Non Standard Smoker Design o_O

[eDJ]

Well, I got a chance to work on my projects a bit in the past couple days.
It's been hot here and quite humid with thunderstorms on and off to work around. Since I was given an old grill and have a friend at an Industrial Vent
& Duct work Fabricator where I can pick up some "stuff" that's head to the
scrap I got this idea. A Grill that looks like a smoker. A non standard if they ever was one.

If it actually works, you'll can come up with a name for it. Who knows some one over in China may just start making these. LOL Probably the Hung Chow corp.

So I hauled out my stuff to take these photos. Much of this has been given to me and I've built it up from there.

Photo #1 Wanted to get a river boat in the background but none went by.

Photo #2 This is a lineup of my outdoor cooking stuff. Left to right a Grill,
plant stand/outdoor dry sink, Smoker Project, Dutch Oven-Rotisserie Stand.

Photo #3 Closer up view of Dutch Oven Stand with Rotisserie & firebrick on bottom.

Photo #4 Smoker Grill conversion Project next to Dutch Oven Stand.

Photo #5 Smoker Project showing hole for tube. The tread way will sit across the bottom as a lower support for the tube, burner, assembly as shown in later photos.

Photo #6 Smoker showing tread way, burner tube, and A-Collar. This A-Collar sitting on the right table fits down into the hole shown in photo 5.

Photo #7 Is just a grill given to me by some friends. It's serviceable so I'll use it in the outdoor set up. I have a nice gasser on the upper deck if it's bad weather or too damn hot in the sun.

Photo #8 This is a wooden plant stand that was originally dark and dingy and so ugly they didn't want it. I built the back upright onto it, cut out the hole for the dry sink and slapped a coat of thin white paint on it. Their daughter likes it so well now that she wants to borrow it for the Church Ice Cream Socials, and a Lemonade Stand. I got a friend who wants to give me a Market Umbrella so it will probably go on the stand later. Nice to have friends. :)

Photo #9 As you can see the tube sticks far too high up through the hole.
I'll have to trim it down so the A-Collar fits flush and seals, and the tube traps tight on the tread way. I'll have to cut a door in the tube to access the burner and cast iron wood chip box, and of course the pan for the hot water. I'd bet an old VW Beatle hub cap would do the trick if I can just find one. Old VW bugs never die !!

Photo #10 The back side of the Smoker Project. You may be able to see
how it will come together. I need to make a shallow sheet metal cone to fit over the mouth of the A-Collar and braze a tube that will go to the side for any grease drippings, so they can be caught in a small bucket. This should swirl the smoke to the contour of the lower grill housing and follow it up to the roof and possibly direct it back down on the meat. I may have to brake some metal in a "V" shape to mount to the lid for this. There is a Muffler shop where I know an ol'boy who says he can bend me some 3" pipe for the chimney vent...and we'll Mig a bolt on the inside so I can make a damper for the top side. At the very bottom where I will cap the tube....I'll make a damper which I'll be able to set with some trial and error.

Right now....these little stainless tube burners that were in the grill have cracks in the top of them where they've burnt through. So I gotta deal with finding a burner........or break down and just buy something. We Appalachian-American boys are right frugal with our spending. ;)

[eDJ]

Re Pt 2

Here are some other photos.

Photo #11 This shows the A-Collar positioned into the hole. It tapers outward a couple inches from the tube which is about .040 inch metal. The A-Collar isn't nearly that thick but is easy to form to the bottom of the grill. When it is set up to the proper size and fit I'll use some drill screws to attach it.

Mounting the burner, modifying the gas manifold to mount etc I'll just
beat em to fit and paint em to match.

Photo #12 Well, here's a perfectly good river going to waste. Any other time
I'd have some of my River Boat Captain Buddies standing on the Bridge Waving. Wait till I get this smoker going.......I'll bet I get the cook out there with him wanting to know what I'm fixin.

So, I'm gettin ready for the Memorial Day Cook Out...anyone else ?

[Fishawn]

Cool pics, neat setting!... Where ya at?... Love me some outdoor cooking gear.

[eDJ]

Re:

I'm in the southern tip of Ohio. Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio all come together here. We call this area Kyohva !

Yeah, I love the outdoor cooking too. I get a real charge out of it when its raining and I'm under a shelter and all the guest are gathered around lick'n their chops and just waiting to dig in.

[eDJ]

Re:

This is the photo to really check out, and it's taken from the back side of the grill. You can see the tube in place on the tread way and imagine how it will work.

[Whisky Fish]

Looks like good times are had there. Fun gathering of tools

[eDJ]

Re:

Here's my present idea for a Gas burner setup. Notice the damper on the bottom directly under the burner tube. It could be controlled by a stiff wire like an old bicycle spoke or something. The wire would go to the damper through a small hole and a loop made on the outside with a 1" diameter. An old piece of a stick stuck through it would serve as a handle

I'd light it with one of those long gas grill lighter from the dollar store using the access door
for the cast iron wood chunk box and water basin above it. The round duct
is about the same diameter as the length of the burner tube which was once in the top...back when it was a grill.

This is all an experiment and it would smoke small batches of meat for the average family who after their old grill needed replaced, they could recycle it like I've done with this low bucks experiment using simple hand tools.

Hope this graphic is large enough for everyone to see, my mouse sez nobody ever accused him of being an artist.

[eDJ]

Re:

This last graphic is of the combination baffle & drip pan. It will sit just over the
A-Collar in the bottom of the former Grill and the four bolts (in dark black)
will hold it at the desired height to draw smoke evenly.

If there are drippings from the meat they will travel down the inverted cone shaped baffle and into a copper tube brazed in place at the bottom of the baffle serving much like a funnel. A hole in the side of the smoker chamber wall will allow it to drip on the outside of the smoker and into a receiver there. The hole may actually be a small slot to allow for the upward or downward movement of the adjusted baffle. Thus smoke and drip control are possible from the same baffle element.

I'll position the chimney tube directly in the top grill cover with a wing-screw so I can adjust the height of it over the meat on the grill. I can for see having
a hole in the grill grate itself to position the opening of the chimney under the
meat such that the smoke would envelope the meat and the lid not have to be opened so much. (but that's just a guess at this point)

So, I'm ahead of myself concept wise and the proof will come when I get cooking with the finished project...

[eDJ]

Re:

So, It's blackberry winter here now and cold and rainy. Happens every year when the blackberry bushes are in bloom and it drives us back inside to sit on the stove and try to stay warm.

But as I think through this design, and understand I'm not an HVAC type to understand air flow dynamics, I'm thinking it will work something like shown in the graphic. I'd like to be able to get a constant donut shaped cloud of smoke, vapor, and heat re-circulating evenly around the meat on the grill.

So, like I said, I came to learn more about smoking meat, building my own meat smoker, and whatever else I could learn in the process.

This graphic shows what I'm thinking and hoping will be going on inside.

[Zeeker]

Great looking gear eDJ. All the best...

[sweet_magnolia]

Great looking gear eDJ.

[curious aardvark]

Photo #12 Well, here's a perfectly good river going to waste.

know what you mean, can't see anyone fishing

I presume you've got a couple of deadlines out for eels ?
Best smoked fish ever :-)