dasbear
Fire Starter
Ye haw! All the stuff I ordered arrived safe and sound this week so I will be picking up most all misc. hardware for the shelf supports, element mounting, heat deflector and drip pan soon.
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1950-60's comercial freezer build
- Thread starter dasbear
- Start date
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dasbear
Fire Starter
Well I've been making pretty good progress this week picked up some old bed frames for (12)16" shelf supports, (28)1/4"x20 rivnuts installed for angle iron shelf supports then yesterday my 9yr old asked if he could help work on the smoker with me so we spent 2 hours clearing an area in the garage so we would be out of the rain, moved the smoker in and he helped drill holes for mounting the burner to the ele. face plate and install on cooking chamber. Tomorrow I will cut the rest of the steel roof flashing for the 3" transition from housing to cook chamber. Will post more pics soon.
toddius999
Newbie
- Jan 30, 2014
- 1
- 10
I have almost an identical fridge that I've just started working on. I am looking forward to seeing how you handle the door gasket, replacing those plastic transitions and the shelving. Thank you for taking us along.
dasbear
Fire Starter
I'm starting to get excited about the smoker again but I must say researching all the similar builds and deciding exactly how you want to bring all those cool build ideas into your own smoker design is the hardest part. I had a tough time looking for AFFORDABLE shelf options so for now I am using 24"x14" chrome shelves (6 for 40.00) in a 27x17 space if I find larger shelves later on I can move the angle iron supports out to the sides. I will be adding quite a few pics soon
dasbear
Fire Starter
Newest pics as promised. So I finally got the traction / momentum I needed to see this project through though still a couple weeks outI have been researching all of the builds on this forum and quite the collection of "AWESOME SMOKERS" it was over whelming at first but I survived. The duel probe PID will be mounted on the right side of lower cabinet in a stainless steel faced drawer so cables are routed to that side and I will keep a foil pan under air intake on left side.
Junction box elbow - element power cord will feed into this directly to lower cabinet
The inner cabinet will be supported by (2) 1/2" copper pipes screwed to PT 2x4's which are well outside the range of heat
1-1/2"x 6"chrome pltd sink drain with a low profile 1/8" flange the strainer cup should keep out most bugs while directing any spills to a foil try below it will also serve as a air intake
access plate to element cord
insulating went very fast These Roxul batts are way stiffer then the old Rockwool insulation we used to use in residential construction.
The drain is just there for a visual it will have to drop in from smoke chamber once it installed.
temp probe taped to back so I can fish it down through bottom after cabinet is installed I do not want any exposed wires on outside of smoker if I can avoid it, the meat probe will also be fed into smoker via conduit or a sidewall jack mounted to inner cabinet wall then plugged into controller below.
Next 3 pics are of the transition pieces from cabinet to body I used a heavy gauge sheet metal roof to wall flashing to replace the original thick plastic type material
Junction box elbow - element power cord will feed into this directly to lower cabinet
The inner cabinet will be supported by (2) 1/2" copper pipes screwed to PT 2x4's which are well outside the range of heat
1-1/2"x 6"chrome pltd sink drain with a low profile 1/8" flange the strainer cup should keep out most bugs while directing any spills to a foil try below it will also serve as a air intake
access plate to element cord
insulating went very fast These Roxul batts are way stiffer then the old Rockwool insulation we used to use in residential construction.
The drain is just there for a visual it will have to drop in from smoke chamber once it installed.
temp probe taped to back so I can fish it down through bottom after cabinet is installed I do not want any exposed wires on outside of smoker if I can avoid it, the meat probe will also be fed into smoker via conduit or a sidewall jack mounted to inner cabinet wall then plugged into controller below.
Next 3 pics are of the transition pieces from cabinet to body I used a heavy gauge sheet metal roof to wall flashing to replace the original thick plastic type material
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That sure looks nice...... Good job...... Thumbs Up
dasbear
Fire Starter
Here is a few more pics. If anyone has a question just fire away.
cord for heating element will feed into Jbox shown at bottom of main body interior if replacement should ever be necessary.
1800 watt Brinkman on 1" mud ring
all cracks, joints and holes sealed with high temp silicone
here you can see the old light socket hole with knockout filler
about 2/3 of the way up. I really contemplated reinstalling it with its pressure door switch but the light would just get all smoke covered any how. Speaking of light I found a brand new SS Hanging pots/pan rack with 2 down lights in the scrap metal bin at the county dump still had the price tag on it too. Not really sure how to use it over the top for light without it looking out of place but I will post a pic of it soon for idea's
Here you can see the difference in width between the 24" shelves and 27" smoke box so what I'm hoping to do is use a 1-1/2"L X 1" dia. SS closet rod I have left over from a remodel for spacers for the 1-1/4" angle iron shelf supports
cord for heating element will feed into Jbox shown at bottom of main body interior if replacement should ever be necessary.
1800 watt Brinkman on 1" mud ring
all cracks, joints and holes sealed with high temp silicone
here you can see the old light socket hole with knockout filler
about 2/3 of the way up. I really contemplated reinstalling it with its pressure door switch but the light would just get all smoke covered any how. Speaking of light I found a brand new SS Hanging pots/pan rack with 2 down lights in the scrap metal bin at the county dump still had the price tag on it too. Not really sure how to use it over the top for light without it looking out of place but I will post a pic of it soon for idea's
Here you can see the difference in width between the 24" shelves and 27" smoke box so what I'm hoping to do is use a 1-1/2"L X 1" dia. SS closet rod I have left over from a remodel for spacers for the 1-1/4" angle iron shelf supports
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dasbear
Fire Starter
Well I ran into a little bit of a glitch today. I decided to use a dark bronze metal roof flashing for the body to box transition this worked really well for the door rebuild that I finished last summer but seems to be too flimsy for the housing to box so it buckles all over if there is the slightest bit of tension. There are about 20 screws 3" apart on all sides but the flashing still manages to buckle up in several places. I'm thinking about buying some new metal and make some templates for each piece with more exact hole placement to see if I can overcome the buckling issue that way. The alternative is thicker aluminum sheet an expense I would really like to avoid if I can.
dasbear
Fire Starter
After looking over all the flashing again 3 of the 4 sides have a reasonably good fit and the one that doesn't is the left side. You can see it and the cause in one of the pictures before the burner/shelf pics. The interior box was fabricated in pieces that required welding the seams wherever they were. You can see a bend on the lower left inside with a wide line traveling to the back. I think if I remove the left flashing I might be able to straighten it enough to relieve the tension. The black flashing turned out to be perfect for that "authentic" original appearance I was looking for however it has also been the biggest pain for fit/finish to deal with. A thicker stiffer metal would have been easier to work with no doubt.
Is the problem you are describing going to have an effect on the smoker or is it a cosmetic concern.......
treym64
Smoke Blower
You might want to put like a lave rock under coil so it does not bend, also I coat mine with olive oil and heat for 5 hrs and then smoke for 1 hr with any type of pellet or chips or sawdust
treym64
Smoke Blower
Looking good can't wait to see it finished
dasbear
Fire Starter
DaveOmak its just cosmetic I'm sure the silicone would seal the gap. What I discovered when I started working on the freezer is the maker stamped holes in the SS flange then riveted a 5/8"x1/8" brass strip with threaded holes in it behind the flange. The problem is the stamped holes and threaded holes don't even remotely line up then I add a transition piece = a ROYAL PITB. I keep telling myself OK FOCUS, FOCUS, SMOKE warm wonderful SMOKE, Pork Butts, Brisket, Chicky Butts, Smoked Bacon wrap'd poppers Yeh baby Its just around the corner.
dasbear
Fire Starter
TreyM64 Do you mean the element will bend? I have some copper pipe legs I'm adding to it for support just didn't have them in pics but I didn't know the element could bend. Thank's
treym64
Smoke Blower
I have always seen the element supported
On that one can you control temp
On that one can you control temp
mchar69
Smoke Blower
This is a fascinating thread and I wonder how I missed it?
I am surprised Insulation in the walls/doors
doesn't melt or burn.
You are Oh so close!
I am surprised Insulation in the walls/doors
doesn't melt or burn.
You are Oh so close!
dasbear
Fire Starter
Yes I am glad I decided against regular insulation however it is still in the door for now and I have plenty of roxul to replace the pink stuff when I get to it. TreyM64 yes temp will be controlled by a programmable duel probe Aubrins PID from below the smoke chamber.
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If you look closely at the element closeup pic, you can see it is supported by 2 pegs. I have the same on mine. I can lift it up slightly and slide a piecd of foil underneath for easier cleaning. After 2 years, it has not bent at all.
dasbear
Fire Starter
The element is a little higher then the stock legs so I cut some 1/2" copper to go the extra 3/4" down I will add them when its finished.
dasbear
Fire Starter
Need some advise on which pipe to use as spacers for shelf angle. I have two types one is chromed steel closet rod 1-1/8" its interior has some mild rust spots in it I also have 3/4" copper pipe. My concern is will there be enough moisture in the smoker to cause rust to start seeping out and running down the inside of the smoker from the steel pipe?
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