Mike, morning...... Hey, it looks like it should work given the numbers......
stack = 176 ... recommended
FB in = 11 sq in .... recommended
FB/CC = 28 sq in ..... recommended ....
stack
7 x 26 = 183 cu in actual
I do think there is room for improvement.....
First, look at the bottom picture... the FireBox with the second air inlet.... the black one..... That is an important feature in a SFB smoker... When the FB gets hot, it sweeps the hot air into the cook chamber.... the lower air inlet can be closed down a bit to conserve fuel while the Cook Chamber stays hot... It's a balancing act that will take some getting used to.....
Second, looking at the picture below..... I assume that is of the interior of the CC... and I see what appears to be a Reverse Flow plate below the mesh screen..... The RF plate appears to deflect downward, cutting off the air/heat flow from the FB to the CC..... If that's so, not a good deal for 2 reasons..... It's cutting off the air flow and your smoker is not a Reverse Flow..... You need tuning plates instead of the RF plate...
Tuning plates are spaced such that heat entering the CC can rise toward the food at a rate that will be equal across the cooking grate, or something similar.... When installing a RF plate or Tuning Plates, it is very important to keep them ABOVE the FB to CC opening so as to not obstruct the heat/smoke/air flow to the CC..... See the middle drawing for a somewhat reasonable drawing of what I'm trying to explain... The gap, between the plates, allows the for gradual increase in heat, to rise to the food....
I recommend pulling out the RF plate and cutting it into 4" wide strips, or something like that... weld or bolt a couple strips, inside the FB, ABOVE the FB/CC opening, to support the Tuning Plates....
Support the food grate 3-4" above the Tuning Plates, or something like that....
Add a second air inlet to the FireBox like in the picture directly across from the FB/CC opening.... In the bottom pic, you can see the lower air inlet mostly closed down and the upper air inlet open and moving heat to the CC.... that keeps the FB from overheating and wasting fuel...
Then if you need additional performance enhancement, the stack does not need to be that tall.... the vertical CC is acting as a stack and the friction loss, due to the length of the stack,
could be affecting it's ability to draft...
With those minor changes, I do believe you will have one fine smoker......
Hope this all makes sense.... If not, PM me and I will try to improve on my communication skills........ Dave
......CLICK ON THE PICS TO ENLARGE.....
