Shirley Fab 24"x50" advise..

[TuscaloosaQ]

I'm an idiot for not remembering details like this :caked:. I probably scrape mine out clean vs using the drain most of the time anyways. It is another option in general for those that haven't clean a pit like this. Once it cools down it can be like a gel of fat/drippings that scrap out easy with a paint scraper.

One of the 1st cookers I ever built had a trough in the middle of the baffle plate.... And the baffle sloped a little bit I really saw no advantage and for the trough it was aggravating to clean.... Hence I decided to keep the baffle plate straight and level.. Most of the grease that would be hitting the baffle plate is generally consumed via the heat off the plate... If your cooking very fatty meats
And a lot of it then yes you will prolly get enough grease to drain..... Naturally on a trailer just tilt the nose a little... Or let it build up a little then tilt it.. Drain it.. Then go back level... On patio models truthfully you rarely get enough grease to drain during a cook... Now I said rarely.... It is easy to get a couple 2x6 or 2x8 blocks... Miter one end at least 45 degrees and roll the cooker up on the blocks... That will give you 1-1/2 fall more than ever needed....I just spoke with Tyler and from now on on all patio models we will send 2 pieces of 2x8. Mitered on one end with a stop on the other end so the cooker want roll up then off the other end.... This will let you drain it if needed... Like Jason mentioned it is easy to let the grease jell up and scrape off with a putty knife...

 

[Bosox1901]

Alabama vs Clemson

Got a sneaky suspicion it will be a short day at the shop today.....

 

[AZRaptor]

One of the 1st cookers I ever built had a trough in the middle of the baffle plate.... And the baffle sloped a little bit I really saw no advantage and for the trough it was aggravating to clean.... Hence I decided to keep the baffle plate straight and level.. Most of the grease that would be hitting the baffle plate is generally consumed via the heat off the plate... If your cooking very fatty meats
And a lot of it then yes you will prolly get enough grease to drain..... Naturally on a trailer just tilt the nose a little... Or let it build up a little then tilt it.. Drain it.. Then go back level... On patio models truthfully you rarely get enough grease to drain during a cook... Now I said rarely.... It is easy to get a couple 2x6 or 2x8 blocks... Miter one end at least 45 degrees and roll the cooker up on the blocks... That will give you 1-1/2 fall more than ever needed....I just spoke with Tyler and from now on on all patio models we will send 2 pieces of 2x8. Mitered on one end with a stop on the other end so the cooker want roll up then off the other end.... This will let you drain it if needed... Like Jason mentioned it is easy to let the grease jell up and scrape off with a putty knife...

Letting it gel up and scraping was exactly what I did, I just didn't realize I was doing it until I dipped that scraper in. :wink: Like you mentioned Paul, I assumed it would basically be consumed by the heat on the plate, so whenever I made a cursory glance inside and saw a smooth black surface I was assuming it was the plate. It wasn't a big deal to clean, I was just surprised at how much had accumulated over the last year of cooking.

Since we usually coat the inside of our smokers with oil/fat to season it, I reckon that with that much drippings the baffle plate is rivaling my grandmother's cast iron by now. :mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen: