I could probably grind down the outside of the top lip. I would guess that would take away about 1/2 of the metal. How would this affect the drums strength?

Cutting off the lip is a pretty common solution. Look back a few posts to HOPTOAD's build. It looks like he cut off the lip on that drum and the Weber lid fits nicely. Now, if your lid is coming up just shy on covering the lip them use the "beat it with a mallet mod" to flatten the lid and then curve it around the lip of the drum.

Looks like I need about 1/4" all around to get over the lip. Is that beatable? And am I flatting out the two bends entirely, and then beating one bend back over the top?

Thanks for the reply. I used KF brickettes & 3 chunks of hickory. I figured that I may have started with too many hot coals (1/2 chimney), but I would have thought after 2-3 hours the temp would have wanted to drop more. I know by reading this forum that the correct way to control the temp is by air intake, but if you've got them all closed after 4 hrs and the temp still wants to climb past 250, then shutting off some of the exhaust was my only option. I actually think the bright, hot sun was contributing to some of the problem. I'm going to do a brisket in the next few days and I'm going to be sure and put the UDS in the shade. I think the shorter stack will help also, guess we'll see. I appreciate the help and your comments on my smoker. :-D

Wanted to share these. I got two used drums that had sunflower seed oil in em. Had em sand blasted inside and out, then powder coated. I figure it's worth $100 each to keep my lungs clean and save almost 10 hours of burning, grinding and painting. Used the hardware from my current rusted spray painted ones. I use a method where both racks have 6 in carriage bolts (like tables) the bottom rack supports the top rack. This way the racks don't get hung up and I can swap racks mid cook with ease. This is why the bolts on the sides are so low. Also the thermometers are just for looks. I am always using electronic devices. These will stay in the team trailer when not in use. They are as shiny as a new Weber Kettle. My teammate has the same two but powder coated red. We cook on 4 one for each meat. Thanks for viewing! Mike.

http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/9...1009171902.jpg

http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/5...1009171903.jpg

http://img683.imageshack.us/img683/9...1009302100.jpg

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Yesterday am after an overnight seasoning.

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http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/7...1010021132.jpg

Very nice. Way too clean. Would be great to see a pic of your rack setup that you describe.

Thanks, Colonol00. I figured it out, beating the very edge of the lids flat against the patio and then doing my best to round it out against the top of the drum. The old lid was a bit out of round which made it a PITA. Overall, it rests pretty close to the edge. I'll need to do a little spot priming up top before I paint that drum black.

In a few weeks I'll double back on the lids and repaint them. Should I just sand down the edges and then hit it with some black high temp paint? It hurt to beat up a brand new lid like I did, but for $45 on clearance it was purposely bought for this project.

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Shiney nice:thumb: Show us the cooks:-D

finally mine is "sort" of done i'm still missing the thermometer, couple of handles and the plugs and nipples (this solution didn't work well for me) so i'm, for now, working with the magnets.
I tell you guys, i see some beautiful work being done over here, mine is a humble "ugly" smoker - here some pictures...
Well - i don't know how to insert them from flickr :redface:, but you can see them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/54510022@N04/5045683229/

I used a brand new unlined drum, so no burn was necessary - as you can see the interior was nice and clean

There is a picture with all the hardware i used and some of the tools as well.

I think the hardest thing was the basket, what i did to wrap the expando to the charcoal grate was use plastic zip ties, that held the sheet in place until i was able to use the screws, funny thing is i managed to make the basket only with copule of cuts, i thought i was going to have more than just that - tomorrow i will add the pizza pan for the ashes.

Since the paint on the drum was black, it was hard to mark it, so i used tape to mark the places. Also, i used the template some one in this forum posted some time ago, that was a real help as it gave me the correct places to make the holes.

so here is the technical information:

intake: 4-1" holes, 2' from the bottom
grill 1: 31" from the bottom (not much room here, just enough for hamburger patties, small pieces for chicken, hotdogs, etc) - i'm hopping to find a weber grill pronto
grill 2: 25" from the bottom
exhaust: 8-1/4 holes
charcoal basket: I used 2 12"x24" expando sheets wrapped around a 13" basket and for feet 3-3.5" bolt with fender washers

I think that does it - as you can see my build was pretty blah no belts and whistles - hopefuly this helps anyone trying to build this thing, if "I" could do it, anyone can, trust me! :-D

BTW i already seasoned it- although i did it without the thermometer seemed to have worked pretty good. Tomorrow i will try it with the thermo and see the real temps

What other options to use for the intakes? - i already have the ball valve, but no way to attach it as the nipples were too big (1" black tell nipple close) - can some one please tell me the exact nipple i need to buy? - right now i have 4-1" holes in my drum so please any advice base it on that.


Thanks in advance.

Thanks for yoour guidance to you all.

You need 3/4" nipples they will screw right in your 1" hole.

To get the weber lid to for properly I spent about a hour with a grinder taking off a bit at a time, testing the fit then grinding some more. It was a real pain but the fit is snug.

It looks great Brunski. There is still a lot to be said for the "blah, no bells and whistles" build. I already had a box full of assorted pipe nipples and valves before I ever heard of a UDS, but I decided to go with holes and magnets to keep it simple.

15 months later, I still use the magnets. They are disc magnets about 1 1/4" diameter that I found at Harbor Freight for a couple of $$. I can slide them open and closed with the toe of my shoe and they work great. Now go to the hardware store and buy yourself 8 corks to plug the exhaust holes. They're cheap and work great.

Enjoy the food.

Chris

thanks!!
you don't use the corks during cooking time, do you? Are wine bottle corks ok?
Also, thanks for the tip on the magnets, i'll make sure i get myself some

No corks during cooks, all airflow is regulated through the intakes.

Re-using wine corks will work fine, as long as they are natural cork. You may have to whittle then down a bit to fit in the holes. I thought about using them, but the wine my wife drinks uses some sort of plastic/pseudo cork for a stopper.

To me, that is the true spirit of the UDS; using cast-offs and leftovers to build an inexpensive, efficient cooker.

Chris

Why not just adjust the amount you light in the beginning and use the sun to help you conserve fuel?
That's exactly how I do it with my WSM in the 100 degree Texas summer heat :thumb: AND how I plan on doing it when I build my UDS.