Rookie Roaster needs HELP!!

michael jode · Aug 27, 2015

Hi Guys, Yes.....I'm brand new to the forum, and to make matters worse...I don't live in the States either (more about that in a minute) so to say I'm a complete novice (or Rookie, as you guys call them) to the art of what I now know to be True BBQ, would be something of an understatement! Hence, any advice I receive on this forum will be greatly appreciated!
So, here goes......

I am humble firefighter, living 30 miles east of London UK, and in the last few weeks I've gone from thinking (like most of us in the UK) that BBQ was a party where people cremated piles of (tasteless) sausages and plain burgers over a grill, to discovering what true BBQ is really all about! Needless to say...as a huge meat lover , and big fan of outdoor cooking, it's been a huge revelation, and I'm now embracing the whole American culture of BBQ, despite being a complete novice to the art of smoking meat. On the upside....my lack of experience is offset by my welding/engineering background, still having access to a fully equipped workshop, a rather cheap (and rather rusty) old 200ltr air compressor tank (bought on EBay) for my cook chamber, and bundles of enthusiasm for my first smoker project! [emoji]128515[/emoji]

I've already sourced the metal for my firebox, baffle plates, etc, and spring handles (which I've had to ship over from the States as you just can't buy them in the UK!), now all I need is a few bits of advice.

Firstly....which is a good calculator for all my stack, vent, firebox opening sizes, etc?
Secondly....how do I calculate the gap between the end of my baffle plate/drip pan and the end of my cook chamber? Or is this dimension not really important?
Kind regards
Mike

noboundaries · Aug 28, 2015

Mike, first off, welcome to SMF! Glad you are here and looking forward to embracing both the American and the worldwide culture of BBQ'd meat! Be sure to check out the "Groups" section of the forum. There is a large and active group of meat smokers in the UK who love to help each other.

Since Roll Call is basically a chance to welcome new folks, just copy your post over to the Smoker Builds section for the help you need on a calculator. You'll get much better results there.

Have fun with your build Mike!

Ray

smokin monkey · Aug 28, 2015

Hi Mike, Welcome to our "Family" and "Addiction"

Plenty of good folk on here, ask any questions you can think of, and you will get your answers.

Please take time to look at the UK Smokers Forum,

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/3161/uk-smokers

And introduce your self on the UK Roll Call

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/229926/roll-call

Also Check this group out, post all the questions you can think of and you will get the answer.
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/201/reverse-flow
There is a Calculator Faldons
http://www.feldoncentral.com/bbqcalculator.html

Smokin Monkey [emoji]133660013031[/emoji]

michael jode · Aug 28, 2015

Noboundaries said:
Mike, first off, welcome to SMF! Glad you are here and looking forward to embracing both the American and the worldwide culture of BBQ'd meat! Be sure to check out the "Groups" section of the forum. There is a large and active group of meat smokers in the UK who love to help each other.

Since Roll Call is basically a chance to welcome new folks, just copy your post over to the Smoker Builds section for the help you need on a calculator. You'll get much better results there.

Have fun with your build Mike!

Ray

Thanks Ray,
Still trying to find my way round this site, but will be sure to check out the groups for any fellow members here in the UK. And yes...I certainly will have fun with my build! I just have to find out how to upload photos to this site, and I can hopefully post a few pics of my progress!

Mike

michael jode · Aug 28, 2015

Smokin Monkey said:
Hi Mike, Welcome to our "Family" and "Addiction"

Plenty of good folk on here, ask any questions you can think of, and you will get your answers.

Please take time to look at the UK Smokers Forum,

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/3161/uk-smokers

And introduce your self on the UK Roll Call

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/229926/roll-call

Also Check this group out, post all the questions you can think of and you will get the answer.
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/201/reverse-flow
There is a Calculator Faldons
http://www.feldoncentral.com/bbqcalculator.html

Smokin Monkey [emoji]133660013031[/emoji]

Hi ...Errrrr......Smokin Monkey! (I'm guessing that's not your real name, but if you're happy to be called that, who am I to question it?!! [emoji]128513[/emoji]).
Thanks for the tips, it's good to know there are others here in the UK, that have seen the light, and are now spreading the Gospel of 'Low & Slow' BBQ!
And thanks for the welcome...I've only been on the site since yesterday, and I'm already sensing the benefits of being part of the SMF Family. Like you said....it sure is an 'Addiction'! It's only been I a couple of weeks since I discovered what real BBQ is all about, and already I'm about to make a 4hr trip to collect a rusty old air compressor tank for my first Smoker build! [emoji]128513[/emoji]
I'm just in the process of checking Feldons calculator to get my design right, and will hopefully be posting pics of my progress in the coming weeks.

PS: if you don't mind me asking....what part of the UK are you in?

Regards
Mike

smokin monkey · Aug 28, 2015

Hi Mike, my name is Steve and I live in Sutton In Ashfield, North Of Nottingham.

Yes there is a growing number of us. At the beginning of AUGUST we had our second Weekend get together, where members with all levels of experience got together and cooked. It was a great weekend.

Before you start cutting any thing check, check and check again. Post a New Thread up, asking all the questions you can, add drawings for people to see. When you start, take plenty of Photos and put them up so people can see what you are building and can give advice.

Steve

kc5tpy · Aug 28, 2015

Hello Mike and Welcome! The calculator folks is Feldon's calculator. I REALLY don't know much about it. When I was young and welding smokers we didn't have a calculator. Was trial and error. Learn by experience. I understand folks say that calculator is not made for reverse flow.

Can you post a drawing of your ideas and let us "see" what you want to do and allow us time to comment? If you build something first and then post; well then once we have suggestions you now have to take it apart and start again. Just a suggestion. Keep Smokin!

Danny

michael jode · Aug 28, 2015

Hi Steve,
You're a good few hours north of our place in Essex, but it's a shame we missed out on the weekend get together at the start of the month, we certainly would've made the effort to travel for the event! I'm sure my wife would've enjoyed it almost as much as I would. Despite being new to this style of cooking, my wife is already very impressed with the stuff I've smoked in my cheap and cheerful oil drum BBQ, and is looking forward to seeing what I can conjure up in the Reverse Flow Smoker I'm about to build!

I must confess...in my eagerness to get started, I've already ordered the steel plates for my firebox, cut to 400x400x400 (or 16"x16"x16" in Yank measurements). But in my defence...that works out at 33% of my cook chamber volume, which...going by Feldon, and some of the others on this site, seems to be the magic number. As for the rest of the measurements, I'll gladly take advice as I go, but as I'm no stranger to cutting and welding things, it's not the end of the world if I have to make a few alterations along the way!

The weekend event you mentioned...is that an annual thing, or are they more frequent than that?

Mike

smokin monkey · Aug 29, 2015

Hi Mike, yes a bit to far north. We have plenty of members down your end, Kent etc.

The weekend is only Annually at the moment.

Here is a link to the website, it has details of and when the weekend is, some mug shoots of members, who you will meet on here.

Menus of what they cooked, and plenty of Photos.

http://www.uk-smf.co.uk/Index.html

Steve

smokewood · Aug 29, 2015

Hiya Mike, Welcome to the forum.

you seem to have jumped in with both feet,

I think Noboundaries & Smokin Monkey have given you the heads up on the UK forum, but I will post the links below

There are some fantastic people on here with some great experience. I am one of the Group Leads for the UK Smokers along with Smokin Monkey & Wade. who will be along shortly to introduce himself.

Just to give you a bit of an update, As smoking has gained popularity in the UK we have been given our own group, "UK Smokers". We still come under the watchful eye of the main forum and have plenty of support from our american cousins, but somethings are different in the UK and that's where the UK forum comes into it's own. The UK Smokers is rapidly growing with members from up and down the country with a wealth of experience in all areas.

We have an annual Smoking Weekend which is held in the summer ( sorry you have just missed it this year) but next years event will be the last weekend in July, 2016 at Woodhall Spa near Lincoln so it is easy for everyone from the north & south to attend. Most of the active members attend, and cook a dish, have a chat, exchange ideas, pick up tips from other members, grab a few beers and have a great weekend. You are more than welcome to join us next year.

We have members from both sides of the pond so it you post a question in the UK Forum, there is a good chance it will get answered from both the UK and the US.

If you click on the following link http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/groups/show/38/uk-smokers this will take you to the UK section of the forum where you will find a group of like minded individuals in the UK who are into smoking.

If you click on this link it will take you to the roll call where you can introduce yourself:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/229926/roll-call

I look forward to seeing you there, and feel free to post on the UK forum.

Where are you based and where did you hear about the UK Smokers Forum just so we know what neck of the woods you are from, and also how you found us.

michael jode · Aug 31, 2015

smokewood said:
Hiya Mike, Welcome to the forum.

you seem to have jumped in with both feet, Thumbs Up

I think Noboundaries & Smokin Monkey have given you the heads up on the UK forum, but I will post the links below

There are some fantastic people on here with some great experience. I am one of the Group Leads for the UK Smokers along with Smokin Monkey & Wade. who will be along shortly to introduce himself.

Just to give you a bit of an update, As smoking has gained popularity in the UK we have been given our own group, "UK Smokers". We still come under the watchful eye of the main forum and have plenty of support from our american cousins, but somethings are different in the UK and that's where the UK forum comes into it's own. The UK Smokers is rapidly growing with members from up and down the country with a wealth of experience in all areas.

We have an annual Smoking Weekend which is held in the summer ( sorry you have just missed it this year) but next years event will be the last weekend in July, 2016 at Woodhall Spa near Lincoln so it is easy for everyone from the north & south to attend. Most of the active members attend, and cook a dish, have a chat, exchange ideas, pick up tips from other members, grab a few beers and have a great weekend. You are more than welcome to join us next year.

We have members from both sides of the pond so it you post a question in the UK Forum, there is a good chance it will get answered from both the UK and the US.

If you click on the following link http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/groups/show/38/uk-smokers this will take you to the UK section of the forum where you will find a group of like minded individuals in the UK who are into smoking.

If you click on this link it will take you to the roll call where you can introduce yourself:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/229926/roll-call

I look forward to seeing you there, and feel free to post on the UK forum.

Where are you based and where did you hear about the UK Smokers Forum just so we know what neck of the woods you are from, and also how you found us.

Hi Smokewood, good to hear from you, thanks for the update, I'll be sure to look up the the UK members, and keep an eye out for future events. I'd certainly like to attend the annual weekend at Woodhall Spa next year (assuming I'm not on duty that weekend).
I have to say...I've already been made to feel very welcome to the site (which seems a little bit odd. Having grown up in London, I'm not used to meeting such friendly people, so it's quite refreshing to encounter such a helpful group) [emoji]128515[/emoji]
Although...I do feel a little out of place at the moment....everyone seems to have these American sounding nicknames, and I'm beginning to think I should've called myself 'Smokey Jode' or 'Pitmaster Mike'!? Then again...perhaps I should gain some experience before adopting such titles! [emoji]128513[/emoji]
I'm guessing you didn't see my first post, so.....I live in Essex (near Stanford-Le-Hope) with my wife and 3 month old son. I've always been a fan of outdoor cooking, but only just discovered what real BBQ is all about. I stumbled across this forum when I was researching the Lang range of Smokers, and wanted to build my own one, so you can imagine how pleased I was to find so much valuable information (and helpful people) on this site.
I'm afraid my first smoker build has got off to a rocky start, after being mis-sold an old compressor tank that was supposed to be 200 ltr and (having made a 6hr round trip to collect it) turned out to be a tiny 100 ltr tank that would struggle to smoke a whole chicken, never mind trying to cook for a whole party!
So I'm now looking at getting a new sheet of steel rolled to my own specification.

smokewood · Aug 31, 2015

There ins a guy in Yorkshire who made his own smoker out of an old towable water bowser.https://www.facebook.com/TheOldYorkshirePit/timeline

But like Danny mentioned don't forget to get your calculations correct, and let some of the guys have a look at your designs before you commit otherwise you might have an expensive paperweight on your hands that won't smoke anything. If you are having your own one rolled go for some heavy gauge steel.

michael jode · Aug 31, 2015

KC5TPY said:
Hello Mike and Welcome! The calculator folks is Feldon's calculator. I REALLY don't know much about it. When I was young and welding smokers we didn't have a calculator. Was trial and error. Learn by experience. I understand folks say that calculator is not made for reverse flow.

Can you post a drawing of your ideas and let us "see" what you want to do and allow us time to comment? If you build something first and then post; well then once we have suggestions you now have to take it apart and start again. Just a suggestion. Keep Smokin!
Danny

Hi Danny, thanks for the welcome, and the info. I'll be sure to share my ideas and progress for my smoker build with other members for some feedback.
As I'm new to this site, I don't know who sees what as far as my posts as concerned, but if you haven't seen my last reply to Smokewood, the cylinder I was mis-sold for my project, has had to be refunded due to the fact that it turned out to be tiny!! So now I'm looking to get a sheet of steel rolled to my own specifications rather than trying to utilise a rusty old compressor or gas cylinder for the purpose. Which leads me to my next question.....
I know the likes of 'Lang' or 'Yoder' all use 6mm (or 1/4") plate for their smokers, but for garden access and general transportation reasons, this would be far too heavy for my purposes, so I was considering using 4mm plate instead. Any thoughts or feedback on why this may not be suitable?
Regards
Mike

JckDanls 07 · Aug 31, 2015

Micheal... welcome to your new addiction (the forums) ... here is a better calculator and tutorial for a reverse flow smoker... http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/a/reverse-flow-smoker-how-to-calculate-build-tutorial

and as others have said.. don't be afraid to ask questions (in the correct forums as it will get more attention there)... good luck...

michael jode · Sep 1, 2015

smokewood said:
There ins a guy in Yorkshire who made his own smoker out of an old towable water bowser.https://www.facebook.com/TheOldYorkshirePit/timeline

But like Danny mentioned don't forget to get your calculations correct, and let some of the guys have a look at your designs before you commit otherwise you might have an expensive paperweight on your hands that won't smoke anything. If you are having your own one rolled go for some heavy gauge steel.

Hi Smokewood, thanks for the word of warning...,like you said.....I don't want to end up with an expensive paperweight!!
I don't know if you've seen my last post to Danny but....for practicality reasons....I'm considering using 4mm plate (instead of the 6mm or 1/4" used by Lang on their smokers). What are your thoughts on this? And are there any reasons why 4mm would be inadequate for a reverse flow smoker?
Mike

smokewood · Sep 1, 2015

Hiya Michael , Unfortunately I am not experience enough to answer your question as I have never used a reverse flow smoker, mine is just an ordinary Brinkmann special edition offset smoker, the steel is just over 3 mm thick, and about 4mm thick on the cooking chamber door. If I had to build one I would use thicker steel to enable it to hold the heat better in the winter months.

Why are you opting for a reverse flow smoker over an offset smoker? just out of interest

smoker.jpg

smokewood
Sep 1, 2015

I think if I was making one the minimum would be

sawinredneck · Sep 1, 2015

I have the exact smoker posted above, if I had the money to do it, I'd go 1/4"/6mm as well. More steel, more heat retention, more steel more insulation, more steel less problems with it rusting/burning out. I could go on but I think you get the idea.
If you can afford the extra cost now, it will pay in huge dividends in the long run.

michael jode · Sep 2, 2015

sawinredneck said:
I have the exact smoker posted above, if I had the money to do it, I'd go 1/4"/6mm as well. More steel, more heat retention, more steel more insulation, more steel less problems with it rusting/burning out. I could go on but I think you get the idea.
If you can afford the extra cost now, it will pay in huge dividends in the long run.

Hi Sawinredneck, thanks for the advice, I get the picture!.....but it's nothing to do with cost, I can afford the extra couple of mm of steel, it's all about keeping the weight sensible. Because of where I'll be using it, I don't want to put it on a trailer if I can help it, and therefore need to be able to comfortably carry it between 2 people. Admittedly, I haven't calculated the gross weight of my project, and could be worrying unnecessarily, but having worked with 6mm plate before, it's never going to be a single-handed lift! That said....if the benefit outweighs the effort, I'd rather flex my little guns a bit harder and go thicker than 4mm.
Thanks again
Mike

michael jode · Sep 2, 2015

smokewood said:
Hiya Michael , Unfortunately I am not experience enough to answer your question as I have never used a reverse flow smoker, mine is just an ordinary Brinkmann special edition offset smoker, the steel is just over 3 mm thick, and about 4mm thick on the cooking chamber door. If I had to build one I would use thicker steel to enable it to hold the heat better in the winter months.

Why are you opting for a reverse flow smoker over an offset smoker? just out of interest

smoker.jpg

smokewood

Sep 1, 2015

I think if I was making one the minimum would be

Hi Smokewood,
To be totally honest with you, the decision to go RF is more out of ignorance than anything else, but as I said before...until a couple of weeks ago, the only BBQ's I knew, were really just small chargrills. So... when I found out about Lang's giant smokers, I just had to have one, even if I couldn't justify (or afford) the $3000-$4000 price tag!
From the limited research I've done so far, there seems to be plenty of hype about the heat distribution benefits of RF (mostly from Lang of course!) but who am I to argue with the big names in the business!?
That said....I'm always open to advice. So, what are your thoughts about Offset Vs RF?
Mike

sawinredneck · Sep 2, 2015

If designed properly, an offset cab work as well as a RF unit, but it's harder to do than an RF design. At least from what I've seen. You will need a convection plate or heat baffle, then tuning plates that you will have to move around to get the hot spots out of it. A RF build you basically put the numbers in the calculator and it tells you the firebox size, how long to make the RF plate and size of the cut out for the FB opening.
Just giving you some things to think about.
This seems to be the most popular calculator from what I've read, http://www.feldoncentral.com/bbqcalculator.html

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