I read the first couple hundred pages before I built mine and I'm glad I did. Yea it took time but patience is a virtue when it comes to low and slow.

That's easy..."The one you like." :heh:

Go to the bulk spices at your supermarket, buy a little bit of everything, and when you come up with a killer rub. send me some!!!:wink:

Sorry if it's already been discussed. I googled & read but didn't find anything. Has anyone used a 30 quart stainless steel mixing bowl for a lid? Seems to be about the right diameter @ 22". They're ~$25.. Cheers!!!

That would depend on the drum- most of them are bigger than that. The ones I've used measured a hair over 23" to the outside of the bead. BUT- you could cut the top out leaving a 1/2" ledge all the way around, and the bowl should drop inside the bead, and sit nicely on the ledge. I'll have to consider that on my next build.......

I'm Done
 

Thank the lord I am finally finished!!!!!!!!!!! I have my barrell, my grates stainless steel zip ties. As soon as we get some rain again I hope to get my barrel burnt out and get this thing finished

To the UDS Experts... Cooked my third round of ribs yesterday. This may be a little lengthy, but wanted some insight from the people who've used the UDS a lot...

1) First cook my temps stayed rock steady. Last two, for some reason can't seem to get them to hold steady. Seals, everything is tight, so shouldn't be an air issue. Only thing I could come up with was the first I used majority lump, and the last two primarily KF charcoal. :roll:

2) Heat diffuser??? I know others have stated using a water bowl, or some other type of diffuser. Reason I ask is the variation of the cooking temps across the grate. Right over top of basket, seem to over char/ burn the bottom of the ribs, vs the others outside the center two. I have a pizza pan w/ holes all over it, and wondered if I somehow incorporated that. Would that help, hinder the burn at all, or make it harder to control the temps...

3) When I foil my ribs, I lose that nice crispy outside. Is the wrapping to help prevent burning, simply to speed up the finishing of the rib, or is it just a preference thing?

I'll hush for now.... Thanks in advance to some much needed advise!!!! :help:

After you foil do you remove from foil and put back on foe :45 -1hour? I quit foiling a while ago. $4 hours on grate flip or 2 if I wife wants me to do something around the house which i can't as I am too busy cookin!:becky:

The uds is not a high dollar cooker. Uneven temps is how they roll. Diffusers help but also use more fuel and lose that UDS taste.

Don't be anal about temps find out where it cruises and limit adjustments and adjust time accordingly.

I do unfoil, but maybe not long enough. I'm sure I didn't leave them on another hour. You flip your ribs? May be some of the issue... I haven't.

As for the temps, that is my problem. Darn thing won't hold steady for some reason. Wondering if the lump burned hotter, and more consistent than the KF.... Guess only one way to find out! :becky:

I have found that the lump burns way hotter...but the opposite is true for me in terms of temp staying constant. I think it might be do to the non-uniformity of the chunks in the lump. Using KF briq's I can lock it in anywhere from 230-300 for a long haul.

That is a great idea; coupled with Mushcreeks's advice for a lip. I did some checking and found 30-quart mixing bowls at 22 & 5/8 and 22.5 like this one:
http://www.cometsupply.com/mp/ADMIRA...ADCSBL30/r/gg/

When I was using lump, the biggest issues I had was humidity in the bag. Did you use new bags all three burns? I had trouble when the lump would soak up humidity.
----
But anyway. Burned in UDS II this weekend. Perhaps when it is finished I will post a pic or two of my second digi-smoker. Still needs a paint job and a smoke stack.

I just did an experiment with foiled vs. non-foiled ribs. I cooked 'em both at ~235-240 degrees unfoiled for about 3.5 hours, foiled one slab with a little S. Carolina Mustard Sauce and left the other slab alone. After about an hour in the foil, I released the foiled slab and put it back on the grill to firm and color up.

Here's a pic:

Let me know if you can tell by the picture which one was foiled and which one wasn't:
http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/a...onthegrill.jpg

Here's a pic of the "bite test" on individual bones from each slab:
http://i895.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/Bitetest.jpg

There was a slight difference, but in the end, not enough to make me change my ways - just yet anyway.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...7-17184607.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...730_184625.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_165700.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_165740.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_180027.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_191652.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_191659.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_193906.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...813_193922.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...917_141152.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...917_141050.jpg

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...917_141022.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...917_141201.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...911_152656.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48...917_141221.jpg

SWEET!!! Now get it dirty!! :thumb: