Char-Griller Smokin Pro with firebox- Mods

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I have the Side Burner for my CGSP I use it to light my Chimney before dropping it in the SFB.

I'll probably be switching to an Afterburner this year only because I never have time to monitor the flames all night long.

Mike
 
I have a CGSP with the SFB and am starting on my Mods. The thing I am having trouble finding is the 3 inch dryer vent. Every place I look around here is 4 inch. Where do you get the 3 inch??
 
Little off topic but what should i get to replace the charcoal rack in the SFB. I originally flipped mine over for air flow but now it's warped almost beyond recognition.
 
One more thing while I'm thinking about it. Using the aluminum flashing to drop down the smoke stack. My understanding from reading is that it will keep the "good" smoke circulating and vent out the stale smoke, my question is how much will this affect the temps in the smoker. I haven't done much in mods outside of adding two smokey mountain thermometers to the left and right side of the smoker and I flip the main chamber ash catcher over to use as a poor man's baffle. Just wanted to know if this will make a significant change to cooking temps
 
I have spent hour after hour reading all i can on here and i finally ended up getting me a smoker with SFB. I had gotten the stove gasket stuff and after putting it on i found it just crumbled and fell off. So i have seen some Permatex high temp sealant and will try and find that and see how it works. First question is when i fire up the smoker i am loosing alot of smoke from the fire box is that normal or should i seal it up also. And second when i see that the temp is getting too high which vent should i start with to lower the temp, the smoke stack or open the vent in the firebox, plus i have two vents in the firebox both on the outside but one above the other. I want to thank everyone who spends a minute or two here giving their advice and also to other newbies with all the right questions.

Bill
 
I don't know much about the gasket issue since I've lined the edges with foil. I keep my smoke stack wide open and do all my temp regulation with sfb damper. If you aren't going to get a charcoal basket or a new rack for the coals at least flip over rack that comes with it for better airflow to the coals. It helps to make a foil snake and place close to the opening so coals don't fall and get stuck (a big hassel if you have to empty the ash drawer midway through a long smoke). And definently invest in some new theremometers. I picked up 2 old smokey 2 inchers and they read great (fairly inexpensive too)
 
billclarkson
Leave the damper to the smokestack wide open while wood is burning, smoldering or smoking always; the smokestack dampener should always be wide open while smoking otherwise you risk a stronger chance of giving your food product too string of a "burnt" smoke taste (creosote). This can be closed or adjusted for less heat loss after the food product has been smoked but left in the smoker to obtain temperature and all wood chips/chunks or pellets are not burning.

If you wish to lower the temperature, adjust the firebeox dampers; with less airflow to the coals/wood so the temperature will go down from having less available oxygen.
 
Just in case you seek to build a Minion box for your CGSP, the maximum you can build is 13.5" wide by 12" front-to-back by 7" deep. I just experimented with cardboard and then with expanded steel. Deeper looks like it could work, but when you actually build it it does not fit. Now I just need to install the double-wall divider and 4 bolts to hold it up on the rails. I'm estimating that even with a 1" gap in the divider, I'll still be able to fit 75% more charwood in this new basket than in the wok-basket. And the wider gap will help prevent premature ignition of the other side, thus providing even better temp control PLUS longer burn time.
 
Her ya go:


Ain't the prettiest but it'll do the job. I simply cut and then folded/wrapped the sides rather than remove chunks of the expanded metal, and I inserted from one into the other to tie it together. I then chose to enclose it within a 1/8" thick steel band, and deform that band to make the protruberances that hold it on the rails. The band goes through the corner slats, and that's what holds the thing together. From there I tapped out a 1/4" 20 hole in the band, and screwed the double-wall divider onto that. I also opted to keep the entry-side wall short to facilitate fire maintenance.

Here's the old one for comparison:
 
If you use the original Minion method (dumping a chimney of lit coals onto a full undivided basket of unlit coals), the fire spreads in all directions - this prevents that from occurring. It makes the fire travel in a C-shape, thus extending the length of burn as well as enabling better temperature control. In this case, I'll be dumping the lit coals into the back-left corner; it will burn toward the the front of the firebox and then around toward the firebox damper.
BTW - if I could do this over with a bit better knowledge of the limitations, I'd make the bottom 13"w * 12"d, with the front 4.5" and the back 7.5". I'd put a 1/8" wire bead all around the inside, and then fold in 1/2" all around the top to create a better top edge. Some years down the line when this burns through I'll do that.
 
I found it at Lowes. It is not dryer vent as they are 4 inch. It is for vents such as bathroom exhaust which have less air flow.
 
Will post pics within the next week or so.

For the front shelf, I made custom hinge brackets from nails and then modified the existing shelf brackets. The metal that holds the shelves together is weak though, so I'm gonna shore it up with angle iron.

For the side shelf, I bought 1.5" hinges plus flat head sheet metal screws. So now those two brackets fold into each other. The wood is going to be mounted on angle iron, and that assembly will simply be dropped onto the brackets when they are swung open. I'm toying with the idea of a pivot mount, so that it remains attached somehow.

I also moved the moving handle from the firebox to the other side. Suddenly, the CGSP takes FAR less space in the garage. Which means it'll be able to STAY in the garage when not being used, which means it won't sit in the rain and become a victim of rust.
 
One comment I need to address is that some setups from the seller may not come packaged correct. They need the football size knockout removed on both the side box and smoke chamber main unit. I have never
seen a display grill shown this way at lowes or Menards. Don't think you can get the correct heat in the smoke chamber without doing this.

Can anyone tell me how off the temp. gauge is. I cooked a bunch of wings at around 200 deg. for an hour based on the stock gauge, and I
thought they were very well done for that amount of time. I am guesing the gauge doesnt show the temp as high as it really is. does this sound right?

Thanks
 
Just a comment regarding grills put together by Menards or Lowes.
The football size knockouts should be removed on both the side unit
and the main smoke chamber. I have never seen this done on a display
unit. If you purchased a unit put together by these guys be aware.

Also... Does anyone know if the temp gauge runs low or high on the heat?
I cooked some wings at 200 deg. for about an hour and they were very done, and almost too done and dry. I would prefer slower and longer.

Thanks much
Mojo
 
my thermometer i never go by it runs 75 to 125 degrees low meaning the smoker is hot. i went to ace hardware and bought a $6.00 Taylor brand oven thermometer that works awesome. I just set the thermometer on the cooking rack next to the meat on the fire box side of the meat.
 
That makes sense. looks like I was cooking about 300+ degrees. Way too hot. I have had some set in temp gauges and after about 3 smokings
you couldn't even read the thing. Probably should have cleaned them though. Thanks much for info.

What the heck is that next to your photo?

mojo
 
i clean mine with a teflon scrubber and hotwater it cleans right up . that white thing in my photo is someones arm. the person who took the picture was taking a Dutch oven class i teach in carson city every june and was looking over some shoulders.
 
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