Ugly Drum Smoker

take lots of notes chopjaw. or at least page and post Numbers,otherwise you will be reading everything for the second time.lol

New from Nashville TN; UDS project nearly finished but cooking

It is mostly done. Finished the basket off with a bail handle, but I will need to go back and redesign it a little. And I forgot to take a photo of it before I put charcoal in it and lit it off......

With 2 of the the 3/4" pipe couplings opened, it climbed to 300* before I knew it. I'm now waiting for it to drop down to 225* and crack one back open. I didn't get a Ball valve for it yet, either. I just was running like mad to finish it enough to use it this evening for some Loin Back Boneless Ribs I've been craving.

I went out after a half hour and the temps are at 235*.......so on the rib meat goes..... lid off lay out the rack of rib meat, close the lid and watch the temp go right back to 235* within a few minutes.

All I lack is some handles on each side of the barrel and a shelf to put my cooking thermometer so the probe can be in whatever I'm cooking. And I need to finish the intakes with a ball valve. I don't think it is gonna need two. I thinking about welding the intake close couplings into place. The barrel seemed awfully thin.

I'm pleased with the ability to run temps higher to around 300 plus. I used 3/4" close couplings instead of the 1/2" ones. I'm planning on making the basket hang on the lower grill supports, so I can use it as a charcoal grill for steaks and hamburgers, etc. Sometimes gas is good but sometimes it is better to have charcoal to cook over.

I used SS eye bolts for my shelf hardware, and I stole someones idea of using SS acorn nuts on the outside. Very Good idea! So whoever I stole the idea from, Thanks!
Tonite, I'm just gonna check it at 3 hours and see what it has done.

I mixed Kingsford with Lump Charcoal, and added 6-8 chunks of white oak on top. I was getting moderate smoke when I checked it.

Sorry for the photo, it was getting dark and my Blackberry isn't as good as my Sony camera.

New from Nashville TN; UDS project nearly finished but cooking

Well the cooking part went well, except I had the temp drop to 150* one time. I kicked the bottom a little, and opened up 1 of the intakes, and unscrewed another one almost all the way. Temp came back after about 1/2 hour. I put a flashlight to the vent on top of the Weber lid, and the charcoal seem to be mostly used up and not much smoke being produced. The lump charcoal didn't seem to have taken off, so I'm probably not gonna try it again. The oak was smouldering slightly. When I opened the one intake all the way, the temp went up to 245* and seemed to stay put. I let it alone until the 4 hr mark and check internal temp. It was 163* I took them off and put my sauce on them and wrapped it up in foil. I'll let it set in my oven at 200* until morning, and have it shut off about another 4 hr from now. This UDS is a little new for me. So since I only lit about 3/4 of a chimney with charcoal, and only put maybe 10# around the lit center well, and the added 6-8 pieces of lump, plus the chunks of oak, it was still put out enough temp at 225* to do the job for who knows how much longer. But I will try again, after I have put at least one ball valve on. I believe it will make a noticeable difference in the temp control.

Here is mine...still tinkering with it, but it is producing good food. :thumb:

hankll said:

It is mostly done. Finished the basket off with a bail handle, but I will need to go back and redesign it a little. And I forgot to take a photo of it before I put charcoal in it and lit it off......

With 2 of the the 3/4" pipe couplings opened, it climbed to 300* before I knew it. I'm now waiting for it to drop down to 225* and crack one back open. I didn't get a Ball valve for it yet, either. I just was running like mad to finish it enough to use it this evening for some Loin Back Boneless Ribs I've been craving.

I went out after a half hour and the temps are at 235*.......so on the rib meat goes..... lid off lay out the rack of rib meat, close the lid and watch the temp go right back to 235* within a few minutes.

All I lack is some handles on each side of the barrel and a shelf to put my cooking thermometer so the probe can be in whatever I'm cooking. And I need to finish the intakes with a ball valve. I don't think it is gonna need two. I thinking about welding the intake close couplings into place. The barrel seemed awfully thin.

I'm pleased with the ability to run temps higher to around 300 plus. I used 3/4" close couplings instead of the 1/2" ones. I'm planning on making the basket hang on the lower grill supports, so I can use it as a charcoal grill for steaks and hamburgers, etc. Sometimes gas is good but sometimes it is better to have charcoal to cook over.

I used SS eye bolts for my shelf hardware, and I stole someones idea of using SS acorn nuts on the outside. Very Good idea!

So whoever I stole the idea from, Thanks!
Tonite, I'm just gonna check it at 3 hours and see what it has done.

I mixed Kingsford with Lump Charcoal, and added 6-8 chunks of white oak on top. I was getting moderate smoke when I checked it.

Sorry for the photo, it was getting dark and my Blackberry isn't as good as my Sony camera.

Click to expand...

Nice work bro

So did you run the whole time with just one intake open?

Yep I did mostly

Yes, just the one except when it dropped down to 150*, then I opened 1 and the another one had the cap just almost to the end of the threads.

I think when the ball valves are installed it will be a lot easier to maintain a more accurate temp....

Another thing with the lump charcoal, they seemed to light off finally just before I took off the Q and foiled it. If I used it again, I think I would just use it by itself. But then I'd worry it might be to hot if I loaded the basket like I did with the Kingsford and Lump mix. But I'm relatively inexperienced when using charcoal anyway. I haven't cooked with charcoal in 20 years maybe. I went to using gas, when it was cool to switch. I even had my little Charbroil "bullet" open bottom H2O smoker converted to gas, and smoked only with chunk wood over the propane flame...... and I did that because the open bottom was such a bad design for using it with charcoal.

The bottom line for me was it was a success! The Boneless Rib Loin Back meat was good and tender. And I was rushing the first cook in it, by cooking so late. I had to stay up because I wasn't sure about that cut of meat. I didn't use the 3-2-1 method either because of the lateness of the day. I foiled after 4 hr, and put it my oven to stay cooking at 200*. It was a good breakfast. It had just the right amount of heat from the Cayenne pepper in my rub.

Added the photo's:

These are after I did the first cook last night. The charcoal wasn't really as used up as I thought. The Lump charcoal wasn't hardly touched. The chunks of hardwood barely used. There is some juices in the charcoal, so I may need to install a diffuser for the next time. That may have been the cause of the slow burn of the charcoal. I would like any input on that. I shook out the ash and redistributed the charcoal and put my coffee can back in the center ready for another use light off.

Brian in So Cal said:

I misplaced my UDS about three months ago. I finally found it. Now I can maybe finish it.:wink:

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leanza said:

That's what I always said about you Brian, you never quit. Kick off the rust and keep going!

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Norcoredneck said:

Fast forward to 2011

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So I'm only about 1/5th of the way though this thread (post 2200ish) and I'm building mine this week (conveniently, just got laid off, so lots of time..) but I have to know... is it done yet? :becky:

"Conveniently laid off" is not something you hear every day. Best of luck to you brother and get that UDS built. That will definitely pass the time.

Always fun when someone on a post revives something posted that's really old. I missed this before, but your intake of the little angled brackets to twist is looking perfect for me. I've gone with caps and ball valve, but left that to be able to get equal intake all around. Been playing with magnets and that's fine as long as you just have 1/2 holes. I have larger ones and I was thinking of trying to weld them shut and start over, but your idea may save me from that.

This is regarding this post on page 150! (http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showpost.php?p=820661&postcount=2242)

I know SS steel is preferred, but is brass bolts okay to use?

colonel00 said:

"Conveniently laid off" is not something you hear every day. Best of luck to you brother and get that UDS built. That will definitely pass the time.

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Lol. Its one of those things - did my job well enough that they don't need a full-time guy to do it anymore. (I ran 450 servers that handled ~50mil active user websites/stores/etc. When I got there, they desperately needed at least 3 guys. Now, they feel can do it with a consulting company a few hours a week. Oops..)

Back on topic tho (this thread is long enough!) I've got 3 (and a spare) 4"x1" nipples and figure on resting the fire grate (weber + expanded metal) right on those, with one run up 24" (outside but below the lid) for a ball joint and one rigged to the stoker. Looks like the "early days" the thinking went 1/2, 3/4, 1", 3/4.. am I gonna hate the 1" or will it work for me?

I'm debating not doing a huge burn to clean it out - its a varnish/acetone barrel thats been open (bung) for a month or two empty. If it is anything like the first two its unlined.. (We built a wood-stove style double drum smoker over the summer. Royal pita.. I don't recommend it..)

Update: Just got to the hose-barb-thermometer port - is that still the best answer? Need to pass rocksbbq stoker probes in, and it seems like the brass fittings will work really well for that. (In fact, I'm thinking of adding them to the WSM as well - made the mistake once of pushing 2 probes through 1 passthrough. Where they then stayed for a month until I absolutely -had- to get them out...that was an adventure..)

The hose barb works fine for the analog thermometer port but I have found that a metal valve stem (minus the valve) works just as well, is easier, cheaper AND it's chrome plated. Check your local auto parts store. For the electronic probe port, the The Halex 1/2 in. watertight conduit connector is still the weapon of choice. I painted mine with high-temp manifold paint because it's galvanized but frankly I doubt it matters after it gets coated from a two-fattie burn.

I'm ready to build!

I started reading this thread 11 days ago. After 8453 posts....my eyes hurt. I resisted the urge to post anything before now (and submitting my cattle call first) and it was worth it.

READ THE THREAD... kept coursing through my mind along with "KISS" every time I started dreaming up ideas to add to this basic cooker. I've jotted down notes as I go although I wish I had found the post about bookmarking posts...sooner than I did. I was very happy to learn many things along the way and am fairly sure I am ready to go.

So....... Harbor Freight shopping list- Check....... Steel Yard shopping list-Check..........Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes shopping list- Check Check Check.

OK..OK....I'll admit that on day 3 of reading, I found a Kingsford table top grill at a garage sale and bought it for parts.

I have a lot of parts here already and plan to get started soon. Update with pictures forthcoming!

My UDS Just finished

I finally finished my UDS this past weekend. Have it all seasoned and ready for some smokin.

Got my drum today. Getting the last of the varnish out was a little problematic but otherwise it went ok. (Glad we saw the dregs before he cut the top off with the plasma torch. That could have been exciting..)

Got my draft tubes in and its burning some damp KF and random 'hardwood firewood'. Fyi automotive varnish drums are unlined - it rusted as soon as I dumped out the "don't explode" water..

Tomorrow it gets seasoned and gets grates and such mounted :} gonna ask my friendly butcher for a few lbs of pork fat to supplement the veg oil.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/for/2548576458.html

Behold the $400 UDS! Actually there's no pics. But just wow; these things really go up in value!

Paul Worth said:

The hose barb works fine for the analog thermometer port but I have found that a metal valve stem (minus the valve) works just as well, is easier, cheaper AND it's chrome plated. Check your local auto parts store. For the electronic probe port, the The Halex 1/2 in. watertight conduit connector is still the weapon of choice. I painted mine with high-temp manifold paint because it's galvanized but frankly I doubt it matters after it gets coated from a two-fattie burn.

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Awesome. I think I'm gonna keep the 2 barbs I have (pretty brass ones :-D) for the 12" under-grate analog probes, and I'll pick the halex parts up tomorrow for the stoker sensors. (2 per grate, plus I need to add at least 1 more to my WSM.)

So far its going well - lid temp is showing about 300, lid leaks like a sieve, and its humming along slowly. Gotta find a better way to seal the lid, or (ideally) to re-round the barrel. (When I dumped the water out it got out of true :roll: and the old weber lid isn't up to the job..)

Also, fyi, if anyone gets this far before building one The lowes here couldn't find nuts to fit the threading on the barbs, but the plumbing guy was interested in the challenge. There is a piece that basically looks like a bolt/cap (male) but is open through and fits the female barbs. So drill, push the piece from the outside, add a couple of washers and tighten the barb on. (I don't have it in front of me, I'll edit tomorrow w/ better info)

quick quesiton.. i am purchasing parts to build my smoker.. have read this thread 3 times over and am very excited..

regarding the 3/4 black pipe nipple and the ball valve.. i will be doing a NON welded unit.. everyone says use the 3/4 electrical conduit lock nuts.. i purchased them.. but they look like they are coated.. are they?.. are they ok to use that close to the firebox?

thanks,

soapy_junk said:

quick quesiton.. i am purchasing parts to build my smoker.. have read this thread 3 times over and am very excited..

regarding the 3/4 black pipe nipple and the ball valve.. i will be doing a NON welded unit.. everyone says use the 3/4 electrical conduit lock nuts.. i purchased them.. but they look like they are coated.. are they?.. are they ok to use that close to the firebox?

thanks,

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You will be fine with those. Zinc plating does not melt until about 800 degrees F, and it does not vaporize until over 1400 degrees I believe. You would have to have one hot UDS to get any harmful vapors.

I use zinc plated bolts on everything, including grate mounts, and handle bolts. "Stainless only" is trumped up, and not necessary.