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Q-talk *ON TOPIC ONLY* QUALITY ON TOPIC discussion of Backyard BBQ, grilling, equipment and outdoor cookin' . ** Other cooking techniques are welcomed for when your cookin' in the kitchen. Post your hints, tips, tricks & techniques, success, failures, but stay on topic and watch for that hijacking.


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Old 09-01-2013, 10:30 AM   #11326
Saleensuperstang
Found some matches.
 
Join Date: 08-16-13
Location: Ooltewah TN
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It's a local business where I live. He charged 100.00 to sand blast and powdercoat the two drums, two flat lids and the weber lid. He hung them when he did them and the bottoms are coated also. They are baked at 400 degrees and the coating is good for 800 so it should last.
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Old 09-01-2013, 12:39 PM   #11327
KC_Law_Dog
Got rid of the matchlight.
 
Join Date: 06-10-13
Location: Kansas City, MO
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That's not bad at all for two drums and the lids. You took the ugly right out of them! I think wives might let us keep them out if they all looked that good.
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Old 09-01-2013, 03:58 PM   #11328
R8ter87
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Join Date: 08-29-13
Location: Mt Baldy, CA
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Yeah it only took a day to see the small surface rust on my barrel. I finish painting today and have her running on her first light up right now.
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Old 09-01-2013, 04:07 PM   #11329
R8ter87
Found some matches.
 
Join Date: 08-29-13
Location: Mt Baldy, CA
Default Light a UDS

I light my UDS today for the first time.

I loaded up the charcoal basket with Kingsford charcoal and added 15 light briquettes to the top on the basket.

It is defiantly smoking but is taking a while to reach the 220-250 range.

Any tips on lighting a UDS?

How does everyone else light theirs and what is the estimated time to get into the smoking range?
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Old 09-01-2013, 04:13 PM   #11330
Saleensuperstang
Found some matches.
 
Join Date: 08-16-13
Location: Ooltewah TN
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Quote:
Originally Posted by R8ter87 View Post
I light my UDS today for the first time.

I loaded up the charcoal basket with Kingsford charcoal and added 15 light briquettes to the top on the basket.

It is defiantly smoking but is taking a while to reach the 220-250 range.

Any tips on lighting a UDS?

How does everyone else light theirs and what is the estimated time to get into the smoking range?
Mine took about 10 minutes to get to 250. I did the same charcoal in the basket, lit a chimney about half full till white and poured on top. When I set the basket in the drum and put the lid on I leave the 3/4 valve fully open and all 3 3/4 caps off till my temp hit 225. At that point I install the 3 caps and back off on the valve to halfway and then go from there. I had to play with it a couple of times then it was set.
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Old 09-01-2013, 05:00 PM   #11331
R8ter87
Found some matches.
 
Join Date: 08-29-13
Location: Mt Baldy, CA
Default UDS Lighting

Quote:
Originally Posted by Saleensuperstang View Post
Mine took about 10 minutes to get to 250. I did the same charcoal in the basket, lit a chimney about half full till white and poured on top. When I set the basket in the drum and put the lid on I leave the 3/4 valve fully open and all 3 3/4 caps off till my temp hit 225. At that point I install the 3 caps and back off on the valve to halfway and then go from there. I had to play with it a couple of times then it was set.
Hey thanks for the help I think next time I will start with more burning briquettes.
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Old 09-02-2013, 07:31 PM   #11332
Georgiaboy
Wandering around with a bag of matchlight, looking for a match.
 
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Join Date: 08-31-13
Location: Ola, Georgia
Default My Georgia themed UDS

Here is a buildup of the UDS I built for the UGA/Clemson game Saturday. All ideas save a couple where directly inspired by y'all. The only changes made by me were the piece of expanded metal over the fire basket (to catch the juice rain and vaporize it) and the lid, which I made out of the top of another drum ( since buying a Weber lid requires an an act of congress). This thing is sick! I did a 9 hour burn @ 190 and only used 1/4 of the charcoal I had in the basket! Thanks for the tips y'all!......well, it's telling me I need some kind of security token to upload the photos. That sucks, cuz I really wanted y'all to see it. It's a beauty...I guess I enjoyed my short stay here, if you can't post pics it kinda defeats the purpose. I guess I'll post this, then I'm out. Y'all have fun!
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Old 09-03-2013, 02:34 AM   #11333
PullMyPenang
Is lookin for wood to cook with.
 
Join Date: 08-28-13
Location: Pattaya, Thailand
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Quote:
Originally Posted by N8man View Post
I post this question in earnest, in the hopes of beginning a civil discussion
on the subject of Barrel Burning.....This is something I have pondered on a while..
Riddle me this, if a food grade barrel that has the methyl-ethyl-poly-bad-stuff liner, or not, in it, gets burned out completely to bare nekkid metal and is thought to be safe to BBQ with, why then is the run of the mill barrel, that contained stuffs without a liner be considered an unwise choice if it also is burned out in the same fashion???....
And I'm talking the reddish-white, glowing metal kinda burn........

Thoughts???
The label says food grade and keeps the wife happy?

Honestly I'd feel safer with a bare steel drum that had some sort of oil or antifreeze in it than something that used to have some plastic or epoxy liner sealed to the surface.

Steel is steel for the most part. Tupperware is food safe, but not with a fire in it. Context is key.

WOO! I can't claim to have read every word but I did read the first 5k posts and have put my eyeballs on every page since. Learned a lot, Starting the parts hunt tomorrow.
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Last edited by PullMyPenang; 09-03-2013 at 04:45 AM..
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Old 09-03-2013, 09:34 AM   #11334
Pasmadj
Got Wood.
 
Join Date: 06-13-12
Location: Charlotte, NC
Default First "Burn" temperature control struggles

Hello All.

Well, I have completed the outward appearance of my UDS. I still have some stenciling to do on the lid, and I have to fabricate the basket.
Other than that, the drum is functional.

Since the yellow and blue "engine paint" cans said to cure the paint at 200 deg for 1 hour, I did that for my first "burn".

I used my charcoal starter chimney since I have not yet made a basket.

I filled the starter 1/2 with Kinsgsford blue, and dropped a lit starter cube on top of them. When I was sure that the coals were beginning to catch, I put on the lid.

I have 2 3/4" inlet pipes, and 1 1" ball valve inlet. I have 4 1" exhaust ports.

Initially I had all of the inlets open 100%.

I monitored the temps with my iGrill - probes on a cooking grate.

When the temp started climbing fast, and reached 110 deg, I capped one of the 3/4" inlets.

When the temp reached 160 deg, I capped the other 3/4" inlet.

When the temp reached 180, I turned the valve to about 50%. I did not want to over shoot and risk overheating the paint.

I was real happy with how I was able to control the temp rise.

The temp peaked at 192, and then started dropping.

I began to tweak the valve in an effort to stabilize it around 200 degF.

This is when the head-scratching began.

When I opened the valve just a little further, the temp would rise past 200 to 210 or 215.

When I adusted the valve back a little (very little, it seemed), the temp would drop back and keep going past 200 - down into the 180s.

I monitored and tweaked for about 2 or 3 hours - chasing the temp up and down. My top priority was to keep the temp around 200 for about 2 hours - for the paint. After that, I tried hard to get it to flatten out and stabilize. I never did accomplish that. My small amount of charcoal ran out after about 4 hours.

Any thoughts?

I really took my time building this UDS. I don't think there are any air leaks - that I know of.

Is the amount of charcoal and what I put it in (chimney) significant?

I know that it is not good to restrict the exhaust - better to control temps with the inlets. The area of 4 1" holes is equal to 1 2" hole - which is what many have used. Does the size of the exhaust significantly affect the temperature stability?
Attached Images
File Type: jpg 130902-19 first run - paint cure - Small.jpg (26.4 KB, 631 views)
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Old 09-03-2013, 09:57 AM   #11335
SmokinJohn
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Join Date: 10-15-12
Location: Anaheim, CA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pasmadj View Post
Hello All.

Well, I have completed the outward appearance of my UDS. I still have some stenciling to do on the lid, and I have to fabricate the basket.
Other than that, the drum is functional.

Since the yellow and blue "engine paint" cans said to cure the paint at 200 deg for 1 hour, I did that for my first "burn".

I used my charcoal starter chimney since I have not yet made a basket.

I filled the starter 1/2 with Kinsgsford blue, and dropped a lit starter cube on top of them. When I was sure that the coals were beginning to catch, I put on the lid.

I have 2 3/4" inlet pipes, and 1 1" ball valve inlet. I have 4 1" exhaust ports.

Initially I had all of the inlets open 100%.

I monitored the temps with my iGrill - probes on a cooking grate.

When the temp started climbing fast, and reached 110 deg, I capped one of the 3/4" inlets.

When the temp reached 160 deg, I capped the other 3/4" inlet.

When the temp reached 180, I turned the valve to about 50%. I did not want to over shoot and risk overheating the paint.

I was real happy with how I was able to control the temp rise.

The temp peaked at 192, and then started dropping.

I began to tweak the valve in an effort to stabilize it around 200 degF.

This is when the head-scratching began.

When I opened the valve just a little further, the temp would rise past 200 to 210 or 215.

When I adusted the valve back a little (very little, it seemed), the temp would drop back and keep going past 200 - down into the 180s.

I monitored and tweaked for about 2 or 3 hours - chasing the temp up and down. My top priority was to keep the temp around 200 for about 2 hours - for the paint. After that, I tried hard to get it to flatten out and stabilize. I never did accomplish that. My small amount of charcoal ran out after about 4 hours.

Any thoughts?

I really took my time building this UDS. I don't think there are any air leaks - that I know of.

Is the amount of charcoal and what I put it in (chimney) significant?

I know that it is not good to restrict the exhaust - better to control temps with the inlets. The area of 4 1" holes is equal to 1 2" hole - which is what many have used. Does the size of the exhaust significantly affect the temperature stability?

Read N8Man's thread on lighting the basket. You must follow it at least three times before you deviate.

Here is my quick and dirty method.:

FILL the basket.

Open all intake and exhaust ports.

Fire up the basket (using the 10-15 coals you set aside when you read N8Man's thread).

Let's say your target temp is 225.

Leave the exhaust alone (The only time you should mess with this is as a last resort, or when you are done cooking.

Leave the Ball Valve alone (this is your "Trimmer")

When the temp reaches 190, cap ONE inlet and watch your gauge

When the temp reaches 215, cap the SECOND inlet and watch your gauge

If the temp is still climbing, use the ball valve and close it 50%.

If the temp is not climbing, then remove the cap on the SECOND inlet, and close the BALL VALVE 75%. Use the Ball Valve to raise or lower the temp.

Assuming you have no leaks, this should solve your problem.

On my UDS ("Redneck thread" version on the post with a ball valve with a 2' extension and a weber lid for exhaust), I usually wind up with one valve capped, the second open, and the ball valve in the 50-75% range closed to get 225-275 (depending on wind conditions).
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Old 09-03-2013, 11:03 AM   #11336
Pasmadj
Got Wood.
 
Join Date: 06-13-12
Location: Charlotte, NC
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Hello SmokinJohn.

Thanks for the very quick response!

I will find and read N8Man's post about lighting.

The next time I light it, I am going to target higher temps - maybe up to 300 deg to bake off any final undesireables.

Do you think that my temp control struggles were because I was trying to stabilize at 200? Do you think most UDSs stabilize better at 225 or higher?

How tightly are others able to control the temps? How often do you usually have to tweak the valve during a cook?
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Old 09-03-2013, 01:07 PM   #11337
Cue-Ball
Found some matches.
 
Join Date: 08-23-13
Location: Augusta, GA
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Built mine last week. Ran it this weekend with some ribs and some moinks.

1. The liner was a BITCH to get out. Burned it out, and still had to spend a few hours crawled inside with a flapper wheel. :homer:
2. Expanded metal is a bitch to weld with an arc welder :laughing:
3. One thing I haven't seen anyone else do is put magnets on the feet of the fire basket. That way, I can attach or un-attach the ash pan at will. Makes it easy to get in and out of the drum and still can use the propane burner to start it if I want to.

Pictures of the finished product and the finished products:
Attached Images
File Type: jpg IMAG0092.jpg (27.0 KB, 616 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0094.jpg (108.2 KB, 617 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0095.jpg (42.5 KB, 615 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0096.jpg (40.2 KB, 612 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0097.jpg (56.1 KB, 610 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0098.jpg (30.9 KB, 611 views)
File Type: jpg IMAG0100.jpg (46.5 KB, 613 views)
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Old 09-03-2013, 07:24 PM   #11338
spinningwheel
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Join Date: 05-27-13
Location: Brunswick, Ohio
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Cue-Ball;
Looking good brother, some great prOn there. The only problem that I can think of with magnets is that they loose their effectiveness when heated. IDK if the heat is high enough to affect them, but the mess left behind if they drop the ash pan will be a PITA.
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Old 09-04-2013, 05:03 AM   #11339
ebijack
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Join Date: 08-23-13
Location: Detroit Mi
Name/Nickname : tom
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For those that are working on a removable ash pan, If you look closely you can see the 2 pieces of brass wire I use to keep my ash pan attached, I've had the UDS over 600 degs for 4 hours and the wire did not melt. It is very flexible easy to unhook to dump the ash. Bought a roll at the hardware store, I've used the wire for a lot of other stuff over the years. The metal pizza pan is from wallyworld.
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Old 09-05-2013, 01:19 PM   #11340
Geordie888
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Join Date: 08-15-13
Location: Newcastle, England
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Anyone who has used steel wire to hold their charcoal basket together, what thickness is best? I don't want something I need a bodybuilder to twist and don't want something that'll melt/break due to being thin.

Thanks
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