Morning, New too the forum but not to eating smoked foods! Had a small smoker but it was electric and the element died. Made smoked ribs, cheese and salmon. Some years back we stayed at a CG in northern Az. and the camp host was smoking trout from the nearby stream. WOW! Well we camp in our 5th wheel take along our Weber Q and I would like to have a smoker to tend on those forest days I don't fish. The Mini seems like just the size I need. I love building things and I am between furniture projects so I lucked upon this forum. I have read a number of posts and seen some great looking Mini's built by other members, but have not ran across my questions. So here goes. I saw a ytube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcL23JV1y8M and like the hole method for the bottom of the steamer pot, (neat and clean). What seems to be the preferred method and why? Second Is there a steamer pot that does not require crimping so the top fits correctly? I look forward to hearing from some of you and your thoughts. Thanks!
Build question, Holes or cut outs?
- Thread starter SJames
- Start date
Rich Dahl
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
Welcome to the forum! What you want and it may be hard to find and also a little more expensive is the vasconia 32-quart aluminum steamer like is shown in the video. It's a perfect fit both top and bottom for the Smokey Joe.
I built mine over a year ago and I'm just amazed how well it works and how little fuel it uses.
As far as the bottom goes I think most cut out the bottom and leave about 1" of the bottom around the edge for support and use the diffuser plate (A clay Saucer) to direct the heat up the sides, you get a little more room for your coals doing it that way.
But drilling holes will work also.
Lots of builds on here to use for reference, if you build one make sure to start a thread and ask questions if needed.
Good luck!
I built mine over a year ago and I'm just amazed how well it works and how little fuel it uses.
As far as the bottom goes I think most cut out the bottom and leave about 1" of the bottom around the edge for support and use the diffuser plate (A clay Saucer) to direct the heat up the sides, you get a little more room for your coals doing it that way.
But drilling holes will work also.
Lots of builds on here to use for reference, if you build one make sure to start a thread and ask questions if needed.
Good luck!
ChuckO
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
I drilled the bottom of mine and I'm this close to cutting the bottom out
I was one of those who figured my mini was going to be mostly for "slow cooking" (smoking) and it did a great job, but I was stuck smoking stuff that had to be done within 3 hours which wasn't what I hoped for. So I moved off slow cooking and went for fast cooking (temps > 300) and I found it very difficult to get to 300. The only way I could was to not assemble the cooker until the coals were fully lit, and that greatly reduce cooking time
Since then, I've made some mods to mine, and I'm now able to get to 5 hours cooking and I can exceed 300 degrees. My point being, if you want to hit 300 degrees, it will be easier for you to do so, if you cut out the bottom. But...If you're one who's going to cook < 275, then having the holes in the bottom makes for a defuser in a roundabout way.
My current set up is a SJ Silver, with four 1/4" holes drilled into the charcoal bin at grate height. I run a 8" clay defuser except when I want high heat, I then just run with the pot (holes cut out in the bottom)
There isn't a "preferred method" (if you ask me) because so many people go at it with vast different approaches. So the preferred method all depends on you. The good thing is you can mod your mini as needed. The better thing, is most mods are free
I was one of those who figured my mini was going to be mostly for "slow cooking" (smoking) and it did a great job, but I was stuck smoking stuff that had to be done within 3 hours which wasn't what I hoped for. So I moved off slow cooking and went for fast cooking (temps > 300) and I found it very difficult to get to 300. The only way I could was to not assemble the cooker until the coals were fully lit, and that greatly reduce cooking time
Since then, I've made some mods to mine, and I'm now able to get to 5 hours cooking and I can exceed 300 degrees. My point being, if you want to hit 300 degrees, it will be easier for you to do so, if you cut out the bottom. But...If you're one who's going to cook < 275, then having the holes in the bottom makes for a defuser in a roundabout way.
My current set up is a SJ Silver, with four 1/4" holes drilled into the charcoal bin at grate height. I run a 8" clay defuser except when I want high heat, I then just run with the pot (holes cut out in the bottom)
There isn't a "preferred method" (if you ask me) because so many people go at it with vast different approaches. So the preferred method all depends on you. The good thing is you can mod your mini as needed. The better thing, is most mods are free
Tommy B
TVWBB Pro
I was on the fence on to cut out the bottom or cut it out. I decided to drill holes and if I was not satisfied with how it worked I could cut the bottom out later on. After cooking several times i have no plans to cut to bottom out. It works great. As for the pot I had a hard time tracking one down. Visit my build thread here. I ordered the imusa pot and it did not fit so I returned and ended up going to academy and buying a pot there that fit great. Let me know if you have any questions
CaseT
TVWBB Platinum Member
On my first pot I drilled the hole. That was okay, but I couldn't get the temps I wanted. So I bought another pot and cut out the bottom so I could do a comparison. Needless to say I cut the bottom out the original pot. Another benefit to having the bottom cut out is you can overload the charcoal. By doing this I can get a 10-12 hour smoke @ 265°
Original:
Second pot:
Original pot with bottom cut out. Looks like crap because I had to run the jigsaw around the bolts that hold the lid to the bottom.
Original:
Second pot:
Original pot with bottom cut out. Looks like crap because I had to run the jigsaw around the bolts that hold the lid to the bottom.