NASCAR Mailbox Mod

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dr k

Master of the Pit
Original poster
OTBS Member
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Mar 22, 2013
3,162
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Peoria, IL
The pics below speak for themselves.  Started with a 4" diameter aluminum dryer coupling and cut out the riveted strip with tin snips and over lapped the coupling to reduce to the opening of the Mes chip loader hole for a custom fit.  Secured with two screws.  Traced the tapered end of the coupling to the top rear of the mailbox and punched a hole in the center and cut out hole with tin snips.  Everything fits tightly together.  One hour max to fabricate and well under $20.  With jack $35 (but I already had it.)  I may make a permanent stand.  The jack can be positioned anywhere out of the way.  I mocked everything up indoors on my spare Mes. 



The mailbox came with four holes and a slit in the bottom rear half and four on the front half.  Before cutting three holes in the front door in an equilateral triangle I'll put business card magnets over the rear bottom holes and slit and keep open the front bottom four to see how it breathes since there's less volume for drafting outside the MES than with the snorkel aluminum flex tubing.  I'll put the AMNPS in the middle of the mailbox right behind the front four bottom holes.



Time to test the ventilation with a full AMNPS on a store bought flat corned beef for pastrami.  It's a bit nippily out so I may have to wait. 
-Kurt
 
After a first test run on my mailbox mod, I sealed all the holes on the bottom of the box. Once I start the AMNPS, I want to control the venting with the holes I drilled on the front door. I can't do that with the holes on the bottom, once smoke has started.
 
I see you have a MES stand on your smoker. I was able to rig a mount for my mailbox using aluminum channel rails and u-bolts. You can see the rails in the picture below. In the future, I might do an additional mode to have the ducting enter into the top of the box instead of the back, for a more compact fit.

 
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After a first test run on my mailbox mod, I sealed all the holes on the bottom of the box. Once I start the AMNPS, I want to control the venting with the holes I drilled on the front door. I can't do that with the holes on the bottom, once smoke has started.
I wanted to see how these four small bottom holes (similar to the three holes in the chip loader tube) work before sealing them and drilling the door.  I have magnet sheets.  Do you have to cover any of the holes in your door since they are smaller than the one's shown in the DaveOmak mod?

-Kurt
 
 
I see you have a MES stand on your smoker. I was able to rig a mount for my mailbox using aluminum channel rails and u-bolts. You can see the rails in the picture below. In the future, I might do an additional mode to have the ducting enter into the top of the box instead of the back, for a more compact fit.

I saw that and it made me think of using a couple of peg board tool hooks to hang the mailbox on the leg extension kit.  I want to try this perpendicular attachment I saw another member post first and can always ad the snorkel with a 90* elbow.  I wanted to try the minimalist method first.  The Snuffelupagus/Will Rogers robot look hasn't grabbed me yet. LOL But it may.  You never know.

-Kurt
 
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I wanted to see how these four small bottom holes (similar to the three holes in the chip loader tube) work before sealing them and drilling the door.  I have magnet sheets.  Do you have to cover any of the holes in your door since they are smaller than the one's shown in the DaveOmak mod?

-Kurt
With the holes on bottom sealed and the 3 1/2" holes on the door, the mailbox worked perfect on a 15 hour pork butt smoke yesterday. I got a good 11-12 hours of TBS out of the mailbox with the AMNPS. There was still some smoke coming off of it when I pulled the butt at 15 hours.

The heat and top vent on the MES pulls air from the large duct into the smoker. This helps to draw fresh air in from the 3 holes on the front. So it creates a nice flow across the AMNPS. You can see the effect when you open the door on the MES and the air flow reverses direction, with some smoke coming out of the front vent holes on the mailbox.
 
 
I saw that and it made me think of using a couple of peg board tool hooks to hang the mailbox on the leg extension kit.  I want to try this perpendicular attachment I saw another member post first and can always ad the snorkel with a 90* elbow.  I wanted to try the minimalist method first.  The Snuffelupagus/Will Rogers robot look hasn't grabbed me yet. LOL But it may.  You never know.

-Kurt
I have limited space in my patio, so I needed to reduce footprint of smoker.
 
 
I see you have a MES stand on your smoker. I was able to rig a mount for my mailbox using aluminum channel rails and u-bolts. You can see the rails in the picture below. In the future, I might do an additional mode to have the ducting enter into the top of the box instead of the back, for a more compact fit.

Mas Cool Job....
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That`s just about the cleanest mod I`ve seen.

Well Done.
 
It works....right up until it gets hit.
One slip on the deck and the box will be sitting on the deck mocking you.
I mean I like the whole idea of simple and cheap, but dude........
Damn it! Now I'm going to have to put the flag back on my mailbox to keep people that dont watch where they go from kicking my mailbox. Lol It's not going anywhere. The mailbox isn't just sitting on top of the stand so it can't be blown or kicked over. On the contrary, they are solidly connected together. The coupling into the smoker is a solid, tight, custom fit. These are pics of my mod not the location where my smoker is when it's smoking. People can walk up to the smoker. Not around it. Anyone with their outstretched flex hose with their mailbox on the ground should have more potential damage concerns than me. I'm sure they don't.
-Kurt
 
Damn it! Now I'm going to have to put the flag back on my mailbox to keep people that dont watch where they go from kicking my mailbox. Lol It's not going anywhere. The mailbox isn't just sitting on top of the stand so it can't be blown or kicked over. On the contrary, they are solidly connected together. The coupling into the smoker is a solid, tight, custom fit. These are pics of my mod not the location where my smoker is when it's smoking. People can walk up to the smoker. Not around it. Anyone with their outstretched flex hose with their mailbox on the ground should have more potential damage concerns than me. I'm sure they don't.
-Kurt
Ok--I got it now.

You were shooting for a Rat Rod Mod look 
biggrin.gif
.

LOL.....

Of course if it works for you, that`s all that matters, eh?

Gotta admit, running an AMNPS in a mailbox adds so much to the MES and so many people do it..

A guy kind of wonders why Masterbulit dosen`t offer it as a kit-add on.

Happy smoking.
 
 
Ok--I got it now.

You were shooting for a Rat Rod Mod look 
biggrin.gif
.

LOL.....

Of course if it works for you, that`s all that matters, eh?

Gotta admit, running an AMNPS in a mailbox adds so much to the MES and so many people do it..

A guy kind of wonders why Masterbulit dosen`t offer it as a kit-add on.

Happy smoking.
With all the fires posted recently whether grease on the pellets or proximity to the heating element, I want all combustibles on the outside of my smoker regardless of the Generation or size. Even with the Gen 1 40" I had to learn that some days were better than others on keeping the AMNPS lit.  Opening the smoker once to relight is one too many times as well as when your done with smoke just open and close the mailbox to remove the AMNPS instead of the smoker and start another series of heating cycles.   I just want to open the smoker to foil, unfoil and finish in the smoker to harden bark or just remove what ever it is I'm smoking (open smoker 3X's max.)  Bear has a great step-up reheating system when a smoker is opened and the heat is let out to get the heating cycles stabilized more quickly.  I want to keep those to a minimum as well.

-Kurt
 
Right on the money Kurt.

What`s the saying---If you`re looking, you`re not cooking
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Guess pretty much all systems have a flaw or two..

With my ECB the flaws kinda out did the benefits, but glad I had it at the time.

Cool that the biggest flaw in the MES is so easily worked around, without any cutting, drilling, or mods to the MES.

Besides, what fun would it be if a guy couldn`t tinker with their toys..

John
 
I made this rack for the AMNPS and AMNTS for my mailbox mod before I went out to buy a step drill bit to drill ventilation holes in the door.  I had the parts and thought I'd use them and save $20.00 on the drill bit.  I noticed I was getting plenty of air through the bottom of the door where it hinges with all the holes in the bottom of the mailbox sealed with magnets.  Even with the top smoker exhaust vent half closed the smoke was moving through the smoker out the exhaust vent fast.  Since my mod just has a mailbox and a short 3-4" run to the smoker there's not much room for leaks especially since the coupling is sealed to the mailbox with 700*F RTV sealant.  I figured there would be no concerns about the pellets going out at the first bend being elevated in the air steam and getting plenty of air from underneath the AMNPS and I can lay the AMNTS on the rack if I want to use it for more smoke.


Notched heavy paint stirrers and RTV sealant to hold the chrome plated steel rods. 

-Kurt
 
Here's a crazy question. What is a AMNPS and what does it do? The mods look great. I'd put one on my Smokey Mountain Series 32950 electric smoker just because it looks Bad A**.
 
The AMNPS is a tray type smoke generator. The purpose of a external firebox is to cool smoke and collect impurities before entering the food chamber/smoker.

I picked up a 3"X 2' solid aluminum extension and the eight foot aluminum flex pipe for cold smoking. I have a hatch in my deck up against my house. I have a large Kamado with an additional elevated rack and a removable bottom ash pan. I'll probably steal your idea I've seen in your pics and pipe it straight up from below from the mailbox.
-Kurt
 
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