Drum smokers, are they a thing now?

[Chasdev]

I caught a fairly recently made BBQ cookoff show this past weekend, with Michael Simon as the host.
He was at a cookoff in Texas and several of the teams used what looked like 55 gal drums with a tilt lid and exhaust on top.
Both the teams using them were past champs with top shelf records at cook offs.
So who makes them and why are they not everywhere?

 

[chilerelleno]

They've been a thing for years, heck decades.
They're just not as popular or common as more traditional setups.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

Look up UDS, or Ugly Drum Smoker. I've considered getting one myself, but it seems my WSM is awfully close to a UDS. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[thirdeye]

Not sure what you mean by 'tilt lid', but Gateway Drums are popular at competitions. Tim Scheers (Shake ‘n Bake competition team) owns the company and also owns Blues Hog.

I've cooked on BDS (Big Drum Smokers) for 15+ years and really like them.

 

[pc farmer]

I made my own drum smoke and it works great. Flat lid, not sure what a tilt lid is.

 

[DougE]

Drum smokers have been a thing for as long as I can remember, though not as common today as they once were.

 

[Bigtank]

I made one using a kit I got from Big Papa Smokers, I haven't used it in quite a while. I was thinking about trying it on a low slow smoke of summer sausage. The Gateway is kind of the leader of the fast and hot, cookers. I've had some good ribs from them once at a competition, but I'm a low & slow kind of guy.

 

[kelbro]

Mine has a few (hundred) smokes on it. Downsized from a big offset. No regrets!

 

[912smoker]

Yes definitely big on the comp trail due to hot/fast and set it and forget it when you get em dailed in. Have several friends/teams that use them with great success and have also been very interested in getting a couple but waiting on the "whole hog" version to be released lol. Blue Hog team won Memphis in May 2 yrs in a row on this monster


Keith

 

[Brokenhandle]

Yes definitely big on the comp trail due to hot/fast and set it and forget it when you get em dailed in. Have several friends/teams that use them with great success and have also been very interested in getting a couple but waiting on the "whole hog" version to be released lol. Blue Hog team won Memphis in May 2 yrs in a row on this monster
View attachment 667279

Keith

Go big or go home... right Keith?

Ryan

 

[thirdeye]

Drum smokers have been a thing for as long as I can remember, though not as common today as they once were.

I'm not sure. The Pit Barrel cookers have a huge following and now they have several sizes. These are more affordable, and compete with a WSM.

I made one using a kit I got from Big Papa Smokers, I haven't used it in quite a while. I was thinking about trying it on a low slow smoke of summer sausage. The Gateway is kind of the leader of the fast and hot, cookers. I've had some good ribs from them once at a competition, but I'm a low & slow kind of guy.

Well, a drum acts just like a chimney. You can smoke at 250° or at 350° with different vent settings.

 

[DougE]

I'm not sure. The Pit Barrel cookers have a huge following and now they have several sizes. These are more affordable, and compete with a WSM.

I had the home made outfits more in mind than the factory made when I said that.

 

[JIMSMOKES]

Been thinkin bout building me another one. Waitin clamp top drum to show up at work.

 

[DougE]

Been thinkin bout building me another one. Waitin clamp top drum to show up at work.

I've been going to, but clamp top drums aren't as easy to find as the standard ones. I see them all the time on Craig's List, but the drum re-sellers are mostly farther than I want to drive for something I don't really need. lol

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

I've been going to, but clamp top drums aren't as easy to find as the standard ones. I see them all the time on Craig's List, but the drum re-sellers are mostly farther than I want to drive for something I don't really need. lol

What are the odds "want" overcomes "need" on this one? HA!

 

[BandCollector]

I had the home made outfits more in mind than the factory made when I said that.

Back To My Roots--UDS Style with Tutorial

Years ago when I first joined this site, UDS builds were very popular. At that time I decided to build one and was glad I did because I learned a lot from many members here and was able to produce some wonderful meals on that old barrel. Also, there were some tutorials by fellow members that...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

Easy and fun to make. . .Work as well as anything on the market.

John

 

[GA1dad]

I've been using a UDS at home (and an occasional comp ) for about 11 years and the bottom has developed multiple rust holes. I keep saying I'm gonna throw it out and build a new one,,,, but for the last couple of years I've simply covered the holes with foil and smoked on. One of my favorite cookers ever.

 

[Chasdev]

How does it work on a long cook like a brisket low and slow, it would seem to be a hot and fast only rig with the meat right over the fire.
AND how do you get clear blue smoke, the ones on the TV show were smoking like crazy which is verboten if driving a stick burner, no?

 

[Chasdev]

Not sure what you mean by 'tilt lid', but Gateway Drums are popular at competitions. Tim Scheers (Shake ‘n Bake competition team) owns the company and also owns Blues Hog.

I've cooked on BDS (Big Drum Smokers) for 15+ years and really like them.

The lid has hinges and it opens and tilts out of the way, rather than needing to be lifted up and off completly to access the meat.

 

[thirdeye]

I've been going to, but clamp top drums aren't as easy to find as the standard ones. I see them all the time on Craig's List, but the drum re-sellers are mostly farther than I want to drive for something I don't really need. lol

Call your city landfill and see if they can steer you toward a company that sells "Hazmat" drums. Normally, they are thicker steel, have a clamp top, are unlined and sometimes have a stronger band on the bottom

How does it work on a long cook like a brisket low and slow, it would seem to be a hot and fast only rig with the meat right over the fire.
AND how do you get clear blue smoke, the ones on the TV show were smoking like crazy which is verboten if driving a stick burner, no?

You adjust the intake to dial in any temp you like. I made larger charcoal baskets and I can get upwards of 30 hours of burn time depending on pit temp. Depending on the height of your drum (mine are taller than normal) the meat is way above the coals. It's like open pit BBQ, without the hole. Because little flavor bombs of fat fall into the charcoal, you don't get blue smoke. This is typical early on in the cook, then the volume of smoke settles down.

The lid has hinges and it opens and tilts out of the way, rather than needing to be lifted up and off completly to access the meat.

Gotcha. I've seen those at udsparts.com