Made a Stacker & Hanging Rack for the 14.5
- Thread starter Robert-R
- Start date
Dwain Pannell
TVWBB Hall of Fame
Nice job. I need to make a hanging rack.
Robert-R
TVWBB Diamond Member
Thanks for the compliments Dwain & Tom. Much appreciated.
The original plan for the stacker was to cut up a $10 CL Smokey Joe to re-purpose the factory ends and weld them to a fabricated chamber (16 gauge surplus. I buy "drops" & used metal to save $$$. 18 gauge would have been preferred, there wasn't any that day). Cutting up the SJ wasn't hard but grinding the porcelain enamel rim was a *****. Welding it to the chamber became a nightmare. Wasn't going to go through that again. So I made the top flange from some small angle iron. That worked well. If I ever made one again (very doubtful), it would have saved a lot of time & been a much better job to make a hoop out of 1/4" dia. rod and weld it to the chamber instead of horsing around with the cut up SJ (RIP SJ... you paid the ultimate price).
A few pix to walk through the process:
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Robert-R
TVWBB Diamond Member
Brian Moriarty
TVWBB All-Star
Very nice! It really shows in the extra effort you took on this build.
Allen Bales
TVWBB Member
I am planning on making one for my 14. already picked up the rod. If you could provide the dimensions it would save me some time. I noticed in the rib cook picture that one of the top bars had been removed. In the chicken cook pictures it was on all four sides. Wondering what the reason was
glen jones
TVWBB Pro
Very good !!!
Robert-R
TVWBB Diamond Member
The bottom ring is approx 13.5" in Diameter. It sits on the brackets that hold the top cooking grate. The top is 6" square and is approx 5.5" above ground zero. I removed one side of the top to make adding & removing chickens, ribs & etc easier. The rack is still plenty strong.
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Thank you!!!
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Robert-R
TVWBB Diamond Member
Thank you very much for your kind words.
I've been very pleased with the stacker & hanging rack.
They work very well & I use them often.
Since it's just my wife & I, the 14.5 WSM sees a lot of action.
The fuel consumption is miserly & cleaning hooks is super EZ as opposed to cooking grates or rib racks.
The stacker setup is a bit leaky so temps run high... talking about 270* & up, but that's ok, imho.
Easily controllable with a MM start - just have to stay on top of the game.
Added 3 vents to the 14.5: one on the lid & two on the bottom.
With the extra vents... 400* + cooks are EZ (great for chicken - & uses more fuel).
I've found I like cooking at higher heat ranges - things cook faster & the end result seems to be just as good.
If I wish to stay low & slow, I don't use the stacker - however... haven't done that since adding the vents to the charcoal bowl & lid.
I should check that out one of these days.
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Robert-R
TVWBB Diamond Member
I'm going to make another stacker.... not as tall. Maybe about 1/2 or 2/3 the height.
The current one is fine for ribs, however... I think it's a bit tall for chicken, tri-tip, al pastor & other stuff.
It should perform the same & use less fuel, I hope.
The current one is fine for ribs, however... I think it's a bit tall for chicken, tri-tip, al pastor & other stuff.
It should perform the same & use less fuel, I hope.
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Enrico Brandizzi
TVWBB Honor Circle
Robert you did a great job!