Thanks bbqchef33, I will keep the lip, I am doing a pork leg (ham) this weekend it will be the first smoke since "reconstruction" I will put the fire blocks it too...I was thinking a tinfoil plate so to speak over the rocks to catch the dripping your thoughts...

so some thoughts!
Its my first smoke and I am doing a ham...its gonna be a long night!

Had to change the thermometer the homedepot guy gave me two from parts as there is nothing on the selves up here summer is over... I have one hanging from the chiminey and I replace the original. The hanging one and one I have as a test are good the one on the door shows 80 degree deference...I think because it is on the door and was not really made for it although no smoke escapes, any thoughts.

Also I notice that teh temp is constant at 250, is this supposed to be the result of mods? :) is so very happy, although its hard to bring it up...I did baffle, fire bricks, and raised the grate in the fire box.
I seem to have to add new coals every hour but its very constant...

how much coal do you go though a cook? I use lump.
thanks

I go through about 16 pounds of Outdoor Gourmet charcoal briquettes and a handful of wood chunks during a 12 hour smoke. I shut it all down and it still runs for a while longer, but I always put too much in or refill one more time than is necessary at the end.

I also have some work to do on sealing my door and lid.

To recap, I don't use lump exclusively (like you asked), my door still leaks, and I put too much in to get an accurate measure. How's that for a grain of salt to take my answer with?

I take that grain of salt and added to my 1 inch new york cut! :eusa_clap for the grill not the smoker...
sounds like I do the same thing with the same thing...thanks!

Folks I have looked for this site for some time. I am sooo happy to have found this place. My bandera story started with someone else owning it. I cooked on it a bit and knew it was a great smoker. When I left, I knew that was not going with me, and started looking for one right off. Found one on my way to work every day. I called the man and he said yeah it is for sale but no you wont pay what I want. When he told me, I told him sold. He couldn't believe I would buy it without looking at it. It is one of the older thick material ones.

I do plan on doing all the much needed mods, but I had thought about using ceramic tile in the fire box........

One other question and yall may think I am nuts for this, but it is my feeling, that the fat needs to get into the fire, as I like the flavor, plus will make the fire last much longer on my other smoker. Has anyone made anything to get some of the drippings over to the fire box? I had thought of using a1 inch strip to catch some and let it run down and over to the fire box. I figure it will get too hot and vaporize and never make it. May be more trouble than it is worth.

has anyone ever considered putting a flat cap over the top of the firebox instead of the normal lid that lets heat and smoke excape?

i modified mine with a flat top made of 1/2 inch steel.

Slideshow here

Weighed a ton and had to reinforce the hinges and the back wall to support the added weight. gave me longer burntimes with smaller fires.

You can alos just add a heat shioeld into the stock lid. A piece of 1/16 inch steel put in the inside of the stock lid and welded to the inside of the lip will get rid of that dead airspace.

As far as redirecting grease into the fire.... honestly, if you want to do that, get a vertical direct cooker like a UDS, PBC,WSM... but the bandera is an offset and throwing grease into the firebox??... well.. not worth the effort or risk(of grease fire).

Thanks for The Bandera Sticky
 

My neighbor and I share one of these and I am determined to master it this year. The mods poster in the sticky make a great deal of sense. I am looking forward to hanging out and learning from everyone here.

Well I lived in Bandera for six months building a big swimming pool on property on the Medina and all we had was a crock pot. But I spent enough money at Sid's to have bought a Bandera Smoker.

Finding this page was a life saver. I am presently rebuilding my bandera. I made a charcoal basket an used it so many times I burned a hole thru my fire box lid. Ive replaced the lid and am in the process of adding fire bricks. has any one used them both in the fire box and the cooking chamber??
JC

I've used my Bandera for over 15 years. Loved it and babied it as much as possible. Of course my covers would only last a couple of years ,then it would be back at the mercy of mother nature. She finally won and the firebox was completely rusted through on the smokebox side with serious rust through on the front side. I debated on getting the firebox rebuilt but the smokebox wasn't in great shape either. I reluctantly played a chorus of taps and started my search for a new smoker. That's when I ran across this forum.I had finally settled on an Oklahoma Joe Highland. It was the same brand (kinda) and was in my price range. Wally World had them for 268 which I felt was a pretty good deal but I thought I might check Google and Craigslist to see if I might snag one cheaper. That's when I ran into a unicorn hiding in the bushes a mere 100 miles away. 75 bucks and a 4 hour round trip and I had bagged that sucker. I'm about half way through with the restoration.

This is the Craigslist pic...

http://i529.photobucket.com/albums/d...ide/smoker.jpg

Here it is in it's current state...

http://i529.photobucket.com/albums/d...7164732201.jpg

I've got to put another coat or two of Rustolium on it and get some Nomex for the door and lid. I didn't do any mods to my first one...what are some easy "must do" mods that I need?

It's nice to see that my baffle template I created is still useful and still available.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Love my Bandera
 

My Bandera was my first real smoker. I used to run 2 bullet smokers at a time to smoke 4 turkeys etc. My water pan rusted out, but I found a stainless bowl that works as a perfect replacement.
I built the baffle, a charcoal maze, and bought a custom made welding blanket to wrap around the smoke chamber when cooking in cold weather.

I have since built two smokers out of stainless 2 door warming cabinets. The warming cabinets are great. Lots of capacity and very automated with circulation fan, pellet pooper, Stoker, Amaze-n-tube smoker etc. As much as I love my big guns, I would never part with my Bandera!

I am going to pull the trigger get one from Wally World or Lowe's in the near future. I have wanted a stick burner for a while but the price tag has always been prohibitive. The bandera looks like a great option for the price.