Building a Mini Weber Smokey Mountain in Texas (Mini WSM)

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Well I have completed my build.  Still cannot seem to find a 12" terra cotta saucer.  So I purchased a cheap 10" SS pan and removed the handle.  I'm hoping someone can give me some advice on this setup.  The hole I cut in the bottom of the pot is 11" and the SS pan diffuser is 10", is this going to be a problem as there will be about a 1" gap?  I do have the pot bottom and top riveted together that I can put on top of the diffuser pan.  See the provided pictures.




 
Well I have completed my build.  Still cannot seem to find a 12" terra cotta saucer.  So I purchased a cheap 10" SS pan and removed the handle.  I'm hoping someone can give me some advice on this setup.  The hole I cut in the bottom of the pot is 11" and the SS pan diffuser is 10", is this going to be a problem as there will be about a 1" gap?  I do have the pot bottom and top riveted together that I can put on top of the diffuser pan.  See the provided pictures.








Not a problem at all. Here is my current diffuser

 
 
Well I have completed my build.  Still cannot seem to find a 12" terra cotta saucer.  So I purchased a cheap 10" SS pan and removed the handle.  I'm hoping someone can give me some advice on this setup.  The hole I cut in the bottom of the pot is 11" and the SS pan diffuser is 10", is this going to be a problem as there will be about a 1" gap?  I do have the pot bottom and top riveted together that I can put on top of the diffuser pan.  See the provided pictures.




Tron i'll tell ya what to do.  Go buy a frozen pie. Cook the pie. Enjoy the pie. Save the aluminum pie plate it came in. Wash the aluminum pie plate.  Fill the aluminum pie plate half way with sand.  You now have as good of a diffuser as a terra cotta saucer.  ...and hopefully enjoyed some pretty good pie. 

Lets light a fire. ;)

Brian  
 
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Tron.. that's exactly the way I do mine.. with a few differences.... I first put a piece of 1/4" metal plate (cut into about a 10" circle) down in the bottom... then I use a 12" cast iron skillet (handle cut off and wrapped in foil for easy cleaning) set down in there... leaves about a 3/4"-1" gap all the way around for heat and smoke to come up threw....all this mass holds a lot of heat..... the bottom grate sits on the ring around the pot and the skillet.... good luck with yours ....
 
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This is a great step by step build that i am going to copy for my build. I have a question i hope you can help me with. For some reson i am not grasping attaching the lid to the bottom of the pot. Do you have another pic or can you explain it to me? Or will it be more clear to me when I have the pot in front of me? Thanks for the post.
 
I think there are two rivets near the center holding the lid and bottom of pot together. You can't do this with the imusa pot.
Thanks for the response. I have the Vasconia pot and I understand that he holds them together with the rivets to cut them together. The reattaching it to the bottom is the part I can't picture is the lip of the top being cut away? 
 
 
This is a great step by step build that i am going to copy for my build. I have a question i hope you can help me with. For some reson i am not grasping attaching the lid to the bottom of the pot. Do you have another pic or can you explain it to me? Or will it be more clear to me when I have the pot in front of me? Thanks for the post.
Its hard to get a good photo of this step. All you do is attach the lid to the bottom of the pot. You'll have to remove the handle (if its a vasconia pot the handls just screws off.) from the lid. then put the top of the lid on the bottom of the pot. Use rivets or small nuts and bolts along the perimeter to hold the lid to the pot. Then cut out the bottom out.
 
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Here;s a few more shots:



The lid lip allows you to do crazy things like stack another pot on top, or three...

Thanks for the pic's they did help. I was thinking you put the lid on upside down and didn't understand how the lip sat inside the base of the Joe. That is a inpresive setup you have I lol when i saw it and said out loud that is great! Will a double decker still work as a hot smoker?
 
 
Thanks for the pic's they did help. I was thinking you put the lid on upside down and didn't understand how the lip sat inside the base of the Joe. That is a inpresive setup you have I lol when i saw it and said out loud that is great! Will a double decker still work as a hot smoker?
Honestly the first attempt didnt go to well. The temp stalled out at just above 225° and wouldn't go any hotter. At the time I hadn't cut the bottom out of my original pot. I started with just holes drilled.


I haven't tried it again since cutting the bottom out. I really should give it another whirl and see what happens! It works great for cold smoking though with the mailbox mod.


 
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Has anyone tried making a (hmmm, can't call it a weber mini) "Weber Maxi", where they start with a 22.5 inch Weber one-touch, and use a standard 22.5 inch 55 gallon barrel?  It would be a fusion between an "ugly drum smoker" (UDS), with a weber one-touch top and bottom.  I don't believe the stock tripod base of the Weber one-touch would support the weight, but who knows.
 
Has anyone tried making a (hmmm, can't call it a weber mini) "Weber Maxi", where they start with a 22.5 inch Weber one-touch, and use a standard 22.5 inch 55 gallon barrel?  It would be a fusion between an "ugly drum smoker" (UDS), with a weber one-touch top and bottom.  I don't believe the stock tripod base of the Weber one-touch would support the weight, but who knows.
would need to lower the legs unless you had a ladder nearby every time to access the meat inside. I thought about something like this for the sake I just upgraded from a Silver to gold one touch but the height would he my concern. It would definitely work well I believe.
 
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