What started out as a simple modification ballooned into what I have today which is:
22.5 WSM
- Beer bottle opener (easy)
- Hinged Lid plus it doubles as pull behind support
- Wheels that are just barely off the ground when the WSM is upright
- Two 180 degree fasteners for the lower level so the WSM will stay together as a pull behind.
- Upgraded thermometer in the lid
- Hole for probes
- Handles on the side
- Gasket on the WSM door
Here is a link to several photos of my WSM:
http://www.pbase.com/callaway/...ase.com/callaway/wsm
Photo of the pull behind:
Photo of the Hinged lid:
LESSONS LEARNED:
WHEELS:
Yes I mounted them just off the ground because I wanted my WSM to be stable, we have high winds in KS.
BEER BOTTLE OPENER:
Now I always know where one is, Installed with Stainless Steel Hardware.
UPGRADED THERMOMETER:
Glows in the dark which is a plus, usually reads 25 degrees warmer than the stock unit. My WSM is almost one year old btw.
GASKET ON THE DOOR:
My local BBQ shop sells these. Don't really remember who makes them but it's a cut to fit and self adhesive backing.
HOLE FOR PROBES:
Just a drilled hole, I need to finish it off to keep it from rusting.
HANDLES ON THE SIDES:
180 degrees apart. I put two washers between the handle and the WSM to reduce the amount of heat transfer. If I had it to do again, would probably research some type of fiber washer that would reduce heat transfer even more. These handles help to rotate the body of the WSM (more on that later).
Figuring out the wheels and securing the sections together to make it a true pull behind took some thought and about all the intelligence I could muster ;-)
The lid is heavy and I wanted the hinge of the lid to support the WSM as I pulled it behind me. This meant the hinge had to be at the bottom as I pulled the WSM behind me for support. Having the hinge at the top would result in the top just lifting off as I tried to pull it behind me. This caused an immediate issue with stability when the lid was open. The weight of the open lid and the wheels being behind the WSM meant it could easily fall backward. To remedy this situation and to fasten the lowest section to the middle section I installed two fasteners exactly 180 degrees apart. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT and took a lot of trial and error. My WSM can be spun around 180 degrees and locked in position and then spun around 180 degrees and locked into position again. This engineering enables me to position the WSM with the wheels in front and the dead leg (leg with no wheels) at the back. This way, with the lip open the WSM is completely stable. I unlock, spin the WSM 180 degrees and lock it back up and I'm ready to pull the WSM behind me. See photos to better understand this..
The Hinge itself is a gate hinge from Home Depot. I'm not an engineer but observing the lid open/close, I knew I needed a way to position the hinge away from the body of the WSM using spacers. The moment the lip lifts, the lid edge closest to the hinge is being pulled up and away, so opening and closing the WSM is extremely easy and smooth. I used stainless steel hardware to attach the gate hinge. You will see a couple places in the photo where I a failed attempt was covered up ;-)
I used chain and spray painted it black, attached with stainless steel hardware, again to provide a stop for the lid. If I had this to do over I would add a piece of aluminum on the inside where the gate hinge attaches at the bottom for additional support as the WSM walls are thin compared to the weight of the lid.
I feel a weak spot is the handle on the top, I don't load up my WSM when I pull it behind me. It is difficult to pull thru tall grass but a breeze pulling it to the hot coals dumpster at a competition last weekend, disconnected the bottom section and dumped the coals. Will eventually upgrade the top handle to something a little stronger.
All in all it has been a fun adventure and I already have a list of more mods to do!!
22.5 WSM
- Beer bottle opener (easy)
- Hinged Lid plus it doubles as pull behind support
- Wheels that are just barely off the ground when the WSM is upright
- Two 180 degree fasteners for the lower level so the WSM will stay together as a pull behind.
- Upgraded thermometer in the lid
- Hole for probes
- Handles on the side
- Gasket on the WSM door
Here is a link to several photos of my WSM:
http://www.pbase.com/callaway/...ase.com/callaway/wsm
Photo of the pull behind:
Photo of the Hinged lid:
LESSONS LEARNED:
WHEELS:
Yes I mounted them just off the ground because I wanted my WSM to be stable, we have high winds in KS.
BEER BOTTLE OPENER:
Now I always know where one is, Installed with Stainless Steel Hardware.
UPGRADED THERMOMETER:
Glows in the dark which is a plus, usually reads 25 degrees warmer than the stock unit. My WSM is almost one year old btw.
GASKET ON THE DOOR:
My local BBQ shop sells these. Don't really remember who makes them but it's a cut to fit and self adhesive backing.
HOLE FOR PROBES:
Just a drilled hole, I need to finish it off to keep it from rusting.
HANDLES ON THE SIDES:
180 degrees apart. I put two washers between the handle and the WSM to reduce the amount of heat transfer. If I had it to do again, would probably research some type of fiber washer that would reduce heat transfer even more. These handles help to rotate the body of the WSM (more on that later).
Figuring out the wheels and securing the sections together to make it a true pull behind took some thought and about all the intelligence I could muster ;-)
The lid is heavy and I wanted the hinge of the lid to support the WSM as I pulled it behind me. This meant the hinge had to be at the bottom as I pulled the WSM behind me for support. Having the hinge at the top would result in the top just lifting off as I tried to pull it behind me. This caused an immediate issue with stability when the lid was open. The weight of the open lid and the wheels being behind the WSM meant it could easily fall backward. To remedy this situation and to fasten the lowest section to the middle section I installed two fasteners exactly 180 degrees apart. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT and took a lot of trial and error. My WSM can be spun around 180 degrees and locked in position and then spun around 180 degrees and locked into position again. This engineering enables me to position the WSM with the wheels in front and the dead leg (leg with no wheels) at the back. This way, with the lip open the WSM is completely stable. I unlock, spin the WSM 180 degrees and lock it back up and I'm ready to pull the WSM behind me. See photos to better understand this..
The Hinge itself is a gate hinge from Home Depot. I'm not an engineer but observing the lid open/close, I knew I needed a way to position the hinge away from the body of the WSM using spacers. The moment the lip lifts, the lid edge closest to the hinge is being pulled up and away, so opening and closing the WSM is extremely easy and smooth. I used stainless steel hardware to attach the gate hinge. You will see a couple places in the photo where I a failed attempt was covered up ;-)
I used chain and spray painted it black, attached with stainless steel hardware, again to provide a stop for the lid. If I had this to do over I would add a piece of aluminum on the inside where the gate hinge attaches at the bottom for additional support as the WSM walls are thin compared to the weight of the lid.
I feel a weak spot is the handle on the top, I don't load up my WSM when I pull it behind me. It is difficult to pull thru tall grass but a breeze pulling it to the hot coals dumpster at a competition last weekend, disconnected the bottom section and dumped the coals. Will eventually upgrade the top handle to something a little stronger.
All in all it has been a fun adventure and I already have a list of more mods to do!!
