New Guy with many questions

[lukeott]

Hello All, Have many questions and not quite sure if this is the right spot to ask or even if I'll ask the right questions. I think you should know that I've never smoked before or even helped in anyway. Never been around anyone who smokes. Can just say that I've enjoyed from roadside and BBQ shops. Now you know that I know exactly nothing, so here goes the questions. As for building smokers, which type is preferred. What I mean is vertical style or horizontal or both. Pro' and con's. I see many make the long horizontal style, but wonder if you can hang meat to cure. Could be they are different animals. I have the know how to fabricate and weld up anything as long as I get the principle of the smoking system. I see there are members who have built some good looking smokers and more then likely will copy one of theirs if they will allow without upsetting them. Is there a section here that explains the process from start to finish, as to starting the fire to getting proper heat and keeping the right heat plus the smoke. I'll stop there for now, because i can see my questions are kinda scrambled and all over the place. Thanks. 

                                                                              luke

 

[palladini]

I would build an upright one, smoke does travel up.  Besides, if your going to hang anything, an upright makes more sense.

I would see if you could find an old round corned fridge.  A hotplate, a cast iron pan could be your heat and smoke maker.  The rest should pretty straight forward.  For cold smoking, visit your local HVAC shop, get some single wall piping, some elbows and stuff, build yourself a fire pit about 10 to 12 feet from the smoker and run those pipes up to the bottom of the smoker, now you can cold smoke.  Burying the pipes would be better.

Or just go and buy a smoker, probably quicker and cheaper.