Well, I've put it off long enough

papad

Smoke Blower

Original poster

Apr 7, 2009

89

11

Council Bluffs Ia.

• Aug 29, 2009

• #1

I wasted the whole summer. We haven't smoked anything all summer because I wanted to modify the smoker first. Did a lot of grilling, but no smoking. For some reason I just didn't have the ambition to get it done.

Well, I finally got started. I made the firebox baffle and the tuning plates over the last couple of days. It's nothing that everyone hasn't seen a hundred times, but here are some pics anyway, just because.
















Next will be the charcoal basket, exhaust extension and some thermostats. (and a good cleaning). Hopefully, I'll have everything done by the time I go on vacation in a couple of weeks so we can use it for the yearly family BBQ.

 

dropastone

Fire Starter

Aug 21, 2009

73

10

South Bend IN

• Aug 29, 2009

• #2

Nice job looking forward to seeing your first smoke.

 

tasunkawitko

Master of the Pit

OTBS Member

May 27, 2008

2,397

26

Chinook, Montana

• Aug 29, 2009

• #3

papad ~ that's a common happening that i myself was guilty of in the past - i waited so long for things to be "perfect," perfect plan, perfect conditions, perfect ingredients, perfect this and perfect that, that i missed out on a lot of meat-on-the-grate experience that would have taught me a lot.

then one day late this last spring, i took my seven-year-old fishing. it was funny and a little frustrating watching him keep reeling his line in, changing spots, switching baits and so on. he kept complaining that he can't catch any fish, when if he would have just put the bait on the line and put the line in the water, he would have caught some. i told him, "son, you're can't catch any fish if your line ain't in the water." later that day, i was mulling over plans for the "prfect way to do a mod for my smoker, and it was like a lightbulb went off in my head.

since then, i've learned that the best thing to do is go to the dang store, buy some dang meat and put it on the dang grate. you can plan mods, do mods, and evaluate mods as you go, you can even improvise acceptable substirutes and alternatives for the mods you are planning while you gather materials, time, money etc. to do the mods - but if you wait all the time for things to be perfect, you're going to miss out.


having said all that, the mods look great!

 

smokedcaveman

Smoke Blower

Aug 5, 2008

149

23

76240

• Aug 29, 2009

• #4

bit off topic, but I wanted to thank you for that bit of info.. I suffer from 'perfectionist procrastination' and find that I've got a lot of great plans and don't have a bleeping thing done about them.

ain't nothing ever going to be perfect on this little mudball, so make the best of what we've got.

 

beer-b-q

Gone but not forgotten. RIP

OTBS Member

May 1, 2007

10,099

40

• Aug 29, 2009

• #5

Looks like a good start, mod looks okay...

 

rivet

Master of the Pit

OTBS Member

Apr 25, 2008

3,232

16

The "Show Me" state

• Aug 29, 2009

• #6

Nice baffle set up and congratulations on getting things going. Procrastination is frustrating and a waste. Funny, I was thinking about that yesterday, I was going to stain the back door steps this SPRING and here it is SEPTEMBER and I still haven't done it!

 

papad

Smoke Blower

Original poster

Thread starter

Apr 7, 2009

89

11

Council Bluffs Ia.

• Aug 29, 2009

• #7

EXACTLY ! I've just wasted the entire summer. I just haven't had the ambition to get it done. Oh, well, we can't get it back, so I guess we just go from here.

CHARGE !!!

 

bud lite

Smoke Blower

SMF Premier Member

Aug 20, 2008

130

13

Joplin, Mo

• Aug 29, 2009

• #8

"I made the firebox baffle and the tuning plate"

Nice work and pictures.

What material (steel, aluminum, etc) did you use for the baffle and tuning plates?
How thick was it?

 

papad

Smoke Blower

Original poster

Thread starter

Apr 7, 2009

89

11

Council Bluffs Ia.

• Aug 29, 2009

• #9

It's 16 ga. steel.

 

papad

Smoke Blower

Original poster

Thread starter

Apr 7, 2009

89

11

Council Bluffs Ia.

• Sep 18, 2009

• #10

Well, here it is about 3 weeks later. I finally got the mods done.

The charcoal basket:



The exhaust extension:



The two smoke chamber therms:



Going to smoke some ribs tomorrow morning to see how this thing will work. Hopefully I won't be disappointed.

 

chefrob

Master of the Pit

OTBS Member

Sep 13, 2009

3,627

42

az

• Sep 21, 2009

• #11

nice rig.......and great observation on life TasunkaWitko.

 

billbo

Master of the Pit

OTBS Member

Aug 19, 2007

1,393

34

Upstate NY

• Sep 21, 2009

• #12

Looking good! Nice job now get some meat on there!