Earl P (BamZipPow)
TVWBB Member
This was an idea I came up with this morning. Got tired of the metal eye bolt handles as they were always a "pain" to handle when hot. 
So I got to thinking...how to attach a wooden handle or even a custom handle to the vent dampers?
My simple low cost approach was to use a 1/4" bolt, automotive reinforced rubber hose (scrap), block of 1x2 wood (scrap), and a T-nut. Drilling a 5/16" hole through the center of the block of wood, I tapped the T-nut into place. A quick spray of paint over the piece should work to make it visible and protected. The rubber hose acts as a spacer to keep the handle tight to the vent damper when the wood piece is threaded onto the bolt. The hose should also be able to "handle" the heat coming off the Weber as well. If you don't want the T-nut to show, you can easily glue a piece of wood over the T-nut if yer not adding another custom piece on the front. You can even use two 1/4" nuts to lock the bolt to the vent damper and lock the handle in place in lieu of the rubber hose if you are in an area where yer custom handle could "walk" away.
Now you can add yer favorite emblem/logo/piece to the wood block to give yer own smoker that added touch. Glue it on or how ever you want to attach it to the wood block. You can also swap out different handles fairly quickly depending on yer mood or fer yer cookouts. You can set it up fer opposing teams! Use yer imagination!
Quick piccies...
Upper vent damper...
Lower vent damper...
Handle guard doing it's job...
My cheap approach to lifting the hot IMUSA pot using strips from the charcoal bag (one fer each handle)...
The rig doing some work...
So I got to thinking...how to attach a wooden handle or even a custom handle to the vent dampers?
My simple low cost approach was to use a 1/4" bolt, automotive reinforced rubber hose (scrap), block of 1x2 wood (scrap), and a T-nut. Drilling a 5/16" hole through the center of the block of wood, I tapped the T-nut into place. A quick spray of paint over the piece should work to make it visible and protected. The rubber hose acts as a spacer to keep the handle tight to the vent damper when the wood piece is threaded onto the bolt. The hose should also be able to "handle" the heat coming off the Weber as well. If you don't want the T-nut to show, you can easily glue a piece of wood over the T-nut if yer not adding another custom piece on the front. You can even use two 1/4" nuts to lock the bolt to the vent damper and lock the handle in place in lieu of the rubber hose if you are in an area where yer custom handle could "walk" away.
Now you can add yer favorite emblem/logo/piece to the wood block to give yer own smoker that added touch. Glue it on or how ever you want to attach it to the wood block. You can also swap out different handles fairly quickly depending on yer mood or fer yer cookouts. You can set it up fer opposing teams! Use yer imagination!
Quick piccies...
Upper vent damper...
Lower vent damper...
Handle guard doing it's job...
My cheap approach to lifting the hot IMUSA pot using strips from the charcoal bag (one fer each handle)...
The rig doing some work...
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