First RF smoker- 115 gal propane tank

[mthoward91]

Well, I guess this shows my ignorance, sorry to SlowJEEP, but I never even thought about putting vents in the side.  I'm a newbie, so I'm still learning.  I've always seen the vents in the door, but if you make the door solid, and then put the vents in the side, it does the exact same thing.  OK, back to the shadows with me.

 

[ribwizzard]

 OK, back to the shadows with me.

That wont do.....need to get a build going!

 

[slowjeep]

Have some progress to report.  I spent a lot of time on the RF plate and, sadly, I still have to weld it in.  Q day is quickly approaching so my updates should become more frequent.  Whole pig, 50-60 lbs, is on order from Winn Dixie.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 20, 2013

It's hard to see in the picture but the plate has a bit of frown to it.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 20, 2013

I decided to boat tail, for lack of a better term, the left side.  This would address the 'drain to the lowest point' desire as mentioned before.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 20, 2013

I left 3 tabs along the length of the torch cuts so that I could heat and bend.  It worked on one but I got carried away on the other side and it snapped off.  

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• slowjeep
• Nov 20, 2013

This is where I quit for the night. 

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• slowjeep
• Nov 20, 2013

 

[jweller]

 
whydid you put the door to your firebox on the front of the box, and not the side, furthest from tank?

I'm putting the door on the front of the FB on mine as well. In my case, it was a decision made because I'll be using it on my patio, and I wanted to not need the extra 3-4 ft of space on the end to open the door and load it.

 

[gary s]

Looking Good

Gary

 

[truckerbob]

Wish I would have seen this earlier. On mine, I welded angle iron flush with the top of the FB opening, and tacked the RF plate to it. Then, with my sons help, and 2 24" prices of angle, we bent the plate to where I wanted it, and tacked the angle to the sides of the RF plate and the front of the smoker. Double checked out measurements after everything was tacked, and welded the snot out of it.

 

[slowjeep]

The RF plate is mostly welded in.  It's not pretty but she'll do.  In hindsight, truckerbob, your method would have made it a lot easier.  Next time...  

I'm looking to finish it by this Sunday so I can spend the week getting to know her before the big date.  Happy Thanksgiving Eve.

 

[gary s]

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

 from:

GARY in EAST TEXAS

 

[1beezer]

Nice work so far

 

[slowjeep]

Finally finished the RF plate.  Next I'm going to work on the racks.  I envision a large lower rack and a small rack up top; both all the way across.  I still haven't figured out how I want to do the rails that they slide on.  Any suggestions?

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• slowjeep
• Nov 29, 2013

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• slowjeep
• Nov 29, 2013

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• slowjeep
• Nov 29, 2013

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• slowjeep
• Nov 29, 2013

 

[radioguy]

Jeep,

For my shelves I am planning ( still looking for suggestions / opinions)  on using 1" angle to frame my food shelf /trays.  Here is a good thread on how to build them. 

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/g/a/137988/quick-and-easy-food-grate-frames/  

For the rails I'll use 1 1/2"  to 2" angle.  I'll cut the vertical height down a bit.   I just want something long in the horizontal direction.  The width will allow me to mount them so they are wider than my door opening.  I'll then mount some blocks or spacers on the support angles to keep the 1" angle shelf /tray centered on the door opening.  I hope this verbiage makes sense.  Don't have  pictures, I haven't built it yet.   

I'm still thinking on how to do some sort of stop / bracket to keep the shelf from falling out when fully extended. 

Your build is looking good so far.  Wont' be long until you are cooking!  

RG

 

[radioguy]

Here's that build thread

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/141196/quick-and-easy-food-grate-frames

 

[gary s]

Here is what we did to keep ours from falling out, this way you can still remove them.

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• gary s
• Nov 30, 2013

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• gary s
• Nov 30, 2013

 

[slowjeep]

Midday update.

Thanks for the suggestions, links and pictures guys.  I decided, on the fly, to do the following:

Top with 1" angle as the frame.  I wanted to use some square tubing but didn't quite have enough.  The rack could be a little stiffer but I'm satisfied with how it came out.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Bottom side reinforced with some 1/2 x 1/4 flat bar.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Rack extended out to the stops and the hook.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Rack in.  you can see the little hook on the left side of the cooker that lets the rack rotate down 15 or so degrees.  Not sure if this is a good idea but it felt right.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Back to the driveway...

 

[slowjeep]

Evening Update:

CC door welded on.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

I didn't think I was going to use these bullet hinges but I had a change of heart.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

This is a piece of 3/8" that was left over from the RF plate.  I'm going to put it in the FB as a grate.  The soap stone squares are for air flow.  I'll weld a few of the drops on as legs to lift it off of the bottom.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Ran out of oxygen.  No gas ax till Monday.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

A little instant gratification.  Burnt some straw in the FB to see smoke come from the chimney.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

FB door in operation.  I used the same bullet hinges as the CC door.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Last shot of the night.

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• slowjeep
• Nov 30, 2013

Without oxygen, I'm probably done for the weekend.  Not as far as I wanted to get but she's coming along.  

 

[nick v]

Looking good man. I enjoy watching this build because I'm building one right now myself pretty similar to yours.

 

[slowjeep]

Only a few days to go...

Finished the grate.  It is spaced from the bottom with feet about 1.5".  Think I'll need a way to get to and clear the ashes on a long cook?

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• slowjeep
• Dec 3, 2013

Vents laid out.

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• slowjeep
• Dec 3, 2013

Cut.   I forgot to get a picture of the slide setup.  

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• slowjeep
• Dec 3, 2013

Another test burn.  No gaskets or door latches and it leaks like a sieve.  

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• slowjeep
• Dec 3, 2013

 

[daveomak]

SJ, morning.... You might consider elevating that plate to about 4" from the bottom of the FB for easier ash removal during a long smoke... Drag the ash out through the FB door.... You could wait until you have a few smokes in the smoker to see how much ash builds up also...
The design looks good.... It should work very well for you.... Smoke some stuff and note any changes you "might" want to make to improve the smoker... May not need any.... I'd wait to paint it until you have all the changes made that tickle your fancy..... I can't think of anyone, off hand, that built the perfect smoker first go round.... I've built so many smokers I can't remember them all..... Each one is an improvement over the previous builds.... it never ends.....
Look at Ribwizzard and all his builds... they keep evolving... He's building a new one now... More new ideas going into it...... He's built some mighty fine smokers..... I'd be happy with any of them.....
I never met RW but I do know this..... He never sleeps.... he couldn't.... not enough time considering all the new ideas he comes up with for his smokers.....

Dave

 

[ribwizzard]

Thanks Dave

 

[slowjeep]

Thanks for the tip Dave. I'll probably elevate that plate this afternoon.