Got my 250 tank and My first build begins

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bigsal51

Smoke Blower
Original poster
Jul 6, 2008
132
10
I picked up my tank this morning and i am happy with the condition. I paid 100$ and he gave me some wood so i can burn it after i cut the doors in the morning. I want a double grading and i measured the doors and tryed to use most of the tank if you can see the the markings do you think i can fit the two gradings or do i have to go lower or should i go higher from the bottom. I didnt start from the middle of the top i started 4inches from the middle pad eyes. Then came down. past middle of the tank to the weld.



Filling up with water after presurewashing the inside at the carwash.
 
I am also starting a build. What kind of smoker will you be building? I have read alot on this forum, and think I will be building a reverse flow. People seem to have alot of good to say about reverse flow.
 
good start one thing i found is to keep door small as poss. but still have a comfortable working opening area less heat loss that way. i think you can get 2 racks in there if you need too. thats alot of cooking area. fill us in on heating it reverse flow fire box them kind of things and pics.
 
Yea keep posting pics of the progess.
If I can be there to smell the burning metal and dodge the sparks, I can at least watch : )
 
Congratulations, can't wait to see the rest of the build.

And definitely keep us posted on the progress, probably the only thing we ( I ) like watching more than q-view is a build.

I say 2 racks would fit just fine, what else are you planning on doing?
 
I put the pics on the wrong thread. Here they are to keep them in one thread. I was hiding in the frist pic.
 
Did some cutting today took me 2 cutting disks. not bad for that gauge of steel. I went through more blades cutting through the side of the tank than the firebox. I cut the firebox to 28in long. I hope that will be enough.
 
Didnt have such a productive day today. I had machanical failer. My 20$ harbor freight grinder burnt out today. I was cutting the firebox opening and it pooped out. So I went to Northern tools to look for a new grinder and found one for 37$ it better last me as long as my 20$ grinder I had that thing for 5yrs and did its job till today.




Then I was trying to fill the holes on the top of the smoker and the cheap sears 95amp stick welder kept on tripping my breaker. I couldnt run a 1inch bead without stopping. I was using the 5/64 6013 but they just left a small bead. So i used the 3/32 7014 and it seamed to work better and not flip my breaker. That breaker ticked me off today my welds looked terrible. I guess I cant complain for a 150$ welder.I am going to grind those weld down in the morning and make them look flush.
 
She's starting to take form nicely. Take your time and do it the way you want it...it will reward you with great Bbq in the future.

Great start on that build, Sal.

Eric
 
You are one handy fella. I had to cut mine on the top and then weld hinges into place to keep it correct. But us less talented iron workers have to do things differently due to design-less engineering. Really look forward to your build. Building your own is so sweet in the end.
 
I did some work today and fit the firebox but my welder is not cutting it. I tryed welding the tubing for the hinge but the welds were not penetrating the tank. It was penetrating the tubing. I think I am going to rent a welder with a generator on it. I think my welder can be used for the grating frames and small things like that.
 
Still looks like its coming along pretty well. What are you using for the firebox? Did you find a big piec of tubing or have a shop roll some for you. I'm guessing 1/4" is the limit on your welder, so it is probably getting pushed some.
 
An engineer gave it to me it is a 20in 1/4in dia. I only used 28in of it and it seems to be the right length. The pipe was a conductor pipe on a drilling rig in east texas. yea my welder sucks. I thought i was laying down some good beads but it just wasnt penetrating.
 
Ditch the 7014 as it's an iron powder rod with absolutely no penetration capabilities at all. Go with either 6010 or 6011 if you want to get thru all that crap that's on your pipe. 6013 is a sheet metal rod which needs to be run hot & fast, preferbaly slightly downhill. You might have a problem welding on the conductor pipe as they're usually pretty magnetic. The way to tell is if the the arc is dancing around, it's magnetized. The only way to cure that is the business end of a rose bud. And by the way "your welder does not suck", fact of the matter is your asking way to much of it and it can't deliver the goods. Rent a Lincoln SA250 or an SA200 as both of these machines have the balls needed to do your job. To save wear & tear on that little grinder, clean your cutting tip.
 
Hey bigsal, it looks like you beating adversity and doing a great job! I really gotta hand it to ya cutting all that steel with a 4 1/2 inch angle grinder with a cut off wheel! I have been there... You might want to try a
9" Heavy Duty angle grinder from Harbor Freight, it really cuts like a mutha through that 1/4 inch, lots of power and the disks last alot longer since they are 9 inches!!!
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=93179

Like Mikey said the 6011 or 6013 will work much better for ya. That welder you have is an AC 95 amp so you are gonna have lots of fun trying to weld 1/4 inch!! 7014 likes a clean surface and runs a nice pretty weld with a DC machine. I know you are probably not gonna go out and buy a bunch of new equipment and you can probably make your stuff work, but you really should think about getting a different welder! Now I am not gonna tell you to go out and get a Miller or some other expensive high end welder but I do have just what you need for what you are doing and you are probably thinkin I am so kinda Harbor Freight freak but you really gotta check this little beast out!!! Don't be fooled by the size and amp rating cause it will blow you socks off. I have a Lincoln 180 mig and a Miller Thunderbolt AC\DC but I use this little thing all the time. It is an 80 Amp DC Inverter Arc Welder and like I said don't be fooled by the amps cause it runs like 130 amps and the duty cycle at full power is 35%. I have yet to get mine to go out on thermal protection. I burned through 3 sticks in a row and it just kept goin. Best part is that it doesn't stick to your work and the arc is smooth and solid. I got mine for $120.00 with a 20% discount.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=91110
Here is a video of a guy doing a demo with it and he welds some 1/4 inch plate.


Here is another great tool that will help you alot! Get your self some Norton a[font=arial, sans-serif]lumina zirconia abrasive flap discs!!! They will take down a bad weld or a rough edge in seconds. I say this because it lookes like you were using those hard grinding wheels on those hole that you filled on your tank. Get one of these man and try it! $4.00 can't beat it! I use them to clean whatever I am about to weld also. Your welds will be alot better if you clean the surface before you weld.[/font]
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=97627

I hope you don't think I work for Harbor Freight or something but I am poor like most people so I have have to make due! I have been right where you are at and I ended up spending more time and money because I got the wrong tools for the job at hand. Now I have got it down. Please just check these things out at least the 4 dollar flap disk, can't go wrong there!!
 
Yea your not the first one to tell me about that harbor freight welder i might sell this one an get that one. Thanks for the info.
 
I got some 3/32 6011 and I couldnt get it to arc to save my life. Then I picked up the rods that the machine came with they looked like 1/8 and it welded and heated up that steel like it should. I tryed to weld tubing on to the smoker and the 6011 just didnt do it for me. The 1/8 didnt trip my braker either. So i might just go with the 1/8 rods. I know The welds look terrible but i had to cover all the 6011 welds with the 1/8 and it even passed the stength test I put a rod and tryed to pull the welded tubing and it held so I guess it 1/8 did it. Here are the pics.
\





Not bad for a grinder and a cutting wheel.
 
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