One thing about this.....I look at the total cost and it did sorta make sense for me. But the starting out was a nightmare. The next step will be adding a second rack. But I am going to break this down.
Bought the Highland model at Lowes with blowout sale in fall of 2014.
OKJ 200.00
Sand Blaster 50.00
Welding 30.00
Heat Retention Bricks 40.00
Heat management plate 80.00
Water Pan 40.00 (specially made for the management plate)
Lavalock gasket 17.00
2500 degree NASA paint *FREE*
Gate latches 24.00 (I cheated and used rivets)
Lavalock gauges 20.00
Propane conversion kit 79.00
Total comes to 580.00 when doing it correctly!
As for the cost of the what I initially tried.
RTV 11.00 (firebox got too hot and it melted....cannot do bbq roasting with this stuff on the unit)
Stove Rope 24.00 (never got it to seal correctly)
Make shift tuning plate made from large cookie sheet. 17.00 (did not work)
TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME............WASTED ALL OF IT!!!!!!!!!
Would I do it all again since I do not live in the mid-west or Texas to pick from nicer units? Only the latter mods. 580.00 is not a bad cost if done correctly. I believe I did it with complete value all around with my resources. Now as for how this guy compares to my 1/4 inch thick Old Country Pit from Uvalco, it does well after the mods and holds its own with it. Out of the box? NO WAY JOSE!!! When you only have Lowes, HD, Walmart, SAM's, and Costco....that is what we have unless you go to a backyard specialty store and pay over 2 grand for a Yoder unit. There is no middle ground for us here. If you live near an Academy Sports and outdoor store, you can get the Pecos model that is all welded up and ready to go for less than I paid out. But for us OKJ owners, it can be a fight.