Ugly Drum Smoker

Gordon Hatch · Jul 10, 2013

john_aero said:
having trouble finding clean or new drums here in ireland

BUT i can get my hands on a copper heating tank for free

Anyone know if these would be ok to use. they are used for domestic water and so should be ok for cooking in i take it

temp never going be massive in smokes

only downside i see is slightly smaller in width than a drum smoker and will have hand cut my own grates

I'm in Drogheda and Boyne Valley Honey can sell you drums - they're lined on inside but nothing a couple of good burns won't sort out. Got mine for €5 each and the guy in the stores even washed the residual honey out with hot water

rufio · Jul 10, 2013

c farmer said:
People have done it. I plan on doing it too. ( in process of building my uds )

Would be interested to hear how you are planning on doing this.

Would imagine a few extra bolts would allow for you to rest the fire basket on a grill placed closer to the top of the uds. Any measurements etc would be great to see.

I'm in the process of gathering parts for my first build, and while i'm all for K.I.S.S, a simple mod like this might be worth trying.

c farmer · Jul 10, 2013

Yea a extra set of bolts to sit firebox on right under the cooking grate.

BobBill · Jul 10, 2013

Yes, Good point.

I was going to do that but have two Webers, so figure extra work not necessary.

My plan was to use either 6 long threaded rods, my basket is heavy.

Or hang some heavy metal supports from the top of the drum to hold the basket, the pan bottom and the coals. As I said, heavy...

Should be as functional as the Weber, but I am still using my large Weber which I began to use in 1975.

Hud · Jul 10, 2013

Where did you get that stack? I have been looking for one like that!

BobBill · Jul 10, 2013

Stack

Hud, My son wrote to some BBQ maker and they sent it to him. It is all SS and about the perfect size for the 4 intakes ratio-wyze. If you search the WWW you might see it...in the meantime, I will email him and ask where he picked it up and if you PM me in a few days, I will be able to advise where and how he picked it up. He decided he liked the "exhaust pipe" style better.

rockville9 · Jul 10, 2013

hello all!!! I'm in the process of finishing off my own dual drum, offset, reverse flow smoker, and I'm wondering how you all have made the portal for the thermometer(s). Do you just drill a hole and stick the probe in there? Is there some kind of hardware that would make the portal a little cleaner?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'll be posting pictures when I'm done, which will be soon. Thanks. This post has been an absolute lifesaver. Almost all of my questions have been answered just by reading your super informative, sometimes hilarious posts.

Thanks all!!!

BobBill · Jul 10, 2013

Hud, Re the chimney, I forgot to add, that my orig plan was to buy some 3" stainless tube about 1 foot long, and have local metal shop cut it into 3 sections, with 45 degree angled cuts, then weld them together in a sort of zig-zag shape and add a ss cone-shaped top, but the gift changed my mind and saved some moola.

BobBill · Jul 10, 2013

Rock, I bought a very nice low cost (6-7 $coots) thermo via Amazon, which is spot on temp-wyze.

Drilled a .25 hole in top, as in pic, to fit the threaded part of thermo and added a washer...that was it.

I remove and fill hole with .25 ss bolt, when not using, using same wing-nut that came with the thermo.

I have probe, but the above works just fine, besides, I do simple. Not taking over my life. In fact, I sometimes wonder if the Weber can equal the task...but it is fun.

creekwalker · Jul 11, 2013

Phishwhisperer said:
Joined a couple of weeks ago and am diligently reading the thread as I collect parts to construct my own UDS; up to p. 234 right now. I've read many posts relating to various vent configurations as well as how the temp varies from the top to the bottom cooking racks.

Has anybody considered or tried installing vent drop pipes from the lid that might allow the heat to stack up deeper in the top before venting? This might cause a little more convection and achieve more uniform temp profile. Any thoughts?

This post is from the end of June (no one has replied to it). I don't even know what a vent drop pipe would be (a pipe attached to vent hole on lid which would angle out and down the side of the cooker some length?), but the subjects of greater temp uniformity, and increased convection, intrigue me...does anyone have any thoughts?

I reckon incidentally that if a vent drop pipe is what I'm picturing, a series of them could function as spider-like legs for the lid to sit on when it's lifted off the cooker...

BobBill · Jul 11, 2013

I would say, simple is best. Smoking stuff is not rocket science. If a simple convection system works, that is goal, but experiments are fun too.

SmokerKing · Jul 11, 2013

Might as well add to the mega UDS thread so I can rememeber what it looked like new 4 years from now;

bbqgeekess · Jul 11, 2013

Wow, amazing!

BobBill · Jul 11, 2013

Holy Schdit, Rube Goldberg lives...funny. The point is taken.

rockville9 · Jul 11, 2013

thank you for your help. smoke on!!! (multi-levels there...)

BobBill · Jul 12, 2013

I would suggest that our "Frankensmoker" in Arizona, no ill intent intended, should remain unfired and placed in the UDS Hall of Fame. It is too cool to besmirch with soot and grease. I thank our Arizona bro for his humor and hard work. Fagin amazing, that!

SmokerKing · Jul 12, 2013

BobBill said:
I would suggest that our "Frankensmoker" in Arizona, no ill intent intended, should remain unfired and placed in the UDS Hall of Fame. It is too cool to besmirch with soot and grease. I thank our Arizona bro for his humor and hard work. Fagin amazing, that!

"Frankensmoker", I like that! :biggrin1:

No Hall Of Fame, I'll be greasin it up with BB's this weekend if all goes as planned.

JackandStacey · Jul 12, 2013

Hi guys, my head is spinning after spending the past few days reading this thread from the beginning . I'm up to page 230. Would like to start my build this weekend but I haven't read about a stainless drum other than the one with the pellet hopper. Any special prep work required? Also just want to make sure that opinions on setup haven't changed over the course of the 500 pages I haven't read yet. Is it still 3x3/4" intake, 2 capped, one vale 2" from bottom. Basket 3" from bottom of barrel, and 24" from bottom of basket to the first rack? Ready this thread is making me hungry and I don't want to do something wrong with my only stainless drum.

banderson1357 · Jul 13, 2013

Stainless drum??!!!!! Yikes, I'd sell that and buy a steel one and buy meat and beer with the difference. Those things are about 700 bucks new in the industrial catalogs! Good luck with the build.

armor · Jul 13, 2013

I havn't looked at this thread in a couple of years. Clicked on it this am and I am looking at this UDS. I love it.

SmokerKing said:
Might as well add to the mega UDS thread so I can rememeber what it looked like new 4 years from now;

Ugly Drum Smoker

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