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-   -   Ugly Drum Smoker (https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23436)

Barbarian 05-07-2009 10:34 AM

4 Attachment(s)
Hey Phubar,
Here are the three lids I have.

The first one has a rod welded around the edge and a flat bar welded to the rod as a lip. It was only spot welded so I used high temp sealant to stop it from leaking. It turned out a bit heavy with the rod and the flat bar being added, but works fine and give me plenty of room on the top grate.

The second is a shorter one where I took a lid and cut the center out and welded it to a 6" bottom of a donor drum.

The third is just a lid. I use it only when cooking on the lower grate.

The fourth pic is a buddies drum where he cut the lip off to be able to use a weber lid. And you can see where the stuff runs. I am to anal to deal with that way of doing things, lol. I would be rubbing up against it and getting pissed.

StayDown 05-07-2009 10:41 AM

I love the idea of using a lid and welding it to a donor bottom.

The lid is just a flat lid right? I have two drums I am going to use for donors because they are closed drums and I am getting a reconditioned drum with a removable lid for the real deal.

Wonder if I can find a spare lid? I would like the option of having the tall lid and the flat. ANy ideas on where to get just a flat lid?

LT72884 05-07-2009 10:58 PM

I start my build this weekend. Instead of moding my brinkman, i will be building a new DS. I m buying a 55 gallon new food safe drum with no liner. It is 35 inches high and 23 wide. Here are my final plans. I had help from a friend who has about 6 of these things

6 x 3/4 inch intake holes 1.5 inches above base
hot coal grate 2 inches from base
about 2 feet above grate is my first cooking grate with 10 inches from lid
4 inches above that is the option for second cooking rack 6 inches from lid
the lid will have 8 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch holes on top for venting smoke.
Cutting board
painted black
on wheels

I was going to use ball valve but didnt want to spend 20$ for that and it was a lil to bulky for me. I will be using metal pipe plugs to cover vents.

Meat Burner 05-07-2009 11:23 PM

LT, 6 3/4 inch intakes is waaaaaaaaaaaay tooooo much if I understand you post. Don't know what you researched to think that is appropriate. A second that would be more than enough for any temps you wanted to reach. JMHO, I would raise the grate to 3 inches above the bottom of the barrel to allow for ash accumulation. Do what you want but my suggestion is to go throught all the UDS pages and learn from everyone else's mistake and fixes.

Barbarian 05-07-2009 11:38 PM

Hey LT72884, I agree with Meat Burner, you won't need that much intake and you need a bit more room below the grate to let the air in.

LT72884 05-07-2009 11:45 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Quote:

Originally Posted by Meat Burner (Post 919659)
LT, 6 3/4 inch intakes is waaaaaaaaaaaay tooooo much if I understand you post. Don't know what you researched to think that is appropriate. A second that would be more than enough for any temps you wanted to reach. JMHO, I would raise the grate to 3 inches above the bottom of the barrel to allow for ash accumulation. Do what you want but my suggestion is to go throught all the UDS pages and learn from everyone else's mistake and fixes.

Ill make my coal grate adjustable so i can lower it or higher it. My friends UDS's has 6 holes in it and he seems to do fine. Plus i can always plug them. Its so i can get a better and more even burn with the coal. the attached image shows how they will be placed on the base. Like i siad if i find my temps getting to high, then i will plug em up.

Norcoredneck 05-08-2009 02:03 AM

Make extra plugs, you will need them. Seems I have never went past 2, but I build in 3

Mattzilla 05-08-2009 02:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norcoredneck (Post 919696)
Make extra plugs, you will need them. Seems I have never went past 2, but I build in 3

Same here.

Phubar 05-08-2009 03:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barbarian (Post 919163)
Hey Phubar,
Here are the three lids I have.

The first one has a rod welded around the edge and a flat bar welded to the rod as a lip. It was only spot welded so I used high temp sealant to stop it from leaking. It turned out a bit heavy with the rod and the flat bar being added, but works fine and give me plenty of room on the top grate.

The second is a shorter one where I took a lid and cut the center out and welded it to a 6" bottom of a donor drum.

The third is just a lid. I use it only when cooking on the lower grate.

The fourth pic is a buddies drum where he cut the lip off to be able to use a weber lid. And you can see where the stuff runs. I am to anal to deal with that way of doing things, lol. I would be rubbing up against it and getting pissed.


Thanx for the pics and info Barbarian!
Yesterday I came up with a similar idea of your first picture.
I used the lid as sort of template and bended the rod on the inside of it.
Looks great allready,I think I won't be able to get it all the way round so maybe I'm gotta cut in in half.
I don't have the tools at home and skillz,you wil see that in the pictures later on when I get home.
Right now it looks real redneck-ish,it's hold together with some rope and ductape!:grin:
By the way....love the looks of your friends drum!
Funny to know that is your friend,the last couple of weeks I've been showing people this pic as an example for an UDS....and this qualifies definitly as an UDS!

BarberQue 05-08-2009 07:27 AM

Like Norco say's, I have three and rarely ever need more than 1 and a half valves open to get between 200* and 260*

timmy7649 05-08-2009 07:44 AM

i have 4 3\4 inch holes and for me to cook at 200 to 225 i only open 1/2 of one. i like having the extra so i can crank up the heat and grill some outstanding burgers. :twisted:

DDave 05-08-2009 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LT72884 (Post 919670)
Ill make my coal grate adjustable so i can lower it or higher it. My friends UDS's has 6 holes in it and he seems to do fine. Plus i can always plug them. Its so i can get a better and more even burn with the coal. the attached image shows how they will be placed on the base. Like i siad if i find my temps getting to high, then i will plug em up.

No offense, but I'll never understand why people insist on trying to reinvent the wheel or build the better mousetrap. I mean, I'm all for customization and individuality but the "basic" UDS design as explained in this thread and Norco's build thread is a pretty damn good smoker.

All the same, have fun with your build. :biggrin:

But trust these guys. They know what they are talking about.

Dave

Dr_KY 05-08-2009 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norcoredneck (Post 919696)
Make extra plugs, you will need them. Seems I have never went past 2, but I build in 3

Ditto. Get yourself some Kevlar gloves too.


Quote:

Ill make my coal grate adjustable so i can lower it or higher it.
It's going to be very hot in there and while trying to raise and lower you are going to be exposing it to fresh air causing your temps to get out of control and perhaps never recover. Don't treat the UDS like a BBQ grill. It is built to be a set and forget cooker.
Quote:

Its so i can get a better and more even burn with the coal.
Your fuel will burn near perfect with just two intakes. It's best to do it the pr oven way then decide if you want to look for the perfect burn rather than going back wards. Others smokers on the market do just fine without all the spacing and intakes.

Smokin' D 05-08-2009 09:32 AM

Yep, I knew better and put in six 3/4" holes. Put plugs in three of them and never take the cap off of one of the remaining intakes. My next drum will have one 1/2" nipple and one 1" ball valve. The current drum runs too hot with one 3/4" nipple open and too cool with the 3/4" ball valve full open. So I figure that a 1/2" nipple and a little ball valve will be perfect. I'll let you all know.

Mark 05-08-2009 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DDave (Post 919817)
No offense, but I'll never understand why people insist on trying to reinvent the wheel or build the better mousetrap. I mean, I'm all for customization and individuality but the "basic" UDS design as explained in this thread and Norco's build thread is a pretty damn good smoker.

All the same, have fun with your build. :biggrin:

But trust these guys. They know what they are talking about.

Dave

Dave: In as far as the primary fuel is charcoal briquettes, the "basic" UDS design, whose purpose is to approximate "set it and forget it" (RONCO) technology, you are correct. If you want to power your UDS primarily by wood sticks, a very different approach is called for.

So anyone contemplating building a UDS should first determine what primary fuel source they intend to use. If its charcoal briquettes, then NORCO's guide is a vewry good resource. HOwever, if it's wood, then I suggest you consider my approach.


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