Just finished CGSP mods!

[teeotee]

That shelf is real handy isn't it. Just not big enough sometimes. I'm thinking if bottles etc are in a basket thenwould leave more room for beer cans etc .....

.

 

[smok'n steve]

Maybe not enough air? It could be that because of the lower stack and the baffle that some airflow is being choked----maybe your extension is a bit too low or maybe you need to add more vent holes in the firebox? I am sort of guessing here, but Let me know what happens:-)

 

[fireguy]

have been pondering the air flow all day..... thought about removing the stack and seein what happens...also thought it might help with maintaining a lower temp... since it is sealed up so tight..but im new to this smoker and have no clue.

 

[smok'n steve]

Try removing the stack mod first just to see if it makes a difference. I think its the easiest thing to do without fabs. If there is a major change, then maybe try a shorter stack mod extension? Keep in mind, I have never had your style smoker, but I do like to play with fire---no pun intended there fireguy:-)

Steve

 

[fireguy]

ok been going for a few hours now. all is good.. maintaining 225 give er take 10 deg. For the sake of experimenting I left the stack on and dropped my baffle to the bottom of the smoke chamber....it seems to be working good. have used much less coal and much less wood to achive temps and proper smoke flow of the tbs. hate to experiment with the smoker while my 1st try at rack ribs, but seems good so far. we will se how it goes and if I need more air flow, thought tapping a few holes in bottom of chamber will help, and shouldnt have to worry about wind as much as I did with the major gap that used to be around the lid.thanks guys

 

[teeotee]

Hey Fireguy, been thinking about the airflow thing. I remembered a link i got from WD. Copied this from that site. I'm wondering if adding a second vent just below the top of the sfb would help or would it not be worth the effort !!! I know you can get the dampers from CG but would have to cut out the holes in the sfb.

Something to mull over for a while methinks

Raised Stool Grate

The drawing below depicts a smaller amount of air flowing through the burning wood and the larger portion blows over the wood increasing the rate of burning. In this case the rate of combustion can be easily controlled by adjusting the air supply under the fire.

Raised stool grate

The link is http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/smokehouse-firebox.htm

PS hope the ribs turned out great.

 

[fireguy]

t-o-t, that looks very interesting.... illl do some thinking on that.... it looks like a good possability and makes perfect sense... Thanks a million.

 

[watermelonslim]

Excellent mods!

I'm the guy with zero fab skills that needs to seal up his Chargriller before buying a Stoker...

So I need some 3/4" angle, some 5/16" stove rope, some RTV silicone (what the heck is RTV silicone?), and some pop rivits...

How do you attach pop rivits? Is the tool cheap/easy for a first timer to use?

 

[snowsmoker]

Rivits are easy to use, but you need to drill pilot holes for the rivits to go through. The tool is simple to use but im not sure how much they are, probably 20$ or so. The RTV silicone, all the RTV stands for is room temperature vulcanizing (it drys at room temp) but you want to make sure its rated for high heat. I used some on my smoker, its good for temps up to 500 degs. The rope Im not sure where to get but the angle iron you can get at any hardware store. Hope that helps!

 

[watermelonslim]

I think I will give this a shot this weekend (if I can find all the stuff)...

 

[watermelonslim]

Quick question:
How much of a gap do you leave on the back (of the side rails)? I don't think the (sides) angle iron goes all the way back, does it? Not sure how long I would need before the lid can't open/close...

 

[fireguy]

I left about 1/2 inch.....as long as you can open and close the lid w/o the lid hinge coming into contact with the angle youl be good..... hold it up there or clamp it on and raise or lower the lid to see if ou have clearance.. youll prob want to clamp or have someone help hold the angle while you drill and rivet the ends, just to ensure thay dont move on ya.. then come back and do the rivitsalong the rest of te angle.... by the way teeotee bolted his with good success, if that might be better for you?? good luck and make sure to post your results.

 

[fireguy]

oh ya... to find where to mount the angle... since the lid prob dont close square...I closed the lid and layed the gasket on top of the angle...raised up to come in contact with the lid, one side at a time... then marked with a pencil for a refrence... just to make sure it was sealed up square with lid and not the bottom portion of the smoke chamber.and you should be able to buy the gasket at menards... its just high heat stove gasket, an i think any thickness will work for ya.. good lluck

 

[fireguy]

Finally added another damper to see if it would help with my smoke. it did!!! TBS is easy to achieve... now I am having a hell of a time getting the temps down. I added the upper damper for those who dont have a cgsp.

TOT....great idea for air flow, now I just gotta experiment on temps... thanks

 

[1894]

Nice job cutting that out FG , looks like it came from the factory like that

 

[jbchoice1]

looks real good. great job.

 

[smokin out the neighbors]

Hey FG, That's a great idea. How about som fab detail so I can do one too?

 

[teeotee]

FG ....you done a fine job there, looks real good . Points for good looking mod.This looks like a mod i need to get done once i get the time. Have hardly had a chance to smoke anything this summer let alone play with mods.
Edit ... did you get the new damper form chargriller or is it a fabricated one ?

 

[fireguy]

thanks guys... ok, I just used the extra baffle that came for the side of the smoke barrel ( lucky i didnt throw it out in assembly

). Found my center point, where I wanted to mount it... then held the baffle to the sfb and traced around the inside holes of the baffle... then cut most of the patern out with a dremel and a few metal discs. ( dremel is a bit week but it worked in the end)... followed up my cuts using a jig saw were the dremel could quite cut it...drilled a hole for mounting.. then painted the sfb where cut to prevent any rusting... mounted baffle with a bolt, 2 washers, and a nut. It was really pretty simple, if you have a few tools. oh when done had to tweek the baffle a bit to get it to fully close.( bending the handle/flange thing on the baffle.

Have used it a few times with "grate" success.. hehe.. it does change the way my smoker preformed so im relearning my smoker again. But It has done one thing for sure... the TBS is back. pre mod I had a few times where I could only get that bellowy thick white smoke no matter what I did... thanks to TOTs idea we are back in the game... thanks and sorry I didnt take pics of the mod till done.