I might have a really good UDS lid idea...maybe

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fwismoker

Master of the Pit
Original poster
Dec 31, 2012
4,279
1,033
North East Indiana
Ok i'm doing my UDS build now and i'm most definitely using my flat barrel lid because it fits and seals so well (kind of like it was made for it) lol....   Anyways i also want to have the capacity for 2 racks. Most times i'll just be using the flat lid but i'm picking up a second barrel lid for this test and if it works i'll have 2 lids. 

I know alot of you welded a ring on the inside of the barrel so the kettle lid fits better BUT  here's what i propose, you just tell me if it will weld ok. If this works i'll be able to use a flat lid or the kettle lid depending on what i'm cooking. 


Step 1)  Cut out the center of this lid leaving just the outer ring


Step 2)   Set the kettle lid on the barrel lid ring and weld them together.

I'm not a welder so i'll have someone else do it but this will give you the perfect tight sealed fit if you want to use the kettle lid...Will it weld ok?
 
FWI......  If you cut off the top of the barrel, say 4" down from the lip.... add a 10" section of steel flashing and bolt it in place, you will have a tall barrel with a lid that seals....
 
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Dave i saw people do that but nothing you do will fit as perfectly snug as the lid that was actually made for the drum and that's why i want to give this a try.   I'll just tack weld it in a few spots and see how it does, if it holds together then i'll weld all the way around or use some high temp silicone  to fill in between the tack welds.

No harm no foul, if it works which it should it'll be the tightest possible fitting kettle lid on a barrel with minimal effort... If it doesn't i can go the route you suggested.
 
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Update.... I cut out the lid leaving  the outer ring, it took all of 5 minutes w/ the help of the reciprocating saw.   Yep, i do believe this will work!
Cut out w/ sawz all.  this was just an extra lid i had that was bent but it made a good test case. 


I put the kettle lid on the ring and i'll have some tack welds put around it  later this week and see how it holds.
I don't know if all drum lids are like this but this is the bottom of the lid ring, it fits very very snug into the barrel which is why i like this concept. 
 
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I like it
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Dave i saw people do that but nothing you do will fit as perfectly snug as the lid that was actually made for the drum and that's why i want to give this a try.   I'll just tack weld it in a few spots and see how it does, if it holds together then i'll weld all the way around or use some high temp silicone  to fill in between the tack welds.

No harm no foul, if it works which it should it'll be the tightest possible fitting kettle lid on a barrel with minimal effort... If it doesn't i can go the route you suggested.
My intention, which was not clear, was to bolt the original rim back in place on top of the 10" piece that was added.....   That would give you the original rim and an 8-9" taller drum for more space....  I had it in my mind but it didn't translate to the keyboard....  Stupid me... 
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My intention, which was not clear, was to bolt the original rim back in place on top of the 10" piece that was added.....   That would give you the original rim and an 8-9" taller drum for more space....  I had it in my mind but it didn't translate to the keyboard....  Stupid me... 
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Ahhh I see says the blind man...lol

I'm not sure i want it that high for a couple of reasons, one being this is a kit i'm putting in that let's me lift the charcoal basket up to sear w/....it'll be a comfortable height as is.  I'll put my 2nd rack 1" down from the top lip and use the dome lid for those times i need some extra space.    Great idea though!
 
I'm on my phone right now, but looks like you are trying to do what I did with my lid.When I get home and on my PC I will post some pics of my lid but in the mean time you can check out my buuld thread at the bottom of my post. I can tell you though that the metal that the Weber lids are made out of seem to be an alloy if some sort. I got a lot of blow through on the Weber lid. Somebody that knows how to weld real good might be able to do it, but the metal is definitely softer than the flat drum lid.

Chad
 
Ok as promised, here are some pics of my lid setup.


I started with tack welds about every 3-4" or so.


As I went around, I ended up with a lot of blow through on the Weber lid.


Some more blow through. So How did I fix it?


I got this stuff from AutoZone.


Molded it around the joint between the lid and the drum lid.


Once all the way around and cured, I sanded it down to make it smooth.


Here it is once primed. I got in a hurry but with a little more putty and patience, I probably could have made it smoother.


Once the putty was in place I placed a rope gasket on the inside lip of the drum lid.


Turned out great and seals perfectly. With out the rope gasket, I noticed it was a little to snug and tended to be a bit tough to remove the lid.


Another pic of the rope gasket.


Underside of the gasket with the drum in place.

I really hope this helps you out. Biggest thing is the welding. Like I said, an experienced welder might be able to do it. I'm thinking the Weber lid has an aluminum alloy in it which can't be welded without the right welder. Not 1000% sure on that though. I just know it is a softer metal than regular steel. Oh another thing I did differently is I welded the two lids together before I cut the center of the drum lid out. I hope by cutting the drum lid first, that it doesn't get a lot of warping on you.

Chad
 
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Yea Chief it helps alot, thank you.   I'll start working on that as soon as find a donor kettle lid... i was using my kettle's grills lid just to see if this was feasible.   That ring i cut was already warped and i wanted see how easy it was to cut out.   Good idea on welding it together first before cutting out the middle.     

I thought i had an original idea come to find out another Navy man beat me to it.   
 
Not exactly sure how strong JB Weld is but I want to say somewhere in the 2000 lb tensil strength range I think. I have repair numerous things with it with the latest being one of my side mirrors on my truck. Two of the three mounting studs broke off and the mirror was being held on by one. I JBW'd the two studs back on and it has been holding great. As far the lid, if you can get some welds to take then all you're really doing is sealing the gap between the two lids. I used that putty because it was safe for drinking water and high temp. Not sure about JBW. As far the idea, I saw it somewhere else as well. I haven't seen the putty trick anywhere else though...Lol

Chad
 
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Not exactly sure how strong JB Weld is but I want to say somewhere in the 2000 lb tensil strength range I think. I have repair numerous things with it with the latest being one of my side mirrors on my truck. Two of the three mounting studs broke off and the mirror was being held on by one. I JBW'd the two studs back on and it has been holding great. As far the lid, if you can get some welds to take then all you're really doing is sealing the gap between the two lids. I used that putty because it was safe for drinking water and high temp. Not sure about JBW. As far the idea, I saw it somewhere else as well. I haven't seen the putty trick anywhere else though...Lol

Chad
Yep i was thinking the same thing....tack weld and fill in the rest. 
 
You didn't say what kind of welder you were using or maybe I missed it, however to prevent burning through on your Weber lid (mig welding) start your weld on the rim of the barrel and allow the pool to flow to the lid. Use short quick welds because you can burn through the rim also. Repeat the process over the tack welds until you have a good bond. Using gas and a thinner wire will give you a better weld; I work outside of garage so I use flux core .035. It works fine but you have it take your time.
 
You didn't say what kind of welder you were using or maybe I missed it, however to prevent burning through on your Weber lid (mig welding) start your weld on the rim of the barrel and allow the pool to flow to the lid. Use short quick welds because you can burn through the rim also. Repeat the process over the tack welds until you have a good bond. Using gas and a thinner wire will give you a better weld; I work outside of garage so I use flux core .035. It works fine but you have it take your time.
Sorry, I was using the 90A Flux Core from HF. Great flux core welder to learn on. My only suggestion is to get some Lincoln wire for it. You are correct John, when I was welding the two together I learned my lesson on hitting the drum lid first and letting the pool go to the Weber lid. That's how I got the welds that did take, to take. Sometimes though my hands wouldn't cooperate and the wire would hit the Weber first and that's when I got the burn through. I was able to get a lot of good welds once I figured out that I had to start the weld on the drum lid first. It was just to far gone by that point to try and fix the burn through, so that's where the putty idea came into play. When I finally get to finish the 30G I'm working on, I will definitely know how to do that one if I have to go that route. Still looking for an 18.5" donor lid though.

Chad
 
I have on of the 90A HF flux core welder as well. I picked it up 2nd hand from a friend. I have expierence with other name brand welders as well. Once you get used to using the HF welder you will do fine. Another tip to welding thinner and thicker metals together is, on the thinner metal use a thicker piece of steel behind the thinner stuff this will help absorb some of the heat.
 
 
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