[font=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif]i've got some "right out of the box" advicefor the SnP, which will dramatically improve performance while you learn to use your pit and study up for the "permanent" mods. [/font]
[font=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif]if you have one of these units, first thing is by now, you've probably found that the axle/wheel system on the SnP is not so hot. just run down and buy some large washers and 2 large bolts that will fit through the "axle holes" and two fitting lock nuts. i don't know what the "right name is, but the bolts i got were the ones that had threading only on the end portion, leaving a portion with no threading so that the wheels could turn freely. you can also, if you choose, purchase some heavier-duty lawnmower or similar wheels.[/font]
[font=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif]next quick fix - this is easy! get some hi-heat tape for dryer vent or wood-burning stove work; it is usually silverish in color. use this tape to block the two big holes at either end of the smoking chamber. this helps a lot with airflow and temperature retention.[/font]
[font=verdana, helvetica, sans-serif]next - rather than following the instructions and building your fire on the bottom grate of the fire box, move all grates up to the "top" level so that it makes a crosshatch and build your fire here. there is much, much more air below your fire to keep it from choking out now. note that this is a "quick and dirty" mod that can later be replaced by a better mod, which is a well-designed charcoal basket. [/font]
next, take your "drip tray" and set it so that it is all the way up at the "west" end closest to the fire box, and down as far as it will go at the opposite end. the reason for this is to block flames and deflect the harshest heat from your firebox into your smoking chamber. it is a 'quick and dirty" substitute for a proper manifold/tuning plate, but works very well until you get or fabricate one.
to extend this idea a little and make it even more effective, set a small bread loaf pan (the disposible heavy-foil type) right up to and almost against the hole from the firebox on the drip tray, leaving just a small area for smoke and heat to pass through. you might have to lower the drip tray a level to do this, but it will be fine as long as the tray is still at a downward angle. this helps control the hot spots even more and does add a small amount of moisture to the cooking process, similar to the water pan on an ECB. finally, it helps regulate the temperature coming into the smoking chamber so that it can even out across the chamber.
next, get at least four regular masonry bricks or six 2x2x8 bricks (or a similar square-inchage of fire bricks, if you can find them at a local spa/stove store). place these 2x2 (3x3 if using the 2x2x8 bricks) starting at the "east" end of the smoking chamber (farthest away from the firebox, under the chimney end). this is a good start, but you can of course put as many bricks as you want and even go all the way across the smoking chamber if you want. this will go very far to retain heat and prevent temperature drops. it will make it so that your unit takes longer to come up to temperature, but once it does, you are in great shape.
the last of the "quick and dirty" mods" is also so easy that it is silly: get two or three HEAVY old blankets and fold them so that they sit on top of the smoking chamber only, extending to the chimney and "folding" around it. it is OK if there is some draping down over the "east" end and the front and back of the unit, but make sure nothing is hanging down at the west or firebox end. these layers of insulation help more than you can imagine no matter what climate you live in and will drastically cut down on your charcoal or wood consumption - moreover, temps should even out very closely across the chamber. it looks as redneck as it sounds, but it WORKS, and that's what matters. before long, you will get pretty good at folding the blankets so that they fit just right and will aslo be able to lift them off and put them back on easily as you add, remove or check the meat, spritz or mop etc.
the above mods work, and work well, and hardly cost anything at all. having said that, they can be improved upon with some investment in materials and welding. i consider most of the Quick & Dirty mods to be good "poor man's substitutes" for what ultimately needs to be done.
for your first "real" and "permanent" mod, i suggest going to your local muffler shop and buying a length of new 2.5-inch exhaust pipe. the length should be 9.5 inches, with a 45-degree angle cut at one end. after having him expand two inches of the end of the pipe to fit the base of your chimney (which is somewhere between 2.5 and three inches), it will sit very snugly in the base and extend the chimney 7.5 inches down into your smoking chamber, ending just above the grate (you will need to remove your warming rack or do some cutting on it to accomodate the "swing" of the extension). this forces the air, heat and smoke to draw across the bottom of the smoke chamber, rather than skirt straight up diagnally from the firebox to the chimney at the far end. cost me four bucks.
