# so, there was this air compressor...



## markbeer (Mar 4, 2013)

...which motor had burned out and the tank about to be hauled off to the recycler but was rescued  and turned into a bullet smoker by some guy. 

well, that guy is me. my name is Mark and the project took me twenty years. I know, long story!

I live in the L.A. area (SGV) and have been a golf cart cleaner, pizza delivery man, photographer, stagehand,  carpenter, and welder all throughout the years.  just about any combination of the above had granted me the wisdom, a creative mind and a bunch of skills that helped brought the beautiful 4-plus foot tall smoker to life. and not a day goes by (ok, a month) that I haven't been proud of my achievement.

after many years of being a backyard fireplace:













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__ markbeer
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recently converted into this:













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now it is this:













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__ markbeer
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there are still some kinks needing to be worked out such as figuring out how much lump coal to use and how wide open the dampers at the bottom need to be.

so far, as of the past weekend I started using it to smoke some mahi mahi steaks over the hickory chunks.  this SMF site is the place I found while researching recipes for smoked fish.  thanks to you guys, the fish came out great and delicious! but why did they taste a bit like smoked ham???  haha

then later that day I kept the smoker going and threw in a boneless rib roast.  2+ hours later...













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__ markbeer
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this turned out great!  I'm ready for the next project! 

btw, who wants my 3-burner propane grill?  haha I hope none of you do.

keep on smokin' on!


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## s2k9k (Mar 4, 2013)

Hi Mark! :welcome1:  to SMF!!! We're happy you found us! You've come to the right place, we have over 45,000 members who just love to share their experience and over 900,000 posts describing it! 

The search bar at the top can be your best friend when you are trying to find answers to your questions but you can still ask too if you want!

Would you do us a favor and add your location to your profile, it helps others to know where you are when they offer advice, Thanks!

You might want to check out Jeff's Free 5 day E-Course, it will teach you all the basics plus a whole lot more!


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## jp61 (Mar 4, 2013)

Nice job! I like it!


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## daveomak (Mar 5, 2013)

Welcome......  Nice build..... the door seal is amazing..... was it cut from one big piece ??   The blind welds sure make it clean looking and professional....  I can't see the air intake.....  got any pictures of that ??

Dave


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## buggerritt (Mar 5, 2013)

That's really cool looking. Nice craftsmanship.


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## michael ark (Mar 5, 2013)

Looks great!


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## kathrynn (Mar 5, 2013)

to SMF!  We are so glad you joined us! You are going to love it here. 

Your smoker is totally cool!  Thanks for showing pictures!


If you need any help roaming around the forums...just holler.  Will be glad to help out!

Kat


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## dward51 (Mar 5, 2013)

Nice build with excellent craftsmanship....

Sort of like a heavy duty WSM in overall shape so I bet a lot of the tips for that smoker would apply to yours as well.


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## bruno994 (Mar 5, 2013)

Well done sir.


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## markbeer (Mar 5, 2013)

DaveOmak said:


> Welcome......  Nice build..... the door seal is amazing..... was it cut from one big piece ??   The blind welds sure make it clean looking and professional....  I can't see the air intake.....  got any pictures of that ??
> 
> Dave


the door seal is a water-jet cut out of a 1/8th" steel sheet.

here is a pic of the blind welds on the doors...













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__ markbeer
__ Mar 5, 2013






the hinges were cut out of a heavy duty piano hinge.  I made them in a way that the doors are removable just by lifting them out of the hinges.  sidenote: the welds were just tacks and in the middle of a construction.  I finished them later just at the top and the bottom of each hinge to minimalize the warping of the body.  the skin is also 1/8" thick.  the smoker is pretty damn heavy as I move it around on two tiny wheels that I put on it many many moons ago.  think I should upgrade to BFGoodrich mud tires?


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## markbeer (Mar 5, 2013)

buggerritt said:


> That's really cool looking. Nice craftsmanship.


thank you and all others for the compliments!  I can't say how happy I am with this "new" toy but really am looking forward to abusing the heck out of it all over again, for a good reason!


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## disturbed1 (Mar 7, 2013)

welcome to the forum, nice build


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## markbeer (Mar 9, 2013)

DaveOmak said:


> Welcome......  Nice build..... the door seal is amazing..... was it cut from one big piece ??   The blind welds sure make it clean looking and professional....  I can't see the air intake.....  got any pictures of that ??
> 
> Dave


here are the pics, Dave













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__ markbeer
__ Mar 9, 2013






there are two dampers, one of which can be partially seen in the rear.  I ordered these from amazon.com and there were specifically for a 20" Weber grill.  they fit perfectly with the curvature of the bottom.  however...













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__ markbeer
__ Mar 9, 2013






there was an oversight on the placement of the dampers as the fire cage is big enough to partially cover both of them.

as it is, after a few days of test runs, I have come to the conclusion that the fire cage is too big, unless someone tells me otherwise?  a smaller cage would make the dampers more exposed and increase the airflow.













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__ markbeer
__ Mar 9, 2013






above is the Minion Method that I applied during one of the tests.  turned out that the bottom layer of unlit coals lit up too soon and cut down on the length of smoking time, as well as making the tempurature too high. and if I were to start with just the lit coals then add unlit coals later on, the first layer of lit coals would be smaller and more spread out all over the large cage, making it hard to get a new layer of unlit coals going.  if I were to throw in the lit coals rather than the unlit ones, the temps can go a bit too high. 

I guess it is all about constantly checking the remote temp reader and readjusting the dampers while sitting back in front of the TV and drinking beer.  sorry if I'm rambling on...


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## buggerritt (Mar 11, 2013)

I would consider putting in a hot plate for heat and installing a shelf for an AMNPS. Then you can set it and forget it.


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