillySmoker BBQ Pro

Joined: 25 May 2008 Posts: 917 Location: WV
|
Posted: Tue Jul 01 08 9:41 am Post subject: |
|
|
Cranky Buzzard wrote: | Ya know, I am really liking the pits that are red and black.
JoeD, that was a good idea on the splitting. The MAIN reason I didn't make this last pit out of a propane tank I have is because I don't usually cook for a crowd, mainly just for me and the wife. This pictorial showing how to go about possibly splitting it kind of has my welding rod holding hand twitching a bit!
One question, now that you've done the split, have you seen a reduction in the number of sticks it takes to keep her at temp for a long smoke?
CB |
Aye, i like the red and black combo myself, since my truck is red with black trim as well.
Thats why i built mine the way i did CB, I dont need a big cook area for just the family, if i wanna grill i close the partition door to the smoker, if i wanna smoke i lay the deflector plate in the bottom on the grill side and open up the paritition door to the smoker.  |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
coal miner BBQ Fan
Joined: 27 Jan 2008 Posts: 107 Location: Southern Illinois
|
Posted: Wed Jul 02 08 5:30 am Post subject: |
|
|
Paint really sets one off. Yours is looking really good. You can tell that there is a lot of thought there on that build. Congrats !! I also like the shelf , is it redwood ? Red and black rulz !
 |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
JoeD BBQ Fan
Joined: 09 Dec 2007 Posts: 231
|
|
Back to top |
|
 |
Bluegrass BBQ BBQ Pro
Joined: 04 Mar 2008 Posts: 502 Location: Summersville, WV
|
Posted: Thu Jul 03 08 8:21 am Post subject: |
|
|
Why are the smoke stacks extended down to the lower grate level. Doesn't this cool down the top level? Just curious. |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
JoeD BBQ Fan
Joined: 09 Dec 2007 Posts: 231
|
Posted: Mon Jul 07 08 8:00 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Bluegrass BBQ wrote: | Why are the smoke stacks extended down to the lower grate level. Doesn't this cool down the top level? Just curious. |
Negative my friend, heat rises so the top cooking grate gets slightly hotter then the bottom grate. The temperature difference varies depending on what I cook, for example; I've seen as much as 30* difference between the top and bottom temp gauges when I cooked a whole pig, I suppose the large meat mass changed the heat flow dynamics causing more heat to be trapped on top.
Last Friday I cooked 6 slabs of baby back ribs on the bottom tray and 2 slabs of spare ribs on the top tray, the temperatures between top and bottom trays stayed within 5* throughout the cook.
The trick for even temperatures between bottom and top grates is to create the best possible heat distribution and flow dynamics within your cooker, the bottom end of your stack and its output angle are two important factors. _________________ Updates
two smokers in one
Life's too short to drink bad wine! |
|
Back to top |
|
 |
|