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Ugly Drum Smoker

Wow! What an awesome thread. I've read roughly 50 pages with the intent of reading it all eventually. I plan on finishing mine in the next 2 weeks, time
permitting. I have a couple questions, the answers to which I am sure I will eventually come across, but I would like to build this thing before next year. So here goes.

1. Does it matter if I use 1/2 or 3/4 inch intakes?

2. 3 or 4 intakes? I would rather have 3

3. I want to have the ball valve on a 1ft riser, just to be able to see inside the ball valve. Will this work, and has anyone seen a difference between ball valve on a riser vs. at the bottom of the drum?

4. My plan is to use 2" conduit that is 6" long for an exhaust stack with a magnet for control. Does this sound ok?

Once again, I have been looking for all these answers, and found some great info, but it seems I could spend days looking through millions of opinions. Thanks again for any help!
 
3/4 intakes you need only 3 even spaced.
I have 2 ball valves on 18" risers so one should be OK on a 6" riser. I did mine for convenience. (getting old)
2" exhaust is fine, I never cover mine, only use the intake as adjustments.
 
Last edited:
Sizzl said:
My pan is 18 1/2"

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Click to expand...

Thanks. Was at RD earlier, picked up an 18" aluminum pan. Looks like I had a ~16" before. That along with a tiny bit of unscented clay litter on the bottom, I should be good.. we'll see :)
 
So I'm planning on following these plans for my build, http://howtobbqright.com/udssmoker.html, but I had a question about the exhaust. He says he cut holes for 3 exhaust holes but ends up capping off 2 of them. So do I really need to cut 3 holes or can i just have the one hole with the ball valve on it?
 
Had a guy ask if I could put a stack and thermometer on his.

I came up with this.

MAtt3.jpg


MAtt2.jpg


A half inch brass hose nipple for a thermometer hole. I just got a 12" brinman therm from homedepot.
Matt1.jpg
 
I was watching a YouTube video and the guy was using digital thermometer that would not only keep track of the internal temp of what he cooking but also let you know what the temp is for the smoker as well.

It was basically two thermometers in one.

It looked pretty awesome...anyone know the best brand and/or place to get one.

Thanks!
 
Maverick et73 from Amazon

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000DIU49/ref=aw_d_iv_kitchen?is=l"]Maverick Wireless BBQ Thermometer Set - Maverick ET73:Amazon:Kitchen & Dining[/ame]
Sent from my GS3 via Tapatalk 2
 
JimmyK said:
I was watching a YouTube video and the guy was using digital thermometer that would not only keep track of the internal temp of what he cooking but also let you know what the temp is for the smoker as well.

It was basically two thermometers in one.

It looked pretty awesome...anyone know the best brand and/or place to get one.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Check out the Maverick ET-732. It is real popular with a lot of the Brethren.
 
kconn04 said:
So I'm planning on following these plans for my build, http://howtobbqright.com/udssmoker.html, but I had a question about the exhaust. He says he cut holes for 3 exhaust holes but ends up capping off 2 of them. So do I really need to cut 3 holes or can i just have the one hole with the ball valve on it?
Click to expand...


I read many threads on this subject myself before I built mine, including this one (well i read about the first 50 or so pages then scanned the rest). I ended up going real simple for my first build and followed this thread: http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43943

As for your holes, I assume you meant intake not exhaust. Most everyone has 2 or 3 intake holes and caps off all but 1 when cooking most of the time. The idea is that the extra 2 holes help bring the UDS up to temp when starting, then when up to temp they are capped and the 3rd normally has some sort of valve to fine tune the temp. On occasion when higher temps are needed one or two of the intake holes can be un-capped.
 
Finally completed my first UDS with a lot of the credit going to this thread. Spent more than I thought because I wasn't willing to wait and bought most of the items new. Barrel cost me 30 had to spend 60 to get it sandblasted (red liner) 30 for new grates 50 for misc hardware and 20 for wheels to attach to the extra lid I got for free. Makes a great dolly! My first burn was pretty hot I think because I started with too much charcoal. Using the minion method how many coals should I start with? I used about 2/3 of a chimney full and had trouble keeping the temp under 250.
 
jonboi6 said:
Finally completed my first UDS with a lot of the credit going to this thread. Spent more than I thought because I wasn't willing to wait and bought most of the items new. Barrel cost me 30 had to spend 60 to get it sandblasted (red liner) 30 for new grates 50 for misc hardware and 20 for wheels to attach to the extra lid I got for free. Makes a great dolly! My first burn was pretty hot I think because I started with too much charcoal. Using the minion method how many coals should I start with? I used about 2/3 of a chimney full and had trouble keeping the temp under 250.
Click to expand...

Did you try covering 2 of the 3 holes on the bottom? I start with all 3 open till I get to temp then plug 2 and usually holds at about 235-250

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jonboi6 said:
Finally completed my first UDS with a lot of the credit going to this thread. Spent more than I thought because I wasn't willing to wait and bought most of the items new. Barrel cost me 30 had to spend 60 to get it sandblasted (red liner) 30 for new grates 50 for misc hardware and 20 for wheels to attach to the extra lid I got for free. Makes a great dolly! My first burn was pretty hot I think because I started with too much charcoal. Using the minion method how many coals should I start with? I used about 2/3 of a chimney full and had trouble keeping the temp under 250.
Click to expand...
if you want to stay below 250 8-10 briquettes, if you want t go hot 275+ you already have the answer
 
sethga said:
Thanks. Was at RD earlier, picked up an 18" aluminum pan. Looks like I had a ~16" before. That along with a tiny bit of unscented clay litter on the bottom, I should be good.. we'll see :)
Click to expand...

You can also just use the ashes to absorb the grease. It's free!

The wider you make your basket, the more grease it will catch.

I don't use an ash pan. Just let the ash fall to the bottom. When you get ready for a cook, take your basket out and spread ash around the bottom. It'll soak up the grease. Then use a shop vac to clean it out. Works like a charm! If no shop vac, you can make a scoop. Garden hoe works good too. But the ash does a great job soaking up the grease.
 
Thanks Bludawg. I cant wait to fire this thing up and cook on it. I assume it will take a while to come up to temp with that few lit coals but that's what it's all about right?
 
jonboi6 said:
Thanks Bludawg. I cant wait to fire this thing up and cook on it. I assume it will take a while to come up to temp with that few lit coals but that's what it's all about right?
Click to expand...

I use 12 in my chimney. I cook most things at 275* these days so could probably start with a few more. Just been using that number from the start. No problems cooking at lower temps.
 
jonboi6 said:
Thanks guys. Planning on a mess of ribs for a superbowl party this weekend. Cant wait!
Click to expand...

Ribs are the best thing I done on mine this far I used the 3-2-1 method and they was so tinder and tasty.:thumbup:

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
 
JimmyK said:
I was watching a YouTube video and the guy was using digital thermometer that would not only keep track of the internal temp of what he cooking but also let you know what the temp is for the smoker as well.

It was basically two thermometers in one.

It looked pretty awesome...anyone know the best brand and/or place to get one.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I've got 3 Maverick et-7's that have been going strong since 2008. There a tad over $30 on Amazon
 
Ok, I am about a 7th through this thread, but have read all of those 135 pages so far. I will be picking up a drum on Tuesday night, so now it is time to gather the rest of the parts. As I live in the Netherlands, we have our fair share of cold and wet weather. With slightly more of our share of rain. ;) That means that I want to be careful to use intakes and exhausts that do not allow water in, as I want to be able to 'set and forget' instead of continually looking outside to see whether there are any drops of rain. So, I already found a 2.4" stainless exhaust which essentially is a large 90 degree bend. I guess that would work.
For the intake I would like to use a single intake. Just to cut costs and add simplicity. Rummaging around in the garage I found a Bosch butterfly valve off a car. It is a NOS part that I got off the shelf of a dealership that went bust. I haven't got a clue what car it is from, but it has a very nice 1.5" intake and a good venturi effect being over 2" first, then going to 1.5" where it passes through the valve. I am thinking of creating a mechanism to adjust the opening of the valve with a gas cable. But, would the intake and exhaust sizes work in your opinion?
 
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