My RF Vision

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More progress on the door.

Installed supports for the door latches.



The center rods were cut out to make room for the window frame.



Inner 1/4" skin tacked in place


Inner skin welded out and window frame installed.

Fit check to the firebox.


Fit well after a little work on the hydraulic press.

The window frame looks rough around the edges, but will be covered by the outer skin.

Door will be filled with insulation.


That is all for now.

As always, comments are welcome, and thanks for looking.
 
Thanks CrazyQ.

Sometimes necessity is the mother of invention.

I kind of like the boxed-in cut-out in the grate material leaving a hole for your hand, but on my lower grate, that is a recipe for pinched fingers when pushing the grate in. Since I wanted to stiffen up my grate frame as well, I opted for the truss.
 
Good job, you have really put a lot of thought into what you are wanting, great craftsmanship , can't wait to see more !!!!

Gary
 
Thanks Gary s,

The FB door is the most challenging part of this whole project so far.

The finished smoker will be unlike anything you have seen before!
 
Here is the door seal retainer installed to the firebox door.

I did not want to deal with adhesives or screws for the door seal, so I made a "tuck tab" to hold the tadpole gasket in place.


The bottom side has cut-outs to allow water to drain.


Here is how it works.

A piece of high temp tadpole gasket from McMaster Carr


Tucked snugly into place.


The gap is slightly less than 1/8" to give a snug fit to the gasket.

The fit can be adjusted by tapping it down a bit or prying it up a bit.

The full length of gasket will be installed when the door is mounted.
 
I like it, really coming together ,  we used tadpole gaskets in a vertical, insulated, RF we did worked great. I think you are going to have one fine looking smoker, keep posting a lot of pictures "might want to steal a few ideas"  !!!!!      

18º here with snow and ice  ready for some springtime weather

Gary
 
JWDESIGNS - The high temp tadpole gasket is a bit pricey. The one I got was $6.54 per foot, but has a temp rating of -40 to +2300 deg F.Thanks Gary - I put my ideas out here for every one to use if they see fit. I just left warm So California to McKinney TX on business where it is bitterly cold!
 
This is what we used  rated from 40º to 1000º      I think we bought about 18 or 20 feet for somewhere around forty bucks 

Fiberglass Cover with Fiberglass Core

8853kl1s.png


         
Per Ft.
Bulb
Dia. (A)
O'all
Wd. (B)
Flange
Thick.
Available Lengths, ft.  1-99100-Up
3/8"7/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K12$1.80$1.40
3/8"1 1/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K141.861.44
3/8"1 1/2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K132.001.61
3/8"2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K152.091.68
3/8"3"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K172.582.28
1/2"1 1/4"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K182.111.69
1/2"1 3/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K192.151.72
1/2"1 1/2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K212.191.70
1/2"1 3/4"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K222.281.78
1/2"2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K232.451.91
1/2"2 1/4"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K242.511.96
1/2"3"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K282.732.43
5/8"1 1/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K262.221.73
5/8"1 3/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K412.361.83
5/8"1 1/2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K272.451.91
5/8"1 5/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K422.481.93
5/8"2 1/8"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K292.712.17
3/4"1 1/4"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K322.672.14
3/4"1 1/2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K332.772.22
3/4"1 3/4"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K342.872.24
3/4"2"1/8"
5,10,25,50,100
8815K362.962.37
3/4"2 1/4"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K383.042.37
3/4"2 3/4"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K393.332.59
3/4"3"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K513.172.52
1"2"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K523.943.14
1"2 1/2"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K534.113.27
1"3"1/8"
1,5,10,25,50,100
8815K544.263.39
 
Exactly what Dave said, we used it on both doors

Gary
 
I really like the high temp silicone, applied with calking gun, nice clean bead right where the door flange and door create a lip. I'll sandblast and paint one coat of paint on the backside of the door, wait a couple days to let paint cure some, then apply the bead to the door and plastic wrap to the CC, then clamp the door shut. I have never had one bit of seal try to work loose, dry up , or have any other problems. The Rutland 600* black silicone sealant is a great product! and doing it this way forms a perfect seal between the door and the CC that is hardly noticeable on a black smoker. I pay right under $20 for the tube and usually only use about half of it. No one locally stocks it, so I either special order from Ace, or Amazon.
 
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One more step completed on the firebox door.



Got the door latch axles made.





First step was to use a 2 1/4" hole saw to make 2" circular blanks,



Drilled and tapped hole for the latch pivot, and another hole for the lifter pin.



Enlarged the center hole and Tig welded it to a shoulder bolt:














Assembly uses two bronze bushings:











Here it is installed on the door:

















That's all for now.



thanks for looking!
 
Last edited:
Got the firebox door mounted on it's hinges.

I only have it hung on the top hinges.

Am currently planning on leaving it that way and not install the bottom hinges.

The top set is plenty strong enough.

The only reason I originally planned to do both top and bottom was to reduce bushing wear.

Installing the bottom set is a bit more difficult, since they will have to be perfectly parallel with the top set, or they will bind.

I will leave the hinge pins on the bottom of the door so that I can add the bottom hinges later if I want.

The following pics show how it opens.





As always, comments are welcome and thanks for looking.
 
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Thanks CrazyQ,

I have my moments.
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I should be able to pick up the pace some now too, now that the FB door is mostly out of the way.
 
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